One day, Upali noticed that a monk had fallen sick and was lying by the side of the road, and that another monk purposely walked around him in order to avoid him. He asked the Buddha how a sick monk should be properly cared for. "When a monk is sick, he should live in a place with good air and a lot of sunlight," the Buddha replied. "His student or another monk should clean the room and help him in any way he can. Everyone else should provide food and medicine for the patient. If they cannot do so, they can take his robe, bowl, or other items and exchange them for food, Otherwise, the other monks should go out and beg for the best food for the patient." Upali's concern for the ill monk explains that the core of abiding by precepts is compassion. The precepts are not used to punish people all the time. Instead, they are aimed at bringing warmth and happiness to people.

When the Buddha passed away, Upali was about seventy years old. At the first gathering of the sangha, he was asked by Kasyapa to recite all the precepts. He was able to state that the Buddha had set down a specific precept because he could recall that someone did something wrong at a specific place and time, and he could also remember the punishment. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his excellent memory. He recited all 250 precepts for monks, 500 for nuns, five precepts for lay male disciples and ten for lay female disciples. After the convocation, he traveled around lecturing on the Buddha's teachings.