(Dimensions of Asian Spirituality) Asanga Tilakaratne - Theravada Buddhism - The View of The Elders-University of Hawaii Press (2012)

Theravada Buddhism
DIMENSIONS OF ASIAN SPIRITUALITY
Shinto: The Way Home

Thomas P. Kasulis
Chan Buddhism
Peter D. Hershock
Korean Spirituality
Don Baker
Socially Engaged Buddhism

Sallie B. King
Dharma
Alf Hiltebeitel
Neo-Confucian Self-Cultivation
Barry C. Keenan
Sikhism
Doris R. Jakobsh
Karma
Johannes Bronkhorst
Theravada Buddhism: The View of the Elders

Asanga Tilakaratne
Theravada Buddhism
The Vi w f I
ASA NGA Tl LAKARATNE
Dimensions of Asian Spirituality
UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I PRESS
Honolulu
DIMENSIONS OF ASIAN SPIRITUALITY
Henry Rosemont, Jr., Founding Editor
Douglas Berger, General Editor
This series makes available short but comprehensive works on specific Asian
philosophical and religious schools of thought. works focused on a specific region,
and works devoted to the full articulations of a concept central to one or more
of Asia'.s spiritual traditions. Series volumes are written by distinguished scholars
in the field who not only present their subject matter in historical context for the
nonspecialist reader. but also express their own views of the contemporary spiritual
relevance of their subject matter for global citizens of the twenty-first century.
© 2012 University ofHawai'i Press

All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
17 16 15 14 13 12 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Tilakaratne, Asanga.
Theravada Buddhism : the view of the elders I Asanga Tilakaratne.
p. cm. - (Dimensions of Asian spirituality)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8248-3596-5 (hardcover : alk. paper) -
ISBN 978-0-8248-3673-3 (pbk. : alk. paper)
I. Theravada Buddhism. !. Title. IL Series: Dimensions of Asian spirituality.
BQ7185.T55 2012
294.3'91-dc23
2012019930
University of Hawai'i Press books are printed on acid-free

paper and meet the guidelines for permanence and
durability of the Council on Library Resources.
Series interior design by Rich Hendel

To the pleasant memory of
Sepala Ariyawansa Kulatunga (1921-1998) and
Ratna Kulatunga (1923-1994)
-almost my parents!
Contents
Editors' Preface ix
Acknowledgments xvii
Notes on References and Romanization
of Sanskrit and Pali xix
Introduction xxi
1. The Beginning of Buddhism

2. The Triple Gem 19
3. The Basic Teachings of the Buddha 31
4. Karma and Its Results

5. The Social Teachings of the Buddha
6. The Traditional Theravada World 79
7. The Traditional Theravada Practice 92
8. Theravada in Wider Perspective
Appendix 1 A Sample of Basic Theravada Liturgy

(Vandana and Puja) 155
Appendix 2 Canonical Texts and Related Readings 159

Glossary of Pali Terms 165
Guide to Further Reading 171
Index 177
Editors' Preface
ABOUT THIS SERIES

The University of Hawai 'i Press has long been noted for its scholarly
publications in, and commitment to, the field of Asian studies. This
series, Dimensions of Asian Spirituality, is in keeping with that com-
mitment. It is a most appropriate time for such a series to appear. A
number of the world's religions-major and minor-originated in
Asia, continue to influence significantly the lives of a third of the
world's peoples, and should now be seen as global in scope, reach,
and impact, with rich and varied resources for every citizen of the
twenty-first century to explore.
Religion is at the heart of every culture. To be sure, the members
of every culture have also been influenced by climate, geology, and
by the consequent patterns of economic activity they have developed
for the production and distribution of goods. Only a minimal knowl-
edge of physical geography is necessary to understand why African
sculptors largely employed wood as their medium while their Italian
Renaissance equivalents worked with marble. But while necessary
for understanding cultures-not least our own-matters of geog-
raphy and economics will not be sufficient: marble is also found in
China, yet the Chinese sculptor carved a bodhisattva, not a pieta,
from his block.
In the same way, a mosque, synagogue, cathedral, stupa, and
pagoda may be equally beautiful, but they are beautiful in differ-
ent ways, and the differences cannot be accounted for merely on
the basis of the materials used in their construction. Their beauty,
their ability to inspire awe and to invite contemplation, rests largely
on the religious view of the world-and the place of human beings
in that world- that is expressed in their architecture. The spiritual
dimensions of a culture are reflected significantly not only in art and
architecture, but in music, myths, poetry, rituals, customs, and pat-
terns of social behavior as well. Therefore it follows that if we wish
to understand why and how members of other cultures live as they
x Editors' Preface
do, we must understand the religious beliefs and practices to which

they adhere.
In the first instance, such understanding of the "other" leads to
tolerance, which is surely a good thing. Much of the pain and suffer-
ing in the world today is attributable to intolerance, a fear and hatred
of those who look, think, and act differently. But as technological
changes in communication, production, and transportation shrink
the world, more and more people must confront the fact of human
diversity in multiple diverse forms-both between and within
nations-and hence there is a growing need to go beyond mere toler-
ance of difference to an appreciation and celebration of it. Tolerance
alone cannot contribute substantively to making the world a better-
and sustainable-place for human beings to live, the evils attendant
on intolerance notwithstanding and not to be diminished. But in an
important sense, mere tolerance is easy because passive I can fully
respect your right to believe and worship as you wish, associate with
whomever, and say what you will, simply by ignoring you; you assur-
edly have a right to speak, but not to make me listen.
Yet for most of us who live in economically developed societies, or
are among the affluent in developing nations, tolerance is not enough.
Ignoring the poverty, disease, and gross inequalities that afflict fully
a third of the human race will only exacerbate, not alleviate, the con-
ditions responsible for the misery that generates the violence becom-
ing ever more commonplace throughout the world today. That vio-
lence will cease only when the more fortunate among the peoples
of the world become active, take up the plight of the less fortunate,
and resolve to create and maintain a more just world, a resolve that
requires a full appreciation of the co-humanity of everyone, signifi-
cant differences in religious beliefs and practices notwithstanding.
Such appreciation should not, of course, oblige everyone to
endorse all of the beliefs and practices within their own faith. A
growing number of Catholics, for instance, support changes in
church practice: a married clergy, the ordination of women, recog-
nition of rights for gays and lesbians, and full reproductive rights for
women. Yet they remain Catholics, believing that the tenets of their
faith have the conceptual resources to bring about and justify these
changes. In the same way, we can also believe-as a number of Mus-
Editors' Preface XI
lim women do-that the Quran and other Islamic theological writ-
ings contain the conceptual resources to overcome the inferior status
of women in some Muslim countries. And indeed we can believe that
every spiritual tradition has within it the resources to counter older
practices inimical to the full flourishing of all the faithful-and of
the faithful of other traditions as well.
Another reason to go beyond mere tolerance to appreciation and
celebration of the many and varied forms of spiritual expression is
virtually a truism: the more we look through a window on another
culture's beliefs and practices, the more it becomes a mirror of our
own (even for those who follow no religious tradition). We must look
carefully and charitably, however, else the reflections become dis-
torted. When studying other religions, most people are inclined to
focus on cosmological and ontological questions, asking, What do
these people believe about how the world came to be, is, and where
is it heading? Do they believe in ghosts? Immortal souls? A creator
god?
Answering these and related metaphysical questions is of course
necessary for understanding and appreciating the specific forms
and content of the art, music, architecture, rituals, and traditions
inspired by the specific religion under study. But the sensitive-
and sensible-student will bracket the further question of whether
the metaphysical pronouncements are literally true; we must attend
carefully to the metaphysics (and theologies) of the religions we
study, but questions of their literal truth should be set aside to con-
centrate on a different question: how could a thoughtful, thoroughly
decent human being subscribe to and follow these beliefs and atten-
dant practices?
Studied in this light, we may come to see and appreciate how each
religious tradition provides a coherent account of a world not fully
amenable to human manipulation, nor perhaps even to full human
understanding. The metaphysical pronouncements of the world's
religions of course differ measurably from faith to faith, and each has
had a significant influence on the physical expressions of the respec-
tive faith in synagogues, stupas, mosques, pagodas, and cathedrals.
Despite these differences between the buildings, however, the care-
ful and sensitive observer can see the spiritual dimensions of human
XII Editors' Preface
life that these sacred structures share and express, and in the same
way we can come to see and appreciate the common spiritual dimen-
sions of each religion's differing metaphysics and theology: while the
several traditions give different answers to the question of the mean-
ing oflife, they provide a multiplicity of guidelines and spiritual dis-
ciplines to enable everyone to find meaning in life, in this world. By
plumbing the spiritual depths of other religious traditions, then, we
may come to more deeply explore the spiritual resources of our own
and at the same time diminish the otherness of the other and create a
more peaceable and just world, in which everyone can find meaning
in their all-too -human lives.
HENRY ROSEMONT, JR .
Founding Editor
ABOUT THIS BOOK

