Contents
Introduction……………………………………………………………..
Early Buddhism and background after the Buddha’s Parinirvāna ……….
Second Buddhist Council and first Saṅgha Split in Buddhism…………
Third Buddhist council and its impact………………………………….
I. Compilation of Tipiṭaka……………………………………
II. Dhamma mission……………………………………………..
III. Language distinction in Theravāda tradition…………………
Identity of Theravāda as a prominent Buddhist School………………..
Conclusion………………………………………………………………
References………………………………………………………………
Introduction
Theravada Buddhism, along with Mahāyāna Buddhism, are the two principal branches of Buddhist belief. It is most widespread in Sri Lanka, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand.
The Theravada school traces its descent from the original Saṅgha, or monastic community that first followed the Buddha. Its canon of scripture consists of the Tipiṭaka (Three Baskets), the first great compendium of Buddhist writings, composed in the Pāli language. Theravada tends toward doctrinal conservatism, exemplified in a cautious interpretation of its canon. Because of this, it has been given the pejorative name Hīnayāna (Sanskrit for "Lesser Vehicle") by its rivals, who call their own tradition Mahāyāna ("Greater Vehicle"). The goal of the Theravādin, or devotee of Theravada, is to become an arahant, a sage who has achieved nirvana (enlightenment) and will never be reborn. Mahāyāna traditionally prefers the figure of the bodhisattva - who, out of compassion, helps others toward salvation - to the arahant, who is concerned chiefly with his own salvation.
In this assignment, my intention is to have a discussion on the development of Theravāda identity by referring its historical stages.
4
Early Buddhism and background after the Buddha’s Parinirvāna
After the Buddha passed away a meeting was held to preserve his teachings. Understandably, the Buddha's death was a great loss to most of his followers, except the deeply realized disciples, and many were plunged into deep grief. Yet there was a monk called Subadra who had entered the order in his old age, who rejoiced at the Buddha's death. He addressed the monks and said,
"Do not be sad, brothers, don’t cry. We are now free of the Great Ascetic. He constantly worried us, saying 'This is suitable, this is not suitable.' Now we are free do what we like."
These unexpected words spoken by a monk hardly a week after the death of the Great Teacher caused the Venerable Maha Kassapa, the third chief disciple of the Buddha, to call a meeting of the leading arahants in order to protect and preserve the teachings. The other elder monks were consulted and they all welcomed the suggestion.
King Ajasattha was informed of the intention of the order of Monks and he made all necessary arrangements for the monks to meet at the entrance of the Sattapanni Cave in Rajagaha. Five hundred seats were arranged and prepared in the large hall, but only 499 famous arahants were chosen for the meeting. The empty seat was reserved for the Venerable Ananda, who was still only a Sotāpanna. Soon there was only one more day before the meeting was to begin. The Venerable Ananda thought, "The meeting is tomorrow. It is not right for me to go to the meeting as a mere learner and not an arahant. I must try very hard to purify my mind in the little time left to me".
He spent much of the night in the Contemplation of the Body, one of the meditation exercises taught by the Buddha for the purification of mind. When it was almost dawn, he thought, " I shall lie down," but he kept mindful of the body. Before his head touched the pillow and after he raised his feet off the ground, all the remaining defilements disappeared from his mind. He had attained arahantship. And so he went to the council meeting as an arahant.The meeting started three months after the passing away of the Buddha. That meeting is now referred to as the First Buddhist Council.
The Venerable Maha Kassapa was the president at the First Council. Venerable UPāli was chosen to answer questions about the Vinaya, the monks' and nuns' disciplinary rules.
5
Venerable Ananda, who had the honor of hearing all the discourses of the Buddha and who had an unusually good memory, was chosen to recite all the discourses and answer questions about the teachings.
The First Buddhist Council collected together and arranged the Buddhist Scriptures known as the Pāli Tipiṭaka, which have since been handed down from one generation of monks to another. In the early days of Buddhism, there was no written record of the teachings. The monks had to memorize the scriptures and then teach the next generation of monks in the same way, it being an oral tradition.
Second Buddhist Council and first Saṅgha Split in Buddhism
The Second Buddhist Council was held approximately 100 years after the death of the Buddha. It was held at Vaisali, also in the modern Indian state of Bihar. It was convened to settle the conflict that had arisen out of an ideological difference among the Saṅgha. This difference was not resolved and resulted in the creation of the two major schools of Buddhist thought, the Mahāyāna and the Theravada. Controversy is thought to have arisen over the 10 rules (vinayas) monks were obliged to follow. Those are,
1. Storing salt in a horn. 2. Eating after midday. 3. Eating once and then going again to a village for alms. 4. Holding the Uposatha Ceremony with monks dwelling in the same locality. 5. Carrying out official acts when the assembly was incomplete. 6. Following a certain practice because it was done by one's tutor or teacher. 7. Eating sour milk after one had his midday meal. 8. Consuming strong drink before it had been fermented. 9. Using a rug which was not the proper size. 10. Using gold and silver.
