.jpg "Tapussa and Banlika were the first to worship the Buddha")
After attaining Buddhahood, the Buddha resided for seven days at each of the seven places. In the final week, while sitting under the Linlun tree, the Buddha met Tapussa and Banlika, two brothers, who were traders from Pokkhravati city. They had set out with five hundred carts for trading purposes, and came to where the Buddha was. On the way, a deva gave them the news of the Buddha. So they presented the Buddha with the honey-cake they had had with them.
The Buddha taught them to adore the Buddha and the Dhamma at that time there had appeared only two sacred gems, the Buddha and the Dhamma. The third gem, the Sangha had not yet appeared.
After worshipping the Buddha and the Dhamma, the two brothers said to the Buddha: “Lord, what should be a permanent object of worship for us?” The Buddha pressed his hair with his hand and produced two strands of hair and gave them to the brothers. They carried the strands of the Buddha’s hair respectfully and continued with their journey.
Concepts and terminology:
Dhamma (Dha-ma) : Teachings of the Buddha. Links: Wikipedia
Sangha (San-gha) : The Buddhist order of monks. Links: Wikipedia
Deva (De-va) : Celestial beings that are more powerful and live longer than human beings. They have angelic forms and possess maigical powers. They are not gods, and are neither omniscient, omnipotent, nor morally perfect. Link: Wikipedia