“Who are those who’ve crossed the bog, Death’s dominion so hard to pass? Who, after leaving behind the human body, have risen above celestial yokes?”
“Ke ca te ataruṁ paṅkaṁ, maccudheyyaṁ suduttaraṁ; Ke hitvā mānusaṁ dehaṁ, dibbayogaṁ upaccagun”ti.
“Upaka and Palagaṇḍa, and Pukkusāti, these three; Bhaddiya and Bhaddadeva, and Bāhudanti and Piṅgiya. They, after leaving behind the human body, have risen above celestial yokes.”
“Upako palagaṇḍo ca, pukkusāti ca te tayo; Bhaddiyo khaṇḍadevo ca, bāhuraggi ca siṅgiyo; Te hitvā mānusaṁ dehaṁ, dibbayogaṁ upaccagun”ti.
“You speak well of them, who have let go the snares of Māra. Whose teaching did they understand to cut the bonds of rebirth?”
“Kusalī bhāsasī tesaṁ, mārapāsappahāyinaṁ; Kassa te dhammamaññāya, acchiduṁ bhavabandhanan”ti.
“None other than the Blessed One! None other than your instruction! It was your teaching that they understood to cut the bonds of rebirth.
“In the past I was a potter in Vebhaliṅga named Ghaṭīkāra. I took care of my parents as a lay follower of Buddha Kassapa.
“Kumbhakāro pure āsiṁ, vekaḷiṅge ghaṭīkaro; Mātāpettibharo āsiṁ, kassapassa upāsako.
I refrained from sexual intercourse, I was chaste, spiritual. We lived in the same village; in the past I was your comrade.
Virato methunā dhammā, brahmacārī nirāmiso; Ahuvā te sagāmeyyo, ahuvā te pure sakhā.
I am the one who understands that these seven mendicants have been freed. With the complete ending of greed and hate, they’ve crossed over clinging to the world.”
“That’s exactly how it was, just as you say, Bhaggava. In the past you were a potter in Vebhaliṅga named Ghaṭīkāra. You took care of your parents as a lay follower of Buddha Kassapa.
