AN 5.196: Mahāsupina Sutta – Significant Dreams
Translated by Bhante Suddhāso
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“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, five significant dreams appeared to him. What five?
“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, he was reclining on this great earth, with Himālaya the Mountain King as his pillow, his left hand in the eastern ocean, his right hand in the western ocean, and both of his feet in the southern ocean. Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, when he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, this is the first significant dream that appeared to him.
“Again, monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, a kind of grass called ‘Across’ grew from his navel all the way to the sky. Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, when he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, this is the second significant dream that appeared to him.
“Again, monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, white worms with black heads crawled up from his feet and covered him up to his knees. Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, when he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, this is the third significant dream that appeared to him.
“Again, monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, four birds of different colors came from four different directions, landed at his feet, and turned completely white. Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, when he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, this is the fourth significant dream that appeared to him.
“Again, monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, he walked up to the top of a mountain of feces, but the feces did not stick to him. Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, when he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, this is the fifth significant dream that appeared to him.
“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, when he was reclining on this great earth, with Himālaya the Mountain King as his pillow, his left hand in the eastern ocean, his right hand in the western ocean, and both of his feet in the southern ocean, this symbolized his supreme awakening to unsurpassed complete awakening. Because of his impending supreme awakening, this first significant dream appeared.
“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, when a kind of grass called ‘Across’ grew from his navel all the way to the sky, this symbolized his supreme awakening to the Noble Eightfold Path which would be displayed well to both angels and humans. Because of his impending supreme awakening, this second significant dream appeared.
“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, when white worms with black heads crawled up from his feet and covered him up to his knees, this symbolized that many laypeople in white clothing would go to the Tathāgata for life-long refuge. Because of his impending supreme awakening, this third significant dream appeared.
“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, when four birds of different colors came from four different directions, landed at his feet, and turned completely white, this symbolized that people from all four castes – aristocrats, brahmins, peasants, and laborers – would leave behind lay life, become homeless renunciants, and realize unsurpassed liberation. Because of his impending supreme awakening, this fourth significant dream appeared.
“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, when he walked up to the top of a mountain of feces, but the feces did not stick to him, this symbolized that he would acquire robes, almsfood, dwelling-places, medicines, and medical supplies, but he would use them untied, uninfatuated, unstuck, seeing the drawbacks, discerning the escape. Because of his impending supreme awakening, this fifth significant dream appeared.
“Monks, before the awakening of the Tathāgata, the Worthy One, the Fully Self-Awakened One, while he was still an unawakened Bodhisattva, these five significant dreams appeared to him.”