In a stanza of an early Buddhist text, the Mangala Sutta, it is said that
a luminescent deity snuck into Jeta Grove near Savatthi in the late
hours of night in order to ask the Buddha how both gods and human
beings could be happy. From the Buddha's mouth came a wealth of
counsel about how associating with wise people, living in a fitting
location, mastering a craft as well as the art of pleasant words, sup-
porting one's family and relatives, adopting a feeling of gratitude,
taking opportunities to hear discussions about virtue and being sor-
rowless could all be considered the highest of blessings, equal even to
the attainment of nibbana itself. Such passages from the early scrip-
tures witness to the fact that Theravada Buddhism is not merely a
religion of meditation for monastics, but a path for all toward full
and contented lives.
The core of Theravada teaching is of course represented by the
Four Noble Truths, which diagnose the fundamental problem of
human existence as its pain, identify the cause of our most troubling
pain as desirous attachment, call for the cessation of such attachment
as the key to achieving permanent contentment, and prescribe the
eightfold path of practice as the means to achieving this contented
state. It has been all too easy for those who have encountered these
Editors' Preface XIII
basic teachings, both among classical south Asian and non-indige-

nous audiences, and among Buddhist and non-Buddhist alike, to see
in Theravada an overly pessimistic evaluation of human life, which
in turn leads to the recommendation of an overly rigorous ascetic
form of cultivation that most people cannot reasonably be expected
to undertake. Furthermore, what about the lay community: are they
merely consigned to waiting for a future birth when they will be more
inclined to reclusive mediation, and in the meantime cannot partici-
pate in properly Buddhist praxis? Such impressions, it turns out, are
belied by the living reality of the Theravada tradition, in which not
only is genuinely Buddhist practice incumbent on both the monastic
and lay communities, but can only be effectively carried out through
their interrelation and mutual dependence.
It is this latter, and far more authentic depiction of Theravada
Buddhism that Asanga Tilakaratne offers us in his invaluable con-
tribution to this series. Professor Tilakaratne has written numerous
works in the last four decades on both Buddhist philosophy of lan-
guage and religious experience as well as on the Buddhist order and
its practice and larger issues of Buddhist ethics. With this volume,
he gives the reader a panoramic view of Theravada in its historical
development and its present and vibrant life in South and Southeast
Asia as well as in its more recent introduction to the rapidly global-
izing world. In his discussions of the basic Theravada worldview and
the precepts of both monastic and lay cultivation, Tilakaratne takes
special care to highlight precisely how practice enhances and deep-
ens a sense of genuine happiness for all. Such happiness ensues from
the selflessness required for a life of giving and service to others. Just
as monks, and in the early sangha nuns as well, are expected to study
the scriptures and purify their intentions through mindfulness and
oncentration, so the lay community is expected to observe the dic-
tates of moral living in how they relate to their families, teachers, and
others they encounter in their daily lives, and how wealth is handled
and distributed in society. Just as monks are expected to minister
to the communities' needs in times of individual illness or natural
d isaster, so are laypeople expected to support and take the oppor-
tunity to partake of religious instruction. Tilakaratne reframes the
h ·a rt of Theravada practice as a life of merit making.
XIV Editors' Preface
The regular life of a Buddhist is characterized by merit mak-

ing. In fact, it is correct to say that everything he does as a Bud-
dhist has to be understood with reference to merit making. In this
context there are three meritorious deeds, namely, giving (dana),
morality (sila), and meditation (bhavana). The idea is that one
must engage in these activities as much as possible, as the more
one does, the more one accumulates merit; and the more one
accumulates merit the better his life in the samsara will be. (p. 95)
The accumulation of merit makes life in the world happier and

brings one ever closer to the eventual attainment of nibbana. This
is true for both monks and laypeople. And what is more, virtuous
acts of merit making are not creations that either the monks or the
laity can accomplish alone. They must serve one another in a life of
mutual dependence and enhancement, and only such interaction can
provide the causal support for the production of the many forms of
peace for which Buddhists strive.
The other major contribution Professor Tilakaratne makes with
this volume takes the form of the extended journey he offers the
reader through the Theravada world of past and present. In Eng-
lish language presentations of Theravada, attention to the devel-
opment and flourishing of the living tradition has become all too
rare. Tilakaratne shows us how influential were the centers of scrip-
tural study in Sri Lanka and Thailand, how great kings undertook
monastic reforms in Myanmar, how the Buddha became the sym-
bol of the traditional kingdoms of Laos, and how Theravada engaged
other religious traditions in the culturally rich history of Cambo-
dia. We also learn of the challenges Theravada Buddhists confront
in the contemporary world, how their communities actively engage
social issues and resist political injustice in south and southeast Asia,
how diaspora Theravadins have incorporated their faith into the lives
they have embarked upon in new lands, how a renewed discussion
on the reestablishment of the monastic order of nuns has been initi-
ated, and how many teachers have popularized Vipassana forms of
mediation in the contemporary West. This panoramic view of the
influence of Theravada in South and Southeast Asian history and its
vibrant participation in our own times leaves one with a profound
Editors' Preface xv
appreciation for the fact that Theravada Buddhism is fully at home in
both the seclusion of the monastery and in the streets of the village,
in the heritage of its past as well as in the challenges of the present, in
improving both the inward and outward lives of all those it reaches.
Professor Tilakaratne's contribution to the Dimensions series in
the form of this volume can therefore be considered a genuine form
of Buddhist giving (dana) that will superbly enhance the reader's
understanding of the Theravada tradition.
THOMAS BERGER
Series Editor
Acknowledgments
To acknowledge gratefully all those who have supported, encour-

aged , and guided me in the course of this project is its most pleas-
ant aspect.
First and foremost, I want to thank Henry Rosemont Jr. for
accepting my suggestion to include a book on Theravada in this
series and for asking me to write it. Working with Henry has been a
rewarding educational experience. His critical eye and keen sense of
judgment have saved this book from many embarrassing errors. If
any remain, they are my responsibility. I also thank him for allowing
me to join the group of authors of this prestigious series on Asian
spirituality.
The comments and criticisms of the external reviewer have been
very useful in my attempts to improve the quality of this text. Wher-
ever possible, I have tried to incorporate the proposed revisions, for
which I am grateful. Patricia Crosby of the University of Hawai'i
Press has been most kind in guiding me through the complicated
I rocedures of preparing the manuscript for publication. I must say
that I have benefited immensely from her great sense of editorial ele-
ga nee. Russell Bowden, formerly of the British Council, Colombo, Sri
La nka, carefully read through the final draft of the entire manuscript
and improved my grammar and style. Russell deserves appreciation
fi r this most kind act. After all this work, there was still much to.be
bettered by Barbara Folsom, the copy editor of this book. I thank her
fo r her valuable improvements.
The Venerable Dr. Khammai Dhammasami of the Oxford Cen-
tre fo r Buddhist Studies shared with me his vast knowledge of Bud-
d hi sm in the Southeast Asia region, and was there for me whenever I
needed to clarify matters. H.K. N. Karunaratne of the Department of
eography, University of Colombo, kindly had the two maps drawn.
l thank these two good friends for their generous help.
I thank Menaka and Lahiru, who bore with me without com-
plaints, for their love and support.
XVIII Acknowledgments
Finally, I thank all authors, ancient and modern, mentioned and

unmentioned by name, in whose writings I read about Buddhism; all
my teachers of Buddhism; and all those who have furthered this proj-
ect through their thoughts, deeds, and words.
May all beings be happy!

