Veḷukajātaka
“The headstrong man.”—This story was told by the Master while at Jetavana, about a certain headstrong Brother. For the Blessed One asked him whether the report was true that he was headstrong, and the Brother admitted that it was. “Brother,” said the Master, “this is not the first time you have been headstrong: you were just as headstrong in former days. Also, and as the result of your headstrong refusal to follow the advice of the wise and good, you met your end by the bite of a snake.” And so saying, he told this story of the past.
Translated by Bhikkhu Sujato · Pāli: Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka · Public domain (CC0) via SuttaCentral
1.1PTS 1.246“Yo atthakāmassa hitānukampino,One who does not follow advice when instructed11.2Ovajjamāno na karoti sāsanaṁ;by an ally who wants to help,1.3Evaṁ so nihato seti,ends up destroyed1.4Veḷukassa yathā pitā”ti.like the pole acrobat’s father.2
2.1Veḷukajātakaṁ tatiyaṁ.
The commentary relates the story of an ascetic who kept a viper as a pet, despite being warned it will turn on him one day. Similar to Aesop’s fable The Farmer and the Viper, this story is retold in modern songs and politics. The viper was named Veḷuka because it lived in a tube of bamboo (veḷu), and the ascetic cared for it like a father. Note, however, that the verse says nothing about a viper.
Compare SN 47.19, where a low-caste acrobat who engages in a dangerous balancing act with their student is protected by the fact that they listen to each other’s wise advice. There, the “pole acrobat” is vaṁsika, whereas here it is the synonymous veḷuka.
