The Chinese says that in the fifth year the Buddha taught a man named Sihewei in the Bamboo Grove (the Bamboo Grove park outside Rājagaha); and that in the same year, before the Buddha had reached Sāvatthī, Sāriputta and Moggallāna (the Buddha's two chief disciples) came with two hundred and fifty followers, the Buddha taught them the , and Sāriputta attained in seven days and Moggallāna in fifteen. This sutra's way of counting years differs from the one used here. The going forth of Sāriputta and Moggallāna is placed here before the rains of Year 2 after the Awakening. Taishō Canon
Different Accounts
Days to realization: the Chinese Shi'er you jing has seven days for Sāriputta and fifteen for Moggallāna; the later commentaries of the have the reverse, seven days for Moggallāna and half a month for Sāriputta.
More differences between accounts (3)
Number of disciples: the Chinese Shi'er you jing says one hundred and twenty-five each, two hundred and fifty in all.
Moggallāna's status: the Chinese Shi'er you jing says he served as chief minister and general in the country of Miyiluo; other accounts have him as a wandering ascetic.
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 fifth year in the Chinese Shi'er you jing, and is placed in Year 5 after the Awakening (the Buddha aged thirty-nine); it does not mean these events happened in this year. The year number is stated in the text, but the “year” of that sutra differs from the reckoning used here.
Related Entries
- Year
- Places
- People
- Discourses
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.