Reading guide
A king known by two names
The story's title names him Kururāja, ‘King of the Kurus’, but the text itself gives his personal name as Dhanañjaya, ruling from Indapatta, and credits him with the ‘ten skillful deeds’ — the traditional ten courses of wholesome conduct expected of a just ruler.
A request driven by famine
Brahmins arrive from Kaliṅga, a neighboring realm, explaining plainly: ‘our nation is suffering from drought, food is scarce and famine abounds’, and ask for the royal elephant, auspicious and ‘deemed lucky’, by name Añjana.
A vow not to refuse a petitioner
The king's reasoning turns on a personal standard rather than a calculation of advantage: ‘when supplicants come to me it is unbefitting to refuse. Let not my vow be broken.’ The elephant is handed over with a formal water-pouring gesture, the traditional way of sealing a solemn gift.
The ministers object, the king answers
His ministers protest that the elephant was ‘supreme victor in battle’ and ask how he will now govern the realm. His answer goes further than the question: he would give away ‘the entire realm and my physical body as well’, because ‘omniscience is precious to me’ — the same closing logic Cp 1's Akitti used for a much smaller gift.
The same verses, reused in Cp 9
The stanza describing the Kaliṅga brahmins' request and the king's vow not to refuse a supplicant reappears almost unchanged in Cp 9, where Vessantara gives away the same kind of elephant under nearly identical circumstances — one of the collection's clearest examples of a shared formula carried across two different stories.
Key terms
The text
§1“Then again when I reigned in Indapatta, the capital city, as the king named Dhanañjaya I was blessed with the ten skillful deeds.
§2From the realm of Kaliṅga brahmins came to me requesting the royal elephant that was lucky and deemed auspicious.
§3‘Our nation is suffering from drought, food is scarce and famine abounds, please give the noble elephant of midnight hue named Añjana.’
§4‘When supplicants come to me it is unbefitting to refuse. Let not my vow be broken, I shall give the mighty elephant.’
§5Taking the elephant by the trunk, and a bejeweled ceremonial vessel, I sprinkled water on the hand, and gave the elephant to the brahmins.
§6When I had given the elephant, my ministers said, ‘Why did you give the noble elephant to the supplicants?
§7He was lucky and endowed with the auspicious, supreme victor in battle. Now you have given the elephant, how shall you govern the realm?’
§8‘I would give the entire realm and my physical body as well. Omniscience is precious to me, which is why I gave away the elephant.’”
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