With GhaṭīkāraGhaṭīkārasutta

Standing to one side, the godling Ghaṭīkāra spoke this verse in the Buddha’s presence:Ekamantaṁ ṭhito kho ghaṭīkāro devaputto bhagavato santike imaṁ gāthaṁ abhāsi:

“Seven mendicants reborn in Aviha“Avihaṁ upapannāse, have been freed.vimuttā satta bhikkhavo; With the complete ending of greed and hate,Rāgadosaparikkhīṇā, they’ve crossed over clinging to the world.”tiṇṇā loke visattikan”ti.

“Who are those who’ve crossed the bog,“Ke ca te ataruṁ paṅkaṁ, Death’s dominion so hard to pass?maccudheyyaṁ suduttaraṁ; Who, after leaving behind the human body,Ke hitvā mānusaṁ dehaṁ, have risen above celestial yokes?”dibbayogaṁ upaccagun”ti.

“Upaka and Palagaṇḍa,“Upako palagaṇḍo ca, and Pukkusāti, these three;pukkusāti ca te tayo; Bhaddiya and Bhaddadeva,Bhaddiyo khaṇḍadevo ca, and Bāhudantī and Piṅgiya.bāhuraggi ca saṅgiyo; They, after leaving behind the human body,Te hitvā mānusaṁ dehaṁ, have risen above celestial yokes.”dibbayogaṁ upaccagun”ti.

“You speak well of them,“Kusalī bhāsasī tesaṁ, who have let go the snares of Māra.mārapāsappahāyinaṁ; Whose teaching did they understandKassa te dhammamaññāya, to cut the bonds of rebirth?”acchiduṁ bhavabandhanan”ti.

“None other than the Blessed One!“Na aññatra bhagavatā, None other than your instruction!nāññatra tava sāsanā; It was your teaching that they understoodYassa te dhammamaññāya, to cut the bonds of rebirth.acchiduṁ bhavabandhanaṁ.

Where name and formYattha nāmañca rūpañca, cease with no residue left behind;asesaṁ uparujjhati; understanding this teaching,Taṁ te dhammaṁ idhaññāya, they cut the bonds of rebirth.”acchiduṁ bhavabandhanan”ti.

“The words you say are deep,“Gambhīraṁ bhāsasī vācaṁ, hard to understand, so very hard to wake up to.dubbijānaṁ sudubbudhaṁ; Whose teaching did you understandKassa tvaṁ dhammamaññāya, to be able to say such things?”vācaṁ bhāsasi īdisan”ti.

“In the past I was a potter“Kumbhakāro pure āsiṁ, in Vebhaliṅga named Ghaṭīkāra.vekaḷiṅge ghaṭīkaro; I took care of my parentsMātāpettibharo āsiṁ, as a lay follower of Buddha Kassapa.kassapassa upāsako.

I refrained from sexual intercourse,Virato methunā dhammā, I was chaste, spiritual.brahmacārī nirāmiso; We lived in the same village;Ahuvā te sagāmeyyo, in the past I was your comrade.ahuvā te pure sakhā.

I am the one who understandsSohamete pajānāmi, that these seven mendicants have been freed.vimutte satta bhikkhavo; With the complete ending of greed and hate,Rāgadosaparikkhīṇe, they’ve crossed over clinging to the world.”tiṇṇe loke visattikan”ti.

“That’s exactly how it was,“Evametaṁ tadā āsi, just as you say, Bhaggava.yathā bhāsasi bhaggava; In the past you were a potterKumbhakāro pure āsi, in Vebhaliṅga named Ghaṭīkāra.vekaḷiṅge ghaṭīkaro.

You took care of your parentsMātāpettibharo āsi, as a lay follower of Buddha Kassapa.kassapassa upāsako; You refrained from sexual intercourse,Virato methunā dhammā, you were chaste, spiritual.brahmacārī nirāmiso; We lived in the same village;Ahuvā me sagāmeyyo, in the past you were my comrade.”ahuvā me pure sakhā”ti.

“That’s how it was“Evametaṁ purāṇānaṁ, when those friends of old met again.sahāyānaṁ ahu saṅgamo; Both of them are evolved,Ubhinnaṁ bhāvitattānaṁ, and bear their final body.”sarīrantimadhārinan”ti.