sabbe satta bhavantu sukhitatta!
Colombo, Sri Lanka

March 2012
Notes on References and Romanization
of Sanskrit and Pali
It is hard to write a work on Theravada without using some Pali and

anskrit terminology. In including these foreign terms, I have used
the following system: words that appear within parentheses are usu-
ally Pali; Sanskrit terms that appear within parentheses are denoted
by the abbreviation "Skt." Diacritical marks have been omitted for
the sake of simplicity, but some guidance to correct pronunciation
an be found in the Glossary of Pali Terms. Sanskrit terms that have
pa sed into the English language, such as karma, nirvana, and sam-
ara, may be found in most English dictionaries. To denote the teach-
ing of the Buddha and the community of the monks and nuns I will
use Dhamma (instead of the more familiar Skt. dharma) and Sangha,
r spectively, terms that are more familiar to those who have some
prior acquaintance with Theravada Buddhism.
To conform to the policy of this series, notes have been kept to
_n absolute minimum. I have severely reduced references to sources
within the text of this book itself but have compensated by includ-
ing a Guide to Further Reading. An exception has been made with
r, a rd to some canonical references felt to be crucial. For long and
middle-length discourses, I have given the numbers of the relevant
di s ourses; for connected and gradual discourses, I have given chap-
l r numbers followed by discourse numbers. Translations are either
lok n directly or adapted from the translations detailed in Appen-
ll x 2 . Where I quote from translations, I have given the relevant
rnf. rences.
Introduction
T he Buddha repeatedly stated that his teaching first and foremost

dea lt with the concept of dukkha (the more painful features of being
human) (see the Glossary for a detailed explanation) and the libera-
lion therefrom. All the details of the religion and everything else the
!Juddha said must be understood in this particular context. Hence,
what follows is a story of how one man perceived his existential prob-
1 m; his journey in search of a solution to it; his discovery of a solu-
lio n; and how, according to one tradition, the Theravada, he helped
lhers to achieve what he achieved. It is also a story of many men and
w men, both monastic followers and householders (laypeople), who
h, ve trod and continue to tread the path in order to minimize and
•ro dicate their own suffering and that of all other beings.
The teaching of the Buddha has had many qualifying terms asso-
1 l d with it over the centuries. The term theravada (elders' view) is
n such. Theravada is, concurrently, a historical tradition of Bud-
1h I 111 , a way of interpreting and understanding the words of the
I u ldha, and a way oflife and practice adopted and followed both by
111 nks and nuns and by ordinary men and women.
As a historical tradition, Theravada represents how an early and
I r sumably large group of monks (and nuns)-including its leading
111 mbers, those directly associated with the Buddha-became known
t l o terity. It is believed that this tradition (at least for monks) con-
t nu "s unbroken up to today. What the tradition understood to be the
( d of the Buddha and how it interpreted those words comprise
n 1h r sense of the term theravada. Finally and most important, it
I r nts a spiritual practice nurtured and guided by the monas-
l · l dition that is based on the interpretation of the words of the
I\ 1 lrJ hn and has been adopted and developed by this tradition in the
1r f its practice. It is this third aspect of Theravada Buddhism
t I it w ii I be the focus of this book. The other two aspects will natu-
1II hove to be brought into the discussion, but only to the extent
·c ory to illuminate Theravada spiritual practices.
XXII Introduction
Theravada is considered the oldest of the three main traditions of

Buddhism currently practiced in the world. Its core has traditionally
been in the South and Southeast Asian regions. Of the other two tra-
ditions, Mahayana Buddhism has been dominant in East Asia, and
Vajrayana Buddhism's traditional home has been Tibet and its envi-
rons, as well as Mongolia. I use the term "traditional home" because
these forms of Buddhism have moved far beyond their traditional
habitats in present-day globalized society, a development to which I
shall refer later.
The traditional classification tends to describe Theravada as a
school belonging to the Hinayana. In the actual historical evolu-
tion of the Buddhist schools, what the Mahayanists identified as
Hinayana are the two schools known as Vaibhashika and Sautran-
tika, which no longer exist. What they meant by "Hinayana" is not
"small vehicle," as has been commonly misunderstood, but the more
pejorative "lowly vehicle." The reason why the Mahayanists (prac-
titioners of the "great vehicle"), who concentrated on the liberation
of all sentient beings, looked down on members of the two schools
was because the latter aimed at personal liberation by "being hear-
ers," meaning following the instructions of the Buddha, which in the
eyes of Mahayanists was appropriate only for those with lower capa-
bilities. Theravada, like the two Hinayana schools, made personal
liberation the goal of its practice, thereby qualifying it to be called
"Hinayana." Historically, however, the designation was not applied
to Theravada because of its independent development in areas, such
as Sri Lanka, that received the religion as a result of Emperor Asoka's
mission to propagate Buddhism to the outskirts of the empire in the
third century BCE.
The origin of Theravada goes back to the first gathering, or coun-
cil, of followers that took place three months after the Buddha's "pass-
ing away" (parinibanna; Skt. parinirvana). Once he had passed away,
there was an immediate effort to codify his teaching. The need for
this methodical organization of the words of the Buddha had some-
thing to do with his refusal to name a successor. What this effectively
meant was that the disciples who had once been able to go directly
to the Buddha for answers and explanations were now left with only
his teachings as their ultimate source of guidance. The state of the
Introduction XXIII
lessons the Buddha had taught by the time he passed away was com-
pared to a heap of flowers, all varieties mixed together. This jum-
ble of flowers had to be sorted out and organized into well-defined
sections for easy reference and memorization. The first council was
convened, accordingly, under the leadership of the Great Elder Maha
Kassapa. The five hundred monks selected for the council were all
elders (thera). To qualify as an elder according to the rules of the
Buddhist monastic discipline one needed to have completed at least
ten years after full admission to the community. Hence the tradition
that sprung from this important event came to be called Theravada,
or "The Elders' View."
The sources say that in the course of this council the words of
the Buddha were classified into three baskets (pitaka)-namely,
discourses (sutta), discipline (vinaya), and higher doctrine (abhi-
dhamma). There is clear evidence that the third basket was devel-
oped in the course of the next several centuries and was not available,
at least in a developed form, early on. Parts of the other two bas-
kets were added later as well. However, what may have happened in
the first council is that the basic division of the dhamma-vinaya into
two (or three) baskets was determined. The Dhamma was classified
Into five collections called nikaya, and the vinaya was classified into
five collections called pali. The arrangement of the Abhidhamma
Int seven treatises seems to have been the work ofTheravadins that
Ld ngs to a later period.' In this manner, the arrangement of the
w rd s of the Buddha agreed upon at this historical gathering became
th anonical basis for the tradition that subsequently evolved.
Mea sures were also taken to preserve the words of the Buddha
01' po terity. Leading disciples and their students were assigned to
ludy and hold in memory different sections of the agreed-upon col-
l ti ns. With time these groups gradually became experts in their
ned collections, and from this we can get an idea of how ways
< Interpreting and understanding the words of the Buddha evolved
< v ti.me. "The Elders' View" also came to represent a distinct way
t. fl fer to Appendix 2 for details on the works belonging to the three

I ' IS.
XXIV Introduction
of understanding what the Buddha had taught, as developed and pre-

served in the hands of the leading disciples and the successive tradi-
tions of their pupils.
THERAVADA AND EARLY BUDDHISM

