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← Therāpadāna

468. {471.} Naḷamāliya

Tha-ap 473

Green and golden leaves above a flowing woodland stream.

Walt 4936 I saw the Leader of the World,
the Golden-Colored Sambuddha,
Sacrificial Recipient,
flying along the forest top. Verse 1

Walt 4937 Having taken a reed-flower,
I am setting out all the time.
There I saw him, the Sambuddha,
the Flood-Crosser, Undefiled One. Verse 2

Walt 4938 Happy, with pleasure in my heart,
I offered that reed-flower to
the Great Hero, Worthy of Gifts,
the Pitier of the Whole World. Verse 3

Walt 4939 In the thirty-one aeons since
I presented him that flower,
I’ve come to know no bad rebirth:
that’s the fruit of Buddha-pūjā. Verse 4

Walt 4940 My defilements are now burnt up;
all new existence is destroyed.
Like elephants with broken chains,
I am living without constraint. Verse 5

Walt 4941 Being in Best Buddha’s presence
was a very good thing for me.
The three knowledges are attained;
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 6

Walt 4942 The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 7

Thus indeed Venerable Naḷamāliya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Naḷamāliya 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.