Aṭṭhakathā (

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'' Buddhism ...

for explanation, commentary) refers to Pali-language Theravadin Buddhist commentaries to the canonical Theravadin Tipitaka. These commentaries give the traditional interpretations of the scriptures. The major commentaries were based on earlier ones, now lost, in

Prakrit The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usu ...

and Sinhala, which were written down at the same time as the Canon, in the last century

BCE Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...

. Some material in the commentaries is found in canonical texts of other schools of Buddhism, suggesting an early common source. According to K.R. Norman:

There is no direct evidence that any commentarial material was in fact recited at the first council, but there is clear evidence that some parts of the commentaries are very old, perhaps even going back to the time of the Buddha, because they afford parallels with texts which are regarded as canonical by other sects, and must therefore pre-date the schisms between the sects. As has already been noted, some canonical texts include commentarial passages, while the existence of the Old Commentary in the Vinaya-pitaka and the canonical status of the Niddesa prove that some sort of exegesis was felt to be needed at a very early stage of Buddhism.

As with the Canon itself, the contents of collected editions of the Theravadin commentaries, compiled from the fourth century CE onwards, vary between editions. The minimal collection, found in the Thai edition (1992) includes the following (Skilling 2002). * Twelve commentaries ascribed to

Buddhaghosa Buddhaghosa was a 5th-century Indian Theravada Buddhist commentator, translator and philosopher. He worked in the Great Monastery (''Mahāvihāra'') at Anurādhapura, Sri Lanka and saw himself as being part of the Vibhajjavāda school and in t ...

: commentary on the

Vinaya Pitaka The Vinaya ( Pali & Sanskrit: विनय) is the division of the Buddhist canon ('' Tripitaka'') containing the rules and procedures that govern the Buddhist Sangha (community of like-minded ''sramanas''). Three parallel Vinaya traditions rem ...

; commentary on the Sutta Pitaka :- one each on the

Digha Nikaya Digha is a seaside resort town in the state of West Bengal, India. It lies in Purba Medinipur district and at the northern end of the Bay of Bengal. It has a low gradient with a shallow sand beach. It is a popular sea resort in West Bengal. H ...

, Majjhima Nikaya, Samyutta Nikaya and Anguttara Nikaya; four on Khuddaka Nikaya books; and three on the Abhidhamma Pitaka. * Commentaries by Dhammapala on seven books of the Khuddaka Nikaya. * Four commentaries by various authors on four other books of the Khuddaka Nikaya. In addition, the following are included in one or both of the other two editions: the Burmese Chatthasangayana edition (a list of contents can be found in Thein Han 1981) and the Sinhalese Simon Hewavitarne Bequest edition. * Buddhaghosa's

Visuddhimagga The ''Visuddhimagga'' (Pali; English: ''The Path of Purification''), is the 'great treatise' on Buddhist practice and Theravāda Abhidhamma written by Buddhaghosa approximately in the 5th century in Sri Lanka. It is a manual condensing and syst ...

, a systematic presentation of the traditional teaching; the commentaries on the first four nikayas refer to this for the material it details. In both Sinhalese (Mori ''et al.'' 1994) and Burmese * The Patimokkha (Pruitt & Norman 2001, page xxxvi) and its commentary Kankhavitarani, ascribed to Buddhaghosa * Commentary by Dhammapala on the Nettipakarana, a work sometimes included in the canon * Vinayasangaha, a selection of passages from Samantapasadika arranged topically by Sariputta in the twelfth century (Crosby 2006) * Saratthasamuccaya, commentary on the

Paritta Paritta (Pali), generally translated as "protection" or "safeguard," refers to the Buddhist practice of reciting certain verses and scriptures in order to ward off misfortune or danger, as well as to the specific verses and discourses recited ...

. In Sinhalese (Malalasekera 1938).

Buddhaghosa

Below is a listing of fourth- or fifth-century CE commentator Buddhaghosa's fourteen alleged commentaries (Pāli: ''atthakatha'') on the Pāli Tipitaka (Norman 1983). Only the Visuddhimagga and the commentaries on the first four nikayas are accepted by a consensus of scholars as Buddhaghosa's.

Dhammapala

The commentator Dhammapala's date is uncertain. He wrote after Buddhaghosa, and probably no later than the 7th century.See Encyclopedia of Buddhism Vol.4, p. 502-503. His Khuddaka Nikaya commentaries are Paramatthadipani comprising * Udana-atthakatha regarding the Udana. * Itivuttaka-atthakatha regarding the Itivuttaka. * Vimanavatthu-atthakatha regarding the Vimanavatthu. * Petavatthu-atthakatha regarding the Petavatthu. * Theragatha-atthakatha regarding the Theragatha. * Therigatha-atthakatha regarding the Therigatha. * Cariyapitaka-atthakatha regarding the Cariyapitaka.

