batch.motif.buddhist-jataka-birth-stories-rhys-davids-gutenberg-l10751-l10871
---
record_id: batch.motif.buddhist-jataka-birth-stories-rhys-davids-gutenberg-l10751-l10871
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
passage_locator:
label: END OF THE STORY OF THE DEER WHO WOULD NOT LEARN. / END OF THE STORY ON FOOD
OFFERED TO THE DEAD. / END OF THE STORY OF THE KURUNGA ANTELOPE. / END OF THE
STORY OF THE DOG.; lines 10751-10871
start: '10751'
end: '10871'
translation: Buddhist birth stories; or, Jataka tales, Volume 1
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: "“Though fallen on his side, / And wounded sore with darts, / The Bhoja’s
better than a hack!”"
summary: The Teacher tells of a previous birth as a royal Bhoja thoroughbred who,
though wounded after helping capture six besieging kings, insists on being harnessed
again to capture the seventh. Before dying, the horse advises the king to spare
the defeated kings, honor the knight, give gifts, keep the commandments, and rule
righteously. The frame connects the tale to a discouraged monk, who is exhorted
not to lose heart and attains Arahatship.
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The Teacher is at Jetavana and addresses a monk who had lost heart in the
struggle after holiness.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The Teacher states that in former times the wise exerted themselves unremittingly
and did not give up after receiving a check.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The Bodisat is born as a thoroughbred Bhoja horse and becomes the state charger
of the king of Benares.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The royal horse is kept with costly food, a golden dish, a fragrant stall,
curtains, a canopy, garlands, and an oil lamp.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: Seven kings surround Benares and demand either the kingdom or battle.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: A knight says he can fight the seven kings if he may have the Bhoja charger.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The knight arms himself and the Bhoja horse, rides out, breaks through successive
entrenchments, and captures six kings alive.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: The Bhoja horse is wounded, blood gushes out, and he is in severe pain.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:9
text: The knight lays the wounded horse down at the king’s gate, loosens his mail,
and begins to harness another horse.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:10
text: The wounded horse reasons that no other horse can break the seventh line or
capture the seventh king.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: The horse asks the knight to help him up and put the armor on him again.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:12
text: The knight remounts the wounded Bhoja, breaks through the seventh line, captures
the seventh king alive, and delivers him to the guard.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:13
text: The horse advises the king not to kill the seven captured kings, to take an
oath from them and release them, to honor the knight, to give gifts, to keep the
commandments, and to rule in righteousness and equity.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:14
text: The Bhoja horse dies while his harness is being removed.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:15
text: The king performs a funeral for the horse, honors the knight, takes an oath
from the seven kings, releases them, and rules righteously.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:16
text: The discouraged monk is established in the Fruit of Arahatship after the Teacher’s
exhortation.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:17
text: The Teacher identifies the former king as Ānanda, the knight as Sāriputta,
and the Bhoja thoroughbred as himself.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: The Teacher
description: The narrator of the Jātaka frame who addresses the discouraged monk
and later identifies the former-life figures.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Discouraged monk
description: A monk at Jetavana who had lost heart in the struggle after holiness
and is later established in Arahatship.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Bodisat / Bhoja thoroughbred
description: The Bodisat born as a royal thoroughbred Bhoja horse, state charger
of the king of Benares, wounded in battle but still completing the capture of
the seventh king before dying.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:9
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: King of Benares / Brahma-datta
description: The ruler of Benares whose city is surrounded by seven kings and who
later receives the horse’s counsel, releases the captured kings, and rules righteously.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Knight
description: The warrior who rides the Bhoja charger, captures the seven kings with
the horse’s aid, and is later given great honor.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Seven kings
description: Rival kings who surround Benares, demand surrender or battle, are captured
alive, swear not to rebel, and are sent away.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Ānanda
description: Identified by the Teacher as the king in the former-life story.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Sāriputta
description: Identified by the Teacher as the knight in the former-life story.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
roles:
- id: role:1
label: frame teacher and interpreter
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He tells the former-life tale, applies it to the discouraged monk, explains
the Truths, and identifies the figures.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- id: role:2
label: discouraged recipient of exhortation
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: He had lost heart and is addressed by the Teacher through the tale.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- id: role:3
