The Kusa Jataka: A Tale of Love, Sacrifice, and Wisdom

The Kusa Jataka is a tale of intense romantic love, self-sacrifice, and spiritual wisdom. It revolves around the Bodhisatta, who was once a king, and his difficult and long journey to win back the heart of his wife. Through his trials and sufferings, the story explores themes of attachment, karmic consequences, and the power of selflessness.

The Plot

The King’s Desire for an Heir

In the past, the Bodhisatta was born to a king who, despite having sixteen thousand wives, could not conceive a son. Fearing that the kingdom would fall into chaos without an heir, the king’s loyal citizens demanded that he find a way to have a child. The king made an attempt to conceive with many women, including his dancers and wives, but none succeeded. Desperate, he called upon his chief queen to try to conceive, and Indra, the king of the gods, intervened in disguise.

Indra, in the form of an elderly Brahmin, took the queen away and offered her a wish. She asked for a son, and Indra granted her request, giving her two sons: one ugly but wise, and the other handsome but foolish. The Bodhisatta, the ugly son, was born first, and his handsome brother followed two years later.

The Bodhisatta’s Early Life and Renunciation

The Bodhisatta, though physically unattractive, was highly intelligent and taught himself rather than seeking out teachers. When he turned sixteen, his father decided to pass on the throne to him. The king and queen asked him whom he would like to marry, but the Bodhisatta, understanding that no princess would ever marry someone so ugly, planned to renounce the throne and become an ascetic after their death.

To prevent this, the king insisted that he marry a princess. The Bodhisatta, not wanting to upset his parents, devised a clever solution. He created a golden statue of a woman more beautiful than any living person and declared that he would marry only a woman who resembled the statue. His parents sent emissaries across India with the statue in search of such a princess.

The Queen’s Unwillingness

The emissaries reached a royal city where a hunchbacked servant of a princess mistakenly slapped the statue, thinking it was her mistress. After realizing her mistake, the servant led the emissaries to the princess, and the marriage negotiations began. However, the Bodhisatta’s mother had to resort to trickery, telling the princess that a family tradition prevented wives from seeing their husbands in the daylight before the birth of their first child.

The princess agreed to the arrangement, and the Bodhisatta was married. However, despite their wedding, he remained hidden in the shadows, and the queen had no idea of his appearance.

The Bodhisatta’s Clever Schemes

To ensure that his wife would not reject him upon seeing his ugliness, the Bodhisatta played pranks on her while disguised as an elephant keeper and later as a stable boy. These pranks, which involved throwing elephant dung on the queen’s back, angered her, but the queen mother helped to calm her down each time.

Eventually, the queen began to ask to see her husband during the day. The Bodhisatta, disguised as the mahout (elephant keeper), was placed behind his handsome brother during a city procession. The queen, initially pleased with the sight of her handsome “husband,” later realized that the repulsive man waving wildly from behind the procession was indeed the Bodhisatta. The queen, horrified, fled to her father’s palace.

The Bodhisatta’s Pursuit of His Wife

Despite his wife’s rejection, the Bodhisatta vowed to win her back. He set out on a hundred-league journey to find her, carrying only a lute and a few supplies. When he arrived at her father’s city, the Bodhisatta began playing beautiful music, which intrigued the king, who sought to hire the mysterious musician. However, the Bodhisatta knew that playing music would not get him closer to his wife. He disguised himself as an apprentice to the royal potter and later worked as a basket weaver, a gardener, and even the king’s cook.

In each of these roles, the Bodhisatta made special gifts for his wife. His love and creativity were evident in the beautiful pots, fans, and garlands he crafted for her. Yet each time, the queen refused to accept them, not realizing that they were made by her husband.

The Queen’s Realization

After months of desperate work, the Bodhisatta finally resorted to serving as a cook in the king’s kitchen. One day, the queen insulted him in front of others, shouting that he was an ugly man who was beneath her. The Bodhisatta remained patient, declaring that he loved her more than the throne and would endure anything to be near her. The queen continued to scorn him, but the Bodhisatta persisted.

He offered to fix the hunchback of her servant and promised a gold necklace if she arranged a meeting. The queen, however, remained resolute in her refusal. After seven months of struggling, the Bodhisatta gave up. But just then, Indra intervened and arranged for a royal crisis: seven kings, each seeking the queen as a bride, surrounded her father’s city. The king, unable to decide who would marry his daughter without angering the others, decided to kill her to prevent war.

The Bodhisatta’s Triumph

Hearing of the queen’s imminent death, the Bodhisatta revealed himself to be the man who had been enduring so much for her love. He put aside his disguise, donned his royal attire, and mounted a trained war elephant. With his wife riding behind him, the Bodhisatta led the army to confront the seven kings, who fled in fear at the sight of his power.

In the end, the Bodhisatta secured the kingdom’s safety, reunited with his wife, and reclaimed his throne. His wife, now filled with remorse for her earlier behavior, realized the depth of his love and vowed to honor him for the rest of her life. The kingdom rejoiced, and the Bodhisatta ruled with wisdom and compassion, living a happy and peaceful life with his wife.

In the Lifetime of the Buddha

In the Buddha’s time, one of his disciples became overcome by lust after meeting a beautiful woman during his alms round. He fell into a deep depression, neglecting his spiritual practice. The Buddha, upon learning of his disciple’s distress, explained that this was not the first time the disciple had been affected by love. He shared the Kusa Jataka to show that even the Bodhisatta himself had once been consumed by romantic longing. Upon hearing the story, the disciple regained his composure, overcome his lust, and resumed his commitment to the Dharma.

Themes and Moral Lessons

1. The Dangers of Attachment: The story demonstrates how attachment to worldly desires, such as romantic love, can lead to suffering and loss of spiritual focus. The Bodhisatta’s journey highlights the challenges of overcoming desires, even when they are tied to deep love.
2. Self-Sacrifice and Perseverance: The Bodhisatta’s self-sacrifice and persistence in pursuing his wife despite repeated rejection are central themes. His actions show that love, when pure and selfless, can lead to growth, transformation, and eventual success.
3. Karmic Consequences: The Bodhisatta’s earlier life, where he displayed a lack of wisdom in his actions, is reflected in the ugliness of his appearance, showing the karmic nature of physical form and how past actions influence one’s present circumstances.
4. Love and Wisdom: While the Bodhisatta’s intense love for his wife led him through a long journey of suffering, it also required him to act with wisdom and patience. His wisdom eventually guided him to the right actions, which led to his triumph.
5. The Importance of Virtue: The Bodhisatta’s transformation from a king to a humble servant and back again demonstrates the value of virtue and selflessness. His actions embody the Buddhist principle of renunciation, where worldly attachments are given up in favor of spiritual growth.

Conclusion

The Kusa Jataka tells the story of the Bodhisatta’s spiritual journey through love, sacrifice, and perseverance. It teaches that attachment to worldly desires, particularly love, can lead to suffering, but that with wisdom, patience, and selflessness, one can overcome even the most difficult challenges. The Bodhisatta’s pursuit of his wife ultimately leads to redemption, illustrating the Buddhist teachings of impermanence and karma.