Tha Ap 556Kimbila

– Therāpadāna

– The Legends of the Theras

554. Kimbila

Walt 6372 When Kakusandha passed away,

the Brahmin, the Perfected One,

gathering salala flowers,

I constructed a pavilion.

Walt 6373 Having gone to Tāvatiṁsa,

I received a supreme mansion.

I surpassed all the other gods:

that is the fruit of good karma.

Walt 6374 Whether it’s the day or the night,

walking back and forth or standing,

I’m covered with salala blooms:

that is the fruit of good karma.

Walt 6375 Within just this present aeon

since I thus worshipped the Buddha,

I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:

that’s the fruit of Buddha- pūjā .

Walt 6376 My defilements are now burnt up;

all new existence is destroyed.

Like elephants with broken chains,

I am living without constraint.

Walt 6377 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!

Walt 6378 The four analytical modes,

and these eight deliverances,

six special knowledges mastered,

I have done what the Buddha taught!

Thus indeed Venerable Kimbila Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Kimbila Thera, the fourth.

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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