7.

Commentary on the Lineage of the Buddha Revata

Now, in the period after the Blessed One Sumana, when his Dispensation had disappeared, human beings with a lifespan of ninety thousand years, having gradually declined, having become those with a lifespan of ten years, having again gradually increased, having become those of incalculable lifespan, again declining, had a lifespan of sixty thousand years. At that time a Teacher named Revata arose. He too, having fulfilled the perfections, having been reborn in the Tusita realm, a dwelling resplendent with many jewels, having passed away from there, in the city of Sudhaññavatī abounding in all wealth and grain, in the family of a king named Vipula, who was endowed with all prosperity and abundance, surrounded by an immeasurable and beautiful retinue fully adorned with all ornaments, bustling with the accumulation of glory and wealth, he took conception in the womb of the chief queen named Vipulā, who was bustling with rows and lines of the eyes of all people, resplendent with the splendour of a mine of face-lotuses, smooth and glorious like fully-blown eye-water-lilies, abundant in a multitude of exceedingly beautiful and captivating virtues, and after the elapse of ten months, like a golden swan king from Mount Cittakūṭa, he came forth from the mother's womb.

The wonders at his conception and birth were in the manner already stated before. And he had three mansions named Sudassana, Ratana, and Āveḷa. Thirty-three thousand women headed by Queen Sudassanā were in attendance. Surrounded by them, like a divine prince surrounded by celestial maidens, he dwelt in the house experiencing sensual happiness for six thousand years. He, when a son named Varuṇa was born to a queen named Sudassanā, having seen the four signs, wearing various dispassion-coloured excellent fine garments, with pearl necklaces and jewelled earrings put on, wearing excellent bracelets, a crown, and bangles, adorned with supremely fragrant flowers, with a multitude of supremely beautiful rays, like the autumn night-maker, like the moon surrounded by a host of stars, like the thousand-eyed one surrounded by a host of the Thirty-three, and like Hārita the Great Brahmā surrounded by a host of Brahmās, surrounded by a great fourfold army, having gone forth in the great renunciation by a thoroughbred chariot, having taken off all ornaments, having given them into the hands of the storekeeper, having cut off his hair-crown with a sword exceedingly sharp and exceedingly keen, resembling an unblemished dark blue water-lily petal born from water, he threw it into the sky. Sakka, the king of gods, having received it with a golden casket, having led it to the realm of the Thirty-three, made a shrine of the seven precious things on the summit of Sineru.

The Great Man, however, having put on the ochre robes given by the gods, went forth, and one ten million men went forth following him. He, surrounded by them, having practised the practice of striving for seven months, on the full moon day of Vesākha, having eaten the milk-rice given by a certain millionaire's daughter named Sāhudevī, having spent the day residence in a sal grove, in the evening time, having taken eight handfuls of grass given by a certain naked ascetic, walking with the gait of an excellent bull elephant, having circumambulated the Nāga Bodhi tree, having spread a grass mat fifty-three cubits wide, having determined the fourfold energy, having sat down, having scattered the forces of Māra, having penetrated the knowledge of omniscience - "Through the round of many births, etc. it has reached the elimination of cravings" - he uttered an inspired utterance. Therefore it was said -

1.

Revata, it is said, the Teacher, having spent seven weeks in the very vicinity of the Bodhi tree, having accepted Brahmā's request for the purpose of teaching the Teaching - while reflecting "To whom indeed should I first teach the Teaching?" having seen ten million monks who had gone forth together with him, and many other gods and humans accomplished with decisive support, having gone through space, having descended into the Varuṇa Park, surrounded by them, having set in motion the profound, subtle, with three rounds, not to be rolled back by another, unsurpassed wheel of the Teaching, he established ten million monks in arahantship. There is no limit to the counting of those established in the three paths and fruits. Therefore it was said -

2.

Therein, "the defining of the aggregates and elements" means the making of a classification by way of the defining of mentality-materiality and so on of the five aggregates and the eighteen elements. The discernment of material and immaterial phenomena by way of intrinsic nature characteristic, common characteristic and so on is called the defining of the aggregates and elements. Or alternatively, matter is like a lump of foam because of not being able to withstand crushing and because of having the nature of being perforated and unperforated and so on; feeling is like a water bubble because of being delightful only for a moment; perception is like a mirage because of deceiving; activities are like a plantain trunk because of being coreless; consciousness is like a magical illusion because of cheating - by such a method as this too, the defining of the aggregates and elements should be understood by way of the observation of impermanence and so on. "The non-occurrence in any kind of existence" - here "existence" means growth; "non-existence" means deterioration. "Existence" means the eternalist view; "non-existence" means the annihilationist view. "Existence" means lesser existence; "non-existence" means greater existence. "Existence" means sensual existence; "non-existence" means fine-material and immaterial existence - by such a method as this the meaning of "any kind of existence" should be understood. The meaning is that he made known the Teaching that is the cause of the non-occurrence of those kinds of existence. Or alternatively, "existence" means that by which one comes to be, the sign of rebirth in the three existences, namely action and so on. The becoming of rebirth is called "non-existence." The meaning is that he taught the Teaching of non-occurrence that effects the abandoning of attachment in both cases. But for that Buddha Revata there were just three full realisations. But the first of his passed beyond the path of counting. Therefore it was said -

3.