These included whether it was acceptable to drink sour milk after the midday meal, using a rug of an inappropriate size, accepting gold and silver as alms, and the storage of salt. The debate centered on two interpretations of the vinayas, one of which was much stricter than the other. It is said that the Vaisali monks were practicing a more relaxed regime of vinayas than the remainder of the Saṅgha, and after debate their lifestyle was ruled unlawful. In return, the Vaisali faction created its own school. This explanation ignores the issues of dogma that must
6
have underpinned this conflict and the division between Theravada and Mahāyāna forms of Buddhism has little to do with the regimen to be followed by their practitioners. The Chinese version of the original Sanskrit report created by the Mahāsāṅgika School, which later became the Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition, records that the debate concerned the nature of the arahant and the relationship with the physical universe. There is little agreement as to the exact nature of the debates that took place. However, it is clear that after the second council, Buddhists divided into a number of different sects, and unity among them was no longer possible because there was no agreement on Buddha’s teachings, nor of the order in which they were to be recited.
The Third Buddhist Council and its Impact
In the Second Council, only matters pertaining to the precepts (i.e. Vinaya) were discussed and no controversy about the Dharma (i.e. Sutra) was noted. However, in the third century B.C. during the time of King Ashoka (about 235 years after the death of Gauthama Buddha), the Third Council was held to discuss the differences of opinion in both the Vinaya and the Dharma.
In the reign of King Ashoka in Mauryan Dynasty, the King himself was an ardent Buddhist, who ruled the country successfully based upon the ideals of Buddhism, e.g., the universal ideals of absolute pacifism and respect for life. King Ashoka erected thousands of monasteries and stupas, and dispatched parties of Bhikkhus to various regions to propagate Buddhism. One such mission, led by Prince Mahinda, travelled to Ceylon (i.e. Sri Lanka), and is considered to be the origin of the Theravada Buddhism prevalent to this day in Sri Lanka and other countries in S.E. Asia.
Buddhism had entered into a period of great flourishing and splendor. It was recorded that 60,000 Bhikkhus resided in Pataliputra, the capital of Mauryan Dynasty. Under these circumstances, there existed many "revised" versions of Tipiṭaka with distorted and misled interpretations. In order to clear the confusion and rectify the situation, the Third Council was convened. Patronized by King Ashoka, the Third Council was held at Pataliputra, just 236 years after the death of the Buddha. The Chairman of the Council was Moggaliputta Tissa, the Buddhist Master of the nation. As there were one thousand Bhikkhus participating in the council, the Third Council was also known as "the Gathering of 1,000 Bhikkhus".
7
In putting the Buddhist scripture in order, the assembly did not confine themselves to the Vinaya, but also covered the Sutra and the Shastra (i.e. Abhidhamma) as well. At the end of the Council, Tissa compiled a book called Kathāvatthu, refuting the heretical, false views and theories held by some disciples. The teaching approved and accepted by the Council was known as Theravada.
In the third century, B.C., King Ashoka in India played a crucial role in the spread of Buddhism.
Regions which Buddhism was introduced
Country Name
Missionary Name
(1) Kasmira-Gandhara
Majjhantika thera.
(2) Mahisamandala
Mahadeva thera.
(3) Vanavasi
Rakkhita thera.
(4) Aparantaka
Yona-Dhammarakkhita thera.
(5) Maharattha
Mahadhammarakkhita thera.
(6) Yona
Maharakkhita thera.
(7) Himavanta Majjhima thera.
(8) Suvannabhumi
Sona thera and Uttara thera.
(9) Lankadipa
Maha mahinda thera.
With the evidence of the Fourteen Rock Edicts on rocks and pillars, King Ashoka was in effect proclaiming himself to be the first monarch in history to rule not by military force, but by the power of the Buddhist Dharma. In Ashoka's region, Buddhism for the first time became one of the national religions of India. After the death of King Ashoka, the Mauryan Dynasty came to an end.
King Milinda conquered Kubal region (today's Afghanistan) and central India during mid-second century B.C. The Indian referred to him as "the Greatest King in all India". With the heritage of Greek culture and learning he was earnest to familiarize himself with the Indian culture and learning. However, for a long time, he was unable to find an Indian philosopher or
8
a religious leader whom he could regard as a worthy opponent in debate, until he met Nagasena. Nagasena was the leader of a company of the Buddhist Order, and highly esteemed by the people.
