[129] A hundred thousand aeons ago there arose
the Victor (jina) named Padumuttara —
the sage, knower of all the world,
the One with Vision (cakkhumā).
An exhorter, an instructor,
a deliverer of all living beings,
skilled in teaching, the Buddha
brought a great multitude across.
Sympathetic, compassionate,
seeking the welfare of all living beings,
he established all the sectarians (titthiya) who came to him
in the five precepts (pañcasīla).
Thus [the dispensation] was free of disorder,
empty of sectarians,
and resplendent with arahants
who had attained mastery, steadfast ones (tādi).
That great sage stood tall,
fifty-eight cubits (ratana) in height;
resembling a golden ornamental pillar,
he bore the thirty-two excellent marks.
At that time the lifespan
extended a hundred thousand years;
remaining in the world that long,
he brought a great multitude across.
At that time I was a brahmin in Haṃsavatī,
perfected in the sacred hymns (manta);
approaching that best of men,
I listened to his teaching of the Dhamma —
as the great hero, confident amid the assemblies,
the Guide, was appointing
a bhikkhu who inspires eloquence (paṭibhāṇeyyaka)
to the foremost place (etadagga).
Then, having rendered service
to the Leader of the World together with the Saṅgha,
I bowed my head at his feet
and aspired to that position.
Then the Blessed One,
his radiance like an ingot of siṅgī gold,
addressed me with that delightful voice
which bears away the stain of the defilements (kilesa):
"Be happy; live long!
May your aspiration succeed!
The service you have done to me together with the Saṅgha
is exceedingly abundant.
A hundred thousand aeons from now,
sprung from the Okkāka lineage,
there will be in the world a Teacher
named Gotama by name.
An heir in his teachings,
a true-born son formed by the Dhamma,
bearing the name Rādha,
he will be a disciple of the Teacher."
[1]
"The Leader will declare him
foremost of those who inspire eloquence."
Hearing that, gladdened,
for as long as I lived I then
attended upon the Victor with a mind of loving-kindness (mettā),
since I was composed in wisdom.
Through that deed well performed
and through my intention and aspirations,
on abandoning the human body
I went to Tāvatiṃsa;
three hundred times
I exercised kingship over the gods.
Five hundred times
I was a wheel-turning monarch (cakkavatti),
and [I held] extensive regional kingship
beyond reckoning by count.
Everywhere I was happy
by the power of that deed.
When my final existence arrived,
in Giribbaja, supreme among cities,
I was born into a destitute brahmin family,
deficient in clothing and food;
I gave a spoonful of almsfood
to Sāriputta, the steadfast one.
When I was worn out and old,
I came then to the monastery;
none would give me the going forth (pabbajjā),
being old and feeble of strength.
Because of that I was then downcast,
my body grown pale, and sorrowful.
Seeing me, the Greatly Compassionate One,
the great sage, said to me:
"For what reason, son, are you stricken with sorrow?
Declare the sickness born in your mind."
"I do not obtain the going forth, O hero,
in your well-proclaimed dispensation;
because of that sorrow I am downcast.
Be my refuge, O Leader!"
Then, having convened the bhikkhus,
the supreme sage asked:
"Let those who remember a service (adhikāra) of this man
declare it."
Then Sāriputta said:
"I remember a service of his:
he had a spoonful of almsfood given to me
as I was walking for alms."
"Good, good! You are grateful, Sāriputta;
give the going forth to this aged twice-born —
he will be one worthy of veneration."
Then I obtained the going forth
and the higher ordination (upasampadā) by the formal act (kammavācā).
In no long time
I attained the destruction of the taints (āsava).
Since, gladdened, I listened respectfully
to the word of the sage,
the Victor thereupon established me
as foremost of those who inspire eloquence.
My defilements have been burned away;
all existences have been rooted out;
like an elephant that has burst its bonds,
I dwell without taints.
Welcome indeed was my coming
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 also these eight liberations (vimokkha),
and the six superknowledges (chaḷabhiññā) have been realized;
the Buddha's teaching has been done.
Thus indeed did the Venerable Elder Rādha speak these verses.
The Apadāna of the Elder Rādha is concluded.
The Tenth: The Apadāna of the Elder Mogharāja (540)
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.