8/27/2026 “Mahā-Sīlava Jātaka (“Not One Drop of Blood”)” with Rich Howard

The Jataka Tales are folksy stories of the past lives of the being who would become Siddhattha Gotama and eventually the historical Buddha. To become a Buddha, this being had to perfect the ten qualities known as “Paramis” (or “Perfections”), and each tale tells how one or more of the Paramis was developed in a particular past life, as an animal or human. The Mahā-Sīlava Jātaka is particularly rich in its inclusion of the Paramis, so we will listen to the story and reflect on which qualities are illustrated and how the story informs our understanding of them.