[139]
In this fortunate aeon (bhaddakappa) the kinsman of Brahmā, of great fame,
Kassapa by name, best of speakers, arose.
Then I, having gone forth in that Buddha's teaching,
and having lived the holy life (brahmacariya) as long as life lasted, passed away from there.
Through that deed well done, and through intention and aspiration,
abandoning the human body, I went to Tāvatiṃsa.
Passing away from there, I was a pigeon in the forest; and there
dwelt a bhikkhu endowed with good qualities, ever delighting in jhāna:
with a mind (citta) of loving-kindness (mettā), compassionate (karuṇā), his countenance ever joyful,
equanimous (upekkhā), a great hero, skilled in the boundless states (appamaññā),
his thoughts rid of the hindrances (nīvaraṇa), his disposition set on the welfare of all beings.
Before long I grew intimate with that disciple of the Sugata.
Coming up to the feet of him as he sat then in his hermitage —
sometimes he would give food, and at times he taught the Dhamma.
Then, having with abundant love attended upon that son of the Jina (Conqueror),
passing away from there I went to heaven, as one long abroad goes to his own home.
Passing away from heaven, I was reborn among humans through my meritorious deed;
casting off the household, I went forth many a time.
Becoming an ascetic (samaṇa), an austere hermit (tāpasa), a brahmin, and likewise a wanderer (paribbājaka),
I dwelt in the forest many hundreds of times.
And now, in my final existence, in delightful Kapilavatthu,
there was a brahmin of the Vaccha clan: into his wife's womb I descended.
While I lay within her womb, my mother had a pregnancy longing (dohaḷa):
as my birth drew near, her resolve was for dwelling in the forest.
Then my mother gave birth to me within a delightful forest;
as I came forth from the womb, they received me with an ochre cloth (kāsāya).
Then the prince Siddhattha was born, the banner of the Sakyan clan;
I was his dear friend, trusted and well-esteemed.
When the Best of Beings had gone forth, forsaking abundant glory,
I too went forth and came to the Himavant.
Having seen Kassapa — forest-dweller, worthy of veneration, exponent of the ascetic practices (dhutavāda) —
and having heard that a Jina had arisen, I approached the Charioteer of men.
He taught me the Dhamma, making every meaning plain;
and then, having gone forth, I entered the forest once more.
Dwelling there heedful, I realized the six superknowledges (chaḷabhiññā).
Oh, a gain well gained is mine: I was shown compassion by a good friend!
My defilements (kilesa) have been burned away; all existences have been uprooted;
like an elephant that has burst its bonds, I dwell without taints (āsava).
Welcome indeed was my coming into the presence of the best of Buddhas:
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),
the six superknowledges have been realized; the Buddha's teaching has been done.
Thus indeed did the Venerable Vanavaccha the Elder speak these verses.
The Apadāna of the Elder Vanavaccha is concluded.
Tenth: the Apadāna of the Elder Cūḷasugandha (550)
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.