170. Pañcaṅguliya

Tha-ap 172

Braided river channels flowing around pale gravel islands.

Walt 2099 The Blessed One known as Tissa,
the World’s Best One, the Bull of Men,
the Sage, inside his scented hut,
was wholesomely passing the time. Verse 1

Walt 2100 Taking a garland and some scents,
I went to the Victor’s presence.
Quietly, on the Blessed One,
I made a scented palm-print then. Verse 2

Walt 2101 In the ninety-two aeons since
I offered those perfumes to him,
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:
the fruit of a scented palm-print. Verse 3

Walt 2102 In the seventy-second aeon
I was the king, Sayampabha,
a wheel-turner with great power,
possessor of the seven gems. Verse 4

Walt 2103 The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 5

Thus indeed Venerable Pañcaṅguliya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Pañcaṅguliya Thera is finished.

The Summary:

Supārī and Kaṇaverī,
Khujjaka, Desapūjaka,
Kaṇikāra, Sappidada,
Yūthika, Dussadāyaka,
Māḷa and Pañcaṅgulika,
four and fifty verses.

The Supāricariya Chapter, the Seventeenth.

Connections

Collection & context

TherāpadānaThe collection containing this text
The Pāli canonCanonical collection in which this edition is preserved
Theravāda traditionsTransmission and study context
The early Buddhist communityHistorical and traditional setting

About this edition

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.