Given the fact that Theravada is a way of interpreting and under-
standing the words of the Buddha, it is necessary to clarify the rela-
tionship between The Elders' View and what is considered "early
Buddhism." Concepts such as "the words of the Buddha" and "what
the Buddha [originally] taught" have increasingly become suspect in
contemporary critical scholarship. To the middle of the last century,
what was known among scholars as "early Buddhism" was the canon
preserved by the Theravada tradition in the Pali language. T. W.
Rhys Davids, who studied Pali in Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) as a young
civil servant of the British Empire, established the Pali Text Society
in England and started publishing Pali canonical texts as early as
the i88os. Long introductions to these editions and the secondary
books written by Rhys Davids and other scholars on the life of the
Buddha and his teaching based on the Pali canon provided the first
information on Buddhism to many Western readers and scholars.
Their limited perspective during this period is understandable, as
Chinese, Tibetan, and other versions of Buddhist literature were yet
to enter the field of academic study. Today, however, many scholars
do not consider the Pali canon as exclusively representing early Bud-
dhism, because Chinese and Tibetan, as well as texts or fragments
of texts belonging to lesser-known languages (such as Kharosti), are
also included as representing an early phase of Buddhist literature.
This means, for some scholars at least, that the concept of"early Bud-
dhism" no longer represents any one clear-cut textual tradition, as
had been understood in the West until very recently.
My approach to the issue-and consequently the method I have
adopted in this book-will be somewhat different: I will defend the
traditional Buddhist view of the Elders with respect to the early his-
toricity of their tradition. While respecting modern historical and
philological scholarship on this issue, I will nevertheless accept (1)
that the words of the Buddha as organized by the early disciples is
still the earliest recorded effort made in that direction; (2) that the
Introduction xxv
"thr 0
baskets" that were committed to writing in Sri Lanka toward
t 1 • •n I of the first century BCE are the continuation of this tradi-
1 c 1 sta rted immediately after the Buddha's passing away (parinir-
111 1}; and (3) that this textual tradition has continued in the tradi-
1 ( n l Theravada countries without any great discontinuity up to the
Ir nt. Consequently, I will treat the collection in Pali as the earliest
I" ble Buddhist literature.
h · language in which this collection has come down to us, Pali,
nsidered by linguists as belonging to the Middle Indic period,
th ubstantial additions of very archaic forms . Although tradition-
1ll y the Theravadins believe that Pali is the language spoken by the
ll 1dd ha, it is possible that it might not have been exactly the dia-
l t the Buddha used. For instance, it is recorded that he rejected the
•l ll t Vedic language for communicating his teaching and instead
II w d his followers to use their own dialects for this purpose. This
I • d us to think that the Buddha might well have used a regional
I ul t like Pali for his sermons and other teachings. With its antiq-
1 y ond its many "natural" and "speaker-friendly" characteristics-
ntrast to the more elite "constructed" characteristics of Sanskrit
rd ing to Theravadins-Pali could be the closest we have to the
I Ill uage the Buddha spoke. This is not to say that the Pali canon is
th · ·arliest canon of Buddhism. But it is the earliest extant one.
Theravada and the early Buddhism associated with it are hard to
·p ra te, for the former is how the tradition reads and understands
th w rds of the Buddha. Naturally, the Theravadins were of the opin-
n th at they read the texts correctly, in the sense that they under-
l d what the Buddha must have meant. Whether they in fact did
Is not at issue here; they certainly thought they had. What is more
mp rtant is to ascertain whether the tradition has been understood
· n istently and coherently or not. In this regard, it is worth men-
l ni ng that the Buddha himself upheld consistency and coherence
with what he had already said as the criteria for deciding whether any
I t\ ti ular statement was in fact his, in the event one claimed it to be
. In hi s absence. In other words, according to the discourses, when
Jn knows the Dhamma (the doctrine/teaching of the Buddha) truly,
1 the sense of realizing the goal in full or in stages, one knows that
th , Buddha is fully enlightened, that the Dhamma leads to the goal,
XXVI Introduction
and that the Sangha has really achieved this goal. If any understand-
ing of the words of the Buddha leads its community of practitioners
to this kind of conviction, then that reading has to be taken as con-
sistent and coherent with what the Buddha taught.
If Theravada is defined as the way in which the words of the Bud-
dha have been interpreted and understood by its followers known
as Theravadins, the history of the tradition shows that it has been
remarkably homogeneous, internal debates on specific issues of
interpretation notwithstanding. It is a unique feature of the Ther-
avada tradition that within it there are no individual teachers with
their own different teachings. In other words, no second Buddhas
have appeared within the tradition: liberated great disciples are
revered as elaborators of what the Buddha said but not as innovators
of any new Dhamma of their own; "different" teachers offer only dif-
fering approximations to the original teaching of the Buddha. Per-
haps this could be the reason behind the remarkable homogeneity
that has persisted within this tradition.
The tradition of Theravada interpretation is contained in the
commentaries that repose at the great ancient Theravada monastery
(Maha Vihara) in Sri Lanka. These were later systematized by the
famous commentator Buddhaghosa and several others, and subse-
quently provided with subcommentaries written where Theravada
prevailed. Thus, the main source material for this book will be the
Pali canon as organized into the three baskets and the commentar-
ies upon them. Having said this, I must also add that the interpre-
tation of Theravada developed here is not a mere repetition of the
tradition but a study of how this tradition has been understood and
internalized by people in countries where it has been the main source
of guidance and inspiration. The book also takes as its subject mat-
ter how people, not only in the traditional Theravada countries, but
also from various geographical and cultural backgrounds all over
the globe, continue to understand, internalize, and practice that
tradition.
THE STRUCTURE AND CONTENT OF THE BOOK

The chapters of the book have been arranged in a manner that high-
lights this emphasis. The first chapter will briefly discuss the histori-
Introduction XXVII
· 11 rigins of Buddhism in India and locate the Buddhist "soteriol-

o y" in its proper social and religious context. The life of the Buddha,
h s carch for liberation from suffering, and his realization of free-
d<in fro m it will be the main focus of this discussion.
The second chapter will discuss what it means to be a follower
if lh Buddha- monastic or lay (household)-and the act of "tak-
111 r fu ge" in the "Triple Gem" (Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha). I
w 11 I o consider the nature of faith involved in the process and the
h 1 r li gious practices involved. Chapter 3 will discuss the essence
f th teaching of the Buddha including dependent co-origination,
t I • r, u r noble truths, the three trainings, the three characteristics of
·x t n e, and mindfulness meditation. Continuing the same theme,
I rm and its consequences are discussed separately in the fourth
t lrn1 •r.
:h. pter 5 contains a brief exposition of the social teachings of the
lht I Iha. The sixth chapter, which includes a brief historical sketch of
lh • tr litional Theravada countries, is a prelude to Chapter 7, which
n T heravada practices that have traditionally been a major
on the cultures of these countries. The chapter discusses
ific practices as the varied forms of"merit acquiring," social
tivism, and the central role of the Buddhist monk in the
w I• 11· ess.
'l'h oncluding chapter will discuss Theravada Buddhism in the
I ,i( z d world of today. In particular, the discussion will focus on
W l • n Theravada Buddhism, socially engaged Buddhism, and the
v •m nt of Theravada nuns, ending with a short meditation on the
t n11 n1ry validity and relevance of Theravada Buddhism.
CHAPTER 1
The Beginning of Buddhism
According to a story of somewhat later origin in the Theravada tra-

dition, in his penultimate birth before leaving his heavenly abode for
his final birth into the human world, the future Buddha carefully
pondered five important details: the proper time, continent, region,
and family to be born into, and who his mother might be. After care-
ful consideration he decided to be born into the Sakya family of
the Sakyan state of the Jambu-dvipa ("rose-apple island," as India
is called in the Buddhist literature), as the son of the queen Maha
Maya. This story, though coming down to us in the form of a pop-
ular myth, nevertheless contains an important sociological insight:
the birth of the Buddha, or the origin of Buddhism, has to be under-
stood in its proper historical context; his coming into the world was
not accidental.
This chapter aims to examine that specific historical context. I
will survey the religious and social milieus of sixth-century BCE
India to show that the story of the Buddha makes perfect sense in
this context. Subsequently I will describe, in parallel to the dis-
courses of the Buddha, the story of his journey to the Awakening and
his subsequent life as a teacher. The discussion will conclude with a
historical note of the spread of his teaching after his passing away
(Skt. parinirvana).
The Religious and Social Context of the Buddha

