The Gatakamala

Book excerpt: This is the first Indian edition of Speyer's English translation of Aryasura's Gatakamala. The work belongs to the Canon of the Northern Buddhists. It contains thrityfour Gataka legends woven into the ethical and religious discourses that either magnify the glory of the Buddha or illustrate Buddhist doctrine and precepts by appropriate examples. The book is a first-rate document for the study of Mahayana Buddhism. Interspersed with the moral maxims the accounts of the marvelous deeds of the Bodhisattva are meant to inspire the reader with a stronger faith in the Buddha or an extraordinary zeal for self-sacrifice. The translation is authentic and authoritative. The reader will derive adequate knowledge and inspiration as from the original text.