A Mirror Reflecting the Entire World

The Buddhapadamangala is an anonymous work in the corpus of Pali literature transmitted in Siam. Its starting point is the conventional description of the wheel mark on the soles of the feet of a Buddha, following the Pali tradition which presents auspicious signs (mangala) as the "retinue" (parivara) of the classical wheel. The text lists and explains one hundred and eight auspicious signs, interpreting them in terms of the teachings of the Buddha, with the result that the feet of the Master are transformed into an intricate map of his teachings, which are set symbolically in a many-layered universe.