ལས་བརྒྱ་ཐམ་པ་པ 17.4

17.4

and offered it to the Buddha and the rest of the saṅgha of monks.

The monks inquired of the Blessed One, “Lord, what action did the five hundred monks take that ripened into their pleasing the Blessed One and not displeasing him, and that they went forth in the doctrine of the Blessed One, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship?”

“It came about by the power of their prayers,” the Blessed One replied.

“Lord, where did they make these prayers?”

“Monks,” the Blessed One recounted, “in times past, in this fortunate eon, when people lived as long as twenty thousand years, and the totally and completely awakened buddha possessed of insight and perfect conduct, the sugata, the knower of the world, the tamer of persons, the charioteer, the unsurpassed one, the teacher of humans and gods, the blessed buddha known as Kāśyapa was in the world, they went forth in his doctrine and practiced pure conduct all their lives.

“At the time of their deaths they prayed, ‘While we may not have attained any great virtues, still we have gone forth in the teaching of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa and practiced pure conduct all our lives. By this root of virtue, may we please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. May we go forth in his doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

“O monks, what do you think? The five hundred monks who went forth then are none other than these five hundred monks. At that time they practiced pure conduct all their lives, and at the time of their deaths they prayed,