When King Suddhona sent the Brahmin priest to the Sakya Dandapani with this message to give her daughter in the mirage to his son(the prince), to this, Dandapani replied that it was the custom of their family to give daughters in marriage only to men skilled in arts and prince should excel in this arts.
Immediately after this King Suddhodana made an announcement throughout the Kapilavastu to demonstrate his sons’ skill in the worldly arts. Therefore following abstract is one among many demonstrations held for acquiring Princess Gopa.
The king Suddhodana than asked the Bodhisattva: “can you, my son, rival the skill of the great mathematician Arjuna in the knowledge of mathematics?” “Sire, I can,” he replied. So the Bodhisattva was told to show his ability.
The Great mathematician Arjuna asked the Bodhisattva: “Young man, do you know the procedure of numeration called Kotis`atottara, more than a hundred kotis?”
The Bodhisattva answered: “I do.”
“Well, than, how must one proceed to enumerate more than a hundred kotis?”
The Bodhisattva rreplied: “A hundred kotis is called ayuta; a hundred ayutas is called niyuta; a hundred niyutas is called kankara; a hundred kankaras is called vivara; and a hundred vivaras is called aksobhya; a hundred aksobhyas is called vivaha; a hundred vivahas is called utsanga; a hundred usungas is called bahula; a hundred bahulas is called nagabala; a hundred nagabalas is called titila; a hundred titilas is called vyavasthanaprajnapti; a hundred vyavasthanaprajnaptis is called hetuhila; a hundred hetuhilas is called karahu; a hundred karahus is called hetvindriya; a hundred hetvindriyas is called samaptalambha; a hundred samaptalambhas is called known as gananagati; a hundred gananagatis is called niravaravadya; a hundred niravaradyas is called mudrabala; a hundred mudrabalas is called sarvabala; and a hundred survabalas is called visamjnagati; a hundred visamjnagatis is a sarvasamjna; a hundred sarvasamjnas is a vibhutangama; and a hundred vibhutangamas is called tallaksana.
“Now with the numeration calledtallaksana one could take even Meru, the king of mountains, as a subject of calculation and measure it. And next is the numeration called dvajagravati; with the help of this numeration, one could take all the sands of the river Ganges as a subject of calculation and measure them.
“Above this is the numeration called dvajagranisamani; and above this is the numeration of vahanaprajnpti; next comes the numeration of kuruta.
“Again above this is the numeration called sarvaniksepa, with the help of which one take the sands of ten Ganges rivers as a subject for calculation and measure them all. And again above this is the numeration called agrasara, with the help of which one could take the sands of hundred kotis of ganges rivers as a subject of calculation and measure them all. And again above this is the highest numeration called uttaraparamanurajahpravesa, which is said to penetrate the most subtle atoms. Except for a Tathagata, or a bodhisattva who has reached the purest essence of enlightenment, or a bodhisattva who has been initiated into all the dharma, there is no being who knows this numeration, except myself or a Bodhisattva like me, wh has arrived at his last experience, but has not yet left home.”
Arjuna said: “Young man, how must one proceed in the nu,eration which penetrates the dust of the most subtle atoms?
The Bodhisttva said: “Seven subtle atoms make fine particle; seven fine particle make a small particle; seven small particles make a particle called vatayanaraja; and seven particles of vatayanaraja make a particle called sasaraja, seven particles of sasaraja make a particle called edakaraja; seven particles of edakaraja make particle of goraja; seven particles of goraja make a liksaraja; seven liksaraja make a sarsapa; seven sarsapas make an adyava; seven adyavas make an anguli; twelve anguli make a parva; two parva make a hasta; four hasta make a dhanu; a thousand dhanu make make a krosa of the country of Magadha; four krosas make yojana. And now who among you knows the mass of one yojana, and how many of these subtle atoms it contanins?”
Arjuna said: “I myself am even more astonished than others of lesser knowledge. Let the young prince show us the mass of a yojana, and explain how many subtle particles are found in it.”
The Bodhisattva replied: In the mass of a yojana there are a complete niyuta of aksobhyas plus thirty hundred thousand of niyuta of aksobhyas plus thirty hundred thousand of niyutas of kotis plus sixty hundred of kotis plus thirty-two kotis and five times a hundred thousand and twelve thousand. Such is the calculation of subtle particles in the mass of yojana. By this procedure, there are here in the land of Jambu seven thousand yojanas; in the land Aparagodana, eight thousand yojanas; in the land of Purvavideha, nine thousand yojanas; in the land of Uttarakuru, ten thousand yojanas.
“Continuing with this method, beginning with the worlds composed of four continents, there are a hundred kotis of worlds with four continents and a hundred kotis of great oceans; there are the hundred kotis of Cakravalas and Mahacakravalas, the hundred kotis of of sumerus, kings of kings; the hundred kotis of realms of the Yama gods; the hundred kotis of Tusita realms; and the hundred kotis of Nirmanarata realms; and the hundred kotis of Parinirmita vasavartin realms. There are the hundred kotis of Brahmaparsadya realms; the hundred kotis of Mahabrahma realms; the hundred kotis of Parittabha realms; the hundred kotis of Apramanabha realms; the hundred kotis of Abhasvarana realms; the hundred kotis of Parittasubha realms; the hundred kotis of Apramanasubha realms; the hundred kotis of Subhakrtsnarealms; the hundred kotis of Anabhraka realms; the hundred kotis of Punyaprasava realms; the hundred kotis of Brhatphala realms; the hundred kotis of Asangisattva realms; the hundred kotis of Abrha realms; the hundred kotis of Atapa realms; the hundred kotis of Sundrsa realms; the hundred kotis of Sudarsana realms; and the hundred kotis of the Akanistha realms.
“All together these are said to be the whole of the three thousand great thousands of the worlds, spread out and developed. All calculations of the essence of the yojana includes the many hundreds of yojanas of subtle particles in this mass of three thousand great thousands of worlds, the many thousands of yojanas, the many kotis of yojanas, and the many niyutas of yojanas. And how many subtle particles are there? It passes beyond calculation, it is incalculable. There are an incalculable number of subtle atoms in the mass of the three thousand great thousands of worlds.”
While this lesson on the enumeration of was being taught by the by the Bodhisattva, the great mathematician Arjuna and the multitude of Sakyas listened with pleasure, joy, and happiness. Everyone there was filled with great admiration, and each of them presented with Bodhisattva with garments and ornaments.
