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Overview

Rouse’s Sīlānisaṃsa-Jātaka distinguishes the Spirit of the Sea from the serpent king whose body becomes the rescue ship. Acting as helmsman, the spirit calls for passengers bound for India. It welcomes a shipwrecked Buddhist disciple but initially excludes his barber companion because he has not lived a holy life. The disciple had undertaken to look after this companion at the request of the barber’s wife.

The disciple offers the barber the fruit of his gifts, virtues and developed powers; the barber responds gratefully, and the spirit now admits him. The helmsman conveys both men to Benares, creates wealth for them and teaches, while poised in the air, that association with a good person has saved the barber. It then returns to its abode accompanied by the serpent king. The final identification makes the spirit a former birth of the Buddha. This is a specific religious rescue narrative, not a claim that every sea deity applies the same conditions to shipwreck survivors.

01

Origins & earliest records

Pāli Jātaka literary tradition; W. H. D. Rouse translator, E. B. Cowell general editor.

02

Records & interpretation

Complete English narrative, frame, ending and attached notes read.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    The Jātaka, Volume 2

    W. H. D. Rouse (translator); E. B. Cowell (editor) · 1895

    190, Sīlānisaṃsa-Jātaka, pp.77–78; complete frame, ending and three footnotes

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

Primary records and illustrations

Complete English witness and notes read

The Jātaka, Volume 2

Rouse 1895; Cowell editor. 190, Sīlānisaṃsa-Jātaka, pp.77–78; complete frame, ending and three footnotes

Cache data/cache/asia-continuation/jataka2-043.html/.txt. Distinct actors and editorial qualifications preserved.

Inspect the digitized plate · Source collection manifest

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Historical primary-text translationComplete Jātaka English account and notesResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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