English
Endowed with knowledge and conduct, The Fortunate One, Knower of the worlds, The unsurpassed leader of persons to be tamed, The Teacher of gods and humans, The Buddha, the Blessed One.' He, having directly known and realized this world With its devas, Māras, and Brahmās, This generation with its recluses and brahmins, Its devas and humans, He proclaims it. He teaches the Dhamma, Beautiful in the beginning, Beautiful in the middle, Beautiful in the end, With meaning and with letter, He reveals the entirely complete and purified holy life. Indeed, it is good to see such Arahants." Then Keṇiya the ascetic Approached the Blessed One. Having approached, He exchanged greetings with the Blessed One. Having exchanged courteous and memorable talk, He sat down to one side. To Keṇiya the ascetic, Seated to one side, The Blessed One instructed, Urged, Inspired, And gladdened with a Dhamma talk. Then Keṇiya the ascetic, Instructed, Urged, Inspired, And gladdened by the Blessed One with a Dhamma talk, Said this to the Blessed One: "May Master Gotama accept a meal from me for tomorrow, Together with the community of bhikkhus." When this was said, The Blessed One said this to Keṇiya the ascetic: "Great, Keṇiya, is the community of bhikkhus, Twelve hundred and fifty bhikkhus, And you are devoted to brahmins." A second time, Keṇiya the ascetic said this to the Blessed One: "Even though, Master Gotama, Great is the community of bhikkhus, Twelve hundred and fifty bhikkhus, And I am devoted to brahmins; May Master Gotama accept a meal from me for tomorrow, Together with the community of bhikkhus." A second time, the Blessed One said this to Keṇiya the ascetic: "Great, Keṇiya, is the community of bhikkhus, Twelve hundred and fifty bhikkhus, And you are devoted to brahmins." A third time, Keṇiya the ascetic said this to the Blessed One: "Even though, Master Gotama, Great is the community of bhikkhus... Indeed, there are twelve hundred and fifty monks, and I am greatly devoted to the brahmins; may Master Gotama accept my invitation for tomorrow’s meal with the community of monks.” The Blessed One accepted by remaining silent. Then Keṇiya the ascetic, knowing the Blessed One’s acceptance, rose from his seat and went to his own hermitage. Having gone there, he addressed his friends, acquaintances, relatives, and kin: “Please listen, sirs, my friends, acquaintances, relatives, and kin; the ascetic Gotama has been invited by me for tomorrow’s meal with the community of monks. Please help me with the physical preparations.” “Yes, sir,” replied Keṇiya the ascetic’s friends, acquaintances, relatives, and kin to Keṇiya the ascetic. Some dug ovens, some split firewood, some washed vessels, some set up water pots, some arranged seats. Keṇiya the ascetic himself prepared the circular pavilion. 397. Now at that time, Sela the brahmin was residing in Āpaṇa, master of the three Vedas, with their vocabularies and rituals, their phonology and etymology, and as the fifth, their histories; he was a master of words, a grammarian, proficient in the Lokāyata system and the marks of a Great Man, and he taught three hundred young men the mantras. At that time, Keṇiya the ascetic was greatly devoted to Sela the brahmin. Then Sela the brahmin, surrounded by three hundred young men, wandering and walking for exercise, approached Keṇiya the ascetic’s hermitage. Sela the brahmin saw some digging ovens in Keṇiya the ascetic’s hermitage, some splitting firewood, some washing vessels, some setting up water pots, some arranging seats, and Keṇiya the ascetic himself preparing the circular pavilion. Having seen this, he said to Keṇiya the ascetic: “ What, sir Keṇiya, will there be a marriage, or a wedding, or a great sacrifice is at hand, or is King Seniya Bimbisāra of Magadha invited for tomorrow with his army? No, sir Sela, there will be no marriage for me, nor a wedding, nor is King Seniya Bimbisāra of Magadha invited for tomorrow with his army; but indeed a great sacrifice is at hand for me. There is, sir, the ascetic Gotama, a Sakyan son, gone forth from the Sakyan clan, wandering in Anguttarāpa, with a great community of monks, twelve hundred and fifty monks, arrived at Āpaṇa. And concerning that venerable Gotama, such a fair report has arisen – 'Indeed, that Blessed One is an Arahant, perfectly self-awakened, endowed with knowledge and conduct, a well-farer, a knower of the worlds, an unsurpassed trainer of persons to be tamed, a teacher of gods and humans, the Buddha, the Blessed One.' He is invited by me for tomorrow's meal with the community of monks. "A Buddha – sir Keṇiya, you say?" "A Buddha – sir Sela, I say." "A Buddha – sir Keṇiya, you say?" "A Buddha – sir Sela, I say." 398. Then it occurred to the brahmin Sela: "Indeed, this sound is rare in the world – namely, 'A Buddha'." Indeed, in our mantras, the thirty-two marks of a great man have come down, for a great man endowed with these, there are only two destinies, no other. If he