[85] Then the Blessed One, having expressed his appreciation to Sunidha and Vassakāra, the chief ministers of Magadha, with these verses, rose from his seat and departed. Now at that time Sunidha and Vassakāra, the chief ministers of Magadha, were following close behind the Blessed One, thinking: "The gate by which the ascetic Gotama departs today shall be named the Gotama Gate; the ford by which he crosses the river Gaṅgā shall be named the Gotama Ford." Then the gate by which the Blessed One departed came to be named the Gotama Gate.
Then the Blessed One approached the river Gaṅgā. Now at that time the river Gaṅgā was full, brimming level with its banks, so that a crow could drink from it. Some people were searching for a boat, some were searching for a float, some were binding together a raft, wishing to go from the near shore to the far shore. Then the Blessed One—just as a strong man might stretch out his bent arm or bend back his outstretched arm—vanished from the near bank of the river Gaṅgā and reappeared on the far bank together with the Saṅgha of bhikkhus. The Blessed One saw those people—some searching for a boat, some searching for a float, some binding together a raft—wishing to go from the near shore to the far shore. Then the Blessed One, understanding the meaning of this, on that occasion uttered this inspired utterance:
Those who cross the vast expanse of water, the lake,
having made a bridge, leaving the marshes behind—
while the people are still binding a raft,
the wise have already crossed over.
End of the first recitation section.
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.