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tha-ap.184 Thera Apadana

Bandhujīvaka

The Sambuddha named Siddhattha,
Self-Become, praised by good people,
having entered concentration,
sat down upon a mountain then.

Searching in a natural lake
for a superb lotus flower,
I saw bandhujīvaka blooms
in the nearby vicinity.

Picking them up with both my hands,
I then approached the Sage So Great.
Happy, with pleasure in my heart,
I offered them to Siddhattha.

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

In the fourteenth aeon ago,
there was one ruler of people
whose name was Samuddakappa,
a wheel-turning king 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 Bandhujīvaka Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Bandhujīvaka Thera is finished.

- Translator: Jonathan S. Walters

- Editor: Ayya Vimala