302 Mahā-Assāroha Jātaka (JTA 112) The Great Horseman Ashin Sarana:
Thiri Garris’s drawing Once a man was the king. He was in danger. Then, man helped him. The king gave half of the kingdom to him. The soldiers were confused.Valentina’s drawing Long ago, the Bodhisatta was a very generous king of Kasi, but one day, there was a disturbance at the frontier, so the king led his army to quell it but one night, the king and his army were forced to scatter. The king found himself alone and came to a border village the next morning, but everybody got scared of him, so they ran off, but one kind man greeted him, and the king told him who he was, so the man led the king to his house and treated his guest generously with food, and a bed, and even took care of his horse. One day, the king said that he must be off now and told the kind man where his house is and to ask the porter for Maha-Assaroha and he will show him to the king’s house. When the king returned, he told the porter that a man from a border village will come and ask for Maha-Assaroha, and he shall bring him immediately to the king’s house. Time went by, but the man still didn’t show up, so the king increased taxes on the village, but he still didn’t show up, but because of these taxes the villagers forced him to go visit him and he agreed to. He prepared some gifts for the king and set off. When he got there, the king embraced him and summoned the queen and asked her to wash his feet. They then ate what he brought, and the man offered the rest of the gifts and then the king offered him some gifts as well. The king ordered his servants to give the man a nice bath, and then after that, the king gave the man the royal white umbrella, testifying that he was giving this man half of his kingdom. They then ruled the kingdom in perfect harmony and their friendship was great, but the courtiers were concerned that the king gave half of his kingdom to a random stranger, so they asked the prince to address his father about this situation. When he told the king to stop this nonsense, the king replied to him that he was in a small border village and he was almost dead, but then the kind man came along so he isn’t. He then told his son that if a man gives gifts to those who are unworthy, but gives nothing to the deserving, when the man is in trouble, he will find no one to help him. When the prince reported to the courtiers what his father had told him, they paid respects to the king and his friend. Having concluded this story, the buddha identified as the king and Ananda was the kind man from the village.Kids’ drawing
