དག་སླང་ལ་རབ་ཏ་གཅས་པའ་མད་ཞས་བྱ་བ intro.3

intro.3

The monk Upāli is remembered as one of the “ten close disciples” (Tib. nyan thos nye ’khor bcu) of the Buddha and foremost in his mastery of the monastic discipline, or Vinaya. Before becoming a monk, Upāli was a low-caste barber attending the Śākya princes, and he received ordination together with them. Many conversations about the Vinaya between the Buddha and Upāli are recorded in the various Vinaya collections,¹ and, according to early Buddhist texts, Upāli was often consulted by others about matters of monastic discipline, even during the Buddha’s lifetime. Following the Buddha’s passing, Upāli was chosen to recite the Vinaya at the First Buddhist Council.²