Then, knowing Soṇadaṇḍa’s train of thought, it occurred to the Buddha, “This brahmin Soṇadaṇḍa is troubled by his own thoughts. Why don’t I ask him about his own tutor’s scriptural heritage of the three Vedas?” So he said to Soṇadaṇḍa, “Brahmin, how many factors must a brahmin possess for the brahmins to describe him as a brahmin; and so that when he says ‘I am a brahmin’ he speaks rightly, without falling into falsehood?”

Then Soṇadaṇḍa thought, “The ascetic Gotama has asked me about exactly what I wanted, what I wished for, what I desired, what I yearned for; that is, my own scriptural heritage. I can definitely satisfy his mind with my answer.”