Buddhism and Buddhist Culture

Day 1 (7-9-2015)

Content

1. Pāḷi Language

2. Buddhist Literature

3. History of Buddhism

1

Pāḷi Literature

• A body of certain scriptures accepted by the Buddhists as

the genuine word of the Buddha is a Buddhist Canon.

• The scriptures are in the form of dialogues, sayings,

narratives and rules; some are in verse while others in

prose.

• Each school of Buddhism has its own canon in Pāli,

Sanskrit, Mixed Sanskrit or Prākrit.

• Of these Canons, the one in Pāḷi, belonging to the

Theravādins is most complete.

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The contents of this Canon were collected and settled

at three successive Buddhist Councils held within 300

years after the demise of the Buddha.

• The Canon had been orally handed down

generation after generation until the time of the

Fourth Council held in Ceylon during the reign

of King Vaṭṭagāmaṇi (29-17 BC) when the

scriptures were written into books.

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The Pāḷi Canon as we have it now can be classified in several ways.

• Rasa (1)

• Dhamma Vinaya (2)

• Vacana (3)

• Piṭaka (3)

• Nikāya (5)

• Aṅgā (9)

• Dhammakkhandhā (84000)

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rasa, “sentiment”

• the Canon forms one whole body having the

Vimuttirasa “Sentiment of Deliverance”

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Dhamma

Vinaya

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Pathama

Buddhavacana

Dutiya

Buddhavacana

Tatiya

Buddhavacana

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10

Dīgha Nikāya

Majjhima Nikāya

Saṁyutta Nikāya

Aṅguttara Nikāya

Khuddaka Nikāya

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Sutta

Geyya

Veyyākaraṇa

Gāthā

Udāna

Itivuttaka

Jātaka

Abbhutadhamma

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Dhammakkhandhā

Units of the Dhamma

84000

Vinaya Piṭaka

• The Vinaya Piṭaka contains various rules which

govern daily conduct of the members of the Saṃgha

and official functions of the Saṃgha.

• There are also stories in this Piṭaka which explain the

promulgations of the rule or rules concerned, for the

Buddha laid down the rules as occasion suggested

their necessity.

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The Bhikkhu Vibhaṅga Analysis of Rules for

monks

The Bhikkhunī Vibhaṅga Analysis of Rules for Nuns

The Mahāvagga Major Series

The Cūḷavagga Minor Series

The Parivāra Appendix

• The first two of the list are collectively called Sutta

Vibhaṅga, “Analysis of Rules” and the second two

Khandhaka, “Series”.

• The Sutta Piṭaka embodies a great number of

discourses in verse like the Maṅgala Sutta or in prose

like the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta.

• Many of these discourses are delivered by the

Buddha, but a few of them by some of his prominent

disciples.

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The Dīgha Nikāya Collection of lengthy

Suttas

The Majjhima Nikāya Collection of Suttas of

medium length

The Saṃyutta Nikāya Collection of Connected

Series of Suttas

The Aṅguttara Nikāya Collection of Suttas in

numerically progressive

Order

The Khuddaka Nikāya Collection of Small Works

• The Dīgha Nikāya, the

Collection of lengthy

suttas, made up of thirty-

four long discourses of the

Buddha, comprises three

books .

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• The Sīlakkhandhavagga

(the division concerning morality) (13)

• The Mahāvagga

(the large division) (10)

• The Pāthikavagga

(the division beginning with the discourse on

Pāthika, the naked ascetic) (11)

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• The Majjhima Nikāya,

Collection of suttas of

medium length, is made

up of one hundred and

fifty-two suttas in three

books known as paṇṇāsa

'fifty'.

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• The first book, Mūlapaṇṇāsa, deals with the

first fifty suttas in five vaggas

• the second book, Majjhimapaṇṇāsa, consists of

the second fifty suttas, also in five vaggas

• the last fifty-two suttas are dealt with in five

vaggas of the third book

• Uparipaṇṇāsa means more than fifty

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• The Saṃyutta Nikāya,

Collection of connected

series of suttas, has 7762

suttas of varied length,

generally short, arranged

in a special order

according to subject

matter into five major

divisions.

