MA 2007-08 Theravada Buddhism Class Notes

CLASS 2: DEFINITION OF EARLY BUDDHISM

Theravada is some kind of development from the Early Buddhism. It is called Early
Buddhism, Primitive Buddhism, Pre-canonical Buddhism, Original Buddhism, names
gave from modern European scholars to introduce the teaching of the Buddha.
All doctrines accept:
1- Four Noble Truth
2- Noble Eight Fold Path
3- Theory of Kamma
4- Theory of Rebirth
5- Sila- Samadhi- Paa
6- Concept of Nibbana.
There are no any arguments with regard of these concepts among Buddhist traditions.
They are unanimous and they agree that they are teachings of the Buddha.
There are different interpretations of them but they accept those teachings as the
Buddhas doctrine.
Apart from the Pali canon there is not any writing from the Buddha. Any of the canons
did not come into existent during the time of the Buddha.
The Pali canon is considered the oldest canon which contains Buddhas teachings. But
this Pali canon has a starting point that is the 1st Buddhist council. When examining the
history of Buddhism we come to know that the 1st council was held 3 months after the
Buddhas parinirvana. It is reported that it was in the 1st council where all the teachings
of the Buddha were collected and put them into two divisions namely Dhamma and
Vinaya. But the recorded of the 1st council does not inform us the exact amount of the
sutta which are contain in Dhamma. We can find some of the suttas in the Pali canon
which do not contain the teachings which have doctrinal and ethical value. That type of
suttas contains mostly legends, mythology, parables and medical lectures to which the
Buddha did not pay much attention. Thus the traditionalist Buddhists believe all the
suttas are His own words and the teachings, but most of scholars are of the opinion that
those suttas cannot be the teachings of the Buddha. The present Pali canon contains all
the suttas whether they included the real teachings of the Buddha and the other ones
with mythology and legendary character. Therefore in deciding the real teachings of the
Buddha there is a problem as the Pali canon contains those two types of suttas.
There are some suttas that have things that probably the Buddha did not teach.
Ex.: the 1st discourse of the Buddha, has the explanation of the nature of this world, how
can the craving be eradicated and what is Nibbana.
The Phajagga sutta, Canda paritta, Surya paritta, Ataniya paritta, and Mora paritta, are
recited as protecting chanting. These suttas are included in the Pali canon but have not
contained Buddhas own teachings: ethics and doctrine to realize Nibbana.
The Aggaa sutta is a legendary kind or mythological one.
The Palai canon is consited on three baskets, namely:
1- Sutta Pitaka
2- Vinaya Pitaka
3- Abhidhamma Pitaka.
I- Sutta Pitaka contains 5 books by the name of nikayas:
1- Diga- nikaya
2- Majjhima- nikaya
3- Samyuta- nikaya
4- Angutara- nikaya

MA 2007-08 Theravada Buddhism Class Notes

5- Khuddaka Patana.
The later itself contain 15 books namely:
1- Dhammapada
2- Udana
3- Itivuttaka
4- Jataka
5- Cariyapitaka
6- Thetagatta
7- Therigatta
8- Vimanavatthu
9- Petavatthu
10- Mahanidesa
11- Cula Nidesa
12- Suttanipata
13- Apadana
14- Buddhavamsa
15- Patisambhidamagga.
II- Vinaya Pitaka: the books are called Pali
Parajika Pali
Pacittiya Pali
Culla Vagga Pali
Mahavagga Pali
Parivara Pali.
III- Abhidhamma Pitaka:
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Dhammasangani pakarana
Vibhanga pakarana
Dhatukatha pakarana
Puggalapaatti pakarana
Kathavatthu pakarana
Yamaka pakarana
Patthana pakarana.

