Sunīta
Buddhist monk · ancient India · c. 5th century BC
An early Buddhist monk. He is said to have been born into a family of low standing, to have worked clearing away withered flowers and refuse, and to have lived despised until he met the Buddha and went forth.
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c. 5th century BC · In the verses that follow he tells how he met the Buddha and asked to go forth, and the Buddha said, “Come, monk.”
I was born in a low family, poor, with little to eat. My work was lowly: I cleared away withered flowers. Loathed by people, looked down on and scorned, I made my mind humble and bowed to many.
Nīce kulamhi jātohaṁ, daliddo appabhojano; Hīnakammaṁ mamaṁ āsi, ahosiṁ pupphachaḍḍako. Jigucchito manussānaṁ, paribhūto ca vambhito; Nīcaṁ manaṁ karitvāna, vandissaṁ bahukaṁ janaṁ.
Theragāthā (Verses of the Elder Monks) 12.2
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