Brahmāyusutta

Majjhima Nikāya 91

With Brahmāyu · Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato, SuttaCentral

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thenAtha indeedkho the Blessed Onebhagavā so·formtathārūpaṁ psychic power·constructioniddhābhisaṅkhāraṁ higher·construct·aorist 3rd sgabhisaṅkhāsi so thatyathā augment·see·aorist 3rd sgaddasa Uttarauttaro the brahmin studentmāṇavo blessed·genitive/dative sgbhagavato sheath·placedkosohitaṁ private parts.vatthaguyhaṁ.
thenAtha indeedkho the Blessed Onebhagavā his tonguejivhaṁ out·bend·absolutiveninnāmetvā both·alsoubhopi ear·channelskaṇṇasotāni along·strokeanumasi he stroked back;paṭimasi; both·alsoubhopi nose·channelsnāsikasotāni along·strokeanumasi he stroked back;paṭimasi; whole·alsokevalampi forehead·circlenalāṭamaṇḍalaṁ with his tonguejivhāya he covered.chādesi.

So the Buddha used his psychic power to will that Uttara would see his private parts sheathed in a foreskin. And he stuck out his tongue and stroked back and forth on his ear holes and nostrils, and covered his entire forehead with his tongue.

thenAtha indeedkho to Uttarauttarassa to the studentmāṇavassa this occurredetadahosi:
endowed“samannāgato indeedkho the asceticsamaṇo Gotamagotamo with the thirty-two marks of a great mandvattiṁsamahāpurisalakkhaṇehi.
why don't IYannūnāhaṁ the asceticsamaṇaṁ Gotamagotamaṁ I should followanubandheyyaṁ, his deportmentiriyāpathamassa I should seepasseyyan”ti.
thenAtha indeedkho Uttarauttaro the studentmāṇavo for seven monthssattamāsāni the Buddhabhagavantaṁ followedanubandhi shadow·likechāyāva not departinganapāyinī.
thenAtha indeedkho Uttarauttaro the studentmāṇavo of sevensattannaṁ of monthsmāsānaṁ after the passingaccayena among the Videhansvidehesu whereyena Mithilāmithilā theretena wanderingcārikaṁ he set outpakkāmi.
graduallyAnupubbena wanderingcārikaṁ walkingcaramāno whereyena Mithilāmithilā whereyena Brahmāyubrahmāyu the brahminbrāhmaṇo he approached theretenupasaṅkami; having approachedupasaṅkamitvā Brahmāyubrahmāyuṁ the brahminbrāhmaṇaṁ having bowedabhivādetvā to one sideekamantaṁ he sat downnisīdi. to one sideEkamantaṁ seatednisinnaṁ indeedkho Uttarauttaraṁ the studentmāṇavaṁ Brahmāyubrahmāyu the brahminbrāhmaṇo this saidetadavoca:
well“kacci, deartāta Uttarauttara, thetaṁ worthybhavantaṁ Gotamagotamaṁ sotathā being·sosantaṁyeva reputationsaddo has arisenabbhuggato, notno otherwiseaññathā?
wellKacci andpana heso worthybhavaṁ Gotamagotamo like thattādiso, notno otherwiseaññādiso”ti?
so“Tathā being sosantaṁyeva, sirbho, thetaṁ worthybhavantaṁ Gotamagotamaṁ reputationsaddo has arisenabbhuggato, notno otherwiseaññathā;
like that·exactlytādisova heso worthybhavaṁ Gotamagotamo, notno otherwiseaññādiso.

Then Uttara thought, “The ascetic Gotama possesses the thirty-two marks. Why don’t I follow him and observe his deportment?” So Uttara followed the Buddha like a shadow for seven months. When seven months had passed he set out wandering toward Mithilā. There he approached the brahmin Brahmāyu, bowed, and sat down to one side. Brahmāyu said to him, “Well, dear Uttara, does the worthy Gotama live up to his reputation or not?” “He does, sir.

together·know·goneSamannāgato andca heso worthybhavaṁ Gotamagotamo thirty-two·great man·marksdvattiṁsamahāpurisalakkhaṇehi.

The worthy Gotama possesses the thirty-two marks.

He has well-planted feet. On the soles of his feet there are thousand-spoked wheels, with rims and hubs, complete in every detail. He has stretched heels. He has long fingers. His hands and feet are soft and tender. He has serried hands and feet. The tops of his feet are arched. His calves are like those of an antelope. When standing upright and not bending over, the palms of both hands touch the knees. His private parts are sheathed in a foreskin. He is golden colored; his skin shines like lustrous gold.

He has delicate skin, so delicate that dust and dirt don’t stick to his body. His hairs grow one per pore. His hairs stand up; they’re blue-black and curl clockwise. His body is tall and straight-limbed. He has bulging muscles in seven places. His chest is like that of a lion. He is filled out between the shoulders. He has the proportional circumference of a banyan tree: the span of his arms equals the height of his body. His torso is cylindrical. He has ridged taste buds.

His jaw is like that of a lion. He has forty teeth. His teeth are even. His teeth have no gaps. His teeth are perfectly white. He has a large tongue. He has the voice of the Divinity, like a cuckoo’s call. His eyes are indigo. He has eyelashes like a cow’s. Between his eyebrows there grows a tuft, soft and white like cotton-wool. The crown of his head is like a turban. These are the thirty-two marks of a great man possessed by the worthy Gotama.

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