The “Jatakas” are an early collection of Buddhist writing. The word “Jataka” means “birth”, so the “Jataka tales” means birth stories of Buddha. The Jataka stories are built as frame tales, which makes them one of the oldest and most important examples of frame tales in world literature. In each Jataka tale, Buddha is shown in his present life, usually speaking with his monks about problems and disputes at the monastery. Then Buddha tells a story about the past life, which is at times humorous and at times very serious. When Buddha finishes telling the story, he returns to the present and provides the interpretation of the story, explaining the incarnations and the moral of the story. The Jataka tales are, as everyone must admit, nobly conceived and lofty in meaning, and...many a helpful sermon might be preached from them as text, so the Matakabhatta Jataka stories talk about the fact that no good ever comes from taking a life while showing the various aspects of life.