Therein, "tīṇi" means three; a change of gender has been made; this was the first full realisation.

Then at another time, to the north of the city, in the northern city, there was a king named Arindama, the tamer of all enemies. It is said that he, having heard that the Blessed One had arrived at his own city, surrounded by three koṭis of people, having gone out to meet the Blessed One, having invited him for the morrow, having carried on a great giving for seven days to the Community of monks headed by the Buddha, having made an offering of lamps extending three gāvutas, having approached the Blessed One, sat down. Then the Blessed One taught him the Teaching in a variegated method agreeable to his mind. There, there was the second full realisation of a thousand koṭis of gods and humans. Therefore it was said -

4.

This was the second full realisation.

Then at another time the Teacher Revata, dwelling in dependence on a market town named Uttara, having entered upon the attainment of cessation for seven days, sat down. At that time, it is said, the people dwelling in the Uttara market town, having brought rice gruel, meals, sweet-meats, medicines, beverages, and so on, having given a great gift to the community of monks, inquired of the monks - "Where, venerable sir, is the Blessed One?" Thereupon the monks said to them - "The Blessed One, friends, has attained the attainment of cessation." Then when that week had passed, having seen the Blessed One who had emerged from the attainment of cessation, shining with his own incomparable Buddha's glory like the sun in the autumn season, they asked about the virtuous benefits of the attainment of cessation. And the Blessed One spoke to them of the virtuous benefits of the attainment of cessation. Then a hundred koṭis of gods and humans became established in arahantship. This was the third full realisation. Therefore it was said -

5.

In the city of Sudhaññavatī, at the first great recitation of the Pātimokkha, the first assembly was of Worthy Ones gone forth by the "Come, monk" ordination, who had passed beyond the path of counting. In the city of Mekhalā, the second assembly was of Worthy Ones gone forth by the "Come, monk" ordination, reckoned as a hundred thousand koṭis. Now, the Blessed One Revata's follower of the Wheel of the Teaching, the chief disciple named Varuṇa, the foremost among the wise, became sick. There, having taught the Teaching illuminating the three characteristics to the great multitude that had assembled for the purpose of enquiring after the sick one, having given the going forth by the "Come, monk" ordination to a hundred thousand koṭis of men, having established them in arahantship, he recited the Pātimokkha at an assembly possessed of four factors. This was the third assembly. Therefore it was said -

6.

7.

8.

9.

6-9. Therein, "one who keeps the wheel turning" means a follower of the wheel of the Teaching. "Having reached danger of life" - here, doubt about life is danger of life; he reaches the destruction of life, or does not reach it - thus having reached danger of life; due to the powerful state of the illness, he dies or does not die - the meaning is one who has reached doubt about life. "Those sages who then came" - thus, when it is long, it applies to the monks; when it is short, together with the recollection, it applies to Varuṇa.

At that time our Bodhisatta, having been a brahmin named Atideva in the city of Rammavatī, having gone to the far shore in the brahmin practices, having seen Revata the Fully Self-Enlightened One, having heard his talk on the Teaching, having become established in the refuges, having praised the One of Ten Powers with a thousand verses of praise, venerated the Blessed One with an upper robe worth a thousand. That Buddha too declared concerning him - "At the summit of two incalculable periods exceeding a hundred thousand cosmic cycles from now, he will become a Buddha named Gotama." Therefore it was said -

10.

11.

12.

13.

Eight verses should be expanded.

14.

15.

10-15. Therein, "I went for refuge to him" means I went to that refuge; the genitive case is used in the accusative sense. "Quality of wisdom" means the achievement of wisdom. "Highest" means foremost. "Paññāvimuttiguṇamuttama" is also a reading; it is self-evident. "Having praised" means having praised, having extolled. "According to one's strength" means according to one's power. "Cloak" means the upper robe. "Adāsahaṃ" means I gave. "Buddha-teaching" means the teaching that produces the state of a Buddha; the meaning is the teaching of the perfections. "Having remembered" means having recollected. "I developed" means I increased. "I shall bring" means I shall fetch. "That teaching" means that state of a Buddha. "Which was longed for by me" means the state of a Buddha which was longed for by me - I shall bring that; this is the meaning.

Now that Blessed One Revata's city was named Sudhaññavatī, his father was a warrior named Vipula, his mother was named Vipulā, Varuṇa and Brahmadeva were the two chief disciples, Sambhava by name was the attendant, Bhaddā and Subhaddā were the two chief female disciples, the iron-wood tree was the Bodhi tree, his body was eighty cubits in height, the life span was sixty thousand years, Sudassanā by name was the chief queen, Varuṇa by name was the son, and he departed by a thoroughbred chariot.

Therefore it was said -

16.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.

27.

28.

16-28. Therein, "illuminates" means makes known. "Risen" means raised up. "Radiance-garland" means radiance-boundary. "Like fire" means like a fire. "By the extinction of fuel" means by the exhaustion of firewood. "And that body like a jewel" means and that body of that Blessed One was golden-coloured. "Tañca kāyaṃ ratananibha" is also a reading; it is said with a change of gender. But the meaning is the same. In the remaining verses, the meaning is manifest everywhere.

The commentary on the Lineage of the Buddha Revata is completed.

The fifth lineage of the Buddha is concluded.