Theravada ''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...

, ''anupubbikathā'' or ''ānupubbikathā'' (

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

) – variously translated as "gradual discourse," "gradual instruction," "progressive instruction," and "step-by-step talk" – is a method by which

the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

taught the

Dhamma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

to suitably receptive lay people. In this approach, the Four Noble Truths are the consummate teaching. The common formula is: # Generosity (''

dāna Dāna (Devanagari: दान, IAST: Dānam) is a Sanskrit and Pali word that connotes the virtue of generosity, charity or giving of alms in Indian philosophies. In Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, dāna is the practice of cultivati ...

'') # Virtue (''

sīla Buddhist ethics are traditionally based on what Buddhists view as the enlightened perspective of the Buddha. The term for ethics or morality used in Buddhism is ''Śīla'' or ''sīla'' (Pāli). ''Śīla'' in Buddhism is one of three sections of ...

'') # Heaven (''sagga'') # Danger of sensual pleasure ('' ādīnava'') # Renunciation (''

nekkhamma ''Nekkhamma'' (Sanskrit: नैष्क्राम्य, Naiṣkrāmya) is a Pali word generally translated as "renunciation" or "the pleasure of renunciation" while also conveying more specifically "giving up the world and leading a holy life" ...

'') # The Four Noble Truths (''cattāri ariya- saccāni'')

From the Pali Canon

In the

Pali Canon The Pāli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from the Tamrashatiya school. During t ...

, the title for this training, its general intent and outline are provided in the following narrative formula (in English and Pali) which is found in multiple discourses: "Then the Blessed One gave the householder ... progressive instruction, that is, talk on giving, talk on virtue, talk on the heavens; he explained the danger, degradation, and defilement in sensual pleasures and the blessing of renunciation. When he knew that the householder s... mind was ready, receptive, free from hindrances, elated, and confident, he expounded to him the teaching special to the Buddhas: suffering, its

origin Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics and manga * ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002 * ''The Origin'' (Buffy comic), a 1999 ''Buffy the Vampire Sl ...

, its cessation, and the

path A path is a route for physical travel – see Trail. Path or PATH may also refer to: Physical paths of different types * Bicycle path * Bridle path, used by people on horseback * Course (navigation), the intended path of a vehicle * Desire p ...

." ' Details for this training are provided in DN 2 and, to a lesser degree, in MN 27 and MN 51.Bodhi (2005), p. 226.

Notes

Bibliography

* Bodhi, Bhikkhu (2005). ''In the Buddha's Words: An Anthology of Discourses from the Pali Canon''. Boston: Wisdom Publications. . * Bullitt, John T. (2005). ''Dhamma''. Retrieved 2007-11-08 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/ptf/dhamma/index.html. * La Trobe University (n.d.), "Pali Canon Online Database," online search engine of the Sri Lanka Tripitaka Project's (SLTP) Pali Canon. Retrieved 2007-11-12 at https://web.archive.org/web/20070927001234/http://www.chaf.lib.latrobe.edu.au/dcd/pali.htm. * , Bhikkhu (trans.) & Bodhi, Bhikkhu (ed.) (2001). ''The Middle-Length Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Majjhima Nikāya''. Boston: Wisdom Publications. . * Nyanatiloka (1980). ''Buddhist Dictionary: Manual of Buddhist Terms and Doctrines''. Kandy, Sri Lanka:

Buddhist Publication Society The Buddhist Publication Society (BPS) is a publishing house with charitable status whose objective is to disseminate the teaching of Gautama Buddha. It was founded in Kandy, Sri Lanka in 1958 by two Sri Lankan lay Buddhists, A.S. Karunaratna and ...

. . Retrieved 2007-11-10 from "BuddhaSasana" at http://www.budsas.org/ebud/bud-dict/dic_idx.htm. * Rhys Davids, T.W. & William Stede (eds.) (1921–25). ''The Pali Text Society’s Pali–English Dictionary''. Chipstead:

Pali Text Society The Pali Text Society is a text publication society founded in 1881 by Thomas William Rhys Davids "to foster and promote the study of Pāli texts". Pāli is the language in which the texts of the Theravada school of Buddhism are preserved. The ...

. A general on-line search engine for the PED is available at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/. * Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997). ''Samaññaphala Sutta: The Fruits of the Contemplative Life'' ( DN 2). Retrieved 2007-11-11 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html. * Thanissaro, Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998). ''Kutthi Sutta: The Leper'' ( Ud. 5.3). Retrieved 2007-11-12 from "Access to Insight" at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/ud/ud.5.03.than.html. * Walshe, Maurice (1995). ''The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Dīgha Nikāya''. Boston: Wisdom Publications. . {{Buddhism topics Buddhist education

From the Pali Canon

See also

Notes

Bibliography