W2-the Buddhist Texts

Chapter I the Buddhist Texts By Dr. Thanarat Sa-ard-iam Instructor in M.A. Course in Buddhist Studies E-mail: [email protected]



Objective of the study 1. To describe the justification of the Buddhist Texts. 2. To define the meaning of the Buddhist Texts. 3. To describe the importance of the Buddhist Texts. 4. To classify the Buddhist Texts. 5. To describe the benefits of all Buddhist Texts.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • The scripture collection of only one early Buddhist School in preserved intact, that of the Theravada school, handed down in Pali as the Tipitaka.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • The Tipitaka of other Hinayana schools are preserved in an incomplete in number of Sanskrit texts that have appeared in various manuscript collections, supplementary by translations of the mission portions in Chinese or Tibetan. • The other scripture collections, as preserved in Chinese and Tibetan, are described in the section titled the Buddhist Scriptures of this volume.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • According to the Theravda tradition the texts were compiled at the first council held immediately three months at Rjagaha (Skt.:Rajagha) after the Nibbna of the Buddha.

The Justification of the Buddhist Texts The ten oldest living pupil of the Buddha; Mahkassapa –the foremost disciples Sriputta and Moggallna had died earlier – presided over the council consisting of 500 monks and had the texts recited as remembered by prominent disciples: - Upli the best expert in Buddhist law recited the Vinaya texts, and nada, who had always been near to the Buddha, the Suttanta texts.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • Then this from of the text was sanctioned by a common recitation of those monks present at the council and thus the canon was established according to the tradition. • It is remarkable that no Abhidhamma texts are mentioned, which clearly shows that this part of Tipiaka was compiled into later to be included into this account.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • The canon in its present shape was probably compiled at the Third Council that took place during the age of the famous King Asoka (Skt.:Aśoka) of Paliputta. • It was not the King but the scholar and highly revered monk Moggalliputta Tissa Thera who, 236 years after the death of the Buddha, convened an Assembly of a thousand monks in the city of Piliputta for the purpose of compilation of a canon of the sacred texts of the true religion.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • Almost the whole of the most ancient Buddhist literature consists of collections of saying or utterances, epigraphs, songs, narratives, rules of the Order, and the Tipiaka is nothing but a large collection of such things.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • It is clear that collections could form verily the conclusion of a considerably long period of literary activity constituent parts must have belonged to different ages. These texts can therefore be regarded as the oldest and perhaps the most authentic written records of the Buddha’s teachings.

1.The Justification of the Buddhist Texts • Though it is true that there is no work of Buddhist literature that goes back to the age of the Buddha, it is probable that certain isolate passages contained in these works may rightly be regarded to be the words of the Buddha. • Even among the first disciples of the Buddha, there were some eminent intellectuals and, therefore, some of the utterances, sayings and poems contained in our collections might have been of those disciples of the Buddha as their authors.

1.1 Pali Alphabet • Today Pāli is studied mainly by those who wish to read the original Buddhist scriptures, and is frequently chanted in rituals. There are non-religious text in Pāli including historical and medical texts. The main areas where Pāli is studied are Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia.

• Pāli is the language of the scriptures of Theravada Buddhism, (the Pāli Canon or the Tipitaka in Pāli), which were written in Sri Lanka during the 1st century BC. Pāli has been written in a variety of scripts, including Brahmi, Devanāgarī and other Indic scripts, and also using a version of the Latin alphabet devised by T. W. Rhys Davids of the Pāli Text Society. • The name Pāli means “line” or “(canonical) text”, and probably comes from the commentarial traditions, wherein the \"Pāli\" (in the sense of the line of original text quoted) was distinguished from the commentary or the vernacular following after it on the manuscript page. There are a number of ways to spell the name of the language: Pali, Pāli, Paḷi, Pāḷi, all four of which are found in textbooks.

Manuscripts and inscriptions • While Pali is generally recognized as an ancient language, no epigraphical or manuscript evidence has survived from the earliest eras. • The earliest samples of Pali discovered are inscriptions believed to date from 5th to 8th Century located in mainland Southeast Asia, specifically central Siam and lower Burma. • These inscriptions typically consist of short excerpts from the Pali Canon and non- canonical texts, and include several examples of the Ye dhamma heto verse.

