The Madhyama Āgama (
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
;
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
: Zhong ahan jing) is an early Indian Buddhist text, of which currently only a Chinese translation is extant (
Taishō Tripiṭaka
The Taishō Tripiṭaka (; Japanese: ''Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō''; “ Taishō Revised Tripiṭaka”) is a definitive edition of the Chinese Buddhist canon and its Japanese commentaries used by scholars in the 20th century. It was edited by ...
26). The title means "Middle Collection." It is one of the four
Āgamas of the Sanskritic
Sūtra Piṭaka located in the
Chinese Buddhist Canon and contains 222 discourses in 18 chapters. Its
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 ...
equivalent, the
Majjhima Nikaya, contains 152 discourses in 15 chapters.
Origins and history
The earliest Chinese translation of the agama dates to 397–398 C.E. P.V. Bapat believes the original source for the Chinese translation was in a form of
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 ...
, closer to
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 ...
than
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
. The text is believed to be from the
Sarvāstivāda
The ''Sarvāstivāda'' (Sanskrit and Pali: 𑀲𑀩𑁆𑀩𑀢𑁆𑀣𑀺𑀯𑀸𑀤, ) was one of the early Buddhist schools established around the reign of Ashoka (3rd century BCE).Westerhoff, The Golden Age of Indian Buddhist Philosophy ...
tradition.
Parallels in Pali Canon
There are numerous parallels between the discourses in the Madhyama Āgama and discourses in the
Sutta Piṭaka
The Sutta Pitaka (; or Suttanta Pitaka;
Basket of Discourse; cf Sanskrit ) is the second of the three divisions of the Tripitaka or Pali Canon, the Pali collection of Buddhist writings of Theravada Buddhism. The other two parts of the Tripiṭa ...
.
English translations
Translation of the Madhyama Āgama into English began in 2006 with Marcus Bingenheimer as chief editor and
Bhikkhu Analayo
Bhikkhu Anālayo is a bhikkhu (Buddhist monk), scholar, and meditation teacher. He was born in Germany in 1962, and went forth in 1995 in Sri Lanka. He is best known for his comparative studies of Early Buddhist Texts as preserved by the various ...
and Rodney S. Bucknell as co-editors. The first of three volumes was published in 2013
References
Sources
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External links
The Madhyama Āgama, or Middle-length Discoursesat BDK America
{{Buddhism topics
Agamas
Tripiṭaka