Thereupon the World-Honored One emerged quietly from his samādhi, and said to Śāriputra:

As [the Buddha] has been to the profound realm [in his samādhi,] his recondite words are also [necessarily] deep. Because Mañjuśrī resolved Maitreya’s doubts about the rain flowers and earth trembling, as mentioned earlier [in the first chapter], should this not have shaken off their confusion and cleansed their minds? Their minds being emptied, they would be ready to accept the One Vehicle. Thereupon ‘the Sage set forth the track,’ acquiesced and ‘moved,’ and then rising from his concentration, started speaking. What he said must be profound and proper. It being profound and proper, those who receive it must naturally become earnest.

The reason why [the Buddha] proclaimed to Śāriputra [in particular] is because, although his trace seemed close in rank to the voice hearers, his actual illumination surpassed his peers, thus qualifying him to be ‘respondent in the dialogue’ [with the Buddha].