A Note on the Jataka Tales

Here a little digression be allowed. Siddhartha was born at Kapilavastu as we have already observed. Kapilavastu reminds one of the great sage Kapila of Indian mythology. Once upon a time, there was a great king named Sagar. He was an ancestor of sri Rama. The name Sagar means SA+GARA or mingled with Garala or poison. This great king planned a horse sacrifice. But surprisingly enough the horse earmarked for sacrifice was missing.
The king Sagara had sixty thousand sons They set out to search the missing horse They ransacked the earth from east to west and from north to south. Then they dug the earth till they reached the netherworld And lo there they found the horse champing the grass. It was tied to a tree nearby. In the neighbourhood they saw a sage plunged in deep meditation. They thought that the sage had stolen the horse. So they were about to punish the sage. It was the great sage Kapila. No sooner than the children of Sagar proceeded to the sage, the sage flew into rage and fire flashed forth from his third eye and all the sons of Sagara turned into ashes in a nano second. Time passed by and there was a child named Bhagirath He observed hard penance and finally he brought down the Ganga from the heaven or heavens to earth to redeem every being dead or alive including the dead sons of king Sagar. One can read primitive science in this myth. The polluted water is burnt by the sun only to be purged and pure water comes down the hills to refresh the earth. Here the sage Kapila is the sun symbol. And Kapilavastu is the land where the Sun incarnate sage Kapila lived. Is it not significant that Siddharta Bodhisattva was born here only and when he became Buddha or enlightened--- the Buddha or the Enlightened One, his devotees read sun symbol in him.