The debate between King Milinda and Nagasena remarked the confrontation between philosophy and wisdom of the East and those of the West. Nagasena was aware that his performance might determine the future of the Buddhist community. The historical debate was recorded with a total of 262 questions and answers, entitled Milindapanha, or Questions of King Milinda. The questions were asked step by step through the various aspects of Buddhism, and the answers were given in a clear, striking and wholly appropriate way, so that the King was totally convinced by the profound doctrines of Buddhism.
Later, the King became a lay believer and donated a monastery named Milinda Furthermore, it is said that he relinquished the throne to his son, and became a monk, in time gaining the status of an Arahant. Buddhism had already begun to exercise an important influence upon not only the Greek world of the West, but also Sri Lanka and Burma in the south and China in the east. This was also a period of transition to Mahāyāna Buddhism, as the success of Nagasena to convert a monarch was directly allied to the spirit of the later followers of Mahāyāna Buddhism.
Today, Milindapanha, is still regarded as an introduction to Buddhism, and used in Theravada Buddhism as a manual of instruction for the Bhikkhus.
Identity of Theravāda as a prominent Buddhist School
While other early sects died out or were absorbed into Mahāyāna Buddhism, Theravada retained its identity. Similarly, when Buddhism died out in India after the 12th century AD, Theravada kept its hold in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. In about the 10th century, a Theravada reform movement began in Sri Lanka that consolidated the kingdom as a Theravada monarchy. The reform movement spread to Burma and Thailand, where it revitalized the Theravada tradition and ensured its supremacy over other Buddhist sects. Reformers also carried the creed into Cambodia and Laos, where the geographical limits of Theravada predominance were reached. Despite some Theravada followers in Vietnam and elsewhere, Mahāyāna Buddhism became the dominant tradition in the rest of the Buddhist world.
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Despite the European colonialism that began in the early 19th century, Theravada continued in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, in some areas becoming identified with nascent nationalist movements. In Sri Lanka, during the 18th and 19th centuries, Theravada split into factions, mostly over questions regarding the caste of worshippers. Thailand began reform of its Theravada tradition in the 19th century as part of the general national reform initiated in response to European colonialism, and the country has remained a fertile source of Theravada reform movements. In the 1980s and 1990s, Theravada became an important factor in civil strife between the Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the Tamil minority of Sri Lanka, with some militant Buddhists promoting a vigorous Sinhalese nationalism. In Myanmar, Theravada has become one element of the rigidly conservative political and social policies of the country's military rulers. Theravada in Laos and Cambodia suffered a setback during the Vietnam War (1959-1975) and the subsequent Communist domination but appeared to be reviving in the 1990s. Theravada has been reestablished in India in the modern era by the mass conversion to Theravada Buddhism of Harijans (the so-called Untouchables, who fall outside the traditional class divisions of Hindu society), who are attracted by Buddhism's indifference to Hindu concepts of caste.
Organization
Theravada organization is in principle based on the original instructions of the Buddha as laid down in the Vinaya Piṭaka, the compendium of 227 rules for monastic discipline that forms part of the Tipiṭaka. Since the Saṅgha is the core institution of Buddhism, its structure is the basis of Theravada organization. Theravada monks were traditionally criticized by Mahāyāna believers for being too concerned with their own salvation and for indifference to the lay community. Theravada doctrine holds that only a monk can attain nirvana and that the laity can only aspire to be reborn as a monk after many reincarnations spent discharging the burden of karma (intentional action that determines one's future destiny). However, in some countries, especially Myanmar and Thailand, young men are placed in monasteries temporarily as part of their education, thus fostering lay involvement in the Saṅgha.
Most countries with large numbers of Theravada adherents exhibit strong historical ties between the Buddhist hierarchy and the government. In such countries, Ashoka's beneficent propagation of Buddhism has been accepted as the exemplar of wise and legitimate government and as a precedent for state involvement in religious affairs. The state and the Saṅgha are often
10
seen as complementary and mutually supportive, ministering respectively to the secular and religious needs of the people. The temples themselves are loosely coordinated in most Southeast Asian countries, with little in the way of formal hierarchy between them. In early Sri Lankan Buddhism, a short-lived and limited practice of clerical marriage developed, and charge of particular temples was passed from father to son.
Theravada has a notable tradition of forest-dwelling hermits who exist outside the monastic organizations. In contrast to Mahāyāna Buddhism, since about AD 500, Theravada has had no orders of Buddhist nuns. There is limited participation in the Saṅgha by women and lay people, who generally wear white robes and take up asceticism (self-denial) without entering a monastic order.
