Tha Ap 244Nāgakesariya

– Therāpadāna

– The Legends of the Theras

242. Nāgakesariya

Walt 2465 Gathering both ends of a bow,

I entered into the forest.

I saw a small lake gathered there ,

very clean and full of flowers. Verse 1

Walt 2466 Plucking one with both of my hands

and saluting on my forehead,

I then offered it to Tissa,

the Buddha, Kinsman of the World. Verse 2

Walt 2467 In the ninety-two aeons since

I did pūjā with that flower,

I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:

that’s the fruit of Buddha- pūjā . Verse 3

Walt 2468 In the seventy-seventh aeon,

I was named Pamokkharaṇa,

a wheel-turning king with great strength,

possessor of the seven gems. Verse 4

Walt 2469 The four analytical modes,

and these eight deliverances,

six special knowledges mastered,

I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 5

Thus indeed Venerable Nāgakesariya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Nāgakesariya 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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