160. Kumudadāyaka (THA-AP162)

Close to the Himalayan range,
there was a large, natural lake
covered with pink and blue lotuses,
with white lotuses strewn about.

At that time I was a bird there,
known by the name of Kakudha,
learned in merit/not merit,
moral and intelligent too.

Padumuttara, World-Knower,
Sacrificial Recipient,
the Great Sage wandered into the
vicinity of that great lake.

Taking a water-born lotus,
I gave it to the Great Sage then.
Discerning what I was thinking,
the Sage so Great accepted it.

After having given that gift,
incited by my wholesome roots,
for one hundred thousand aeons
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth.

In the sixteen-hundredth aeon
there were people, numbering eight,
all of whom were named Varuṇa,
wheel-turning kings with great power.

The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught!

Thus indeed Venerable Kumudadāyaka Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Kumudadāyaka Thera is finished.

The Summary:

Bandhujīva, Tambapupphī,
Vīthī, Kakkārapupphiya,
Mandārava, and Kadambī,
Sulika, Nāgapupphiya,
Punnāga, and Komudī:
there are six and fifty verses
declared in this chapter, complete.

The Bandhujīvaka Chapter, the Sixteenth.

Translated by Jonathan S. Walters.

Whitman College, 2017

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

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Prepared for SuttaCentral by Ayya Vimala.