Doctrine
Theravada claims to abide by the original teachings of the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama. Theravada doctrine reveres the Buddha as a single supremely gifted, yet mortal, teacher, in contrast to the succession of transcendent beings postulated by Mahāyāna. Some Theravada scriptures list other Buddhas, but in general the emphasis is on the one historical Buddha, on the grounds that no universe can bear more than one Buddha without shattering.
The dharma, or teachings, of the historical Buddha are usually regarded as being contained in the Tipiṭaka. Unlike Mahāyāna, which has generated a vast number of additional sutras (scriptural texts), Theravada confines itself to this core dharma. The Theravada canon is recorded in Pāli, a dialect popular during the Buddha's lifetime. Other works highly esteemed in Theravada - particularly the dialogues in the Milindapanha (2nd century AD; translated as Questions of King Milinda, 1963), and the Visuddhimagga (5th century AD; Path of Purification, 1964) by the great Buddhist commentator Buddhaghosa - are regarded by most scholars as authoritative collections rather than as the fruit of further revelations of dharma (although the Milindapanha is considered canonical by the Myanmar).
The dharma of Theravada regards human existence as a complex of various transient aspects, also called dhammas. These dhammas are grouped in overlapping categories of 5 components (skandhas), 12 bases (āyatana), and 18 perceptual elements (dhātu). The 5 components are the physical body (rūpa), feelings (vedanā), cognitive perception (saññā), mental predispositions (saṅkhāra), and consciousness (viññāna). The 12 bases are the 5 sensory organs with their 5
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sensory fields, plus the mind and the object of mental perception. The 18 elements are the 5 sensory organs plus the mind, their 6 associated objects, and the 6 so-called consciousness’s of ear, eye, nose, mouth, body, and mind. These dhammas create a composite being not united by any enduring soul (atman) or identity: There is no self in the strict sense. The Theravādin endeavors to manipulate the dhammas so as to suspend the action of karma and thereby to achieve nirvana. Theravada is therefore less a philosophical doctrine than an almost scientific discipline, although it depends on a complex cosmology of cyclical, multiple worlds and an involved scheme of reincarnation.
Language
Theravāda Buddhism has own body of literature (tanti bāsā) and it identified with pāli and pāli stands for canonical body of the Buddha’s teachings(Ven. Buddhagosa’s idea).According to Ven. Buddhagosa pāli was the language which the Buddha used to speak too. (Māgadhi was the root language)Sakā nirutti means own language. But according to Ven. Buddhagosa, “sakā nirutti” means Buddha’s language. But Prof. B.C. Law disagree with Ven. Buddhagosa. He argives by emphasizing below canonical reference.
"Na bhikkhave Buddhavacanam chandaso aropetabbam. Yo aropeyya, apatti dukkatassa. Anujanami bhikkhave sakāya niruttiya Buddhavacauam pariyapunitum"
(Answer to Ven.Yemula and Ven. Tekula - Cullavagga, V. 33. I, P. 139).
Concept of Omniscient
In Patisambhidāmagga firstly mentioned the Buddha as an “omniscient”. In Tevijjavacchagotthasutta of Majjhima Nikāya, the Buddha rejected the concept of “Sabbaññu” (omniscient). Instead of “Sabbaññu”, he preferred himself as “Tevijja”.
Tevijja ñāna
1. Pubbenivāsānussati – memory of former lives’ experiences
2. Cutūpapāta – knowledge of passing away and re arising of living beings
3. Āsavakkhaya - Extinction of mental intoxicants
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Conclusion
Theravāda tradition developed interpretative scripture over periods of many centuries. As a different school, it found different soil to grow such as Sri Lanka. Theravāda Abhidhamma represented sectorial development and the body of Buddhist literature belongs to nonsectarian period. It’s important to say that Theravāda is not identical with the original doctrine of the Buddha. It is not true to say that both Theravāda and Early Buddhism insisted that everyone should try to attain arahanthood, not Buddhahood. The possibility of attaining Nibbāna by any one of these bodhis is recognized but there was no insistence that everyone should follow the same path.
References
Primary Resources
M I, 2006, BJTS, Dehiwala
M II, 2006, BJTS, Dehiwala
CV, 2006, BJTS, Dehiwala
Secondary Resources
The seekers Glossary of Buddhism (1998 New York) p.624 Hirakawa Akira, A History of Indian Buddhism (Delhi 1993) p.38
Wijebandara, Prof. Chandima, Theravāda Traditions (A Historical and Doctrinal Study)
Lecture notes, Pemasiri. Prof. P.D.
Bhikkhu Bodhi, 2009, the Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, Wisdom Publications. E book
Majjhima Nikāya, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu, retrieved 2016-01-10
Introduction……………………………………………………………..