label: previous birth of the Teacher
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The Teacher says the Bhoja thoroughbred was himself.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: role:4
label: wounded persevering helper
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The horse is wounded but asks to be harnessed again to complete the capture
of the seventh king.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:5
label: moral counselor
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Before dying, the horse counsels the king to spare the captured kings, honor
the knight, give gifts, keep commandments, and rule righteously.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: role:6
label: besieged ruler and recipient of counsel
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: His city is besieged, and he later follows the horse’s counsel regarding
the captured kings and righteous rule.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: role:7
label: warrior rider
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: He rides the Bhoja horse in battle and captures the opposing kings alive.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: role:8
label: besieging opponents
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: They surround Benares and are captured alive after battle.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: role:9
label: former-life identity of king
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The Teacher identifies the king of that time as Ānanda.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: role:10
label: former-life identity of knight
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The Teacher identifies the knight as Sāriputta.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: golden dish
literal_form: A priceless golden dish from which the Bhoja horse eats fine old rice.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: perfumed royal stall
literal_form: A fragrant perfumed stall with embroidered curtains, a golden-starred
canopy, flower garlands, and an ever-burning lamp of fragrant oil.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: horse armor or harness
literal_form: Mail and harness put on the Bhoja horse for battle and removed when
he dies.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: sym:4
label: wound and blood
literal_form: The Bhoja horse receives a wound, blood gushes forth, and he suffers
severe pain.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:5
label: seven kings and seven lines
literal_form: Seven besieging kings and seven enemy lines or entrenchments that
must be broken through.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:5
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: sym:6
label: oath of the defeated kings
literal_form: An oath taken from the seven captured kings that they will not rebel
against the king of Benares.
associated_figures:
- fig:4
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Jetavana frame of discouragement
summary: At Jetavana, the Teacher addresses a monk who has lost heart and introduces
a former-life tale about wise beings who did not give up after a setback.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Royal Bhoja horse in Benares
summary: In Benares under Brahma-datta, the Bodisat is born as a thoroughbred Bhoja
horse and kept as the king’s richly honored state charger.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Siege of Benares
summary: Seven kings surround the city and demand that the king either surrender
the kingdom or give battle.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Knight and horse capture six kings
summary: The knight obtains the Bhoja charger, arms himself and the horse, breaks
through six enemy positions, and captures six kings alive before the horse is
wounded.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Wounded horse insists on completing the task
summary: As the knight begins to harness another horse, the wounded Bhoja states
that no other horse can break the seventh line and asks to be helped up and armored
again.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Capture of the seventh king
summary: The knight rides the wounded Bhoja again, breaks through the seventh line,
captures the last king alive, and delivers him to the guard.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: scene:7
label: Final counsel and death of the horse
summary: At the king’s gate, the Bhoja advises clemency, honor for the knight, gifts,
commandments, and righteous rule; he dies while his harness is removed.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: scene:8
label: Aftermath and release of captives
summary: The king performs the horse’s funeral, honors the knight, takes an oath
from the captured kings, releases them, and rules righteously.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: scene:9
label: Jātaka conclusion and identifications
summary: The Teacher applies the tale to the discouraged monk, the monk attains
Arahatship, and the Teacher identifies the former king as Ānanda, the knight as
Sāriputta, and the horse as himself.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: perseverance after wounding or setback
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The frame explicitly says the wise formerly exerted themselves without giving
up after a check, and the wounded Bhoja insists on completing the remaining task.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:9
confidence: high
cautions: The available taxonomy has no narrower perseverance motif; the assigned
taxonomy reference is a broad wisdom category.
- id: motif:2
label: loyal animal completes a dangerous task despite mortal injury
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The royal horse is wounded after the sixth capture, refuses replacement,
carries the knight through the seventh line, and dies after giving final counsel.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: This is a passage-level descriptive motif without an available taxonomy
reference in the supplied list.
