[81] 7.
"Just as on the full-moon night the moon,
surrounded by the host of constellations,
circles round on every side —
the hare-marked moon, sovereign of the stars —
so, in like manner, this heavenly mansion (byamha)
here in the city of the devas
outshines [all] in beauty,
like the radiant sun as it rises.
Of beryl (veḷuriya) and of gold,
of crystal and of silver,
with cat's-eye gems and pearls
and rubies too,
variegated and delightful is the floor,
spread over with beryl.
Splendid and lovely are the peaked halls;
your palace is well built;
delightful too is your lotus pond,
broad, frequented by shoals of fish,
its water clear and limpid,
its bed spread with golden sand,
covered over with lotuses of many kinds,
overspread with white lotuses;
stirred by the breeze, they breathe forth
their fragrance, sweet and charming.
On both sides of that pond of yours
groves stand well laid out,
furnished alike with flowering trees
and with trees that bear fruit.
As you sit upon a couch with legs of gold,
soft, spread with fleecy woolen covers,
like a king of the devas,
the celestial nymphs (accharā) wait upon you —
covered with every kind of ornament,
adorned with garlands manifold,
they give delight to you, one of great power;
you rejoice like [King] Vasavattī.
With kettledrums, conches, and tambours,
with lutes and with tabors,
you take your delight, endowed with pleasure,
amid dance and song and instrumental music.
Divine and manifold are your forms;
divine the sounds, and the tastes as well;
scents there are, such as you desire,
and objects of touch delightful to the mind.
In that excellent mansion,
O deva (devaputta) of great radiance,
you shine surpassingly in beauty,
like the sun as it is rising.
Is this the fruit of your giving,
or else, then, of your virtue,
or of reverential salutation (añjalikamma)?
Asked by me, declare this to me."
That deva, gladdened,
being questioned by Moggallāna,
…
of what deed this is the fruit:
"In Kapilavatthu, supreme city of the Sākiyans,
I was Kaṇṭhaka, born on the same day
as the son of Suddhodana.
When at midnight he went forth
for the sake of awakening (sambodha),
with his soft hands,
their nails gleaming copper-red,
he patted me upon the thigh and said,
'Carry me, good friend:
having attained the supreme awakening,
I shall bring the world across.'
As I heard that utterance of his,
vast was the joy that arose in me;
elated in mind, glad at heart,
I then neighed [in assent].
And knowing that the Sakyan son
of great renown had mounted me,
elated in mind and joyful,
I bore the supreme among men.
Having gone to the realm of others,
when the sun had risen,
he departed without regard [for us],
leaving me and Channa behind.
His feet with their copper-hued nails
I licked with my tongue,
and weeping I gazed after
the great hero as he went.
Through not seeing him,
that glorious son of the Sakyans,
I contracted a grievous illness;
swiftly death came upon me.
By the power of that very [devotion]
I dwell in this mansion,
endowed with all the strands of sensual pleasure (kāmaguṇa),
divine, in the city of the devas.
And the joy that arose in me
on hearing the word of awakening —
by that very wholesome root (kusalamūla)
I shall attain the destruction of the taints (āsava).
If, venerable sir, you should go
into the presence of the Teacher, the Buddha,
then convey to him in my name as well
homage [rendered] with the head.
I too shall go to see the Conqueror,
who is without a counterpart;
hard to gain is the sight
of such Protectors of the World."
And he, grateful and thankful,
approached the Teacher;
having heard the speech of the One with Vision,
he purified the eye of Dhamma (dhammacakkhu);
having purified [himself of] the resort to views,
of doubt, and of [reliance on] observances,
he venerated the Teacher's feet
and vanished on that very spot.
The Kaṇṭhaka Mansion, the seventh.
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.