Early Buddhism and background after the Buddha’s Parinirvāna ……….
Second Buddhist Council and first Saṅgha Split in Buddhism…………
Third Buddhist council and its impact………………………………….
I. Compilation of Tipiṭaka……………………………………
II. Dhamma mission……………………………………………..
III. Language distinction in Theravāda tradition…………………
Identity of Theravāda as a prominent Buddhist School………………..
Conclusion………………………………………………………………
References………………………………………………………………
Introduction
Theravada Buddhism, along with Mahāyāna Buddhism, are the two principal branches of Buddhist belief. It is most widespread in Sri Lanka, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand.
The Theravada school traces its descent from the original Saṅgha, or monastic community that first followed the Buddha. Its canon of scripture consists of the Tipiṭaka (Three Baskets), the first great compendium of Buddhist writings, composed in the Pāli language. Theravada tends toward doctrinal conservatism, exemplified in a cautious interpretation of its canon. Because of this, it has been given the pejorative name Hīnayāna (Sanskrit for "Lesser Vehicle") by its rivals, who call their own tradition Mahāyāna ("Greater Vehicle"). The goal of the Theravādin, or devotee of Theravada, is to become an arahant, a sage who has achieved nirvana (enlightenment) and will never be reborn. Mahāyāna traditionally prefers the figure of the bodhisattva - who, out of compassion, helps others toward salvation - to the arahant, who is concerned chiefly with his own salvation.
In this assignment, my intention is to have a discussion on the development of Theravāda identity by referring its historical stages.
4
Early Buddhism and background after the Buddha’s Parinirvāna
After the Buddha passed away a meeting was held to preserve his teachings. Understandably, the Buddha's death was a great loss to most of his followers, except the deeply realized disciples, and many were plunged into deep grief. Yet there was a monk called Subadra who had entered the order in his old age, who rejoiced at the Buddha's death. He addressed the monks and said,
"Do not be sad, brothers, don’t cry. We are now free of the Great Ascetic. He constantly worried us, saying 'This is suitable, this is not suitable.' Now we are free do what we like."
These unexpected words spoken by a monk hardly a week after the death of the Great Teacher caused the Venerable Maha Kassapa, the third chief disciple of the Buddha, to call a meeting of the leading arahants in order to protect and preserve the teachings. The other elder monks were consulted and they all welcomed the suggestion.
King Ajasattha was informed of the intention of the order of Monks and he made all necessary arrangements for the monks to meet at the entrance of the Sattapanni Cave in Rajagaha. Five hundred seats were arranged and prepared in the large hall, but only 499 famous arahants were chosen for the meeting. The empty seat was reserved for the Venerable Ananda, who was still only a Sotāpanna. Soon there was only one more day before the meeting was to begin. The Venerable Ananda thought, "The meeting is tomorrow. It is not right for me to go to the meeting as a mere learner and not an arahant. I must try very hard to purify my mind in the little time left to me".
He spent much of the night in the Contemplation of the Body, one of the meditation exercises taught by the Buddha for the purification of mind. When it was almost dawn, he thought, " I shall lie down," but he kept mindful of the body. Before his head touched the pillow and after he raised his feet off the ground, all the remaining defilements disappeared from his mind. He had attained arahantship. And so he went to the council meeting as an arahant.The meeting started three months after the passing away of the Buddha. That meeting is now referred to as the First Buddhist Council.
The Venerable Maha Kassapa was the president at the First Council. Venerable UPāli was chosen to answer questions about the Vinaya, the monks' and nuns' disciplinary rules.
5
Venerable Ananda, who had the honor of hearing all the discourses of the Buddha and who had an unusually good memory, was chosen to recite all the discourses and answer questions about the teachings.
The First Buddhist Council collected together and arranged the Buddhist Scriptures known as the Pāli Tipiṭaka, which have since been handed down from one generation of monks to another. In the early days of Buddhism, there was no written record of the teachings. The monks had to memorize the scriptures and then teach the next generation of monks in the same way, it being an oral tradition.
Second Buddhist Council and first Saṅgha Split in Buddhism
The Second Buddhist Council was held approximately 100 years after the death of the Buddha. It was held at Vaisali, also in the modern Indian state of Bihar. It was convened to settle the conflict that had arisen out of an ideological difference among the Saṅgha. This difference was not resolved and resulted in the creation of the two major schools of Buddhist thought, the Mahāyāna and the Theravada. Controversy is thought to have arisen over the 10 rules (vinayas) monks were obliged to follow. Those are,
1. Storing salt in a horn. 2. Eating after midday. 3. Eating once and then going again to a village for alms. 4. Holding the Uposatha Ceremony with monks dwelling in the same locality. 5. Carrying out official acts when the assembly was incomplete. 6. Following a certain practice because it was done by one's tutor or teacher. 7. Eating sour milk after one had his midday meal. 8. Consuming strong drink before it had been fermented. 9. Using a rug which was not the proper size. 10. Using gold and silver.
