Tripitaka (Buddhist Canon)

Definition

The "three baskets" (Tripitaka in Sanskrit, Tipitaka in Pali), the earliest collection of Buddhist scriptures, compiled at the Buddhist councils and recording the teachings of the Buddha.

Key points

• Vinaya Pitaka: the rules of monastic discipline (conduct of monks and nuns and of the sangha); recited by Upali at the first council.
• Sutta Pitaka: the discourses and sermons of the Buddha; recited by Ananda at the first council; organised into nikayas (such as the Digha and Anguttara Nikayas).
• Abhidhamma Pitaka: the philosophical and analytical exposition of doctrine; added at the third council under Ashoka.
• The canon is in the Pali language for the Theravada (Hinayana) tradition, the form preserved in Sri Lanka and South-East Asia.
• The Jataka tales (former lives of the Buddha) are part of the Sutta Pitaka; the Khuddaka Nikaya contains the Dhammapada.

Why it matters for CAPF

The three-fold division (Vinaya-discipline, Sutta-discourses, Abhidhamma-philosophy), the Pali medium, and the completion of the Abhidhamma at Ashoka's third council are recurring objective points.

Common confusion

The Sutta Pitaka (discourses, Ananda) is distinct from the Vinaya Pitaka (rules, Upali); the Abhidhamma was the last to be added (third council, Ashoka), so the full Tripitaka was not complete at the first council.

Parent note

mahajanapadas jainism and buddhism