[399] My wife had died; my son had gone to the charnel ground (sīvathikā);
my mother, my father, and my brother were burned upon a single pyre.
Scorched by that sorrow (soka), I became emaciated and pale,
and derangement of mind came upon me, oppressed as I was by that sorrow.
Overcome by the dart of sorrow, I went to the forest;
eating fruit fallen of itself, I dwelt at the foot of a tree.
The Fully Awakened One named Sumedha, the Victor, maker of the end of suffering (dukkha),
desiring to lift me up, came into my presence.
Hearing the sound of the footsteps of Sumedha, the Great Seer,
I raised my head and gazed upon the Great Sage.
The Great Hero drew near; rapture (pīti) arose in me;
then, on seeing that Leader of the World, my mind became one-pointed.
Having recovered mindfulness (sati), I gave a handful of leaves,
and the Blessed One, the One with Vision, sat down there out of compassion.
Sitting there, the Blessed One Sumedha, Leader of the World,
the Buddha, taught me the Dhamma that dispels the dart of sorrow:
"Uninvited they came from there; without leave they went from here;
even as they came, so have they gone — what lamentation (paridevanā) is there in that?
Just as travellers on foot, when the rain pours down,
betake themselves to shelter with their provisions because of the falling rain,
and when the rain has ceased, go on their way as they please —
even so are your mother and father: what lamentation is there in that?
Newcomers and guests — shaken, stirred, and trembling —
even so are your mother and father: what lamentation is there in that?
Just as a serpent goes its way, leaving behind its own worn-out slough,
even so have your mother and father here left the body behind."
Understanding the Buddha's word, I cast aside the dart of sorrow;
arousing gladness, I paid homage to the best of Buddhas.
Having paid homage to the Great Nāga, I honored Sumedha, the Leader of the World,
with a spray of mountain blossoms (girimañjarī) endowed with divine fragrance.
Having honored the Fully Awakened One, raising my joined palms above my head,
recollecting his supreme qualities, I extolled the Leader of the World:
"You have crossed over, O Great Hero, All-Knowing One, Leader of the World;
by your knowledge (ñāṇa), O Great Sage, you lift up all beings.
You cut through perplexity and doubt as well, O Great Sage;
by your knowledge, O One with Vision, you have set me upon the path (magga).
Arahants who have attained success, possessed of the six superknowledges (chaḷabhiññā), of great psychic power,
wise ones coursing through the sky, surround you at this very moment.
There are disciples on the way of practice, trainees (sekhā), and those established in the fruit;
your disciples blossom like lotuses at the rising of the sun.
As the great ocean is imperturbable, unequalled, hard to cross,
even so, endowed with knowledge, you are immeasurable, O One with Vision."
Having paid homage to the Conqueror of the World, the One with Vision, of great renown,
worshiping toward the four quarters, I departed, withdrawing bent low.
Passing away from the heavenly world, clearly comprehending (sampajāno) and mindful,
running on through existence after existence, I descended into my mother's womb.
Having departed from the house, I went forth into homelessness,
ardent (ātāpī) and prudent, with solitary retreat as my resort.
Having striven in exertion and gladdened the Great Sage,
I fare on at all times, freed like the moon from a mass of cloud.
I am devoted to seclusion, at peace, free from acquisitions (nirūpadhi);
having fully understood all the taints (āsava), I dwell free of taints.
Since I honored the Buddha thirty thousand aeons ago,
I know of no bad destination — this is the fruit of honoring the Buddha.
My defilements (kilesa) have been burned away; all existences have been uprooted;
all taints are utterly destroyed; now there is no renewed existence.
A welcome coming indeed was mine into the presence of my Buddha:
the three true knowledges (vijjā) have been attained; the Buddha's teaching has been done.
The four analytic insights (paṭisambhidā), and likewise these eight liberations (vimokkha),
and the six superknowledges have been realized; the Buddha's teaching has been done.
Thus indeed did the Venerable Elder Girimānanda speak these verses.
The Apadāna of the Elder Girimānanda is concluded.
The eighth: the Apadāna of the Elder Salaḷamaṇḍapiya (398)
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.