❖Surprisingly, the oldest surviving Pali manuscript was discovered in Nepal dating to the 9th Century. ❖ It is in the form of four palm- leaf folios, using a transitional script deriving from the Gupta script to scribe a fragment of the Cullavagga. ❖ The oldest known manuscripts from Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia date to the 13th-15th Century, with few surviving examples. Very few manuscripts older than 400 years have survived, and complete manuscripts of the four Nikayas are only available in examples from the 17th Century and later.

Devanāgarī alphabet for Pāli

Pali Script in Different alphabet Brahmi Script

Brahmi script

For example…

The words \"Bu-dhe\" (������������������������, the Buddha) and \"Sa-kya-mu-nī \" ( ������������������������������������������������, \"Sage of the Shakyas\") in Brahmi script, on Ashoka's Rummindei Minor Pillar Edict (circa 250 BCE).



2.The Meaning of the Buddhist Texts • The scripture enshrining the world of the Buddha-the Dhamma and Vinaya- is generally known to the Westerner as the Pli Canon, or Buddhist Canon because it contains the fundamental principle of a religion, Buddhism in this case, and the text of this canon is recorded in the Pli language. • The name commonly used by Theravdins and other Buddhist for their canon is Tipiaka (Skt.:Traipiaka, Tripiaka) “Three baskets”.

2.The Meaning of the Buddhist Texts • The Pli term for the Pli Canon, however, is Tipiaka, from ti ‘three’ + piaka ‘text, scripture, or basket (where things are collected)’, which literally designates its three major divisions of teachings. • The origin of and the idea behind this designation are not known. It is however certain that this is not the oldest name used for a collection of Buddhist texts. • In the canon itself the Buddhavacana “Buddha word” is usually divided into Dhamma “Teaching” and Vinaya “Discipline”, to which Mtik “the Ptimokkhasutta” is added.

2.The Meaning of the Buddhist Texts • So, the term, ‘Tipiaka’ means three baskets or separate divisions of the Buddha’s teachings. • Here the metaphor ‘Basket’ signifies not so much the function of ‘storing up’ anything put into it, but as receptacle in which things are handed over or passed on from one to another like carrying away soil from an excavation, site by a line of workers.

3. The Importance of the Buddhist Texts • The significance of the Pali Canon in the maintenance of the Teaching can be appreciated more when the Pali Canon is seen in relation to other components of Buddhism.

3.1 The Pali Canon and the Triple Gem • The principal reason for the paramount importance of the Pali Canon is that it is where the Triple Gem, also the Three Refuges for all Buddhists, is preserved: • (1) The Pali Canon is the dwelling place of the Buddha. As mentioned earlier, the Dhamma and Vinaya are our Teacher on the Buddha's behalf after his Final Nibbana. From this perspective, we Buddhists can still have an audience with the Teacher in the Pali Canon even though he passed away over 2,500 years ago.

• (2) The Pali Canon performs the duty of the Dhamma. It is through the Pali Canon that we can get to know the Dhamma and Vinaya, i.e. the Buddha's teachings. The Dhamma and Vinaya are simply abbreviated as the Dhamma. When we need something to symbolize it, it is the Tipitaka that is often used. • (3) The Pali Canon is where the Sangha is accommodated. The Sangha owes its existence to the rules laid down by the Buddha in the Tipitaka. In other words, Buddhist monks that form the Sangha can be ordained and remain in their monkhood only because of the Vinaya.

3.2 The Pali Canon and the Triple Gem • The Vinayapitaka contains the rules and regulations for the maintenance of the Sangha. Conversely, the Sangha is entrusted with the duty to preserve and keep alive the Teaching. The Sangha is thus closely attached to the Tipitaka. • To sum up, the Triple Gem has to rely on the Pali Canon to manifest itself to the populace of the world, starting with the Buddhists themselves. The Pali Canon is therefore important as the vehicle through which the Triple Gem becomes known. Preserving the Pali Canon is in effect maintaining the Triple Gem, which is also maintaining Buddhism itself.

3.3 The Pali Canon and the Four Assemblies The Buddha once said he would enter the Final Nibbāna only when all the Four Assemblies, namely monks and nuns-whether they were elders, middling or newly ordained ones-together with laymen and laywomen-celibate and married alike—were endowed with the qualities of worthy custodians of the Teaching, as follows:

(1) They must be well-versed in the teachings of the Buddha and have proper conduct in accordance with the teachings: (2) They must be able to teach others, having learnt the teachings and conducted themselves well; (3) They must be able to confute false doctrines, or teachings that are distorted or different from the original Doctrine and Discipline, when such teachings arise.

