When I opened the link for Jataka Anthology I was immediately drawn to the title and the stories of the Two Turtle Jatakas. I love turtles so it's a fun twist to read stories about turtles and two drastically different personalities. One turtle outwits the other faces death.
"The Turtle and The King" story from Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt was about a turtle that was found by young princes in a lake that their father, the king, had made for them. The princes went to the lake to look at the fishes that their father got for them but they also saw a turtle. The princes had never seen a turtle before and thought it was a demon.
The princes were afraid and told the king and the king ordered his men to find the turtle and kill it. The men who were ordered to kill the turtle suggested to throw the turtle into the lake where the water flows into the river. The turtle spoke and objected trying to make himself seem as though he was terrified of that fate but in reality he tricked him and was safe in the water.
The second turtle story I read was, "The Turtle and the Geese" from Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt. In the story, a Turtle becomes friends with two Geese. The two Geese tell the Turtle about how beautiful their home is and tells the Turtle they will find a way to get it to their home. Obviously the Turtle doesn't have wings so the Geese come up with a plan. The Geese ask the Turtle to "keep [its] mouth shut," which means the Turtle needs to not talk on the journey.
Little does the Turtle know that his life would depend on literally not speaking. The Geese brought a stick for the Turtle to hold on to with his mouth. The Turtle fails at not talking and dies on its fall.
In both stories a character was either given opportunity or wronged due to their faults. In "The Turtle and The King," the man who came up with the idea to put the turtle to death in the river was afraid of water so he thought that would work to kill the turtle. In "The Turtle and the Geese" the turtle could not obey orders and not speak, which lead to his death.
"The Turtle and The King" story from Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt was about a turtle that was found by young princes in a lake that their father, the king, had made for them. The princes went to the lake to look at the fishes that their father got for them but they also saw a turtle. The princes had never seen a turtle before and thought it was a demon.
The princes were afraid and told the king and the king ordered his men to find the turtle and kill it. The men who were ordered to kill the turtle suggested to throw the turtle into the lake where the water flows into the river. The turtle spoke and objected trying to make himself seem as though he was terrified of that fate but in reality he tricked him and was safe in the water.
The second turtle story I read was, "The Turtle and the Geese" from Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt. In the story, a Turtle becomes friends with two Geese. The two Geese tell the Turtle about how beautiful their home is and tells the Turtle they will find a way to get it to their home. Obviously the Turtle doesn't have wings so the Geese come up with a plan. The Geese ask the Turtle to "keep [its] mouth shut," which means the Turtle needs to not talk on the journey.
Little does the Turtle know that his life would depend on literally not speaking. The Geese brought a stick for the Turtle to hold on to with his mouth. The Turtle fails at not talking and dies on its fall.
(Illustration of Turtle from the story "The Turtle and the Geese" found on Jataka Anthology)
In both stories a character was either given opportunity or wronged due to their faults. In "The Turtle and The King," the man who came up with the idea to put the turtle to death in the river was afraid of water so he thought that would work to kill the turtle. In "The Turtle and the Geese" the turtle could not obey orders and not speak, which lead to his death.
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