ལས་བརྒྱ་ཐམ་པ་པ 23.12

23.12

There are a hundred thousand monks here, and I am the most senior among the entire saṅgha and have completed my study, so if I do not instruct them in the precepts, no one else will instruct them in the precepts. I wonder, for whose sake should I recite the prātimokṣa, then?’ And he will also say:

“ ‘Now, upon the fifteenth night,
As the constellations all align,
Those monks whose aim is the poṣadha rite
Are sitting heedful in their seats.

“ ‘All of the Śākya’s offspring
Who dwell in Jambudvīpa
Have come to this place.
This will be their final convocation.

“ ‘Among the saṅgha of monks,
Only I have completed my studies,
So if even I am not able to give the precepts,
Of course no other person can.

“ ‘So if there are some here
Well trained in the precepts
Taught by the Lord of Sages, the wise Śākya lion,
Please express your qualifications.’

“Then the arhat Sūrata will rise from his seat before the row master, bow toward the saṅgha with palms pressed together, and bid elder monk Śiṣyaka, ‘Elder brother, please recite the Prātimokṣa Sūtra. For in the same way that the great disciples—Śāriputra, Maudgalyāyana, and the rest—maintained their precepts perfectly while the Blessed One dwelt among us, I likewise have maintained the doctrine perfectly, some thousand years after the Blessed Buddha passed into parinirvāṇa.’ ”

The Blessed One¹⁶² continued:

“Having listened to the words
Spoken by the elder monk,
Then Sūrata, the Sugata’s heir,
Will speak with a lion’s roar:

“ ‘I have borne the precepts of the Sage,
Never wavering.
With precision I have learned the precepts
of the Teacher’s monastic discipline.’ ”

“Thereupon