The Marvelous Dharma Discourse

In The Marvelous Dharma Discourse Ānanda asks the Buddha about the relative merit accrued by huge offerings made to revered beings as compared to the merit accrued by making even a miniature stūpa for the veneration of a buddha who has passed into parinirvāṇa. The Buddha replies that the merit accrued by creating even a tiny stūpa the size of a small fruit for the veneration of a buddha is greater than that accrued by offering the entire world, or even the universe and its palaces, to all stream enterers, once-returners, non-returners, arhats, pratyekabuddhas, and the saṅgha in the four directions.