Tha Ap 115Saraṇāgamaniya

– Therāpadāna

– The Legends of the Theras

113. Saraṇāgamaniya

Walt 1696 The battle between both god-kings

had by then come into being.

A huge crowd was gathered for it ,

making a very loud racket. Verse 1

Walt 1697 Padumuttara, World-Knower,

Sacrificial Recipient,

the Teacher, standing in the sky,

then made many people feel moved. Verse 2

Walt 1698 All of the gods were delighted;

their weapons and mail were thrown down.

Having worshipped the Sambuddha

they then stood off to one side there . Verse 3

Walt 1699 Discerning what we were thinking,

the Compassionate, World-Knower,

uttered majestic words just then,

bringing many to nirvana. Verse 4

Walt 1700 “One man with evil in his heart

might harm a single living being.

Because of that stain on his heart

he will be reborn in some hell. Verse 5

Walt 1701 An elephant on the battle front

might harm so many living beings,

but if he cools off his own heart

he won’t be killed repeatedly.” Verse 6

Walt 1702 Both of the armies of those two

spirit-kings were then astonished.

And they went to the World’s Best One,

the Neutral One, to take refuge. Verse 7

Walt 1703 After he’d convinced the people,

the Eyeful One then rose upwards,

and being seen by all the gods,

he departed, facing the north. Verse 8

Walt 1704 I was first to go for refuge

to the Biped-Lord, Neutral One.

For one hundred thousand aeons

I’ve come to know no bad rebirth. Verse 9

Walt 1705 In the thirty thousandth aeon

there were sixteen chariot-bulls,

kings who turned the wheel of the Law ,

all were named Mahādundubhi. Verse 10

Walt 1706 The four analytical modes,

and these eight deliverances,

six special knowledges mastered,

I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 11

Thus indeed Venerable Saraṇāgamaniya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Saraṇāgamaniya Thera is finished.

Translated by Jonathan S. Walters .

Whitman College, 2017

Legends of the Buddhist Saints (Apadāna) is released under the Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share Alike license.

This is the first-ever complete translation of Apadāna into a Western language.

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