[1051]
Passing away from there,² that Phussatī was reborn among the khattiyas;
in the city of Jetuttara she was united with Sañjaya.
Having borne me for ten months, while making a rightward circuit (padakkhiṇa) of the city,
in the midst of the street of the merchants (vessa), Phussatī gave birth to me.
My name derives not from my mother, nor is it of paternal origin;
since I was born on the merchants' street, therefore was I Vessantara.
When I was a boy, eight years old from my birth,
then, seated in the palace, I reflected upon giving a gift (dāna):
"My heart would I give, my eyes, my flesh and my blood as well;
proclaiming it aloud, I would give my body, should any beggar ask it of me."
#¹ The Burmese edition reads: khujjacelāpakākiṇṇe. ² These six verses are found only in the Sinhalese manuscript,
#not in the others.
As I contemplated my own disposition (sabhāva), unshaken and unwavering,
the earth there quaked, with Sineru and its forests for her garland.
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.