Commentary on Biography of the thera Upavāna

Stanzas starting with Padumuttaro nāma Jino, constitute the biography of the venerable thera Upavāna. This venerable one also, having done devoted deeds of service towards former Buddhas, accumulating meritorious deeds conducive towards escape from rounds of repeated rebirths, was reborn in a poverty-stricken family at the time of the Glorious One Padumuttara and after having attained the age of intelligence, on the demise (parinibbutā), of the Glorious One, His relics were taken, and when a shrine of seven yojanas, made of seven sorts of gems was set up by human and divine-beings, dragons, garūda birds, Kumbhaṇḍa celestial guardians, ogres and celestial musicians (gandhabba), there, he made offering in His honour; a flag, made up of his own well-washed upper garment which he fastened at the top-end of a long piece of bamboo and had it bound properly. Taking hold of it, the commander-in-chief of the ogres named Abhisammataka, who was posted there for the purpose of looking after the offerings to the shrine, by divine-beings, with his invisible body circumambulated the shrine three times carrying the flag in the sky. Having noticed it, he became much more piously pleased in mind, due to that deed of merit, he wandered about his rounds of repeated rebirths among divine and humanbeings, and was reborn in a brahmin family at Sāvatthi when this Buddha arose. He gained the name of Upavāna, and after having attained the age of puberty, saw Buddha's power at the acceptance of Jetavana, properly gained pious faith, became a monk, did deeds for development of spiritual insight (vipassanā), attained arahatship and became possessed of six kinds of higher knowledge. As and when the Glorious one became out of sorts, then the thera would administer to the Glorious One warm water together with such drinkable medicine as might be necessary. By that means the ailment of the Master became eliminated. The Glorious One performed thanks-giveing to him (in appreciation).

52. Having thus attained the fruition of arahatship and achieved the topmost position, he remembered his own former deeds and uttered a stanza starting with Padumuttaro nāma Jino, in order to make manifest his deeds done previously by way of becoming delighted in mind. There, pāragū (gone beyond), gone and attained nibbāna, the entire end of all worldly and transcendental dhammas. Padumuttaro nāma Jino, the Conqueror named Padumuttara, the Glorious One, who had conquered the five kinds of Māra, who possessed six-coloured Buddha's rays resembling a solid mass of fire, jalitvā (blazed), having lighted the whole world with the brilliance of dhamma; Sambuddho (the self-Awakened One), the excellent Buddha, who had been aptly awakened (paṭibuddho) from the slumber of kilesa (depravity) owing to His own proclivity (savāsanāya) for living beings (pajāya) who had gone off to the sleep of ignorance (avijjāniddūpagatāya), the eye-lotus (nettapaṅkajo) which had blossomed (vikasita); parinibbuto (completely passed away into nibbāna), had become extinguished by means of parinibhāna of khandha, had reached (gato) invisibility (adassanam); thus, is the connection.

57. Jaṅgha (leg), a series of ladders being bound down for the purpose of facilitating the laying of bricks which should be laid close to each other at the time of building a shrine.

88. Sudhotam rajakenaham (well washed and undusted I), properly washed by a garmentwasher-man and made well-cleaned and purified; uttareyyapaṭam mama (my upper clothing), I hang up at the bamboo top my upper garment, made a flag and flew it up; ambare (in the sky), I had the flag hoisted in the sky; thus, is the meaning. The rest is but easily comprehensible.

The commentary on the biography of the thera Upavāna has ended.