Look at that wretched little slave-girl!
She killed her mother, and now,—she weeps!
With this stanza did the Future Buddha preach the Doctrine, praising the man of wisdom.
Said the Teacher: “Verily, householder, not only in her present state of existence has this girl, with the thought in her mind, ‘I’ll kill flies!’ caused the death of her mother; in a previous state of existence also she caused the death of her mother in the very same way.” Having related this parable, he joined the connection and identified the personages in the Birth-story as follows: “At that time that very mother was the mother, that very daughter was the daughter, but the wealthy merchant was I myself.”
22. Monkey-Gardeners.
Misdirected effort spells failure.
A. One-stanza version.
Jātaka 46: i. 249-251.
Never, in the hands of one who knows not what is good. This parable was related by the Teacher in a certain little village in the country of the Kosalas with reference to one who spoiled a garden.
The story goes that the Teacher, while journeying from place to place in the country of the Kosalas, arrived at a certain little village. There a certain householder invited the Teacher, provided seats in his garden, gave alms to the Congregation of Monks presided over by the Buddha, and said: “Reverend Sirs, walk about in this garden according to your pleasure.”