These included whether it was acceptable to drink sour milk after the midday meal, using a rug of an inappropriate size, accepting gold and silver as alms, and the storage of salt. The debate centered on two interpretations of the vinayas, one of which was much stricter than the other. It is said that the Vaisali monks were practicing a more relaxed regime of vinayas than the remainder of the Saṅgha, and after debate their lifestyle was ruled unlawful. In return, the Vaisali faction created its own school. This explanation ignores the issues of dogma that must
6
have underpinned this conflict and the division between Theravada and Mahāyāna forms of Buddhism has little to do with the regimen to be followed by their practitioners. The Chinese version of the original Sanskrit report created by the Mahāsāṅgika School, which later became the Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition, records that the debate concerned the nature of the arahant and the relationship with the physical universe. There is little agreement as to the exact nature of the debates that took place. However, it is clear that after the second council, Buddhists divided into a number of different sects, and unity among them was no longer possible because there was no agreement on Buddha’s teachings, nor of the order in which they were to be recited.
The Third Buddhist Council and its Impact
In the Second Council, only matters pertaining to the precepts (i.e. Vinaya) were discussed and no controversy about the Dharma (i.e. Sutra) was noted. However, in the third century B.C. during the time of King Ashoka (about 235 years after the death of Gauthama Buddha), the Third Council was held to discuss the differences of opinion in both the Vinaya and the Dharma.
In the reign of King Ashoka in Mauryan Dynasty, the King himself was an ardent Buddhist, who ruled the country successfully based upon the ideals of Buddhism, e.g., the universal ideals of absolute pacifism and respect for life. King Ashoka erected thousands of monasteries and stupas, and dispatched parties of Bhikkhus to various regions to propagate Buddhism. One such mission, led by Prince Mahinda, travelled to Ceylon (i.e. Sri Lanka), and is considered to be the origin of the Theravada Buddhism prevalent to this day in Sri Lanka and other countries in S.E. Asia.
Buddhism had entered into a period of great flourishing and splendor. It was recorded that 60,000 Bhikkhus resided in Pataliputra, the capital of Mauryan Dynasty. Under these circumstances, there existed many "revised" versions of Tipiṭaka with distorted and misled interpretations. In order to clear the confusion and rectify the situation, the Third Council was convened. Patronized by King Ashoka, the Third Council was held at Pataliputra, just 236 years after the death of the Buddha. The Chairman of the Council was Moggaliputta Tissa, the Buddhist Master of the nation. As there were one thousand Bhikkhus participating in the council, the Third Council was also known as "the Gathering of 1,000 Bhikkhus".
7
In putting the Buddhist scripture in order, the assembly did not confine themselves to the Vinaya, but also covered the Sutra and the Shastra (i.e. Abhidhamma) as well. At the end of the Council, Tissa compiled a book called Kathāvatthu, refuting the heretical, false views and theories held by some disciples. The teaching approved and accepted by the Council was known as Theravada.
In the third century, B.C., King Ashoka in India played a crucial role in the spread of Buddhism.
Regions which Buddhism was introduced
Country Name
Missionary Name
(1) Kasmira-Gandhara
Majjhantika thera.
(2) Mahisamandala
Mahadeva thera.
(3) Vanavasi
Rakkhita thera.
(4) Aparantaka
Yona-Dhammarakkhita thera.
(5) Maharattha
Mahadhammarakkhita thera.
(6) Yona
Maharakkhita thera.
(7) Himavanta Majjhima thera.
(8) Suvannabhumi
Sona thera and Uttara thera.
(9) Lankadipa
Maha mahinda thera.
With the evidence of the Fourteen Rock Edicts on rocks and pillars, King Ashoka was in effect proclaiming himself to be the first monarch in history to rule not by military force, but by the power of the Buddhist Dharma. In Ashoka's region, Buddhism for the first time became one of the national religions of India. After the death of King Ashoka, the Mauryan Dynasty came to an end.
King Milinda conquered Kubal region (today's Afghanistan) and central India during mid-second century B.C. The Indian referred to him as "the Greatest King in all India". With the heritage of Greek culture and learning he was earnest to familiarize himself with the Indian culture and learning. However, for a long time, he was unable to find an Indian philosopher or
8
a religious leader whom he could regard as a worthy opponent in debate, until he met Nagasena. Nagasena was the leader of a company of the Buddhist Order, and highly esteemed by the people.
