Parables of Wisdom
Damanak
दमनक · દમનક
A boy no one could harm, and a letter that changed by one small mark
- 5 min full story
- 2 min children's telling
- Best shared with a grown-up
A poor man who would not take a fish's life even in a famine is born again as Damanak, an orphan boy whom a jealous merchant tries again and again to be rid of.
What it teaches Ahimsa Karma Compassion
The opening of the children's telling
Long ago there lived a poor man named Kulaputra. He made a promise never to hurt a fish. One year there was very little food. His family asked him to catch fish. He threw his net into the river, but when he saw the fish wriggling, he felt sorry for them and let them all swim away. He kept his promise to the very end of his life.
Because he was so kind, he was born again as a boy named Damanak. When Damanak was small, he lost his family and became very poor. A merchant named Sagarpot gave him work in his house.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
Kindness to the smallest creature is never wasted; it travels with the soul.
To talk about together
Kulaputra let the fish go even when it was very hard. What makes a promise strong?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.