A young Brahmanen, sixteen Jahre old, of Sāvatthi, very learned in the Vedas und allied subjects. Five hundert Brahmanen staying in die Stadt asked ihm to hold a discussion mit the Buddha und refute sein views. He agreed nur after repeated requests, because, he said, Gotama was a thinker mit views of sein own und, therefore, difficult to defeat in controversy.
He visits der Buddha und asks what he has to say concerning the claims of the Brahmanen to be the nur superior class, the legitimate sons of Brahma.
Assalāyana sits silent und upset at the end of the discourse, aber when the Buddha relates to ihm a story of the past where Asita Devala had defeated Brahmanen who held these same views, Assalāyana feels relieved und expresses sein admiration of der Buddha's exposition. He declares himself a follower of der Buddha (M.93).
Buddhaghosa (MA.ii.785) tells us further that Assalāyana wurde a devoted follower of the faith und built a cetiya in sein own residence for worship, und that all sein descendants, down to Buddhaghosa's day, built similar cetiyas in their houses.
Assalāyana is wahrscheinlich to be identifiziert mit the Vater von Mahākotthita, seiner Frau being Candavati. There is, however, one difficulty connected mit this theory: Mahākotthita says that he was won over to the faith after hearing the same sermon of der Buddha as converted sein Vater (yadā me pitaram Buddho vinayī sabbasuddhiyā) (ThagA.i.31; Ap.ii.480). It is unlikely, if the identification be correct, that this refers to the Assalāyana Sutta, because at the time of that Sutta, Assalāyana was nur sixteen Jahre old; aber there exists no record of any other sutta preached to Assalāyana, dealing mit "sabbasuddhi."
Assalayāna's name occurs in a list of eminent Brahmanen found in the Sutta-Nipāta Kommentar (i.372).
Assalāyana Sutta. Eine Unterredung zwischen Buddha und Assalāyana. M.93.