The debate between King Milinda and Nagasena remarked the confrontation between philosophy and wisdom of the East and those of the West. Nagasena was aware that his performance might determine the future of the Buddhist community. The historical debate was recorded with a total of 262 questions and answers, entitled Milindapanha, or Questions of King Milinda. The questions were asked step by step through the various aspects of Buddhism, and the answers were given in a clear, striking and wholly appropriate way, so that the King was totally convinced by the profound doctrines of Buddhism.
Later, the King became a lay believer and donated a monastery named Milinda Furthermore, it is said that he relinquished the throne to his son, and became a monk, in time gaining the status of an Arahant. Buddhism had already begun to exercise an important influence upon not only the Greek world of the West, but also Sri Lanka and Burma in the south and China in the east. This was also a period of transition to Mahāyāna Buddhism, as the success of Nagasena to convert a monarch was directly allied to the spirit of the later followers of Mahāyāna Buddhism.
Today, Milindapanha, is still regarded as an introduction to Buddhism, and used in Theravada Buddhism as a manual of instruction for the Bhikkhus.
Identity of Theravāda as a prominent Buddhist School
While other early sects died out or were absorbed into Mahāyāna Buddhism, Theravada retained its identity. Similarly, when Buddhism died out in India after the 12th century AD, Theravada kept its hold in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. In about the 10th century, a Theravada reform movement began in Sri Lanka that consolidated the kingdom as a Theravada monarchy. The reform movement spread to Burma and Thailand, where it revitalized the Theravada tradition and ensured its supremacy over other Buddhist sects. Reformers also carried the creed into Cambodia and Laos, where the geographical limits of Theravada predominance were reached. Despite some Theravada followers in Vietnam and elsewhere, Mahāyāna Buddhism became the dominant tradition in the rest of the Buddhist world.
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Despite the European colonialism that began in the early 19th century, Theravada continued in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, in some areas becoming identified with nascent nationalist movements. In Sri Lanka, during the 18th and 19th centuries, Theravada split into factions, mostly over questions regarding the caste of worshippers. Thailand began reform of its Theravada tradition in the 19th century as part of the general national reform initiated in response to European colonialism, and the country has remained a fertile source of Theravada reform movements. In the 1980s and 1990s, Theravada became an important factor in civil strife between the Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the Tamil minority of Sri Lanka, with some militant Buddhists promoting a vigorous Sinhalese nationalism. In Myanmar, Theravada has become one element of the rigidly conservative political and social policies of the country's military rulers. Theravada in Laos and Cambodia suffered a setback during the Vietnam War (1959-1975) and the subsequent Communist domination but appeared to be reviving in the 1990s. Theravada has been reestablished in India in the modern era by the mass conversion to Theravada Buddhism of Harijans (the so-called Untouchables, who fall outside the traditional class divisions of Hindu society), who are attracted by Buddhism's indifference to Hindu concepts of caste.
Organization
Theravada organization is in principle based on the original instructions of the Buddha as laid down in the Vinaya Piṭaka, the compendium of 227 rules for monastic discipline that forms part of the Tipiṭaka. Since the Saṅgha is the core institution of Buddhism, its structure is the basis of Theravada organization. Theravada monks were traditionally criticized by Mahāyāna believers for being too concerned with their own salvation and for indifference to the lay community. Theravada doctrine holds that only a monk can attain nirvana and that the laity can only aspire to be reborn as a monk after many reincarnations spent discharging the burden of karma (intentional action that determines one's future destiny). However, in some countries, especially Myanmar and Thailand, young men are placed in monasteries temporarily as part of their education, thus fostering lay involvement in the Saṅgha.
Most countries with large numbers of Theravada adherents exhibit strong historical ties between the Buddhist hierarchy and the government. In such countries, Ashoka's beneficent propagation of Buddhism has been accepted as the exemplar of wise and legitimate government and as a precedent for state involvement in religious affairs. The state and the Saṅgha are often
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seen as complementary and mutually supportive, ministering respectively to the secular and religious needs of the people. The temples themselves are loosely coordinated in most Southeast Asian countries, with little in the way of formal hierarchy between them. In early Sri Lankan Buddhism, a short-lived and limited practice of clerical marriage developed, and charge of particular temples was passed from father to son.
Theravada has a notable tradition of forest-dwelling hermits who exist outside the monastic organizations. In contrast to Mahāyāna Buddhism, since about AD 500, Theravada has had no orders of Buddhist nuns. There is limited participation in the Saṅgha by women and lay people, who generally wear white robes and take up asceticism (self-denial) without entering a monastic order.