Other Khuddaka Nikaya commentaries

Other Khuddaka Nikaya commentaries are * Saddhammapajotika by Upasena regarding the

Niddesa The Niddesa (abbrev., "Nidd") is a Buddhist scripture, part of the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism. It is included there in the Sutta Pitaka's Khuddaka Nikaya. It is in the form of a commentary on parts of the Suttanipata. The tradition ascribe ...

. * Saddhammappakasini by Mahanama regarding the Patisambhidamagga. * Visuddhajanavilasini by an unknown author regarding the

Apadana Apadana ( peo, 𐎠𐎱𐎭𐎠𐎴) is a large hypostyle hall in Persepolis, Iran. It belongs to the oldest building phase of the city of Persepolis, in the first half of the 6th century BC, as part of the original design by Darius the Gre ...

. * Madhuratthavilasini attributed to

Buddhadatta Buddhadatta Thera was a 5th-century Theravada Buddhist writer from the town of Uragapura in the Chola kingdom The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history ...

regarding the Buddhavamsa. Three books are included in some editions of the Khuddaka Nikaya: Nettipakarana, Petakopadesa and

Milindapañha The ''Milinda Pañha'' () is a Buddhist text which dates from sometime between 100 BC and 200 AD. It purports to record a dialogue between the Indian Buddhist sage Nāgasena, and the 2nd century BC Indo-Greek king Menander I (Pali: ''Milinda' ...

. Of these only the Nettipakarana has a commentary in any standard edition.

Translations

**''The Path of Purity'', tr Pe Maung Tin, 1923–31, 3 volumes; reprinted in 1 volume, Pali Text Society

Oxford ** ''The Path of Purification'', tr Nanamoli, Ananda Semage, Colombo, 1956; reprinted

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 ...

, Kandy, Sri Lanka. Available for free downloa
here
* Samantapasadika ** Introduction translated as "The inception of discipline" by N. A. Jayawickrama, in 1 volume with the Pali, "Vinaya nidana", 1962, PTS, Oxford ** Chinese adaptation called ''Shan chien p'i p'o sha'' tr P. V. Bapat & Akira Hirakawa, Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Poona * Patimokkha tr K. R. Norman, 2001, PTS, Oxford * Kankhavitarani: translation by K. R. Norman & William Pruitt in preparation * Sumangalavilasini (parts) ** Introduction translated in a learned journal in the 1830s ** Commentary on Brahmajala Sutta, abr tr Bodhi in ''The All-Embracing Net of Views'', BPS, Kandy, 1978. Available for free downloa
here
** Commentary on Samannaphala Sutta, abr tr Bodhi in ''The Discourse on the Fruits of Recluseship'', BPS, Kandy, 1989. Available for free downloa
here
** Commentary on Maha Nidana Sutta, abr tr Bodhi in ''The Great Discourse on Causation'', BPS, Kandy, 1984. Available for free downloa
here
** Commentary on Mahaparinibbana Sutta tr Yang-Gyu An, 2003, PTS, Oxford * Papancasudani (parts) ** Commentary on Mulapariyaya Sutta, abr tr Bodhi in ''The Discourse on the Root of Existence'', BPS, Kandy, 1980. Available for free downloa
here
** Commentary on Sammaditthi Sutta, tr Nanamoli in ''The Discourse on Right View'', BPS, Kandy, 1991. Available for free downloa
here
** Commentary on

Satipatthana Sutta The Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta ( Majjhima Nikaya 10: ''The Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness''), and the subsequently created Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta (Dīgha Nikāya 22: ''The Great Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness''), are ...

