SOAS Research Online

Abstract

Chapter I, the introductory chapter, deals with the different definitions of Jataka, the place of the Jataka in Buddhist literature, the origins of Jataka, and the place of Jataka in world literature, folklore, painting, and sculpture. Chapter 2 deals with the beginnings of the Jataka tradition in Ceylon and the extent to which the Jatakas spread in Sinhalese society and culture. In Chapter 3, attempt is made to present the various factors relating; to the writing down of the 'Great Collection of Jateika Tales' or 'The Pansiya Panas Jataka Pota' and the impact of the Jatakas on Sinhalese literature. The last chapter, which constitutes the bulk of the work, deals extensively with the individual Jataka Kavi or the independent Sinhalese poetical versions of the Jatakas, most of which are found in the Nevill Collection of Manuscripts in the British Museum; this will enable us to examine the extent to which the Sinhala poets expressed various aspects of life through the themes of the Jatakas.