Vessantara Jātaka: German Translations of B. Bergmann and А. Schiefner

The Jātaka of Prince Vessantara is a most popular Buddhist text from the variety of ones that concern the previous births of Gautama Buddha. It serves a manifested pinnacle of mettā – the virtue of loving-kindness. In the Jātaka, Prince Vessantara renounces all worldly ties of his – wealth, parents, children – to attain Buddhahood and become enlightened. Jātakas as a literary genre appeared in ancient India only to cross its borders with the dissemination of Buddhism and become widespread in Southeast Asia, as well as in regions dominated by “Northern Buddhism” (Lamaism), in particular – Mongolia and Tibet. The Jātaka of Vessantara shows the narrative would obtain new artistic peculiarities inherent to recipient ethnic cultures that enriched it with new visions and folklore traditions. So, there are Tibetan, Mongolian, Oirat and other versions of the story. The article introduces into scholarly circulation texts of Mongolian and Oirat versions of the Vessantara (Mong. Ushandara) Jātaka, and two German translations authored by B. Bergmann and А. Schiefner. The translations were published by B. Bergmann within volume 2 of his “Nomadische Streifereien unter den Kalmüken in den Jahren 1802 und 1803” in 1804, and by А. Schiefner in issue 8 of “Mélanges Asiatiques tirés du Bulletin de l’Académie Impériale des Sciences de St.-Petersburg” as part of his article “Indische Erzӓhlungen” in 1877. The paper examines some specifics and structural elements of the Jātaka, provides detailed descriptions of the Mongolian and Oirat versions, analyzes the German texts proper.