325. Nimittasaññaka (THA-AP327)

On Candabhāgā River’s bank,
I dwelt in a hermitage then.
I saw a golden-colored deer,
which was wandering through the woods.

Having pleased my heart in that deer,
I recalled the World’s Best Buddha.
With that same pleasure in my heart,
I recalled the other Buddhas:

“Those Buddhas who have passed away,
Thus-Gone-Ones, while they were living,
in this very same way shined forth,
like golden deer-kings for the heart.”

In the ninety-four aeons since
I obtained that perception then,
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:
the fruit of perceiving Buddhas.

In the twenty-seventh aeon
hence there was one lord of the earth,
who was named Araññasatta,
a wheel-turning king with great strength.

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

Thus indeed Venerable Nimittasaññaka Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Nimittasaññaka 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.

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