Among the Tripitakas of the Pali canon, the Abhidhamma Pitaka was not presented
during the time of the 1st BuddhistCouncil. And they did not mention even a word about
Abhidhamma. But the Theravada tradition believes that Abhidhamma Pitaka also
contains Buddhas own words. Even among the books of Vinaya Pitaka the name of
Cullavagga and Mahavagga and Parivara Pali were not mentioned in the 1st Buddhist
Council. On the other hand, the Parivara Pali, the last book of Vinaya Pitaka is an
appendix of the other 4 books. Even the Cullavagga contains historical records about the
1st and 2nd Buddhist Councils. The 1st Buddhist Council was held after 3 months the
Buddhas passing away.
The 2nd was held after 100 years of the Buddhas passing away. If the Cullavagga
contains the incidents took place even after 100 years of the parinirvana, then it is
certain that the Vinaya Pitaka also has a gradual development process.

MA 2007-08 Theravada Buddhism Class Notes

The 5th book of the Abhidhamma was writing during the 3rd Buddhist Council, wroten
by Ven. Moggalliputtatissa Thera.
Abhidhamma was not taught by the Buddha.
The Buddha presentes himself as maggakkhayikho= path-finder.
To show the path He taught the nature of the world and the way to attain nibbana, what
is nibbana.
Do well.
Do not deed evil
Purifying your mind.
These are the teachings of the Buddha.
Buddha realized two things:
1- Reality of the world= paticcasamuppada
2- Nibbana.
The Pali is the oldest canon, 2nd Mahayana, 3rd Tibetan.
Its called Pali canon because is writing in Pali language. It was writing in the 1st
century A.D. according to Theravada after the 3rd Council, Asoka wanting to send some
missionaries outside India. The Ven Mahinda, who was his son, was the leader of the
mission to Sri Lanka. When he went there he took a Pali canon with him into Sri Lanka,
and introduced it into Sri Lanka monks, and they preserved by oral tradition up to the 1st
century A.D. it is reported, the Pali canon was writing in the 1st century A.D. Before that
period it was transmitting generation to generation by oral tradition.
The canon which believe to be the teachings of the Buddha is writing in Pali language,
as the teaching of the Buddha is available in this language, it is called Pali Buddhism.
But among the scholars there is no agreement with regard to the language of the
Buddha.
Theravada believes that Buddha used Pali language, but there are not evidences to show
that the Pali was His language. Actually Pali is nor a name for a language. There was
not any language called Pali. In the commentaries written to Pali canon, the word
magadhiko voharo= use of the Magadha; was used to denote the language used by the
Buddha.
In the 13th century the Sri Lanka scholars used Pali to denote the language of the
Tripitaka. The commentaries were written in Sri Lanka in the 5th century A.D. by
Buddhaghosa and Buddhadhatta and Dhammapala.
The term Pali means line or text. Did not exist a language called Pali in India in the
times of the Buddha.
The first council collected all the teachings of the Buddha in Magadha language.
In the 3rd century B.C.E. Asoka established pillars with inscriptions in different places in
India in any of the dialect or colloquial languages of each place.
These different languages are Prakrit or dialects.
In these pillars the Pali languages did not appear.
Iyam salila nidhane
Budhasa bhagavato sakiyanam
Sukitibhatanam sabhagirikanam
Sasutadalana.
This language appears in the inscriptions in Kapilavatu.
This is the same text in Pali language:
Idam sarira nidhanam

MA 2007-08 Theravada Buddhism Class Notes

Buddhasa bhagavato sakyanam

Bhattanam sabhagirikanam
Sasutadarena.
The word sukitibhatanam does not exist in Pali language.
Both texts have the following meaning:
The relics of Buddhas body were deposited
By the parents and the sons of the Sakyas
Who were the relatives of the Buddha.
During Asokas time there was no mother language in India. The linguistics sustain the
theory of "Indo-European" languages, and today the hypothetical language that would
be the common source for all Indo-European languages is called "Proto-IndoEuropean." This common one separated in three principal groups: Indo-european, Indoiranian (middle-east) and Indo-aryan (India). The theory sustain that there was a
migration in the Paleolithic Period from Europe to Asia.
When these people came to India they used Vedic Language. The dialects that grew
from it in different places are called Prakrit.
Latin

English

Sanskrit

Pali

Mater
Pater
Frater
Filia

Mother
Father
Brother
Daughter

Matri
Pitru
Bhatru
Dhictru

Mata
Pita
Bhata
Dheeta.