On the day of the wedding of Nanda (the Buddha's half-brother, a Sakyan prince), the Buddha hands him his bowl to carry, has him follow to his lodging, and then has him go forth. The later commentaries of the Southern tradition say this was on the third day after the Buddha's arrival at Kapilavatthu. Pali Canon
Different Accounts
Order: the later commentaries of the Southern tradition say Nanda went forth on the third day and Rāhula on the seventh; the Pali Vinaya and the Chinese Dharmaguptaka and Mahīśāsaka Vinayas, through King Suddhodana's words, also have Nanda go forth first, in the same order.
More differences between accounts (2)
Those who went forth in the same group: the Buddha biography Fangguang da zhuangyan jing says Nanda went forth at the same time as five hundred Sakyans and Upāli; the Chinese Ekottarika Āgama says Ānanda and Anuruddha were in the same group. The Pali Vinaya, however, places the going forth of the six Sakyan youths at Anupiya, not on this occasion.
The Chinese and Tibetan Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya say Nanda's wife was named Sundarī, and that Nanda promised to return before the cosmetic mark on her forehead dried; the Buddha emitted golden light at his door, Nanda followed the Buddha to his lodging carrying the bowl, and the Buddha had Ānanda shave his head. In this version the place is the Many-Rooted Tree Park at the city of Jiebiluo (that is, Kapilavatthu), and no wedding is mentioned.
Dating
Year uncertain; the same return home as the other entries in this group. Possibly before the of Year 2 after the Awakening (the Buddha aged thirty-six), around Year 6 (aged forty), Year 7 (aged forty-one) or Year 12 (aged forty-six). The later commentaries of the Southern tradition say it was the third day after the arrival, but there is no settled answer as to the year of the return itself.
Related Entries
- Year
- Places
- People
- Discourses
Research Notes: Reliability, Dating and Sources
- How Reliability Is Assessed
Recorded by three schools: the Pali canon of the Southern tradition, the Chinese Dharmaguptaka Vinaya (Sifen lü) and the Chinese Mahīśāsaka Vinaya (Wufen lü). Attested across multiple schools.
- Dating Evidence and Precision
Commentarial dating (the canonical texts give no date; later commentaries record it). Time precision: fixed to the day.
Sources
- Pali Canon巴利律 Kd 1:54.5.1
- 大正藏大正藏 T22 no.1428 p.810a
- 大正藏大正藏 T22 no.1421 p.117a
- 大正藏大正藏 T03 no.187 p.615c–616a
- 大正藏大正藏 T03 no.190 p.911b
- 大正藏大正藏 T02 no.125 p.624a
- 藏譯（德格版）德格版 D6 tha 119a3–120a4
- 大正藏大正藏 T24 no.1451 p.251a–b
- 大正藏大正藏 T03 no.187 p.615c
- Pali Canon巴利律 Kd 17:1.1.1