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the sitter’s practice. By these thirteen ascetic qualities, great king, previously served, practiced, observed, fully observed, followed, attended to, and fulfilled, he obtains the entire recluse-state; the entirely peaceful and pleasant attainments become his dominion. “Just as, great king, a wealthy mariner, having paid his toll well at the port, enters the great ocean and goes to Vanga, Takkola, Cina, Sovira, Surattha, Alasanda, Kolapattana, Suvannabhumi, and whatever other places ships travel; even so, Indeed, O great king, by these thirteen ascetic practices previously practiced, cultivated, observed, fully observed, performed, fully performed, completed, one attains pure recluseship, and entirely peaceful, pleasant attainments are subject to him. Just as, O great king, a farmer, first removing the field's defects, grass, wood, and stones, having ploughed, having sown, having properly introduced water, having protected, having guarded, by threshing and treading, becomes abundant in grain, and all those who are poor, wretched, destitute, unfortunate people are subject to him; even so, O great king, by these thirteen ascetic practices previously practiced... (etc.) ... entirely peaceful, pleasant attainments are subject to him. Or just as, O great king, a consecrated warrior, of noble birth, is master, controller, lord, and doer of his will in the instruction of people liable to punishment and execution, and the entire great earth is subject to him; even so, O great king, by these thirteen ascetic practices previously practiced, cultivated, observed, fully observed, performed, fully performed, completed, one becomes master, controller, lord, and doer of his will in the excellent teaching of the Conqueror, and all the qualities of a recluse are subject to him. Indeed, O great king, the elder Upassena, son of Vaṅganta, by fully practicing the ascetic practices of purification, disregarding the agreement of the Sangha in Sāvatthī, together with his retinue, approached the Trainer of men to be tamed, who was in seclusion, and having bowed his head at the feet of the Blessed One, sat down to one side. And the Blessed One, looking at that well-disciplined assembly, joyful, delighted, elated, uplifted, having conversed with the assembly, with an unbroken divine voice, said this: ‘Indeed, O Upassena, this assembly of yours is pleasing. How, O Upassena, did you discipline this assembly?’ And he, being asked by the Omniscient One, the Ten-Powered One, the God of gods, spoke thus to the Blessed One, in accordance with the true nature of the qualities: ‘Whoever, Venerable Sir, approaches me, and asks for ordination or dependence, I say this to him: ‘‘Indeed, friend, I... He is a forest-dweller, an alms-gatherer, a rag-robe wearer, a three-robe wearer. "If you too will be a forest-dweller, an alms-gatherer, a rag-robe wearer, a three-robe wearer, then I will ordain you, I will give you dependence." "If he, sir, having agreed to me, rejoices, is delighted, then I ordain him, I give dependence. If he does not rejoice, is not delighted, I do not ordain him, I do not give dependence. Thus, sir, I train the assembly." Thus, indeed, great king, one who has undertaken the excellent ascetic practices is a master in the excellent Dispensation of the Conqueror. He is a lord, a master, one who acts as he wishes. Completely peaceful and pleasant attainments are subject to him. "Just as, great king, a lotus, grown and perfectly pure, originating from the northern species, smooth, soft, alluring, fragrant, dear, desired, praised, untainted by water and mud, adorned with fully developed filaments and pericarp, attended by swarms of bees, nourished by cool water, even so, great king, by these thirteen ascetic practices, formerly practiced, cultivated, observed, fully observed, performed, fully performed, and fulfilled, the noble disciple is endowed with thirty excellent qualities. "Which are these thirty excellent qualities? He has a mind of smooth, soft, gentle loving-kindness. His defilements are slain, struck down, and utterly destroyed. His conceit and arrogance are struck down and utterly crushed. He has unwavering, firm, deeply rooted, doubt-free faith. He is a recipient of full, abundant, delightful, alluring, peaceful, and pleasant attainments. He is imbued with the excellent, supreme, unequalled, pure fragrance of virtue. He is dear and pleasing to gods and humans. He is desired by noble, excellent individuals whose taints are destroyed. He is revered and honored by gods and humans. He is praised, extolled, commended, and lauded by the wise, the discerning, and the learned. Here or hereafter, he is untainted by the world. He sees danger even in a slight fault. He is the accomplisher of the excellent goal of path and fruit for those desiring abundant excellent attainments. He is a partaker of abundant, excellent requisites that are requested. He sleeps without a fixed abode. He dwells in the excellent abodes of jhanic absorption. He is one whose net of defilements is disentangled. broken... Whose hindrances to the highest path are utterly severed, whose state is unshakable, who has attained the highest dwelling, who enjoys blameless things, who is freed from all destinies, who has crossed over all doubt, whose mind is pervaded by liberation, who has seen the Dhamma, who has attained unshakable, firm refuge from fear, whose latent defilements are uprooted, who has attained the destruction of all cankers, who frequently dwells in the attainment of peaceful bliss, who is endowed with all the qualities of a recluse, he is endowed with these thirty excellent qualities. "Indeed, great king, the Elder Sāriputta is the foremost person in the ten-thousand-world-system, apart from the Ten-Powered World-Teacher. He, too, having accumulated roots of merit over immeasurable aeons, born into a Brahmin family, having abandoned delightful sensual pleasures and many hundreds of thousands of excellent riches, went forth into the Dispensation of the Conqueror. Having disciplined his body, speech, and mind with these thirteen ascetic practices, he has today become endowed with infinite qualities, a follower who turns the Wheel of Dhamma in the excellent Dispensation of the Blessed Gotama. And this, great king, was spoken by the Blessed One, the God of gods, in the excellent section of the Aṅguttara Nikāya – "Monks, I do not see even one other person who so rightly follows the turning of the unsurpassed Wheel of Dhamma by the Tathāgata, as does Sāriputta, monks, Sāriputta. Monks, he rightly follows the turning of the unsurpassed Wheel of Dhamma by the Tathāgata." "Excellent, Venerable Nāgasena! Whatever nine-fold Buddha-word there is, and whatever supramundane action, and whatever vast and excellent attainments in the world, all that is contained within the thirteen ascetic practices." The Second Question on Ascetic Practices. The Fourth Chapter on Inference.