272. Tilamuṭṭhidāyaka

Tha-ap 274

Fresh silver-green shoots growing from an ancient olive tree.

Walt 2586 Discerning what I was thinking,
the Teacher, the World’s Chief Leader,
by means of his body made of
mind approached me through his powers. Verse 1

Walt 2587 While attending on the Teacher,
worshipping the Supreme Person,
happy, with pleasure in my heart,
I gave a sesame-handful. Verse 2

Walt 2588 In the ninety-one aeons since
I gave a sesame-handful,
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:
a handful of sesame’s fruit. Verse 3

Walt 2589 In the sixteenth aeon ago
the kṣatriyan named Nandiya
was a wheel-turning king with great strength,
possessor of the seven gems. Verse 4

Walt 2590 The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 5

Thus indeed Venerable Tilamuṭṭhidāyaka Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Tilamuṭṭhidāyaka 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.