236. Vaṇṇakāraka

Tha-ap 238

Mountain ridgelines receding into mist beyond a quiet alpine meadow.

Walt 2446 In Aruṇavatī city
I was a dyer at that time.
With various colors I dyed
the cloth items on the stupa. Verse 1

Walt 2447 In the thirty-one aeons since
I dyed with colors at that time,
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth;
that’s the fruit of giving colors. Verse 2

Walt 2448 In the twenty-third aeon hence
I was one named Candupama,
a wheel-turning king with great strength,
possessor of the seven gems. Verse 3

Walt 2449 The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 4

Thus indeed Venerable Vaṇṇakāraka Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Vaṇṇakāraka 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.