Legend says that Sariputra was a very good man. He was willing to donate everything he had-house, fields, money, etc.-to other people.

He was even willing to donate his body. One day a young man approached him and said,"My mother is very sick, the doctor said that she needs an eyeball for her illness." Sariputra thought,"Well, I'm happy to donate my eye to help this young man's mother." So without any hesitation, he poked out his left eye and gave it to the young man. The young man said,"Oh no, I forgot to tell you that the doctor said it had to be the right eye." Sariputra then poked out his right eye and handed it to the young man. The young man smelled it and said,"It smells awfull!" He threw it on the ground and walked away. Sariputra was quite upset and did not know what to do."It is so difficult to redeem people from the suffering of the world," he said to himself."Well, maybe I'll just try to enlighten myself."

Suddenly, there came a voice."My friend, that young man you just encountered was a heavenly being who was testing your will and determination. You should not retract your kind intention to rescue all lives from suffering. You must work harder to seek the truth in Buddhism." When Sariputra heard this, he was quite embarrassed and he worked hard at his spiritual cultivation.

In Buddhism, when an ordinary person is ready to become a buddha, he must be personally certified by someone who has already attained buddhahood. In the Wonderful Lotus Sutra, the Buddha personally certified that Sariputra would one day become a buddha and that his title would be Padmaprabha("Grand Light Buddha").