, tr

Soma Soma may refer to: Businesses and brands * SOMA (architects), a New York–based firm of architects * Soma (company), a company that designs eco-friendly water filtration systems * SOMA Fabrications, a builder of bicycle frames and other bicycle ...

in ''The Way of Mindfulness'', Saccanubodha Samiti, Kandy, 1941; reprinted BPS, Kandy. Available for free download
here
* Manorathapurani (parts): stories of leading nuns and laywomen, tr Mabel Bode in ''Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society'', new series, volume XXV, pages 517-66 & 763-98 * Paramatthajotika on Khuddakapatha, tr Nanamoli as "The illustrator of ultimate meaning", in 1 volume with "The minor readings" (Khuddakapatha), 1960, PTS, Oxford * Dhammapada commentary, translated in two parts ** Stories giving background to verses, tr E. W. Burlingame as ''Buddhist Legends'', 1921, 3 volumes, Harvard Oriental Series; reprinted PTS, Oxford ** Explanations of verses, translated in the Dhammapada translation by John Ross Carter & Mahinda Palihawadana, Oxford University Press, 1987; included only in the hardback edition, not the paperback World Classics edition * Udana commentary tr Peter Masefield, 1994-5, 2 volumes, PTS, Oxford *

Itivuttaka The Itivuttaka (Pali for "as it was said") is a Buddhism, Buddhist scripture, part of the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism and is attributed to Khujjuttara's recollection of Buddha's discourses. It is included there in the Sutta Pitaka's Khuddaka ...

commentary tr Peter Masefield, 2008–2009, 2 vols., PTS, Oxford * Vimanavatthu commentary, tr Peter Masefield as ''Vimana Stories'', 1989, PTS, Oxford *

Petavatthu __NOTOC__ The Petavatthu () is a Theravada Buddhist scripture, included in the Minor Collection (''Khuddaka Nikaya'') of the Pali Canon's Sutta Pitaka. It ostensibly reports stories about and conversations among the Buddha and his disciples, an ...

commentary, tr U Ba Kyaw & Peter Masefield as ''Peta-Stories'', 1980, PTS, Oxford *

Theragatha The ''Theragatha'' (''Verses of the Elder Monks'') is a Buddhist text, a collection of short poems in Pali attributed to members of the early Buddhist sangha. It is classified as part of the Khuddaka Nikaya, the collection of minor books in the ...

commentary: substantial extracts translated in ''Psalms of the Brethren'', tr C. A. F. Rhys Davids, 1913; reprinted in ''Psalms of the Early Buddhists'', PTS, Oxford * Therigatha commentary, tr as ''The Commentary on the Verses of the Theris'', by William Pruitt, 1998, PTS, Oxford *

Jataka The Jātakas (meaning "Birth Story", "related to a birth") are a voluminous body of literature native to India which mainly concern the previous births of Gautama Buddha in both human and animal form. According to Peter Skilling, this genre is ...

commentary ** Introduction tr as ''The Story of Gotama Buddha'' by N. A. Jayawickrama, 1990, PTS, Oxford ** Most of the rest is translated in the Jataka translation by E. B. Cowell ''et al.'', 1895–1907, 6 volumes, Cambridge University Press; reprinted in 3 volumes by PTS, Oxford * Madhuratthavilasini, tr as ''The Clarifier of the Sweet Meanlng'' by I. B. Horner, 1978, PTS, Oxford * Atthasalini, tr as ''The Expositor'' by Pe Maung Tin, 1920–21, 2 volumes; reprinted in 1 volume, PTS, Oxford * Sammohavinodani, tr as ''The Dispeller of Delusion'', by Nanamoli, 1987–91, 2 volumes, PTS, Oxford * Kathavatthu commentary, tr as ''The Debates Commentary'' by B. C. Law, 1940, PTS, Oxford

Notes

Sources

* Crosby, Kate (2006). In ''Journal of the Pali Text Society'', volume XXVIII. * Hinüber, Oskar von (1996). ''Handbook of Pali Literature''. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. . * Malalasekera, G.P. (1938). ''Dictionary of Pali Proper Names'', volume II. London: John Murray for the Government of India. . * Mori, Sodo, Y Karunadasa & Toshiichi Endo (1994). ''Pali Atthakatha Correspondence Table''. Oxford: Pali Text Society. * Norman, K.R. (1983). ''Pali Literature'', Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz. * Pruitt, William & K.R. Norman (2001). ''The Patimokkha'', Oxford, Pali Text Society * Rhys Davids, T.W. & William Stede (eds.) (1921-5). ''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/. Accessed 2007-05-09. * Skilling, Peter (2002). In ''Journal of the Pali Text Society'', volume XXVII. * Thein Han, U (1981). In ''The Light of the Dhamma''. Online a

External links

* Bullitt, John T. (2002).
Beyond the Tipitaka: A Field Guide to Post-canonical Pali Literature
'. Retrieved on 2007-05-09 from "Access to Insight".
The Path of Purification, Translated from the Pali by Bhikkhu Nanamoli
– complete pdf.

{{Buddhism topics Aṭṭhakathā,