Great Chronicles, I: Salutation and Intention

The Bodhisatta [This title has been added in, as there was no overall descriptive title for this section.]

I: Salutation and Intention The original word in Pāli is Paṭiññā, which literally means ‘promise’ or ‘vow.’

This Pāḷi sentence is a formula of great honour paid to the Buddha which may be translated: “Honour to him, the Fortunate One, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Self-Enlightened One.” A Buddhist literary work usually begins with this to show the author’s devotion and obeisance.

With [7] most respectful adoration, I pay obeisance to the Buddha who, like his predecessors, has made a very rare appearance; who, like them, has no peers among humans, Devas and Brahmas in the three worlds; who, like them, forms a refuge for all these beings who bow in homage; and who is like them in all aspects of glory, virtues and attributes.

Malalasekera says there are eight differences (aṭṭha-vemattāni), “the eight particulars in which the Buddha differ from each other.” His rendering of these eight are: “Length of life in the epoch in which each is born, the height of his body, his social rank – some are born as nobles (khattiya), others as Brahmins – the length of his austerities, the aura of his body, Thus, in the case of Maṅgala, his aura spread throughout the ten thousand world-elements, while that of Gotama extended only one fathom. the conveyance in which he makes his renunciation, the tree under which he attains Enlightenment, and the size of the seat (pallaṅka) under the Bodhi tree.” See the Dictionary of Pāli Proper Names under Buddha (DPPN II, p. 296). [Also see the discussion in the Supplement in the Further Explanations.]

With most respectful adoration, I pay obeisance to the Dhamma, which, through his omniscience and out of profound compassion for all beings, has been well taught This is the first attribute of the Dhamma. by the Buddha, and which has been held in high esteem.

With most respectful adoration, I pay obeisance to the Saṅgha, the community of noble ones, who have become true sons of the master by their proper and upright practice These are the first and second of the attributes of the Saṅgha. of the Dhamma.

Having paid respects to the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Saṅgha, I shall now write in a language neither too brief nor too elaborate, neither too simple nor too difficult, and relying mainly on the canonical texts of the Chronicles of the Buddhas (Buddha-vaṁsa) The fourteenth book of the Collection of the Supplementary Texts (Khuddaka-nikāya). and its commentary, but also taking relevant materials from other texts and commentaries, the Great Chronicles of the Buddhas (Mahā-buddha-vaṁsa), a book on the lives of the 25 Awakened Ones from out of innumerable past Buddhas, whose number is far greater than that of the grains of sand of the Ganges, Cp. Appakā vālukā Gaṅgā, anantā nibbutā jinā, “few are the sands of the Ganges, innumerable are the conquerors who have entered Nirvana ….” This is from U Pe Maung Tin’s translation of the popular Pāli verse beginning with the word Sambuddhe. beginning with the account of the exalted Dīpaṅkara, from whom the future Gotama, as the ascetic Sumedha, received the definite prophecy that he would [8] become a Perfectly Self-Awakened One.

Receiving of the definite prophecy (nīyata-vyākaraṇa) is an important feature in the spiritual evolution of a Bodhisatta. We shall see more about it when we come to the story of Sumedha.

May those virtuous people, who are desirous of seeking merit and knowledge; who, with abiding faith, have established a firm foundation of refuge in the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Saṅgha; and who are properly and uprightly cultivating the threefold practice of morality (sīla), concentration (samādhi) and wisdom (paññā), easily attain the paths, fruitions and Nibbāna. [9]

After the word Buddha, the author adds an adjectival clause reading: “Whose supremacy in the three worlds is like the ruby-studded pinnacle of a palace.” The three worlds here are the three realms of sensuality (kāma), form (rūpa) and the formless (arūpa). The first corresponds to the realm of the five senses, comprising the four woeful states (apāya), the human world and the six celestial worlds. The form and formless worlds belong to the Brahmas.