An outstanding characteristic of the Indian religion during the time
of the Buddha was its philosophical sophistication. Of the two <lorn-
2 THERAVADA BUDDHISM
inant religious movements, the orthodox, established Vedic reli-

gion had reached its final phase of development, namely, the Upa-
nishads, which contained the most advanced "theological" thinking
of the Brahmins; the term "upanishad" itself means to be transmit-
ted esoterically to the most trusted students. What was so transmit-
ted were the secrets of soul (Skt. atman) and the universe, not avail-
able through any conventional means of knowing. The early beliefs
of individual soul and the creator and savior god (Skt. Brahman) had
by this time reached, respectively, the sophistication of indestructible
individual essence and the universal essence both of which formed
the essence ofUpanishdic thought. Liberation was conceived in terms
of the union of the Atman and the Brahman, the former intermin-
gling with or becoming dissolved in the latter. The conceptual scheme
developed in this manner was known as "the inner science" and the
resultant religious behavior was called "the inner engagement."
This philosophical development, however, did not mean that the
ritualistic dimensions of the religion had been abandoned by this
time. On the contrary, those rituals had long been established and
developed as a complex web of rites, traditions, and customs cover-
ing all stages of human life. This was, to use a terminology developed
subsequently, the "path of action" (Skt. karma-marga) in contrast to
"the path of knowledge" (Skt. jnana-marga).
While relatively small groups of Brahmins who developed the
"inner science" lived in forests, the larger majority of them were
city-dwellers, most of them leading privileged lives as professional
priests whose function was to serve as intermediaries between gods
and human beings. In the social stratification of the time the Brah-
mins occupied the highest place. According to the brahmanic view,
which originated in the Vedas and was subsequently canonized by
such authorities as Manu, the society was basically divided into four
"colors" (Skt. varna)-namely, priests (Skt. brahmana), warriors (Skt.
kshatriya), traders and farmers (Skt. vaishya), and slaves (Skt. shu-
dra). It was claimed that the Brahmins were created from the mouth
of the Creator, warriors from his arms, traders and farmers from his
thighs, and slaves from his feet. This gradually descending order rep-
resented each caste's social status throughout their lives.
To each group was assigned what was called "one's own duty"
The Beginning of Buddhism 3
(Skt. sva-dharma), which, again, was sacred and inviolable. The sva-
dharma of the Brahmin was to study the scriptures and associated
sciences, to teach, to perform sacrifices, and to accept offerings. The
warriors were to rule, engage in war, and follow brahmanic religious
rites and rituals. The traders and farmers were to conduct their busi-
nesses and perform religious rites and rituals. The duty of the slave
was obediently to serve the other three groups.
It is clear, however, that these four groups did not represent the
entire society. There were in fact many other people existing outside
these groups who were effectively not even taken into consideration.
In other words, such ignored groups were considered even lower than
the lowest within this fourfold hierarchy. These were the people who
eventually came to be known as "the fifth groups" {Skt. pancama) or,
as they are more familiarly known today, "outcaste(s)." Furthermore,
purification or liberation was not deemed possible for anyone other
than those in the first three social groups (thus excluding slaves and
outcasts).
In his own Sangha community the Buddha disregarded this
deep-rooted and strong social tradition and admitted people from
all social groups without discrimination. The Brahmins naturally
did not welcome this innovation and accused him of teaching "puri-
fication common to all four castes." The Buddha said that, like the
waters of all rivers that become one and assume a uniform salty
taste once they reach the ocean, all those who enter the Sangha lose
their former identities and become "sons (and daughters) of [the
Buddha]."
The status of women was lower than that of men in each social
group. The general Brahmanic characterization of woman was that
she was intellectually lacking, emotionally weak, and hence not
deserving of independence. According to Manu, the classical Indian
authority of "law," a woman needed to be kept under her father as a
child, under her husband as a married woman, and under her son
as an elderly person: a woman did not deserve to be left on her own.
According to the same source, a woman did not require any special
sacrifice or religious rite to be reborn into heaven; serving her hus-
band faithfully would alone suffice for that purpose.
In reaction and opposition to this mode of social stratification,
and to the predominantly ritualistic orientation of the religion of the

Vedas, were the various sramana groups that comprised the other
major religious tradition during the time of the Buddha and were
characterized by renunciation of worldly life. But they were not a
unified single group whose only common feature was their rejec-
tion of the Brahmanic religion and social structure. In their oppo-
sition to "vociferous" Vedic chanting, at least some of these groups
were known as "silent ones" (muni). However, all of them were
mendicants who had renounced home life and depended on alms
offered by people for their sustenance. According to early Buddhist
sources, reputedly there were six religious teachers who were con-
temporaries of the Buddha. The best-known was Niagantha Nata-
putta, the leader of Jainism. A senior contemporary of the Buddha,
he advocated an extreme form of nonviolence and developed a well-
organized monastic group. The other religious teachers were Purana
Kassapa, who taught a "doctrine of inaction that denied the valid-
ity of moral distinctions"; Makkhali Gosaala, leader of the Ajivakas
(a sramana group), who taught that people are rigidly controlled
by fate; Ajita Kesakambala, a moral nihilist who advocated a full-
fledged materialism; Pakudha Kaccana, who held a view of reality
based on seven principles that denied the possibility of moral action;
and Sanjaya Belatthiputta, who advocated both moral and episte-
mological skepticism. In addition, there were sixty-two different
religious views among the several religious traditions existing when
the Buddha was born. Basically, these views have been classified as
related to the past or to the future; but within these two categories
there were yet differing theories regarding the nature or even the
existence of the soul. Some thought that the soul was eternal ("eter-
nalists") while others-"annhilationists"-believed that it died with
the body. (Some sramanas held no definite views on the soul; they
were called "eel-wrigglers," a term used to refer to skeptics.) Finally,
unlike Brahmanism, among the sramanas there were female renun-
ciants; women thus enjoyed a relatively better status among these
groups.
Although these ideas may not be considered as necessarily rep-
resenting different schools per se, hopefully this brief overview pro-
vides a sense of the philosophical sophistication that was character-
The Beginning of Buddhism
istic of the religious milieu at the time of the Buddha's birth. The
sramana groups in particular represented an alternative way of reli-
gious life which was not that of a professional clergy but composed of
people who had dedicated their lives to seeking liberation from what
they conceived to be the predicament of life. It was into this society
that the Buddha was born. As Prince Siddhartha, he renounced his
royal life and joined these wandering mendicants, although later in
his life he came to differ from them quite substantially.
The Life of the Buddha

According to the Theravada canonical sources, the family name of
the Buddha was Gotama and his personal name was Siddhartha. His
parents were King Suddhodana, who ruled the Sakyan kingdom in
the foothills of the Himalayas, and Queen Maha Maya. The tradition
says that the Brahmins who were consulted by the king at the birth
of his son predicted that he would either be a very powerful mon-
arch ifhe were to live a worldly life, or would become a "fully awak-
ened one" (buddha) ifhe renounced it. Because his father wished his
son to be a powerful monarch, he took every measure to ensure that
he remained in the life of the world. Prince Siddhartha grew up in
the midst of luxury, married the beautiful Princess Yasodhara, and
enjoyed all the comforts and pleasures of the day.
But his father's efforts were in vain. At the age of twenty-nine the
young prince decided to leave the royal life behind to become a wan-
dering mendicant. What led Siddhartha to abandon the world takes
the form of a folk story in the Buddhist tradition. One day young
Siddhartha was on his way to the pleasure park when he happened
to see an old person. The story says that his father took much care
to ensure that his son would never encounter any of life's sorrows;
consequently Siddhartha had never seen an old person until then.
In subsequent journeys the prince encountered first a sick and then
a dead person being carried to the cemetery. Later he met a religious
mendicant who obviously was a sramana, and he decided to become
one himself. The "philosophy" behind this story of course is that the
prince was vividly struck by the harsh realities of life-namely, old-
age, disease, and death. Later, as the enlightened Buddha, he would
articulate this experience in the following words:
Bhikkhus, before my enlightenment, while I was still a bod-

hisattva not yet fully enlightened, it occurred to me: "alas, this
world has fallen into trouble, in that it is born, ages, and dies, it
passes away and is reborn, yet it does not understand the escape
from this suffering [headed by] aging-and-death. When now will
an escape be discerned from this suffering [headed by] aging-and
death?" (The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, trans. Bodhi,
2000, p. 537)
This experience of dukkha, popularly referred to as suffering, is how

the Buddha articulated what he perceived as the problem of worldly
existence. While the concept of dukkha does not preclude ordinary
forms of suffering such as physical and mental ailments, it basically
refers to the fundamental unsatisfactory character of human exis-
tence caused by old age, disease, and the ever-present prospect of
death. It is primarily to this form of dukkha that Siddhartha started
responding.
Joining the wandering sramanas, Siddhartha first sought guid-
ance from teachers. Under two of them-Alara Kalama and Uddaka
Ramaputta- he practiced meditation and achieved higher states of
mind characterized by ascending degrees of aloofness from sen-
sory experience. Realizing, however, that these were not what he was
ultimately seeking, Siddhartha left his teachers and decided to find
release from suffering by "working" on his own. The first option was
to practice austerities- again, a mode of search for liberation quite
popular during the time. Siddhartha was joined by five other sim-
ilar-minded seekers in this endeavor. He practiced this particular
spiritual discipline for six years. The self-torture he underwent he
described in the following words:
I lived on forest roots and fruits; I fed on fallen fruits; I clothed

