The ' (

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 ...

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 ...

; ) is a

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual prac ...

, one of the three parts that make up the

Tipiṭaka 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 ...

(lit. ''Three Baskets''). The other two parts of the Tipiṭaka are 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 ...

and Abhidhamma Piṭaka. Its primary subject matter is the monastic rules of conduct for monks and nuns of the

Sangha Sangha is a Sanskrit word used in many Indian languages, including Pali meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community"; Sangha is often used as a surname across these languages. It was historically used in a political context t ...

Origins

According to tradition, the

Tripiṭaka ''Tipiṭaka'' () or ''Tripiṭaka'' () or ''තිපිටක'' (), meaning "Triple Basket", is the traditional term for ancient collections of Buddhist sacred scriptures. The Pāli Canon maintained by the Theravāda tradition in ...

was compiled at the First Council shortly after

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 ...

's death. The Vinaya Piṭaka is said to have been recited by Upāli, with little later addition. Most of the different versions are fairly similar, most scholars consider most of the Vinaya to be fairly early, that is, dating from before the separation of schools.''New Penguin Handbook of Living Religions'', page 380

The

Pāli 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 ...

Vinaya consists of: **

Suttavibhaṅga Suttavibhanga (, Pali for "rule analysis") is the first book of the Theravadin Vinaya Pitaka. It is a commentary on the community rules ( Patimokkha). The general form of the commentary is that each rule is preceded by a story telling how the ...

Pāṭimokkha In Theravada Buddhism, the Pāṭimokkha is the basic code of monastic discipline, consisting of 227 rules for fully ordained monks (bhikkhus) and 311 for nuns ( bhikkhuṇīs). It is contained in the Suttavibhaṅga, a division of the Vinaya P ...

and commentary *** Mahāvibhaṅga: rules for monks *** Bhikkhunīvibhaṅga: rules for nuns **

Khandhaka Khandhaka is the second book of the Theravadin ''Vinaya Pitaka'' and includes the following two volumes: * Mahāvagga: includes accounts of Gautama Buddha's and the ten principal disciples' awakenings, as well as rules for uposatha days and monast ...

: 22 chapters on various topics **

Parivāra Parivāra (Pāli for "accessory") is the third and last book of the Theravādin Vinaya Pitaka. It includes a summary and multiple analyses of the various rules identified in the Vinaya Pitaka's first two books, the Suttavibhanga and the Khandhaka ...

: analyses of rules from various points of view The

version of the Patimokkha contains 227 rules for

bhikkhu A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist ...

s and 311 rules for bhikkhunis. The Vibhaṅga sections consist of commentary on these rules, giving detailed explanations of them along with the origin stories for each rule. The Khandhaka section gives numerous supplementary rules grouped by subject that also consist of origin stories.

Place in the tradition

According to the sutras, in the first years of the Buddha's teaching the

sangha Sangha is a Sanskrit word used in many Indian languages, including Pali meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community"; Sangha is often used as a surname across these languages. It was historically used in a political context t ...

lived together in harmony with no vinaya, as there was no need, because all of the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, 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 ...

's early disciples were highly realized if not fully enlightened. As the

expanded, situations arose which the

and the lay community felt were inappropriate for

mendicant A mendicant (from la, mendicans, "begging") is one who practices mendicancy, relying chiefly or exclusively on alms to survive. In principle, mendicant religious orders own little property, either individually or collectively, and in many inst ...

s. The first rule to be established was the prohibition against sexual intercourse. The origin story tells of an earnest monk whose family was distraught that there was no male heir and so persuaded the monk to impregnate his former wife. All three—the monk, his wife and son, the latter of whom later ordained—eventually became fully enlightened

arhats In Buddhism, an ''arhat'' (Sanskrit: अर्हत्) or ''arahant'' (Pali: अरहन्त्, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana'' and liberated ...

. The Buddha called his teaching the "Dhamma-Vinaya", emphasizing both the philosophical teachings of Buddhism as well as the training in virtue that embodies that philosophy. Shortly before his passing, the Buddha clarified to his disciples through

Ānanda Ānanda (5th4th century BCE) was the primary attendant of the Buddha and one of his ten principal disciples. Among the Buddha's many disciples, Ānanda stood out for having the best memory. Most of the texts of the early Buddhist '' Sutta-Pi� ...

References

Citations

Sources

Literature

* Davids, T. W. Rhys, Oldenberg, Hermann (joint tr): Vinaya texts, Oxford, The Clarendon press 1881
Vol.1Vol.2Vol.3
Internet Archive

External links

Pali Canon online: Vinaya Pitaka in English

Access to Insight translation

Translation by Isaline Blew Horner
{{Buddhism topics Theravada Buddhist texts