ལས་བརྒྱ་ཐམ་པ་པ 20.15

20.15

how to give and receive offerings, recitation, and recitation instruction. Trained in these procedures, he became a master of the six types of brahminical activities, and in time he mastered the eighteen sciences.

By the time he was sixteen years old, he mastered all the scriptures and thus defeated the advocates of all the different philosophical schools. Then he made a commitment to scriptural debate, saying, “None will be my equal, much less my superior.” He became arrogant about scriptural debate, and disrespected all the other brahmins. One day the thought came to the other brahmins, “The ascetic Gautama tames those who are not tamed. Let us present this young man to the ascetic Gautama. Maybe he’ll even lead him to go forth! If that happens, we’ll be free of him.”

So that they could present the young man to the Blessed Buddha, the disrespected brahmins told him, “Child, you are like a son to us. What’s the use of saying, ‘None will be my equal, much less my superior,’ and becoming so arrogant about your wisdom? For the ascetic Gautama is both beautiful in body and beautiful in mind, omniscient and all-seeing. You don’t have even a fraction of his fine form, or his knowledge—not even a hundredth, not even a thousandth, not even a hundred thousandth.”

As soon as he heard this, the young brahmin was eager to meet the Blessed One. When he went to visit the Blessed One, the young brahmin saw the Blessed One from a distance. His body, graced and resplendent with the thirty-two signs of a great person, looked like it was on fire, like flames stoked with ghee, like a lamp set in a golden vessel, and like a pillar adorned with all manner of jewels. He was immaculate, clear-minded, and pure of heart.

Upon seeing the Blessed Buddha