myself in hemp, in hemp-mixed cloth, in shrouds, in refuse rags,
in tree bark, in antelope hide, in strips of antelope hide, in kusa-
grass fabric, in bark fabric, in wood shavings fabric, in head-hair
wool, in animal wool, in owls' wings. I was one who pulled out hair
and beard, pursuing the practice of pulling out hair and beard. I
was one who stood continuously, rejecting seats. I was one who
squatted continuously, devoted to maintaining the squatting posi-
tion. I was one who used a mattress of spikes; I made a mattress of

spikes my bed. I dwelt pursuing the practice of bathing in water
three times daily including the evening. Thus in such a variety of
ways I dwelt pursuing the practice of tormenting and mortifying
the body. Such was my asceticism. (The Middle Length Discourses
of the Buddha, trans. Nanamoli and Bodhi, 1995/2001, p. 173)
Finding that he was no closer to the solution than when he had

begun his spiritual quest, Siddhartha decided to give up austeri-
ties and follow his own way, which he subsequently described as
the "middle path." (At this point the disappointed five companions
parted from him.) He started living a normal sramana life, taking a
meal a day and spending his time in reflection and contemplation.
Because of his long practice of meditation he was already capable of a
high degree of concentration. It was a matter of directing this refined
mind toward comprehending the true nature of reality. Advancing
gradually in the path one evening on the day of the full moon in the
month of May, the future Buddha sat down under what came sub-
sequently to be known as the "Bodhi tree" with the firm resolution
that he would not rise from that seat without achieving his goal of
enlightenment.
In the first watch of that night Siddhartha realized the knowledge
of recollection of past births. This enabled him to view his own past
existence in the "wheel of existence" (samsara). In the second watch
he realized the knowledge of the departure and appearance of beings,
thus enabling him to see how other beings fared in the world of sam-
sara. In the final watch he realized the knowledge of the destruction
of defiling influxes (asava). He comprehended the unsatisfactory
state of human existence, its cause, its cessation, and the path lead-
ing to its cessation. With this last knowledge, Siddhartha achieved
his goal: complete freedom from all defiling states of mind, the sub-
lime state of utter peacefulness. Subsequently he described his great
experience:
Then, Bhikkhus, being myself subject to birth, old-age, sick-

ness, death, sorrow, defilement, having understood the danger
in what is subject to defilement, seeking the undefiled supreme
security from bondage, Nibbana, I attained the undefiled supreme
8 Tll ll RAVA O A OUDDHI S M
security from bondage, Nibbana. The knowledge and vision arose

in me: "My deliverance is unshakable; this is my last birth; now
there is no renewal of being." (The Middle Length Discourses of
the Buddha, trans. Nanamoli and Bodhi, 1995/2001, pp. 259-260)
What is described here in experiential terms has also been

described in clear cognitive terms as "the eye was born, knowl-
edge, understanding, 'science' and light [on the four noble truths]
was born." It is with reference to this understanding that the Bud-
dha came to be known as the "Buddha," "the enlightened" or "the
awakened one." Upon attaining Buddha-hood, he spent seven weeks
"experiencing the happiness of the freedom" he had won and reflect-
ing on the Dhamma. The more he thought about what he had real-
ized, the stronger became his realization that ordinary human nature
and his Dhamma were far removed from each other. He felt that for
an ordinary person to follow his teaching would be like swimming
against the current, and he was pessimistic about being able to com-
municate his teaching effectively to others.
The traditional story at this point says that a great Brahma called
Sahampati felt the danger, rushed to the Buddha in order to persuade
him to teach, and was successful. Once the Buddha made up his mind
to accept the challenging task of teaching his Dhamma he looked for
possible listeners. The tradition says that the first people who came
to his mind were his two teachers in his life as a sramana. When he
learned that they had died, he thought of the five fellow ascetics who
had left him at the time he had resumed a normal life, abandoning
ascetic practices. The Buddha set off to Benares, where they were liv-
ing. When the ascetics saw the Buddha coming, they did not want to
pay respect to their former companion but decided to treat him as an
equal. The Buddha had before him the arduous task of convincing
them that he had found what they were all striving for. Their initial
response was skeptical, and even sarcastic. But they eventually set-
tled down to listen to him because of remembering from their prior
acquaintance that he was an entirely truthful person. Nonetheless,
by the end of his first sermon, only one of the ascetics, Kondanna,
became convinced of the truth of the words spoken by the Buddha.
To win over the rest the Buddha had to work harder.
The first statement of what the Buddha had realized that he chose
to articulate for the five ascetics is known in the Buddhist world as
the "turning of the wheel of the Dhamma," in which the Buddha
elaborated on the four noble truths. It is said that Kondanna under-
stood and became a "stream-winner," the first stage of arahant-hood.
Subsequently, the Buddha taught and guided the rest of his former
companions until all were convinced. When the Buddha explained
the idea of no-soul, all of them abandoned "thirst," the cause of suf-
fering, and became arahants (see Glossary). These five ascetics thus
became the first followers of the Buddha. Within a very short period
thereafter sixty monastic followers had achieved final realization.
The Buddha addressed this group and sent them in different direc-
tions to spread the message of" deathlessness." Thus began the first-
ever "missionary religion" in the world.
So the turning of the wheel of the Dhamma started in this man-
ner, initially with only five listeners, and continued without inter-
ruption for the forty-five years until the parinirvana of the Buddha
at the age of eighty. He spent the rest of his life traveling from vil-
lage to village and city to city with his disciples, teaching all those
who wished to listen. This routine was maintained for nine months
every year, ceasing only during the monsoon season. Many men
and women from all walks oflife chose to become monastic follow-
ers of the Buddha, while many others joined him as ordinary lay
followers.
From all the available evidence, internal and external, it is clear
that the Buddha's preaching became very popular in a short period of
time. The urge to spread the message of" deathlessness" was present
from the very beginning. Within a relatively short period there were
many converts, of whom a large majority entered the new faith as
monks. Being a srarnana group, its doors were open to all-irrespec-
tive of social status or gender. All those who entered the organization
as monks were generally called "srarnanas, the sons of the Buddha"
(sakya-puttiya). Women who entered as nuns were known as "daugh-
ters of the Buddha" (sakya-dhita). This loss of former identity and the
assumption of a uniform one has been compared, as already noted, to
the phenomenon of various rivers flowing from different directions
with characteristics of their own losing their identities as they merge
in the ocean to form one uniform mass. It is important to note, how-

ever, that within the Buddhist tradition males and females were
known respectively as bhikkhus and bhikkhunis. Etymologically, a
bhikkhu is one who begs for his food. Homelessness- characterized
by the mendicant existence devoid of cooking, material goods, or a
family- was the hallmark of this way of life.
Monks and nuns constituted the two fundamental units of the
Buddha's four groups, but the former occupied pride of place, and
we must note this gender discrepancy. The order of the bhikkhus was
established at the very beginning of the Buddha's mission with the
five ascetics, who came to be known in the tradition as "the group of
five bhikkhus." As already noted, soon the initiates increased to sixty,
and as a result of these sixty and the Buddha spreading the mes-
sage of deathlessness wherever they went, the community of monks
expanded rapidly.
The community of the bhikkhunis was introduced somewhat later,
though the tradition is not clear about the precise date. In fact, the
traditional story of the origin of the community of nuns is fraught
with difficulties. It says on the one hand that the Buddha finally gave
in to the demand of his closest disciple (attendant-cum-public rela-
tions coordinator), the faithful Ananda, to admit women fully into
the new faith. But it is also well known that there was a deep tension
in the Theravada tradition, because after the parinirvana of the Bud-
dha, the order was headed by Great Elder Kassapa (Skt. Kasyapa),
who did not conceal his dislike for women. It is recorded that the
Buddha gave permission to a group of women led by his stepmother
and his former wife to enter the community provided they accept
eight conditions, one of which being that a bhikkhuni, even a hun-
dred years after her full admission to the community, must pay
respect to a bhikkhu who had only just received full admission. In
this manner, the bhikkhunis have been kept subservient to their male
counterparts from the very beginning of the tradition. "Liberated"
though they undoubtedly were in comparison to their Brahmanic
sisters, they remained inferior to their male counterparts. Even those
who today admit that the Buddha had to be extremely cautious in
this initiative still believe either that he was unduly strict in impos-
ing this particular condition or that he may have never imposed such
a condition at all. In any case, Theravada history reveals that its com-
munity of bhikkhunis came to an end after the thirteenth century
CE at the latest and is only being reconstituted as this book is being
written.
In justification of the argument to grant equality to women in
Theravada Buddhism is the quite substantial evidence showing that
the community of bhikkhunis during the lifetime of the Buddha
himself had grown to be spiritually advanced and well versed in the
doctrine. Dhammadinna, a leading bhikkhuni, for example, won the
praise of the master for her very eloquent exposition of the doctrine.
According to this story, after Dhammadinna had explained some of
its subtle points to her former husband, her disbelieving spouse went
to the Buddha to check the accuracy of her account. The Buddha
confirmed the validity of what she had taught by saying that he him-
self would have explained those points in exactly the same manner as
the learned lady had done.
Some semantic distinctions can assist our understanding of the
other two of the four groups comprising early Buddhism accord-
ing to the Theravada tradition. Those followers of the Buddha who
did not renounce their home life were called "householders" (gihi)
in contrast to those who renounced family life (pabbajita). The Pali
word pabbajita stems from the root vaj prefixed by pa, which carries
the idea of banishment. The verb generally means the act of banish-
ment imposed by the king as a punishment. The term in the religious
context signified one who banished him/herself from family life, a
voluntary act of self-banishment. The early tradition draws a clear
distinction between householders and renouncers, which the Thera-
vada has retained throughout its history. According to the early texts,
a household life is "full of troubles," whereas the life of the renouncer
is "free like the open sky." While achieving ultimate freedom from
suffering was considered the goal for the renouncer, to be born into
a heaven after death was considered the realistic goal for household-
ers, although this does not mean that attaining final freedom was not
possible for them. The position of the renouncer and the householder
in relation to the possibility of attaining the ultimate goal has been
compared to how the glamorous display of a peacock is no match
for the speed of the swan. The difference, then, is essentially one of
speed. As the "Discourse on the Sage" (Suttanipata 221) says: "Even