lives in a home, he becomes a wheel-turning king, righteous, a king of righteousness, conqueror of the four quarters, having established stability in the country, endowed with the seven jewels. These seven jewels are his, namely – the wheel-jewel, the elephant-jewel, the horse-jewel, the gem-jewel, the woman-jewel, the householder-jewel, and the advisor-jewel as the seventh. Indeed, he has more than a thousand sons, brave, of heroic form, crushers of enemy armies. He, having conquered this earth, bounded by the ocean, without rod, without weapon, by Dhamma, having conquered, he dwells. But if he goes forth from home to homelessness, he is an Arahant, a Fully Self-Enlightened One, one who has removed the veil in the world.” “Where, then, good Keṇiya, does that Venerable Gotama, the Arahant, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, now dwell?” When this was said, Keṇiya the ascetic, raising his right arm, said to Sela the brahmin: “Where that blue forest line is, good Sela.” Then Sela the brahmin, together with three hundred young men, approached the Blessed One. Then Sela the brahmin addressed those young men: “Come quietly, good sirs, placing foot by foot; for those Blessed Ones are hard to approach, like lions, they wander alone. And when I, good sirs, speak with the ascetic Gotama, do not, good sirs, interrupt my talk. Good sirs, await the end of my talk.” Then Sela the brahmin approached the Blessed One; having approached, he exchanged greetings with the Blessed One. Having exchanged courteous and memorable talk, he sat down to one side. Sitting to one side, Sela the brahmin examined the thirty-two marks of a Great Man on the body of the Blessed One. Sela the brahmin saw the thirty-two marks of a Great Man on the body of the Blessed One, mostly, except for two. Concerning two marks of a Great Man, he doubted, he wavered, he was not convinced, he was not satisfied: the private parts being enclosed in a sheath, and the abundant tongue. Then it occurred to the Blessed One: “This Sela the brahmin sees the thirty-two marks of a Great Man on my body, mostly, except for two. Concerning two marks of a Great Man, he doubts, he wavers, he is not convinced, he is not satisfied: the private parts being enclosed in a sheath, and the abundant tongue.” Then the Blessed One performed such a psychic feat that Sela the brahmin saw the private parts of the Blessed One enclosed in a sheath. Then the Blessed One He extended his tongue, and touched and stroked both ear-holes; he touched and stroked both nostril-holes; he covered the entire forehead with his tongue. Then it occurred to Sela the brahmin: “The recluse Gotama is endowed with the thirty-two marks of a Great Man, complete, not incomplete; but I do not know whether he is a Buddha or not. I have heard it said by brahmin elders, old and venerable, teachers and preceptors, ‘Those who are Arahants, Fully Self-Awakened Ones, reveal themselves when their own qualities are praised.’ What if I were to praise the recluse Gotama face to face with appropriate verses?” 399. Then Sela the brahmin praised the Blessed One face to face with appropriate verses: “Your body is complete, radiant, well-born, charming to behold; Your complexion is golden, Blessed One, Your teeth are very white, You are vigorous. Indeed, the marks that belong to a well-born man, all those great marks are on your body. With serene eyes, a pleasant face, tall, upright, majestic; In the midst of the assembly of recluses, You shine like the sun. A bhikkhu with a beautiful appearance, Your skin like refined gold; What is the point of your recluse-state, being of such excellent complexion? You deserve to be a king, a Wheel-turning monarch, lord of chariots; A conqueror of the four quarters, ruler of Jambusaṇḍa. Let khattiyas, lords of wealth, be your followers; King of kings, lord of men, rule the kingdom, Gotama.” “I am a king, Sela, a supreme king of Dhamma; By Dhamma I turn the wheel, a wheel that cannot be turned back.” “You declare yourself a Fully Awakened One, a supreme king of Dhamma; ‘By Dhamma I turn the wheel,’ thus you speak, Gotama. Who then is your general, sir, a disciple following the Teacher? Who follows you in turning the wheel of Dhamma?” “By me, p— The wheel is set in motion, said the Blessed One, the unsurpassed Wheel of Dhamma; Sāriputta turns it after, born after the Tathāgata. "What is to be known, has been known; What is to be developed, has been developed; What is to be abandoned, has been abandoned by me; Therefore, I am the Buddha, brahmin. "Remove your doubt in me, Have faith, brahmin; Rare is the sight, Of the Fully Awakened Ones, frequently. "Indeed, those whose appearance in the world, Is rare, frequently; I am that Fully Awakened One, brahmin, The unsurpassed surgeon. "Become Brahma, incomparable, Crushing Māra's army; Having brought all enemies under control, I rejoice, fearless." "Listen, sirs, to this, As the Visionary speaks; The great hero, the surgeon,