Tha Ap 530Bodhisammajjaka

– Therāpadāna

– The Legends of the Theras

525. {528.} Bodhisammajjaka

Walt 5585 Formerly I took Bodhi leaves,

fallen in the stupa-courtyard,

and having swept, threw them away.

I then obtained twenty virtues: Verse 1

Walt 5586 Through the power of that karma,

transmigrating from birth to birth,

I transmigrate in just two states:

that of a god, or of a man. Verse 2

Walt 5587 Falling from the world of the gods,

having come to the human state,

I’m being born in just two clans:

the kṣatriyan and the brahmin. Verse 3

Walt 5588 I possess perfected limbs, \[with

proper\] length and circumference;

I’m very handsome and splendid,

with complete limbs, no thing lacking. Verse 4

Walt 5589 In the world of gods or of men,

in whichever place I‘m reborn,

I am golden-colored for life,

to be compared with molten gold. Verse 5

Walt 5590 Due to well-thrown-out Bodhi leaves,

all of the time my outer skin

is pliable and soft and smooth,

and fine like a very young boy’s. Verse 6

Walt 5591 When my body has arisen

in whatever state of rebirth,

I am not soiled with dirt and dust:

the result of thrown-away leaves. Verse 7

Walt 5592 When there is heat or burning wind,

or through the heat of fire on it,

on my body no sweat’s released:

the result of thrown-away leaves. Verse 8

Walt 5593 On my body there’s no ringworm,

rashes, abscesses, leprosy,

and likewise neither moles nor boils:

the result of thrown-away leaves. Verse 9

Walt 5594 And it has another virtue,

being reborn life after life;

in my body there’s no disease:

the result of thrown-away leaves. Verse 10

Walt 5595 And it has another virtue,

being reborn life after life;

there’s no torment born of the mind:

the result of thrown-away leaves. Verse 11

Walt 5596 And it has another virtue,

being reborn life after life;

for it there are no enemies:

the result of thrown-away leaves. Verse 12

Walt 5597 And it has another virtue,

being reborn life after life;

there is no lack of possessions:

the result of thrown-away leaves. Verse 13

Walt 5598 And it has another virtue,

being reborn life after life;

there is no fear in the water,

nor from fire, from kings, and from thieves. Verse 14

Walt 5599 And it has another virtue,

being reborn life after life;

slaves and slave-girls are serving me,

in accordance with their own hearts. Verse 15

Walt 5600 When he’s born in a human state,

with whatever measure lifespan,

that lifespan does not then decline,

it lasts the lifespan’s full extent. Verse 16

Walt 5601 Moving about inside and out,

those from my city and country,

are all engaged all of the time,

wishing to grow and be happy. Verse 17

Walt 5602 I’m wealthy, famous, splendorous;

on the side of my relatives.

Free of trembling and fear of ghosts,

from every life to each new life. Verse 18

Walt 5603 Gods and men and titans as well ,

music-nymphs, spirits and demons;

they are protecting me always,

transmigrating in existence. Verse 19

Walt 5604 Having enjoyed both kinds of fame,

in the world of gods and of men,

at the end I have now attained

peaceful, unsurpassed nirvana. Verse 20

Walt 5605 For a rich man making merit,

specifying the Sambuddha,

or the Bodhi of the Teacher,

what is there that’s hard to obtain?

Walt 5606 Being better than the others

in path-fruit in the religion,

in trance, special knowledge, virtue;

I reach nirvana, undefiled. Verse 21

Walt 5607 Formerly, with a happy mind,

I threw away those Bodhi leaves;

endowed with these twenty virtues

I am existing all the time. Verse 22

Walt 5608 My defilements are now burnt up;

all new existence is destroyed.

Like elephants with broken chains,

I am living without constraint. Verse 23

Walt 5609 Being in Best Buddha’s presence

was a very good thing for me.

The three knowledges are attained;

I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 24

Walt 5610 The four analytical modes,

and these eight deliverances,

six special knowledges mastered,

I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 25

Thus indeed Venerable Bodhisammajjaka Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Bodhisammajjaka 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.

For more information, visit apadanatranslation.org