Cūḷajanakajātaka
“Toil on, my brother.”—This story was told by the Master while at Jetavana, about another backsliding Brother. All the incidents that are to be related here, will be given in the Maha-janaka Jātaka.
Translated by Bhikkhu Sujato · Pāli: Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka · Public domain (CC0) via SuttaCentral
1.1PTS 1.268“Vāyametheva puriso,A man should make an effort11.2na nibbindeyya paṇḍito;the astute should not be disillusioned.1.3Passāmi vohaṁ attānaṁ,Now I truly see myself,21.4udakā thalamubbhatan”ti.lifted from the water to the shore.3
2.1Cūḷajanakajātakaṁ dutiyaṁ.
The story, which is told in full in the Mahājanakajātaka Ja 539, relates how Janaka of Videha regained his kingdom through unremitting effort.
The Janakas were the famed kingly house of Videha. At MN 83:20.1 a Janaka is framed as the source of the kingdom’s decline. A King Janaka was Sītā’s father in the Rāmāyaṇa, and one discussed philosophy with Yājñavalkya in the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad. It seems impossible to determine which, if any, are the same person.
For these lines, compare Thag 1.88.
The story of Ja 539 relates how he survived the sinking of his ship.
