Vessantara Jataka: Analyzing the Narrative Construction of  the Jataka Tale from the Ramayana

Phanuwat Chantapoon; Phramaha Kritsana  Kittibhaddo; Prachatip  Makmool; Phanthiwa  Thabphumee; Panuwat  Moolpia; Phra Anu   Noiklang

doi:10.14456/tiat.2026.1

Authors

Phanuwat Chantapoon Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University, Khon Kaen Campus, Thailand
Phramaha Kritsana Kittibhaddo Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University, Khon Kaen Campus, Thailand
Prachatip Makmool Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Buriram Rajabhat University, Thailand
Phanthiwa Thabphumee Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University, Khon Kaen Campus, Thailand
Panuwat Moolpia Independent Academic, Thailand.
Phra Anu Noiklang Independent Academic, Thailand.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14456/tiat.2026.1

Keywords:

Vessantara Jataka, Ramayana, Deconstruction, Jataka

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the construction of the Vessantara Jataka based on the Ramayana epic. The researcher employs Franz Boas’s Cultural Diffusion theory and Claude Lévi-Strauss’s Structural Theory of Myth to explain the influence of the Ramayana on Jataka literature. Furthermore, Jacques Derrida’s Deconstruction theory is utilized to comparatively analyze the literary texts of the Vessantara Jataka and the Ramayana. The findings reveal that within the Tipitaka and its commentaries, the Ramayana exerts a direct influence on the Dasaratha Jataka and an indirect influence on the Vessantara Jataka. An analysis across nine dimensions: 1) plot progression, 2) notions of divinity, 3) protagonists, 4) secondary characters, 5) key events, 6) poetic forms, 7) historical background, 8.) associated rituals, and 9) core beliefs demonstrates that these elements are interconnected and function similarly. They collectively express the ultimate religious aspirations: achieving union with the Divine (Moksha) or being reborn in the era of Maitreya Buddha.

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