དགའ་བ་རབ་ཏ་བྱང་བའ་མད intro.6

intro.6

After hearing about the manifold advantages of going forth, Nanda hesitates and says that he will remain a lay person, but he will make various offerings and donations to the Buddha and the saṅgha. The Buddha explains that no offering can remotely compare to the intention to go forth. The Buddha then uses two memorable analogies to illustrate how fortunate Nanda is to have obtained favorable circumstances and met the Buddha, and he again encourages him to go forth, comparing the rarity of meeting a buddha to the rarity of the uḍumbara flower.