[758] When this was said, the young brahmin Saṅgārava said to the Blessed One: "Unfaltering indeed was the worthy Gotama's striving; the striving of a true person indeed was the worthy Gotama's, as befits an Arahant, a Fully Awakened One. But how is it, worthy Gotama — do gods (devā) exist?"
"This, Bhāradvāja, is known with grounds (ṭhānaso): namely, that gods exist."
"But how is it, worthy Gotama? When asked, 'Do gods exist?' you say, 'This, Bhāradvāja, is known with grounds: namely, that gods exist.' That being so, worthy Gotama, is this not hollow and false?"
"Bhāradvāja, when one is asked, 'Do gods exist?' — whether one should say, 'Gods exist,' or should say, 'They are known with grounds; they are known to me' — then a wise person can come to a definite conclusion in this matter on one side only: namely, that gods exist."
"But why did the worthy Gotama not declare it to me from the very start?"
"This, Bhāradvāja, is loftily agreed upon in the world: namely, that gods exist."
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.