Parables of Filial Piety

Scene #18, upper left side (map)
Baodingshan, Dazu

Here are more reliefs of jataka tales illustrating filial piety (previous pages). Top left, the dying Shyama asks his slayer to look after his blind parents. Top center, a king (praying) sacrifices his flesh in order to reach enlightenment. Top right, Prince Good Friend kneels as he offers a curative jewel (cintamani) to his parents. Bottom center, a householder throws himself down a mountain in order to attain enlightenment, while India (kneeling) and an ogre (standing, actually Indra in disguise) look on. Bottom left, Shakyamuni (left) comforts his dying father (King Shuddhodhana, stretched out on table). The two enlightenment stories, mentioned above, are exceptions to the general theme of filial piety that is displayed here, but fit seamlessly with Zhao's determination to achieve enlightenment at all costs.