as the crested [peacock], blue-necked, [the bird] that soars in the sky
never will reach the speed of the swan, even so the householder can-
not hope to match the monk, the sage [leading a life] of seclusion
contemplating in the forest."
Householders were described, as we have observed, by the specific
terms upasaka (for men) and upasika (for women). The term means
"one who stays closely" and may refer to the householders' role of
attending to the material needs of monks and nuns. The early his-
tory of Buddhism shows how a group of householders developed as
supporters of the new community. During the time of the Buddha,
the kings of Magadha and Kosala were his great supporters. It was
the former who offered a monastery to the Buddha for the first time.
The latter was a frequent visitor to the Buddha, and in the canon
there is a whole section containing his discussions with the mas-
ter. There were many householders of various social ranks-includ-
ing some rich merchants and bankers-among the supporters of the
early community. Some of them were quite versed in the teaching of
the master and had attained various stages of arahant-hood. Equally,
many women were active in helping the Buddha and his followers as
they themselves became enthusiastic followers of the path. Visakha
was a wealthy upasika who donated a monastery to the community
and was a lifelong supporter.
It is important to note, however, that the Buddha accepted
the validity of household life; on many occasions he gave detailed
instructions on matters such as how to earn, spend, and save money,
how to develop good family and social relations, and how to balance
one's internal and external well-being. The role of the upasakas and
upasikas cannot be reduced to that of mere providers of material sup-
port to the community of monks and nuns. In addition they served
the community as its friends and protectors, as critics who observed
the behavior of bhikkhus and bhikkhunis closely, and as fellow tread-
ers of the same path.
In the "Discourse on the Great Parinirvana" (The Long Discourses
of the Buddha i6), which details the last days of the Buddha, there
is an episode in which Mara, the Evil One, approaches the Buddha
and asks him to attain parinirvana, whereupon the Buddha replies to
him that he will not do so until his disciples-bhikkhus and bhikk-

hunis, upasakas and upasikas-all become equally well versed in the
teaching and well advanced in the practices. The significance of this
story is that all four groups have been mentioned together with equal
importance. It is recorded that the Buddha himself identified emi-
nent members from all four groups as worthy of emulation.
The Buddha attained parinirvana at the age of eighty at Kusinara
(present-day Kushinagar in Bihar). He lay on his deathbed, prepared
between two Sala trees, and gave the final admonition to those who
had gathered: "Bhikkhus, I address you now: all constructed phenom-
ena are subject to decay; strive vigilantly!"-and then he passed away.
By the time of the parinirvana his teaching had spread among both
men and women who inhabited what is known in Buddhist literature
as the "middle land," which covered a substantial area of northern
India (see Map 1).
After the Parinirvana of the Buddha

We have already alluded to the first council or "communal chanting"
(sangayana) held three months after the parinirvana of the Buddha.
The history of Theravada Buddhism records six such councils. At
the first meeting, the words of the Buddha agreed upon by the elders
were grouped into "baskets" and chanted together. This act of com-
munal chanting meant that all the chanters agreed to accept what
they chanted as the authorized word of the Buddha. To clarify, this
act signified the beginning of the "canon" in the Buddhist tradition.
By chanting together, the participants expressed their allegiance to
the word of the Buddha as sorted out and arranged into baskets and
subgroups within the baskets. Henceforth, as became customary in
subsequent sangayanas, the act of chanting together always signified
undivided allegiance to the word of the Buddha as approved by the
leaders of the community.
The first council can be considered the single most important
event in the history of Theravada Buddhism. As we already know,
the very term thera-vada arose from this event in which all those
who took part were elders. The canonical basis they adopted subse-
quently seems to have become the textual foundation not only for
the Theravada but also for all the other subsequent schools of Bud-
)
HIMALAYAS ./
,-./
C NEPAL l \
MAGA~
/~ \,,,,_..,,
I RAJAGAHA
0 200 km
0 100 miles
Map 1. The.regions of India where the Buddha lived and taught.

dhism, although each school had its own peculiarities with regard to
what they accepted, rejected, modified, or introduced as the "word
of the Buddha."
Some of the key decisions that continue to shape the character
of Theravada even today were taken at this meeting. The decision
to keep the disciplinary rules prescribed by the Buddha unchanged,
for instance, was one. As recorded in the "Discourse on the Great
Parinirvana," the Buddha said that once he was no more, the Sangha
might change minor rules if they so wished. However, at the meeting,
the elders could not come to an agreement as to just what the minor
rules were. The outcome was the decision that the Sangha would not
change any rules prescribed by the master, nor would it introduce
any new rules not prescribed by him. The decision made at this very
early date still remains valid, and ever since then the tradition has
neither added to nor subtracted from any rules of the monastic code
of discipline, namely, the vinaya. (This does not mean, however, that
Theravadins have not found ways and means to overcome some chal-
lenges posed by this rigorous decision.)
The later Theravadin lack of enthusiasm regarding the order of
nuns is also evident from the discussions that took place at this first
meeting. The elders seem to have thought that the establishment of
the order of nuns had been a mistake the Buddha had been "forced"
into by the intervention of Ananda. They consequently found
Ananda guilty of this wrongdoing and demanded that he confess
his guilt. This attitude of the forefathers of the tradition seems still
to color the contemporary debate on the possibility of reestablish-
ing the order of nuns. The received standpoint of Theravada today
remains that no reestablishment of this order is possible until a bud-
dha appears again (but see Chapter 8).
About one hundred years after the first sangayana, a second
gathering took place in Vaishali under the leadership of Great Elder
Yasa. The immediate reason for this meeting, in which seven hun-
dred elders took part, was the advocacy of some ten revisions to the
vinaya rules by a group of monks centered around the Vajji area. The
issues had to do with minor rules related to food and clothing. For
example, the new revisionists demanded that they be allowed to keep
some salt in a container to be used when needed, and to take the mid-
day meal until the sun had moved two inches from its central point. A
more serious demand-although the relevant rule itself was included
in the category of minor rules- was to be allowed to accept silver
and gold, which was tantamount to demanding permission to accept,
own, and use money. The elders took these demands quite seriously
and saw the need to reaffirm allegiance to the accepted code of disci-
pline. The gathering determined that all ten proposed revisions went
against the regulations of the vinaya accepted and approved at the
first sangayana and thus rejected all of them. They then chanted the
word of the Buddha together as a sign of their expression of continu-
ing undivided allegiance to it.
A number of monks who supported revisions broke away and
formed a group called Mahasanghika (belonging to the greater com-
munity). As the name itself seems to suggest, this break-away group
represented a larger segment of the community. They gradually
came to hold a transcendentalist position toward the Buddha. For
instance, they started expressing doubts about arahants, liberated
persons according to the early discourses; they elevated the ideal of
bodhisattva; and began to adopt Sanskrit as their textual language.
The period following this initial breakaway witnessed the emergence
of a number of subgroups from the already divided Sangha of the
Theravada and Mahasanghika. The gradual evolution of this divi-
sion finally led to the emergence of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition
several centuries later.
The non-Theravada groups not only represented some minor dif-
ferences in the vinaya but also developed their own ways of under-
standing and interpreting the teaching of the Buddha. Such differ-
ences were authoritatively established at the sangayana gathering,
held during the reign and under the patronage of Kanishka (150
BCE), who has been considered a great benefactor of Buddhism. This
historic gathering formalized the differences between Theravada and
non-Theravada traditions and marked the origin of an interpretive
tradition that came to be known as "vaibhashika." It is counted as
the third among such events in India and the first among non-Ther-
avada gatherings. Although this is chronologically correct, the third
sangayana according to Theravada traditions is the one that was held
under the patronage of Emperor Asoka (270-230 BCE), the purpose
of which was to cleanse the Sangha of undesirable elements and clar-

