Evaṃ me sutaṃ—​   ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṃ viharati jetavane anātha­piṇḍi­kassa ārāme. Tena kho pana samayena āyasmā ca sāriputto āyasmā ca mahāmoggallāno rājagahe viharanti veḷuvane kalanda­ka­nivāpe ekavihāre. Atha kho āyasmā sāriputto sāyanhasamayaṃ paṭisallānā vuṭṭhito yenāyasmā mahāmoggallāno tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā āyasmatā ­mahā­mog­gallā­nena saddhiṃ sammodi. Sammodanīyaṃ kathaṃ sāraṇīyaṃ vītisāretvā ekamantaṃ nisīdi. Ekamantaṃ nisinno kho āyasmā sāriputto āyasmantaṃ ­mahā­mog­gallā­naṃ etadavoca:

“Vippasannāni kho te, āvuso moggallāna, indriyāni; parisuddho mukhavaṇṇo pariyodāto santena nūnāyasmā mahāmoggallāno ajja vihārena vihāsī”ti. “Oḷārikena khvāhaṃ, āvuso, ajja vihārena vihāsiṃ. Api ca me ahosi dhammī kathā”ti. “Kena saddhiṃ panāyasmato ­mahā­mog­gallā­nassa ahosi dhammī kathā”ti? “Bhagavatā kho me, āvuso, saddhiṃ ahosi dhammī kathā”ti. “Dūre kho, āvuso, bhagavā etarahi sāvatthiyaṃ viharati jetavane anātha­piṇḍi­kassa ārāme. Kiṃ nu kho āyasmā mahāmoggallāno bhagavantaṃ iddhiyā upasaṅkami; udāhu bhagavā āyasmantaṃ ­mahā­mog­gallā­naṃ iddhiyā upasaṅkamī”ti? “Na khvāhaṃ, āvuso, bhagavantaṃ iddhiyā upasaṅkamiṃ; napi maṃ bhagavā iddhiyā upasaṅkami. Api ca me yāvatā bhagavā ettāvatā dibbacakkhu visujjhi dibbā ca sotadhātu. Bhagavatopi yāvatāhaṃ ettāvatā dibbacakkhu visujjhi dibbā ca sotadhātū”ti. “Yathākathaṃ panāyasmato ­mahā­mog­gallā­nassa bhagavatā saddhiṃ ahosi dhammī kathā”ti?

“Idhāhaṃ, āvuso, bhagavantaṃ etadavocaṃ: ‘āraddhavīriyo ārad­dha­vīri­yoti, bhante, vuccati. Kittāvatā nu kho, bhante, āraddhavīriyo hotī’ti? Evaṃ vutte, maṃ, āvuso, bhagavā etadavoca: ‘idha, moggallāna, bhikkhu āraddhavīriyo viharati—kāmaṃ taco ca nhāru ca aṭṭhi ca avasissatu, sarīre upassussatu maṃsalohitaṃ, yaṃ taṃ purisathāmena purisavīriyena purisa­pa­rakka­mena pattabbaṃ na taṃ apāpuṇitvā vīriyassa saṇṭhānaṃ bhavissatīti. Evaṃ kho, moggallāna, āraddhavīriyo hotī’ti. Evaṃ kho me, āvuso, bhagavatā saddhiṃ ahosi dhammī kathā”ti.

“Seyyathāpi, āvuso, himavato pabbatarājassa parittā pāsāṇasakkharā yāvadeva upanik­khepa­namattāya; evameva kho mayaṃ āyasmato ­mahā­mog­gallā­nassa yāvadeva upanik­khepa­namattāya. Āyasmā hi mahāmoggallāno mahiddhiko mahānubhāvo ākaṅkhamāno kappaṃ tiṭṭheyyā”ti.

“Seyyathāpi, āvuso, mahatiyā loṇaghaṭāya parittā loṇasakkharāya yāvadeva upanik­khepa­namattāya; evameva kho mayaṃ āyasmato sāriputtassa yāvadeva upanik­khepa­namattāya. Āyasmā hi sāriputto bhagavatā aneka­pariyā­yena thomito vaṇṇito pasattho: 

‘Sāriputtova paññāya,
sīlena upasamena ca;
Yopi pāraṅgato bhikkhu,
etāvaparamo siyā’”ti.

Itiha te ubho mahānāgā aññamaññassa subhāsitaṃ sulapitaṃ samanu­modiṃ­sūti.

Tatiyaṃ.