- id: motif:3
label: dying counselor instructs righteous kingship
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: Before dying, the Bhoja counsels the king to spare enemies, honor the knight,
give gifts, keep commandments, and rule in righteousness and equity.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: The motif is based on the horse’s final speech and the king’s subsequent
conduct; it is not named as a formal motif in the passage.
- id: motif:4
label: clemency toward defeated enemies secured by oath
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The horse tells the king not to kill the seven captured kings but to take
an oath and release them; the king does so.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: No matching taxonomy reference is available in the supplied list.
- id: motif:5
label: former-life exemplum leading to spiritual attainment
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The Teacher uses the former-life story to exhort a discouraged monk, who
is then established in Arahatship.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
confidence: high
cautions: This describes the function of the Jātaka frame rather than only the inner
narrative.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage explicitly compares the Bhoja horse’s refusal to give up after
injury with the discouraged monk’s present struggle after holiness, using the
former-life tale as an exhortive example.
claim_level: same_function
target: present monastic struggle after loss of heart in the Jetavana frame
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:9
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: This is an internal comparison made by the passage, not a claim about
historical contact or cross-cultural diffusion.
- id: claim:2
claim: The tale presents the wounded horse’s final effort as an example of the broader
pattern that the wise continue exertion after a setback.
claim_level: same_motif
target: wisdom pattern of perseverance after obstruction or injury
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:9
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The supplied taxonomy offers only the broad category of wisdom; the
passage does not name an external motif family.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, frame opening
quote_or_summary: At Jetavana, the Teacher addresses a monk who had lost heart and
says that formerly the wise exerted themselves unremittingly and did not give
up after receiving a check.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, former-life opening
quote_or_summary: The Bodisat is born as a thoroughbred Bhoja horse, becomes the
state charger of the king of Benares, and is kept with luxurious food and a richly
decorated fragrant stall.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, siege setup
quote_or_summary: Seven kings surround Benares and send a message demanding either
the kingdom or battle.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, first six captures
quote_or_summary: A knight asks for the Bhoja charger, arms himself and the horse,
breaks through six enemy positions, captures six kings alive, and the Bhoja is
then wounded with blood gushing and severe pain.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: quote
locator: lines 10751-10871, wounded horse’s speech and stanza
quote_or_summary: 'The wounded horse says no other horse can break the remaining
line or take the last king and asks to be helped up and armored again: “Though
fallen on his side, / And wounded sore with darts, / The Bhoja’s better than a
hack!”'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, seventh capture
quote_or_summary: The knight helps the Bodisat up, binds his wound, harnesses him,
rides him through the seventh line, captures the seventh king alive, and delivers
him to the guard.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, final counsel and death
quote_or_summary: The Bhoja tells the king not to slay the seven kings, to take
an oath and release them, to give honor to the knight, to give gifts, keep commandments,
and rule righteously; he dies as his harness is removed.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, aftermath
quote_or_summary: The king performs a funeral for the horse, honors the knight,
takes an oath from the seven kings that they will not rebel, sends them home,
and rules in righteousness and equity.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 10751-10871, frame conclusion
quote_or_summary: The Teacher says the wise formerly did not give in after receiving
a check; the discouraged monk is established in Arahatship; the Teacher identifies
the king as Ānanda, the knight as Sāriputta, and the Bhoja thoroughbred as himself.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/buddhist/project-gutenberg/buddhist-birth-stories-volume-1-rhys-davids.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: The passage is clear for literal plot, figures, and internal moral function.
Motif taxonomy alignment is broader and therefore less certain.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Only the provided passage and metadata were used. No external motif indexes or unstated parallels were added.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:buddhist-jataka-birth-stories-rhys-davids-gutenberg__l10751-l10871
passage_sha256=0a4da4ebff7841ce97c9fdb78bf9d6ab45edce307653bca2d6ba533134ee486e