Dighanikaya 28.142

28.142

Uḷārāti seṭṭhā. Ayañhi uḷārasaddo ‘‘uḷārāni khādanīyāni khādantī’’tiādīsu (ma. ni. 1.366) madhure āgacchati. ‘‘Uḷārāya khalu bhavaṃ, vacchāyano, samaṇaṃ gotamaṃ pasaṃsāya pasaṃsatī’’tiādīsu (ma. ni. 3.280) seṭṭhe. ‘‘Appamāṇo uḷāro obhāso’’tiādīsu (dī. ni. 2.32) vipule. Svāyamidha seṭṭhe āgato. Tena vuttaṃ – ‘‘uḷārāti seṭṭhā’’ti. Āsabhīti usabhassa vācāsadisī acalā asampavedhī. Ekaṃso gahitoti anussavena vā ācariyaparamparāya vā itikirāya vā piṭakasampadānena vā ākāraparivitakkena vā diṭṭhinijjhānakkhantiyā vā takkahetu vā nayahetu vā akathetvā paccakkhato ñāṇena paṭivijjhitvā viya ekaṃso gahito, sanniṭṭhānakathāva kathitāti attho.

'Lofty' means foremost. For this word 'lofty' occurs in the sense of delicious in passages such as: 'they eat lofty delicacies' (MN 1.366). In the sense of foremost in passages such as: 'Indeed, Master Vacchāyana praises the ascetic Gotama with lofty praise' (MN 3.280). In the sense of vast in passages such as: 'An immeasurable, lofty radiance' (DN 2.32). Here, it occurs in the sense of foremost. Hence it was said: ''lofty' means foremost.' 'Bull-like' means resembling the speech of a bull, unshakeable, unquivering. 'A definite stance has been taken' means: without speaking through oral tradition, through succession of teachers, through hearsay, through accordance with the scriptures, through reflection on reasons, through acceptance of a view after deliberation, by reasoning, or by deduction, but having penetrated as if by direct experiential knowledge, a definite stance has been taken; the meaning is that a definitive statement alone has been spoken.