In Praise of Śrāvastī

The Conquerors' Delight: In Praise of Śrāvastī

by Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö

Oṃ svasti!
Supreme god of gods, triumphant Lion of the Śākyas,
Leader of men and foremost guide for all the world,
Your three kāyas are to be found throughout all realms,
And, in taming those of limited vision, you reign supreme!

Miraculous in your activity, in the mere blink of an eye
You emanated and absorbed many hundred forms
Here, in this supreme of places known as Śrāvastī —
To this, the Lord of Sages' garden of delight, I pay homage!

Here the light of the assembled saṅgha in their saffron robes
Embraced the sky like fresh golden clouds at dawn or dusk,
In this great valley renowned as Jetavana — 'Jeta's grove' —
Which arose through the merit of the patron Anāthapiṇḍada.

Here, in this great paradise of the Dharma,
The Lord of Sages, resplendent as a golden mountain,
Displayed great miracles that utterly vanquished
The six elephant-like teachers, drunk on their wrong views.
As the sound of their wailing filled the entire world,
You subdued and humiliated all Māra's forces,
And sounded the drum of Dharma a hundred times.

Thus, the wondrous account of your great miracles,
Like nectar that gladdened the heart and delighted the vision
Of gods, human beings and all other witnesses,
Will be forever told and retold until the very ends of time.

To Śrāvastī, a place more exalted than any other,
For more than five and twenty rainy seasons,
You, foremost of the two-legged, came and here you stayed —
Now, recalling this again and again, I pay homage!

Henceforth, throughout all my future lives,
May I be cared for by the Guru, Lord of Sages,
And as I keep the discipline that delights the noble,
May I be satisfied with Dharma, profound and vast!

May the Omniscient Buddha's teaching and its holders flourish,
May Dharma patrons live long and their merit and resources increase!
May the evil actions of asuras hostile to the doctrine be pacified!
And may the light of precious Dharma shine forever brightly!

Thus, I, Jamyang Chökyi Lodrö, wrote this during a pilgrimage to this holy place in the Fire Monkey year (1956), when recalling the Teacher's life and liberation and feeling extremely inspired.

| Translated by Adam Pearcey (with the generous support of the Khyentse Foundation and the kind assistance of Alak Zenkar Rinpoche), 2018.