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← Therāpadāna

513. {516.} Ajjunapupphiya

Tha-ap 518

A narrow trail opens into a spacious meadow under a silver sky.

Walt 5484 On Candabhāgā River’s bank,
I was a kinnara back then.
I saw the Buddha, Stainless One,
the Self-Become, Unconquered One. Verse 1

Walt 5485 Happy, with pleasure in my heart,
awe-struck, with hands pressed together,
taking an arjuna flower,
I worshipped the Self-Become One. Verse 2

Walt 5486 Due to that karma done very well,
with intention and firm resolve,
leaving my kinnara body,
I went to Tāvatiṁsa then. Verse 3

Walt 5487 Thirty-four times the lord of gods,
I exercised divine rule there.
And ten times a wheel-turning king,
I exercised overlordship. Verse 4

Walt 5488 There was also much local rule,
innumerable by counting.
Like a seed sown in a good field
is mine in the Self-Become One. Verse 5

Walt 5489 Wholesome karma exists for me;
I went forth into homelessness.
Today I’m worthy of homage
in the Buddha’s dispensation. Verse 6

Walt 5490 My defilements are now burnt up;
all new existence is destroyed.
Like elephants with broken chains,
I am living without constraint. Verse 7

Walt 5491 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 8

Walt 5492 The four analytical modes,
and these eight deliverances,
six special knowledges mastered,
I have done what the Buddha taught! Verse 9

Thus indeed Venerable Ajjunapupphiya Thera spoke these verses.

The legend of Ajjunapupphiya 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.