189. Ekacāriya

Tha-ap 191

A white waterlily opening on a still pond in soft morning light.

Walt 2202 At that time a great din arose
among the Tāvatiṁsa gods:
“The world’s Buddha has passed away
and we’re still afflicted with lust.” Verse 1

Walt 2203 Among them who had thus been moved,
afflicted with arrows of grief,
made firm by my own mental strength,
I went into Buddha’s presence. Verse 2

Walt 2204 Plucking a mandārava bloom,
tender, created with magic,
I then offered it at the time
of the Buddha’s Passing Away. Verse 3

Walt 2205 All the gods and celestial
nymphs rejoiced for me at that time.
For one hundred thousand aeons
I was not born in a bad state. Verse 4

Walt 2206 Sixty thousand aeons ago
there were born sixteen great people
all named Mahāmallajana
wheel-turning monarchs with great strength. Verse 5

Walt 2207 The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 6

Thus indeed Venerable Ekacāriya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Ekacāriya Thera is finished.

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.