Praise of the Buddha by his epithets and by what he did — made this world known, taught the Dhamma, and proclaimed the holy life entire.
- When chanted
- Chanted in the morning service, the first of three praises given in turn to the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha.
A note on this chant. The book prints this chant in Pali only, with no Thai translation. The English here is a working translation prepared for this edition — it is not the book's own, and has not yet been checked by a teacher.
Historical background
The book prints no title above this chant. The name used here is taken from the word พุทธาภิถุติง in its own invitation line — หันทะ มะยัง พุทธาภิถุติง กะโรมะ เส, now let us give praise to the Buddha — which the leader says to open it. title_thai and title_pali are left empty rather than invented.
The material is not new. The string of epithets belongs to the standard recollection of the Buddha, and the passages about making this world known and teaching a Dhamma admirable in beginning, middle and end are stock formulas that recur widely in the canon. What the liturgy composed is the frame: the relative pronoun โย โส, that one who, opened at the start and left unresolved across every clause that follows.
No Thai rendering is printed here either, so this chant too stands at the Pali and an English translation written for this edition rather than taken from the book.
Meaning and purpose
The whole chant is one sentence. It opens with โย โส ตะถาคะโต, that Tathāgata — the term the Buddha used of himself rather than a title given to him — and then withholds its main verb through eight clauses of description before landing, in the ninth, on what the reciter does about it. Read as English it looks like a list. Chanted, it is a single held breath of a sentence that has to arrive somewhere.
What is praised comes in two kinds. First the epithets: accomplished in knowledge and conduct, well-gone, knower of worlds, unexcelled trainer of those who can be taught, teacher of gods and men. Then the deeds, which are more specific — he made this world known with its gods, its Māras and its Brahmās, Māra being the figure of death and temptation and Brahmā a god of the higher heavens; he did so having realised it himself through direct knowledge, not on anyone's authority; and he taught in a way that was complete in meaning and in letter both.
The sentence ends in two acts rather than a conclusion: to that Blessed One I make offering, to that Blessed One I bow my head. That is the reason the chant survives in daily use. It is not recited to inform anyone of the Buddha's qualities, which the assembly already knows, but so that the bow at the end is made by someone who has just said, at length and out loud, what the bow is for.
The chant
As the book prints it: page 2 →
หันทะ มะยัง พุทธาภิถุติง กะโรมะ เส.
Handa mayaṃ buddhābhithutiṃ karoma se.
Now let us give praise to the Buddha.
โย โส ตะถาคะโต อะระหัง สัมมาสัมพุทโธ,
Yo so tathāgato arahaṃ sammāsambuddho,
That Tathāgata, the Worthy One, perfectly enlightened by himself,
วิชชาจะระณะสัมปันโน สุคะโต โลกะวิทู,
Vijjācaraṇa-sampanno sugato lokavidū,
accomplished in knowledge and conduct, well-gone, knower of worlds,
อะนุตตะโร ปุริสะทัมมะสาระถิ สัตถา เทวะมะนุสสานัง พุทโธ ภะคะวา,
Anuttaro purisadamma-sārathi satthā deva-manussānaṃ buddho bhagavā,
unexcelled trainer of those who can be taught, teacher of gods and men, awakened, blessed;
โย อิมัง โลกัง สะเทวะกัง สะมาระกัง สะพ๎รัห๎มะกัง,
Yo imaṃ lokaṃ sadevakaṃ samārakaṃ sabrahmakaṃ,
who made known this world with its gods, its Māras and its Brahmās,
สัสสะมะณะพ๎ราห๎มะณิง ปะชัง สะเทวะมะนุสสัง สะยัง อะภิญญา สัจฉิกัต๎วา ปะเวเทสิ,
Sassamaṇa-brāhmaṇiṃ pajaṃ sadeva-manussaṃ sayaṃ abhiññā sacchikatvā pavedesi,
this generation with its contemplatives and priests, its rulers and common people, having realised it himself through direct knowledge;
โย ธัมมัง เทเสสิ อาทิกัล๎ยาณัง มัชเฌกัล๎ยาณัง ปะริโยสานะกัล๎ยาณัง,
Yo dhammaṃ desesi ādikalyāṇaṃ majjhekalyāṇaṃ pariyosāna-kalyāṇaṃ,
who taught the Dhamma admirable in its beginning, admirable in its middle, admirable in its end;
สาตถัง สะพ๎ยัญชะนัง เกวะละปะริปุณณัง ปะริสุทธัง พ๎รัห๎มะจะริยัง ปะกาเสสิ,
Sātthaṃ sabyañjanaṃ kevala-paripuṇṇaṃ parisuddhaṃ brahmacariyaṃ pakāsesi,
who proclaimed the holy life in its meaning and its letter, entirely complete and pure;
ตะมะหัง ภะคะวันตัง อะภิปูชะยามิ,
Tamahaṃ bhagavantaṃ abhipūjayāmi,
to that Blessed One I make offering,
ตะมะหัง ภะคะวันตัง สิระสา นะมามิ.
Tamahaṃ bhagavantaṃ sirasā namāmi.
to that Blessed One I bow my head.