Happy World Storytelling Day! 📖 Storytelling has long been one of the most important ways Buddhist teachings are shared. Across Himalayan cultures, stories about the Buddha and his past lives—avadana and jataka tales—teach lessons about compassion, generosity, and the workings of karma. These teachings often appear in Buddhist narrative paintings, a form of visual storytelling found throughout Himalayan and Asian art. In works like this thangka, or Tibetan painting, multiple episodes unfold within a single composition, inviting viewers to explore each story one by one. At the center, Buddha Shakyamuni sits on a lotus, holding a begging bowl and making the gesture of giving. Around him, narrative scenes move clockwise, showing acts of generosity, building stupas, and the trials of Kunala, King Ashoka’s son—each illustrating the cause-and-effect of karma. The tapestry-like landscape weaves the stories together, while inscriptions and red trilobed vignettes guide the viewer through t...