Maṅgala Buddha is the sixth of twenty-seven Buddhas who preceded Gotama Buddha according to the Buddhavamsa, a text from the

Theravada ''Theravāda'' (; 'School of the Elders'; ) is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed ''Theravādins'' (anglicized from Pali ''theravādī''), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or ''Dharma (Buddhi ...

Pali canon The Pāḷi Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhism, Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant Early Buddhist texts, early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from t ...

, and its commentary. He was also the first Buddha of the Sāramaṇḍa

kalpa Kalevan Pallo (KalPa) is a professional ice hockey team which competes in the Finnish Liiga. They play in Kuopio, Finland at the Niiralan monttu, Olvi Areena. Team history Established in 1929 as ''Sortavalan Palloseura'' in Sortavala, the club r ...

. In the Buddhavamsa, he is described as:

Maṅgala Buddha enlightens the dark world with the Dhamma torch. His rays are the most unusual among all Buddhas; they could even cover the light of the sun and the moon

Maṅgala Buddha was said to be 88

cubits The cubit is an ancient unit of length based on the distance from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger. It was primarily associated with the Sumerians, Egyptians, and Israelites. The term ''cubit'' is found in the Bible regarding Noa ...

, or 132 feet tall and his stupa was 30

yojana A yojana (Devanagari: योजन; Khmer language: យោជន៍; ; ) is a measure of distance that was used in ancient India, Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar. Various textual sources from ancient India define Yojana as ranging from 3.5 to 15& ...

, or 229.2 miles high.

Biography

Before birth

According to the Buddhavamsa, Maṅgala Buddha had practised

pāramitā ''Pāramitā'' (Sanskrit, Pali: पारमिता) or ''pāramī'' (Pāli: पारमी) is a Buddhist term often translated as "perfection". It is described in Buddhist commentaries as a noble character quality generally associated with ...

for 16

asaṃkhyeya An () is a Buddhist name for the number 10140, or alternatively for the number 10^ as it is described in the Avatamsaka Sutra. The value of the number is different depending upon the translation. It is 10^ in the translation of Buddhabhadra, 10^ ...

and 100,000 (16×10^140 + 10^5) aeons to become a Buddha. During the gestation period, his mother, Queen Uttarā, is said to have glowed very brightly around a radius of 80 cubits, or 120 feet. Because of the light, she could travel at night without the use of other light sources.

From birth to enlightenment

According to the Buddhavamsa, Maṅgala Buddha was born in Uttara which was reigned by king Uttara. He was married to Queen Yasavadi and reigned the country for 9,000 years. His son was Sivala. As soon as his son was born, he decided to leave the palace to practise

asceticism Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures through self-discipline, self-imposed poverty, and simple living, often for the purpose of pursuing Spirituality, spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world ...

. Three million servants followed him to become fellow ascetics. He practised for eight months. After practising for eight months, he left his servant ascetics and went to the

Mesua ferrea ''Mesua ferrea'', the Ceylon ironwood, or cobra saffron, is a species in the family Calophyllaceae native to the Indomalayan realm. This slow-growing tree is named after the heaviness and hardness of its timber. It is widely cultivated as an o ...

tree. He began to practise peacefully under the tree and gained enlightenment the next morning.

The rays of Maṅgala Buddha

The Buddhavamsa describes Maṅgala Buddha as having brighter rays than other Buddhas. His rays were said to be so bright that people could not determine whether it was day or night. Because of the rays, there were no sunlight or moonlight. Every object shined like gold during the presence of Maṅgala Buddha. There are two stories of Maṅgala Buddha's rays. #The incarnation of Maṅgala Buddha was asked to donate his children by a Biru named Kharadāṭhika who was disguised as a Brahmin. The incarnation happily donated his children to him. As soon as Kharadāṭhika ate them, he vomited the blood of the children. Without any anxiety, the incarnation said "Like this Biru vomiting such blood of bright color, my body shall shine very brightly". #Another incarnation of Maṅgala Buddha had a chance to see the stupa of a Buddha. After seeing the stupa, he said to himself "I must sacrifice my life for this Buddha". Then, he covered himself with butter and paid homage by performing the fire dancing for a whole night.He was not burnt or felt warm while paying homage.

Disciples

The right-hand and left-hand disciples of Maṅgala Buddha were Arahant Sudeva and Arahant Dhammasena. His primary attendant was Palita. The female disciples were female Arahants Sīvalā and Asokā. The human disciples were the wealthy men, Nanda and Visakha and the women, Anulā and Sutanā."The Chronicles of 24 Buddhas" by

Mingun Sayadaw The Venerable Mingun Sayadaw U Vicittasārābhivaṃsa (, ; 1 November 1911 – 9 February 1993) was a Burma, Burmese Theravāda Buddhist monk, best known for his memory skills and his role in the Sixth Buddhist Council.Buddhas