Parable of The Horses, Jataka Sutra

Parable of The Horses, Jataka Sutra

  Once upon a time, there was an elderly man who had a good horse. But, when he first acquired the horse, it was very willful and uncontrollable; it would rear up its legs in defiance after being mounted. When the man climbed up on the horse, it would rampage in every direction, running into the ditch, into trees, or into walls rather than taking the open road.  

  The man was troubled by the horse’s rampaging. He would whip the horse mercilessly and leave it without food and water. The horse suffered from thirst and hunger and felt very distressed. The horse knew very well that the distress was self-inflicted, but it could not help itself.

  One day, quite suddenly, a voice could be heard from the sky; it whispered to the horse, “Obey your master! Then you will be freed from hunger and calamity.” Upon hearing this, the horse instantly came to terms with itself and knew what to do. The next day, the horse obeyed its master without any struggle when its master put a saddle on its back and a bridle on its head. The horse willingly followed the master’s instructions and walked in the required direction. The man was then very pleased and satisfied with his horse. He made sure the horse was well fed and watered and received proper rest. From that time forward, the master could ride the horse as fast and as far as he needed to go, and the horse became increasingly even-tempered.

   The horse later gave birth to two foals. When they were old enough to be ridden, the elderly man attempted to ride them. However, they both rampaged about in defiance and ripped apart their reins. The owner lashed them with a whip, but they remained disobedient. Both horses found themselves suffering from self-inflicted misery and left with only fouled grass to eat and dirty water to drink.

   When they could no longer endure the hunger and thirst, they went to kneel in front of their mother and said, “All we experience is resentment and despair, and we cannot get food and water. Instead, we are painfully whipped. Yet, Mum! You are like a big carefree bird living in paradise, full of energy, happy, well-fed, and well looked after. You seem unconcerned about the cruel treatment faced by your children.”

  The mother replied, “It is your own fault, so you have no cause to complain. Just let go of your resentment, accept your master’s instruction, and let him ride you! Your master will cherish you when you follow his instructions. It is such a simple thing to do, but you took the opposite direction to inflict such sufferings on yourself!”

    After hearing the teachings of their mother, the horses turned tame the next day. The man was very contented with them after saddling and bridling them. The horses followed their master’s instructions to go in any direction he instructed. Thereafter, the horses were also well fed and received the same treatment as their mother.

The gist of this parable

    The elderly man in this story refers to the Buddha. The horses refer to Buddhist learners in general. The Buddha’s teaching curriculum comprises the following: 1.fundamental Path of human and celestial beings, 2. the Path of Liberation, and 3. the Buddhahood Path, which must be cultivated in sequential order. In other words, a practitioner must subdue his own willfulness and follow through these basic teachings in sequential orders established by the Buddha. Once the practitioner can change his sheer stubbornness, he can then take on the Path of Liberation, which is deemed a pure path in Buddhism. This is why the Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths for practitioners to understand the faults of birth and death, methods of transcending cyclic birth and death, and the merits and virtues of liberation. In this way, the Buddha guides Buddhist learners step-by-step onto the correct Path.

     The metaphor of the man whipping his uncontrollable horses refers to the Buddha’s teaching about upholding the five precepts and practicing the ten wholesome courses of actions. By keeping the five precepts and practicing ten wholesome courses of actions, we can ensure our future rebirth as a human and even take future rebirth in heavenly realms. On the other hand, if we transgress the five precepts or commits harmful acts, the karmic retribution will be rebirth in the three lower destinies: animals, hungry ghosts, and hell, not to mention being bound by cyclic transmigrations. The suffering in the three lower destines is enormous as we will repeatedly suffer in the cycle of being reborn instantly after death without a moment of peace.

    Suppose we can rid of wilfulness, avoid making mistakes that generate bad karma, accept the teaching of keeping the five precepts and practice the ten wholesome courses of actions, we can then avoid being born into the three lower destinies.

    Furthermore, if we faithfully accept these teachings and practice the wholesome dharmas with a pliable disposition (C: Xinxing, 心性), develop compassion and kindness, and so forth, in that case, we are ready to embrace the teachings of the six paramitas. At this time, a truly enlightened mentor will then teach and guide us to the Buddhahood Path by attaining awakening to the true Mind, thereupon initiating the prajna (wisdom) of the ultimate reality. We are then able to directly witness and align ourselves with our own intrinsic mind—tathagatagarbha—the eighth vijnana (Buddha-nature), which is self-existing and inherently liberated.

    The metaphor of the horses kneeling in front of their mother seeking guidance refers explicitly to practitioners seeking advice on the Buddha Dharma from a qualified and wholesome mentor. We ought to follow the cultivation rules taught by the mentor. Initially, we must have faith (the faculty of faith, C: Xingen, 信根; S: śraddhendriya) and a pliable disposition for embracing the basic teachings. Thereafter, we are ready to receive the advanced Dharma of attaining enlightenment by having well equipped with the wisdom and virtues for liberation. An enlightened mentor will guide us further according to our capacities and advise on the actual cultivation sequences yet to be accomplished.  

     In conclusion, observance on the five precepts and practicing the ten wholesome courses of actions will ensure our future rebirth as human or celestial beings and increase our confidence in the Three Jewels. Therefore, the utmost priority for a Buddhist practitioner is to get acquainted with and study under a truly enlightened mentor. In this way, we can obtain the virtues of liberation, and practice sequentially to attaining awakening to the true Mind (initiating the prajna). After taking refuge in the Triple Jewels we should not distance ourselves from the mentor like the rampaging horses in the story. Otherwise, we will not have the opportunity to be tamed. 

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