Dictionary of Pali Proper Names v2.c36.4474

v2.c36.4474

1. Sumedha.—The Bodhisatta in the time of Dīpaṅkara Buddha. He was a very rich brahmin of Amaravati, and, having left the world, became an ascetic of great power in the Himālaya. While on a visit to Ramma-nagara, he saw people decorating the road for Dīpaṅkara Buddha, and undertook to do one portion of the road himself. The Buddha arrived before his work was finished, and Sumedha lay down on a rut for the Buddha to walk over him. He resolved that he, too, would become a Buddha, and Dīpaṅkara, looking into the future, saw that his wish would come true. This was the beginning of Gotama Buddha’s qualification for Enlightenment.¹