The Chinese says: “In the third year he taught the three Kassapa brothers of Uruvelā, and the monks numbered a full thousand.” That is, in the third year he taught the three Kassapa brothers of Uruvelā (three ascetics who worshipped the fire god), and the thereby came to number a thousand. This sutra's way of counting years differs from the one used here, and its “third year” is not Year 3 after the Awakening. The conversion of the three Kassapa brothers is placed here before the rains of Year 2 after the Awakening. Taishō Canon
Different Accounts
The of the and the Chinese Dharmaguptaka Vinaya place the conversion of the three Kassapa brothers after the end of the first and before the journey to Rājagaha, so here it is counted in Year 2 after the Awakening.
More differences between accounts (1)
The Chinese Shi'er you jing counts the time beneath the tree in the year of the Awakening, from the eighth day of the fourth month to the fifteenth day of the seventh month, as “the first year”; its way of counting years differs from the one used here, so the year numbers in that sutra cannot be converted directly into “Year N after the Awakening”.
Dating
This entry only sets out, for comparison, the record for the third year in the Chinese Shi'er you jing, and is placed in Year 3 after the Awakening (the Buddha aged thirty-seven); it does not mean the event happened in this year. The year number is stated in the text, but the “year” of that sutra differs from the reckoning used here.
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Research Notes: Reliability, Dating and Sources
- How Reliability Is Assessed
Not recorded in the early sutras and Vinayas of any school; found only in the commentaries or later Buddha biographies. Later addition.
- Dating Evidence and Precision
Stated in the canonical text (the text itself gives the time). Time precision: year only.