• Not long before the Buddha's demise, Māra the Evil One approached him and pointed out that the Four Assemblies were already endowed with the desired qualities mentioned above- which was as if the precondition the Buddha had earlier set for his own Final Nibbāna. • When the Buddha saw that that was indeed the case. he immediately agreed to take the Final Nibbāna and therefore relinquished his will to live on.

3.3 The Pali Canon and the Four Assemblies This saying of the Buddha in effect entrusted the Teaching to the Four Assemblies. But care must also be taken as to what type of Buddhist is worthy of this task. Buddhists can qualify as worthy custodians of the Teaching only when there is a scripture from which to learn and understand the authentic Doctrine and Discipline in the first place.

3.3 The Pali Canon and the Four Assemblies So in this sense, the Pali Canon is the guiding principle for the Four Assemblies and must exist alongside them, providing the basis for their becoming worthy custodians of the Teaching. These two sides preservers of the Teaching and the Teaching to be preserved are mutually dependent. In order for the Teaching to survive and bear fruit, it is the Four Assemblies in whom the Teaching becomes manifested and by whom it is preserved. At the same time, in order for the Four Assemblies to become as such and benefit from the Teaching, it is the Doctrine and Discipline preserved in the Pali Canon that serve as their guiding principles

3.4 The Pali Canon and the three true doctrines From another perspective, what Buddhism is all about can be summarized in three words: Pariyatti, Patipatti, and Pațivedha, or the three true doctrines. Pariyatti refers to the word of the Buddha that we study, through the Pali Canon, without which the Buddha's teachings could never reach us. We can say that the Pariyatti is the result of the Pațivedha and is also the basis for the practice (Patipatti) of Buddhism. After achieving the result of his own practice, the Buddha proclaimed the Teaching, based on his own experiences. The word of the Buddha thus became our Pariyatti, i.e. what we have to learn. However, when we regard the Pariyatti as the result of the Pațivedha, we exclusively refer to the Pațivedha of the Buddha, i.e. the result of his own practice and the result of the practice accepted by the Buddha, but not that of any yogi, hermit, ascetic, recluse, anchorite, preacher, cult leader, or founder of another religion.

3.4 The Pali Canon and the three true doctrines • Without learning the Pariyarri or what the Buddha taught, our practice would be misguided, mistaken, and deviant from the original Teaching. If our practice was wrong, what practice was wrong, whatever result we achieved could not be correct. And if we deceived ourselves with our own findings that were erroneously taken to be true, there could be no way for the Pasivedha to ensue. • Hence, without the Pariyatti as basis, the Patipatti and the Pațivedha would also fail to materialize. All would collapse together.

• To put it simply, from the Buddha's own Pațivedha came our Pariyatti, which we learn and which provides the basis for our practice (Patipatti). When we practice properly, we will achieve the Pativedha just as the Buddha did. As long as this cycle still goes on, the Buddha's Teaching will survive. • The Pariyatti that was derived from the Buddha's Pațivedha and provides the basis for all Buddhists to practice is to be found in the Pali Canon

3.4 The Pali Canon and the three true doctrines From this perspective, then, if we are to preserve the Pariyatti, Patipatti and Pativedha, we will have to preserve the Pali Canon. Whether we trichotomize the Teaching into Pariyattisaddhamma, Patipatti- saddhamma, and Pativedha-saddhamma (i.e. the three true doctrines), or sometimes dichotomize it into Pariyattisāsana and Patipatti-sāsana (i.e. the two dispensations), it all boils down to the Pali Canon as the basis. Thus if we can preserve the Canon, so can we preserve Buddhism.

3.5 The Pali Canon and the Threefold Training • On a more profound level, it is possible to develop Buddhism into part and parcel of oneself, or incorporate it into the life of each person. • Essentially, Buddhism can be seen as the resultant virtue, progress or growth, or the development of the Threefold Training in one's life. • The sort of Buddhism that constitutes one's life also has to rely on the Pali Canon, for Buddhism in this sense means the ability to get rid of greed, hatred and delusion, and to be able to get rid of greed, hatred and delusion, one has to train oneself in morality, concentration and wisdom.

3.5 The Pali Canon and the Threefold Training In organising the teachings into the Tipitaka, tradition has established a relationship between each of the three major divisions of the Pali Canon with each component of the Threefold Training as follows: • The Vinayapitaka as the collection of monastic rules for monks, including both the 227 training rules of the Pātimokkha and those outside of the Pātimokkha, constitutes the Discipline or sila “morality\" --the training and development of bodily and verbal behavior.

