a study of avadāna narratives found in two related anthologies, the Za piyu jing 雜譬喻經 (T207) and the Zhong jing xuan za piyu 眾經撰雜譬喻 (T208). […] These narratives are carefully constructed literary productions that offer a window into both the world of the Indic society in which they were initially composed and the Chinese society which translated them.