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131. Sobhita

Tha-ap 133

Tiny green shoots emerging beside weathered charcoal in a forest.

Walt 1870 The Victor Padumuttara,
the World’s Best One, the Bull of Men,
before a large body of folks
did preach the path of deathlessness. Verse 1

Walt 1871 Then having listened to his words,
those majestic words he uttered,
pressing both my hands together,
I became tranquil at that time. Verse 2

Walt 1872“As the great ocean is
the foremost of the seas,
and the rock-heap Meru
is the best of mountains, Verse 3

likewise those people who
are controlled by the heart
approach not a tittle
of the Buddha’s knowledge.” Verse 4

Walt 1873The Buddha, Compassionate, Sage,
setting forth the Dhamma-method,
seated in the monks’ Assembly,
uttered this verse about me then: Verse 5

Walt 1874 “He who praises knowledge like this
when the Buddha, World-Leader lives,
for one hundred thousand aeons
will come to know no bad rebirth. Verse 6

Walt 1875 Having destroyed the defilements,
tranquil and well-attentive,
he’ll be the Teacher’s follower,
known by the name of Sobhita.” Verse 7

Walt 1877 I have burnt up my defilements,
all new existence is destroyed.
The three-fold knowing is attained,
I have done what the Buddha taught. Verse 8

Walt 1876In the fifty-thousandth aeon
there were seven Samuggatas,
wheel-turning kings with great power,
possessors of the seven gems. Verse 9

Walt 1878 The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 10

Thus indeed Venerable Sobhita Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Sobhita Thera is finished.

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Translation by Jonathan S. Walters · SuttaCentral · CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US

Noncommercial reuse with attribution and the same license. Original publication and digitization credits are preserved below.

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.

For more information, visit apadanatranslation.org

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Ayya Vimala.

Published source. Translation wording and order are preserved; source headings and notes are retained, with navigation and formatting adapted for this reader.

The opening image is AI-generated nature artwork for Buddhist Atlas, an evocative companion rather than a historical depiction.