3.5 The Pali Canon and the Threefold Training • As a matter of fact, the Suttantapitaka encompasses all of the Threefold Training, but it has been pointed out that its main focus is on the second component of the Threefold Training, i.e. samādhi \"concentration,\" or emotional development. Finally, the focus of the Abhidhammapitaka is on paññā “wisdom.” In contemporary parlance, the content of this pitaka is purely scholarly or academic, bringing up for scrutiny phenomena that are subtle and profound. It thus belongs to the domain of wisdom, requiring profound penetrative knowledge.

3.5 The Pali Canon and the Threefold Training • If we observe the principles of morality, concentration and wisdom as expounded in the Pali Canon, our lives will become like the Teaching itself, thereby as if preserving Buddhism with our own lives. As long as we live, so will Buddhism survive. Wherever we are, there will be Buddhism. Whichever place we visit, Buddhism will reach there as well. • This is called Buddhism existing at the consummate level of preservation. Once the Pali Canon has been incorporated into a person's life, it does not merely exist in letter.

3.5 The Pali Canon and the Threefold Training • However, before Buddhism can be incorporated into individuals, the Pali Canon must first be there to contain and maintain the Teaching. Even when our practice progresses, we need to consult the monks who have learnt from the Tipitaka, or from the ones who have learnt from their predecessors who in turn have learnt from the Tipitaka.

3.5 The Pali Canon and the Threefold Training • The teachings may have been passed down dozens of generations like this to us. If we can read Pali, we can consult the Pali Canon ourselves. If we cannot, we have to ask the learned monks for help. After we have obtained the required knowledge about the teachings, we can then practice properly to cultivate ourselves in morality, concentration, and wisdom.

4. The Classification of Buddhist Texts • The Theravda canon still in common use is Tipiaka, consisted of [1] Vinaya Piaka; [2] Suttanta Piaka; [3] Abhidhamma Piaka, • A brief description of each Piaka are given as follows:

4.1 Vinaya Pitaka • The disciplinary and procedural rules for the Sagha • The Vinaya Piaka is the collection of monastic rules laid down, which is made up of rules of discipline laid down for regulating the conduct of the Buddha’s disciples who have been admitted as Bhikkhus and Bhikkhuns into the Order. • These rules embody authoritative injunctions of the Buddha on modes of conduct and restraints on both physical and verbal actions. They deal with transgressions of discipline, and with various categories of restraints and admonitions in accordance with the nature of the offence.

4.1 Vinaya Pitaka The Vinaya Piaka is made up of five books; a brief description of each is given as follows: [1]. Suttavibhagha: Explanation of the Suttas of Ptimokkha. It has two parts. (1.1) Prjika: The transgressions resulting in the expulsion of a member from the Order, and (1.2) Pcittiya: The transgressions for which various atonements and penances have been prescribed.

4.1 Vinaya Pitaka [2]. Khandhaka: Ordinances of the organization of the Order and for regulating the entire conduct of monks and nuns in their daily life. These are also divided into two parts, namely:- (2.1) Mahvagga: Ordinances relating to admission to the Order, Pavra, Uposatha and life during the rainy season. (2.2) Culavagga: Ordinances relating to disciplinary proceedings, penances, settlement of disputes, rules of daily life, duties of monks and nuns and ceremonies, Buddhist Councils and history of the Sagha, miracles and conversions. (3). Parivra: Question and answers relating to above.

4.2 The Suttanta Piaka: The popular book of discourses • As the Vinaya Piaka is the best source of information relating to the ancient Buddhist Order and the monk-life, so also is the Sutta Piaka or “the Books of Discourses”, or specific teachings that were adaptively expounded by the Buddha to suit the individual, place, and event or situation in question, together with supplemental material, and as the mains source for the Doctrine of the Buddha as expounded in argument and dialogues and also for that of his earliest disciples.

The Suttanta Piaka: The popular book of discourses • The Sutta Piaka contains prose dialogues, legends, pity sayings, and verses. It contains, in prose and verse, the most important products of Buddhist literature grouped in five collections named Nikya. • The first four of these consists of Suttas or discourses which are either speeches of the Buddha or dialogues in prose occasionally diversified by verses. These four are cognate and homogeneous in character. A number of Suttas reappear in two or more of them. There is little difference in the doctrines they contain. The same mode of discussion prevails in these Nikyas.