46. Padumacchadaniya (THA-AP48)

When Vipassi, the Chief Person,
the World-Lord had reached nirvana,
taking a pink lotus in bloom
I placed it on the Buddha’s pyre.

And when it was placed on the pyre,
that lotus rose into the sky.
Making an awning in the sky
I held it there over the pyre.

In the ninety-one aeons since
I offered that flower to him,
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:
that’s the fruit of Buddha-pūjā.

Forty-seven aeons ago
I was named Padumissara,
victorious on all four sides,
a wheel-turner 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 Padumucchadaniya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Padumucchadaniya 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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Prepared for SuttaCentral by Ayya Vimala.