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• (1) The Sagāthāvagga Saṃyutta

• (2) The Nidānavagga Saṃyutta

• (3) The Khandhavagga Saṃyutta

• (4) The Saḷāyatanavagga Saṃyutta

• (5) The Mahāvagga Saṃyutta

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• The Aṅguttara Nikāya, Collection of suttas in

numerically progressive order, containing 9557

short suttas is divided into eleven books

known as nipātas:

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• The Ekaka Nipāta

• The Duka Nipāta

• The Tika Nipāta

• The Catukka Nipāta

• The Pañcaka Nipāt

• The Chakka Nipāta

• The Sattaka Nipāta

• The Aṭṭhaka Nipāta

• The Navaka Nipāta

• The Dasaka Nipāta

• The Ekādasaka Nipāta 24

• In the Aṅguttara Nikāya, the discourses are arranged

in progressive numerical order, each nipāta

containing suttas with items of Dhamma, beginning

with one item and moving up by units of one until

there are eleven items of Dhamma in each sutta of the

last nipāta. Hence the name Aṅguttara meaning

“increasing by one item.”

• The Aṅguttara Nikāya constitutes an important source

book on Buddhist psychology and ethics, which

provides an enumerated summary of all the essential

features concerning the theory and practice of the

Dhamma.

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• The Khuddaka Nikāya, collection of small

works, includes 15 books according to the

calculation of Western scholars, but 18

according to that of the Myamar who add three

more books.

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• The Khuddakapāṭha, 'The Minor Readings'

• The Dhammapada, 'Word of the Doctrine'

• The Udāna, 'Verses of Uplift '

• The Itivuttaka, 'As It Was Said'

• The Suttanipāta, 'Groupe of Discources'

• The Vimānavatthu, 'Stories of the Mansions',

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• (7) The Petavatthu, 'Stories of the Departed'

• (8) The Theragāthā 'Elders’ Verses I'

• (9) The Therīgāthā 'Elders’ Verses II',

• (10) The Jātaka, ' Stories of the Buddha’s

Former Births', (11) The Niddesa, 'Expositor'

• (12) The Paṭisambhidāmagga, 'The Path of

Discrimination',

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• (13) The Apadāna, ‘The Stories’

• (14) The Buddhavaṃsa, ‘The Chronicle of the

Buddhas’

• (15) The Cariyā Piṭaka, ‘The Basket of Conduct’

• (16) The Netti, ‘The Guide’

• (17) The Peṭakopadesa, ‘Instruction in the

Piṭaka’

• (18) The Milindapañha, “Milinda’s Questions”

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Abhidhamma Piṭaka

• Abhi + Dhamma

• The Abhidhamma Piṭaka, the last division of the

Canon, includes the philosophical, ethical and

psychological tenets of the Buddha, which are found

elsewhere, especially in the Sutta Piṭaka.

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The Abhidhamma Piṭaka comprises seven books:

• (1) The Dhammasaṅganī, “Enumeration of Dhammas”

• (2) The Vibhaṅga, “Analysis”

• (3) The Dhātukathā, “Discussion of Elements”

• (4)The Puggalapaññatti, “Manifestation of Individuals”

• (5) The Kathāvatthu, “Subjects of Discussion”

• (6) The Yamaka, “Book of Pairs”

• (7) The Paṭṭhāna, “Book of Relations”

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• A less common way of classification of the

Pāli Canon is that into five Nikāyas of Dīgha,

Majjhima, Saṃyutta, Aṅguttara and Khuddaka.

But the Khuddaka Nikāya of this kind of

classification includes not only the 15 or 18

books of the Sutta Piṭaka but also the seven

books of the Abhidhamma and the five books

of the Vinaya. In fact, these two sets of books

are placed before the 15 or 18 books of the

Sutta Piṭaka.32

• Sutta

• Geyya

• Veyyākaraṇa

• Gāthā

• Udāna

• Itivuttaka

• Jātaka

• Abbhutadhamma

• Vedalla 33

The division into nine Aṅgas

does not allude to a canon

complete in itself, or to

definite books, but is only

meant to classify the various

types of Buddhist texts

according to their form andcontents

• (1) Sutta means all the sayings of the Buddha bearing

the name sutta

• (2) Geyya means all the suttas containing verses

• (3) Veyyākaraṇa - the whole of the Abhidhamma

Piṭaka and any sayings not included in the other

eight Aṅgas

• (4) Gāthā - all the portions entirely in verse

• (5) Udāna - all the verses uttered out of joy

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• (6) Itivuttaka - sayings of the Buddha in the form of

quotations

• (7) Jātaka - Birth Stories of the Buddha

• (8) Abbhutadhamma - suttas connected with wonderful

and marvelous phenomena

• (9) Vedalla - suttas requested to be preached as a result of

attainment of wisdom and delight

• Of these Aṅgas, Udāna, Itivuttaka and Jātaka are also the

names of some books included in the Khuddaka Nikāya.

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Vinaya Piṭaka

Sutta Piṭaka

Abhidhamma Piṭaka

21000

21000

42000