Jataka Banyan Deer
tale:jataka_banyan_deerA king fond of venison spares a golden deer-king on the terms that the herds send one deer to the block each day. When the lot falls on a pregnant doe, the deer-king, the Bodhisattva, offers his own neck in her place. Struck by such compassion, the king spares the deer-king, the doe, and at last all the deer — and all creatures — from the hunt. Moral: one act of selfless mercy can win mercy for all. — Jataka tale