[368] 3.
When first I saw the Teacher,
who has no fear from any quarter,
a sense of urgency (saṃvega) arose in me
from seeing that supreme among men.
Whoever would drive away with hands and feet
Fortune (sirī) when she has come to him —
such a one it is who, having won a Teacher like this,
would fail him.
Then I abandoned child and wife,
wealth and grain;
having cut off hair and beard,
I went forth into homelessness.
Accomplished in the training and the way of life (sikkhā-sājīva),
well restrained in the sense faculties,
paying homage to the Fully Awakened One,
I dwelt unvanquished.
Then there arose in me a resolve,
the ardent wish of my heart:
"I shall not sit for even a moment
while the dart of craving (taṇhā) remains undrawn."
As I dwelt thus,
behold my energy (vīriya) and exertion!
The three true knowledges (vijjā) have been attained;
the Buddha's teaching has been done.
I know my former abodes;
the divine eye has been purified;
I am an arahant, worthy of offerings,
fully released, free of acquisitions (upadhi).
Then, as the night was waning,
toward the rising of the sun,
having dried up all craving,
I sat down cross-legged.
The Elder Mahāpanthaka.
Summary (uddāna):
The Elder Mahākaccāyana, Sirimitta, and Mahāpanthaka —
three in the Book of Eights; twenty-four verses.
The Book of Eights (Aṭṭhakanipāta) is finished.
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Theragāthā: The Book of Nines (Navakanipāta)
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.