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Description:
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Gautama was born a prince, over 2500 years ago in Lumbini, in the northern part of India. He left the comfortable life of the palace, his young wife and infant son, to go in search of true knowledge. After a life of wandering, austerities and meditation, he became Buddha ('the Enlightened one'). Buddha taught compassion, non-violence and the need for right conduct in life. His teachings spread far and wide even outside India, in China and Southeast Asia. The 'Jataka' (Birth-cycle) tales narrate the stories related to the 'seekers of truth' - those who wish to follow the path of Buddha. Of the 550 Jatakas that form the canon, many are about both animals and humans. The stories were originally compiled in the Pali language. In these Jataka stories, a monkey carries away the necklace of a queen slighted to swim in a pool. The first suspect seized was a woodcutter who pointed to a priest and on to a musician and finally a dancer who firmly denied the theft. An intelligent officer played a trick on monkeys and recovered the necklace. A fisherman not wanting to share an expected big catch, loses his all - fruit of his greed. A hawker wanting to buy a gold bowl as trash puts the buy off to next day - only to find that an honest hawker has paid for it!
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