Storybook Plan

For this project I'm hoping to adapt the following stories into a more accessible format. I likely won't lean very hard on era change, but rather just make the whole world of the story a bit more palpable. I intend to do this by way of screenplay, as I have with the writing assignments until now. In these retellings I'm trying to study the depiction of monkeys in a few key Jataka tales. The stories I plan on using are TAYODHAMMA-JĀTAKA, VĀNARINDA-JĀTAKA, ĀRĀMADŪSAKA-JĀTAKA, NAḶAPĀNA-JĀTAKA, and SUṀSUMĀRA-JĀTAKA.

I'm thinking this will be a bit more of a thematic link anthology, rather than linked as a singular story or narrator. I'm hoping to focus on the tendency of the monkeys to rely on wisdom and cunning to make the best of their situation. However, one of the stories portrays them as much more simple minded - which will be an interesting case study as it breaks from the norm.








Bibliography:
Jakata Tales

Topic Research: Jataka Monkeys

Tayodhamma-Jataka:
Devadatta is formed as the lord of a tribe of monkeys, Bodhisatta is born deeper in the woods, fathered by Devadatta. Bodhisatta returns to the tribe. Devadatta, afraid of having his seat usurped by his son, sends Bodhisatta to harvest lilies from an Ogre-possessed lake. Bodhisatta outsmarts this Ogre, returns home, and Devadatta upon witnessing Bodhisatta's return falls dead.



Vanarinda-Jataka:
Devadatta, formed as a crocodile, is urged by his wife into tricking and killing Bodhisatta, formed as a monkey, in hopes of stealing away his heart to eat. Devadatta lies in wait as a rock, ultimately Bodhisatta recognizes this and tricks him multiple times - getting his goal fruit and keeping his life.



Aramadusaka-Jataka:
When Brahmadatta was king in the Benares, he proclaimed a large festival - the king's gardener asked nearby monkeys to water his trees so that he could enjoy the festival. The monkeys agreed, but in carrying out their duties they destroyed the garden. As they watered, they pulled each tree from the soil to check root size to prioritize water usage. A wise man comes by and tells them the folly of their ways - they don't heed this warning and ultimately kill out the garden.



Nalapana-Jataka:
Bodhisatta is formed as a king of monkeys- he leads his followers to a lake to drink. In this lake lives a water ogre, the current form of Devadatta, the ogre promises to eat any and all who drink from his domain. Bodhisatta has a workaround, he hollows out a long cane, and many more, and all his followers are able to drink from a safe distance. Devadatta, defeated, returns to the depth of his domain.


Sumsumara-Jataka:
Bodhisatta again is formed as a king of monkeys and in his comings and goings he's spotted by a pair of crocodiles. The wife reptile asks her husband to lie in wait to capture this king of monkeys. Devadatta is the male crocodile, he offers to carry Bodhisatta to the foreign fruit across the ganges, then begins to sink midway across. Bodhisatta convinces Devadatta his heart lays outside his body, in the fig trees back across the ganges; when they're close enough to the shore of origin bodhisatta leaps from the crocodile's back. Bodhisatta leaves him with a few harsh words explaining the error of his thinking.



Essentially it seems the common thread here is that the monkeys are either portrayed as wily and resilient or good-intentioned and bumbling. We consistently see monkeys as the thematic underdog contextually, able to outsmart the stronger beast(s) to still achieve their goals. The outlier to this trend is the third listed story, wherein the monkeys kindly agree to perform a task for the gardner, but are concerned with being wasteful and so they do their due diligence to be sure water is used efficiently. However, this effort ultimately is their undoing, as in checking root depth they ~uproot~ the trees, ensuring the death of the garden. I believe an analytical retelling of these stories with focus on the conceptual strength of the monkeys could be a fun storybook project and is currently my plan for the semester.


Bibliography:
Jataka Tales 

Photo Credit:
Jatakamala Manuscripts | Daderot

Topic Brainstorm

Idea I: (Portfolio)

In reading through the summaries I could find online for The Golden Mongoose: Tales of Duty from the Mahabharata I've found that the three stories therein sound pretty neat. These tales deal with complex issues: self-awareness, contentedness, sacrifice, relinquishing material holds. I believe all of these could very well translate to short stories or screenplays and all of these themes translate to modern contexts extremely well. I've not decided whether screenplays are the most efficient way to transpose these themes, which is my goal; I'll have to spend more time thinking specifically on effectiveness in writing.  These themes all interest me greatly because of their versatility.

Idea II: (Portfolio) *

I believe composing a portfolio consisting of stories from the Jakata's Monkey Stories could be an interesting and applicable work. These stories are varied, but seem to all hinge around ethics, and the role of wisdom in ethical dilemmas, which I think is very interesting. I believe these stories could all transfer to varying contexts quite well, and in that ease of transition greater applications could be found. The struggles outlined therein are very releatable when recontextualized, and because of that I believe it would be a rewarding process to retell these tales.

Idea III: (Portfolio) 

Another potential idea is to read through as many of these tales as possible, isolating instances of wit versus weight and explore the concept of outwitting opponents. This is a trope in western cinema, and could very easily be applied to instances of daily life in a relatable way. I'd initially read through Jackal Stories, before reading Bird Stories, then potentially The Deadly Feast. Before retelling these stories in a more accessible way.

Idea IV: (Portfolio)

Finally, I've wondered about the instances of friendship throughout these classic stories, and the role friendship plays in watershed moments. I'm unsure of which stories through which I'd read to build the foundation for this project other than Friends and Foes, and How Friends Are Parted. Should I be able to find more stories built around this topic, or with this topic playing a substantive role therein, I believe this would be a fun research project as it is extremely relevant to us all - as core friendship is something I should hope we all know, and know the weight thereof. Friendships are often more impactful than familial relationships and the development of such friendships is a major component of maturation. So, finding instances of this in older writings is always interesting.



Photo Credit:
Cover Image The Golden Mongoose|amartchitrakatha