• Mahāpadesa Sutta

Preached at the Ananda cetiya in Bhoganagara.

The Buddha tells the monks of the four mahāpadesā to be respected by them. If a monks says he has a certain teaching direct from the Buddha himself, his statement should be compared with the rest of the Vinaya and Dhamma; if these do not agree, it should be rejected; if they do, accepted.

The same applies to that which is said to have been learnt from a group of monks led by a Thera from a body of senior monks residing in a certain place, or from a single senior monk, proficient in the Dhamma, the Vinaya, and the Mātikā. A.ii.167ff.; the sutta is incorporated in the Mahāparinibbāna Sutta (D.ii.123ff).