79. Ṭhitañjaliya (THA-AP81)

In the past, in a forest grove,
I was a man who hunted deer.
There I saw Sambuddha Tissa
bearing the marks of a Great Man.

Pressing hands together for him,
sitting down in that neighborhood
on a leaf-mat that was placed there,
I then set off facing the east.

Just then a fallen lightening bolt
landed on the top of my head.
Again, as I lay there dying,
I pressed both my hands together.

In the ninety-two aeons since
I pressed my hands together then,
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:
that’s the fruit of pressing my hands.

Four and fifty aeons ago
the monarch named Migaketu
was a wheel-turner with great strength,
possessor of the seven gems.

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

Thus indeed Venerable Ṭhitañjaliya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Ṭhitañjaliya 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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