Doctrine
Theravada claims to abide by the original teachings of the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama. Theravada doctrine reveres the Buddha as a single supremely gifted, yet mortal, teacher, in contrast to the succession of transcendent beings postulated by Mahāyāna. Some Theravada scriptures list other Buddhas, but in general the emphasis is on the one historical Buddha, on the grounds that no universe can bear more than one Buddha without shattering.
The dharma, or teachings, of the historical Buddha are usually regarded as being contained in the Tipiṭaka. Unlike Mahāyāna, which has generated a vast number of additional sutras (scriptural texts), Theravada confines itself to this core dharma. The Theravada canon is recorded in Pāli, a dialect popular during the Buddha's lifetime. Other works highly esteemed in Theravada - particularly the dialogues in the Milindapanha (2nd century AD; translated as Questions of King Milinda, 1963), and the Visuddhimagga (5th century AD; Path of Purification, 1964) by the great Buddhist commentator Buddhaghosa - are regarded by most scholars as authoritative collections rather than as the fruit of further revelations of dharma (although the Milindapanha is considered canonical by the Myanmar).
The dharma of Theravada regards human existence as a complex of various transient aspects, also called dhammas. These dhammas are grouped in overlapping categories of 5 components (skandhas), 12 bases (āyatana), and 18 perceptual elements (dhātu). The 5 components are the physical body (rūpa), feelings (vedanā), cognitive perception (saññā), mental predispositions (saṅkhāra), and consciousness (viññāna). The 12 bases are the 5 sensory organs with their 5
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sensory fields, plus the mind and the object of mental perception. The 18 elements are the 5 sensory organs plus the mind, their 6 associated objects, and the 6 so-called consciousness’s of ear, eye, nose, mouth, body, and mind. These dhammas create a composite being not united by any enduring soul (atman) or identity: There is no self in the strict sense. The Theravādin endeavors to manipulate the dhammas so as to suspend the action of karma and thereby to achieve nirvana. Theravada is therefore less a philosophical doctrine than an almost scientific discipline, although it depends on a complex cosmology of cyclical, multiple worlds and an involved scheme of reincarnation.
Language
Theravāda Buddhism has own body of literature (tanti bāsā) and it identified with pāli and pāli stands for canonical body of the Buddha’s teachings(Ven. Buddhagosa’s idea).According to Ven. Buddhagosa pāli was the language which the Buddha used to speak too. (Māgadhi was the root language)Sakā nirutti means own language. But according to Ven. Buddhagosa, “sakā nirutti” means Buddha’s language. But Prof. B.C. Law disagree with Ven. Buddhagosa. He argives by emphasizing below canonical reference.
"Na bhikkhave Buddhavacanam chandaso aropetabbam. Yo aropeyya, apatti dukkatassa. Anujanami bhikkhave sakāya niruttiya Buddhavacauam pariyapunitum"
(Answer to Ven.Yemula and Ven. Tekula - Cullavagga, V. 33. I, P. 139).
Concept of Omniscient
In Patisambhidāmagga firstly mentioned the Buddha as an “omniscient”. In Tevijjavacchagotthasutta of Majjhima Nikāya, the Buddha rejected the concept of “Sabbaññu” (omniscient). Instead of “Sabbaññu”, he preferred himself as “Tevijja”.
Tevijja ñāna
1. Pubbenivāsānussati – memory of former lives’ experiences
2. Cutūpapāta – knowledge of passing away and re arising of living beings
3. Āsavakkhaya - Extinction of mental intoxicants
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Conclusion
Theravāda tradition developed interpretative scripture over periods of many centuries. As a different school, it found different soil to grow such as Sri Lanka. Theravāda Abhidhamma represented sectorial development and the body of Buddhist literature belongs to nonsectarian period. It’s important to say that Theravāda is not identical with the original doctrine of the Buddha. It is not true to say that both Theravāda and Early Buddhism insisted that everyone should try to attain arahanthood, not Buddhahood. The possibility of attaining Nibbāna by any one of these bodhis is recognized but there was no insistence that everyone should follow the same path.
References
Primary Resources
M I, 2006, BJTS, Dehiwala
M II, 2006, BJTS, Dehiwala
CV, 2006, BJTS, Dehiwala
Secondary Resources
The seekers Glossary of Buddhism (1998 New York) p.624 Hirakawa Akira, A History of Indian Buddhism (Delhi 1993) p.38
Wijebandara, Prof. Chandima, Theravāda Traditions (A Historical and Doctrinal Study)
Lecture notes, Pemasiri. Prof. P.D.
Bhikkhu Bodhi, 2009, the Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, Wisdom Publications. E book
Majjhima Nikāya, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu, retrieved 2016-01-10
