འདལ་བ་གཞ 1.20

1.20

having met you, we have another question. Do you have men counted as learned in the Middle Country?”

“Gentlemen, from the first did I not say, ‘Gentlemen, the Middle Country is filled with upstanding men, devoid of foreign savages, and guided by learned men’?”

“Young brahmin, you did say that. Young brahmin, are there any in the Middle Country like our preceptor, a bull among teachers?”

“Gentlemen, in the Middle Country, the teachers are such that our teacher could not even look them in the face, so eloquently do they speak, so wise are they.”

On hearing the young brahmin speak so highly of the Middle Country, they were moved by the desire to visit it. The young brahmins then went off to collect wood for use in fire pūjas. Bearing their loads of wood, they came to the house in which the teacher of brahmins lived. On arriving, they set their loads of wood off to one side, went to him, and said, “Preceptor, please listen. The young brahmin from the Middle Country speaks so highly of it that we are moved by the desire to visit.”

The brahmin Tiṣya said, “Boys, would you visit every place of which you hear? Since you seem to derive so much pleasure from hearing of other countries, I would suggest you not visit those places you hear about.”

“Preceptor, according to this young brahmin, in the Middle Country the teachers are such that you, our teacher, could not even look them in the face, so eloquently do they speak, so wise are they.”

“My sons, do I say I am the one and only teacher on this earth, that there are no other teachers? After all, since the earth contains many gems, its surface is covered with one beauty after another.”