Buddha Jaya Mangala Gāthā

Stanzas of the Buddha's Auspicious Victories

Creating a form thousand-armed, each holding a weapon,
Mara on the elephant Grimekhala, roared frightfully with his soldiers.
The lord of the Munis conquered him by means of Dhammā giving.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

Even more fiendish than Mara making war all night, was Alavaka, the yakka, impatient and arrogant.
The lord of the Munis conquered him by means of well-taming with patience.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

Provoked to run amok, Nālagirī the king tusker, like a raging fire, murderously assailed all in his path, striking terror in all beings.
The lord of Munis conquered him by means of loving-kindness.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

Very cruel, with upraised sword, garlanded with fingers, did the avage robber Angulima pursue the Blessed One for 3 full leagues.
The lord of Munis conquered him by means of super-natural power.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

Having made her belly like a pregnant woman [by tying wood], Ciñca spoke lewdly in the midst of the people.
The lord of Munis conquered her by fair and peaceful means.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

Saccaka, whose speech habitually departed from the truth, raised up like a flag, his theory with a mind become completely blind.
The lord of Munis conquered him by wisdom’s shining lamp.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

Nanopananda, the serpent of wrong understanding but great power.
By instructing his spiritual son Mogallana, the sovereign sage rendered the naga king powerless and transformed him.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

Like a well-coiled serpent on a branch, were the wrongly grasped views of the Brahma-god Baka of light and power.
The lord of Munis conquered him be means of the medicine of knowledge.
By this power, may joyous victory be yours.

He, who day after day, without lethargy, recites and recollects these eight hymns of the Exalted One’s great victories, that wise man, having overcome many and diverse obstacles, shall attain the bliss of deliverance.