ify and reestablish the Theravada doctrinal point of view regarding
the controversies that had arisen among the various groups.
The Kathavatthupakarana, the latest addition to the Basket of the
(Theravada) Abhidhamma, was compiled by the great elder Mogg-
aliputta Tissa, who was also the president of this third Theravada
sangayana. It was aimed at reestablishing the orthodox view against
a large number of "wrong" views believed to be held by other sects.
An outcome of the resurgence of Theravada Buddhism under Asoka
was the initiative to introduce Buddhism to neighboring regions
and countries. It is said that missionaries were sent to nine regions,
prominent among which were Sri Lanka and several areas of South-
east Asia-known then as "the golden lands." Today, in addition to
Sri Lanka, such Southeast Asian countries as Thailand, Myanmar
(Burma), Laos, and Cambodia retain the Theravada tradition of Bud-
dhism (see Map 2).
The history of Theravada in India after Emperor Asoka is largely
unknown. This is by no means to say that Theravada ceased to exist
there immediately afterwards. In fact, there is evidence showing that
Theravada existed for about a millennium in different parts of India
including, in particular, the southern region. But except for a few
prominent names of persons and their activities we know little about
the state of the school, where it flourished, and so on. A possible rea-
son for this lack of information may be that, once Theravada was
introduced to Sri Lanka, within a relatively short period of time it
became firmly established in that country and went on to become the
center of the Theravada tradition for the next two thousand years.
Accordingly, we have to depend on Sri Lankan sources for the sub-
sequent history of this tradition. Naturally, these sources do not say
much about post-Asokan Theravada in India. Their story of Indian
Theravada virtually stops at Asoka's mission to Sri Lanka, which
marked the beginning of "globalized" Buddhism.
Conclusion
In India, Buddhism disappeared as a major religious force by the end
of the tenth century CE, to be reintroduced toward the end of the
nineteenth century. Theravada in Myanmar and Thailand received
(J SRI LANKA
O 420~m
L-.-..--J
Drown by Matilda Wlttono9•
Deporfment of GtoQroph y
University of Co lombo
Map 2. The traditional world of Theravada.
additional support from Sri Lanka during the twelfth century CE,
and Cambodia and Laos subsequently received the Theravada tradi-
tion from their immediate neighbors. Today, Theravada is one of the
three major forms of Buddhism and has traveled far beyond its tradi-
tional boundaries to make its presence felt in the spiritual life of mil-
lions of people around the globe, to a closer examination of which I
now turn.
CHA P TER 2
The Triple Gem
To be a follower of the Buddha is to "take refuge" or "go for refuge"

in the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha-the Triple Gem, as
Buddhists would usually refer to the objects of their religious ven-
eration. It is said that those who engaged in this practice for the first
time were two passing merchants who gave some food to the newly
awakened Buddha.' It is further said that they took refuge only in the
Buddha and the Dhamma, for the third gem-the order of monks-
had not yet come into existence.
As we found in the account of the first sermon of the Buddha to
his five erstwhile companions at the Deer Park in Benares, none of
the initial five listeners took refuge formally. They do seem to have
accepted, tentatively, that the Buddha was "awakened" (i.e., liber-
ated from suffering by understanding the nature of reality). This
acceptance was tantamount to accepting the validity of the method
adopted by the Buddha in order to achieve awakening, which meant,
according to the tradition, that they accepted the Dhamma. With
their subsequent realization of the goal, these five former ascetics,
now monastic followers of the Buddha, became the first representa-
tives of the Sangha-the third gem.
As the practice evolved, it was customary for attendees at the
Buddha's sermons to indicate their acceptance of what he taught
i. In the belief of the Southeast Asian Buddhists, it is these two merchants,
Tapassu and Bhalluka, who first introduced the message of the Buddha to
the region.
by seeking refuge in the Triple Gem. That marked the beginning of

one's life as a "Buddhist," as either a monastic or a household fol-
lower. Apart from this simple religious act there was no elaborate ini-
tiation ceremony to mark one's conversion to Buddhism. What was,
at this early stage, a once-in-a-lifetime activity has now become a
regular ritual practice among Theravada Buddhists. Most of them
start their daily routine by thrice uttering Pali passages articulating
the seeking of refuge, followed by the five basic rules of Buddhist
life-panca-sila, or the five precepts. Initiates invariably start any
public Buddhist function by uttering these passages together, usu-
ally guided by a member of the Sangha. The focus of this chapter is to
clarify what the Triple Gem is, what it means to take refuge in it, and
its significance in religious terms.
The Triple Gem

The Buddha, his teaching or the Dhamma, and the Sangha are iden-
tified as gems in the Theravada tradition. The overly reverential atti-
tude exemplified by the word "gem" (or "jewel") seems to be of late
origin. Initially, it was simply the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the
Sangha-the teacher, his teaching, and the community of followers
who had achieved the final goal or were on the path toward it.
THE BUDDHA
As we already know, "buddha" means one who is awakened. Origi-
nally the term was used to refer to the Buddha Sakyamuni (the Sage
of the Sakyans, a way to refer to the historical Buddha) when the
emphasis was on his attainment as a religious teacher. His contem-
poraries would usually call him by his family name Gotama, while
the Buddha himself would use the term tathagata (thus-gone one)
when referring to himself or to any other previous buddha. But the
term "buddha" seems gradually to have become the established way
to refer to him exclusively and continues to be so used. However, this
usage of the term as a proper name is not the most important point.
Speaking religiously, what is most important is its signification as
indicating the one who has realized the four noble truths, one of the
nine epithets that describe the virtues of the Buddha.
The Theravada tradition holds that there are innumerable bud-
The Triple Gem 21
dhas belonging to past, present, and future. Although there cannot

be two buddhas simultaneously in any one world system, there can
be many buddhas in differing world systems simultaneously. Includ-
ing the Buddha Gotama, Theravada followers worship twenty-eight
buddhas. It is said that the present buddha received "definitive pro-
nouncement" about his future buddha-hood from twenty-four bud-
dhas starting from the buddha Dipankara. In addition to fully
enlightened buddhas, Theravada also holds that there are individ-
ual buddhas (pacceka Buddha) who realize nirvana on their own but
who would not come into society to teach. It is further said that such
individual buddhas do not appear when the Sasana or the religious
organization of a fully awakened buddha is available in the world.
In their daily worship Buddhists use a formula listing some nine
virtues of the Buddha, along with two other formulae referring to six
virtues of the Dhamma and nine virtues of the Sangha. The nine vir-
tues of the Buddha listed in this formula are: arahant, fully enlight-
ened, endowed with knowledge and conduct, well-gone, knower of
the worlds, incomparable trainer of men to be tamed, teacher of gods
and humans, enlightened, and blessed. Theravada has developed
extensive exegetical analyses of each of these virtues ascribed to the
Buddha. Although they are attributed to the historical Buddha, at
the same time they are understood as the virtues of any buddha or
all the buddhas belonging to the past, present, and the future . It is
important to note that all nine virtues are associated with the Bud-
dha's spiritual and intellectual abilities and not with any physical or
psychical talents popularly attributed to him in the later Theravada
and Mahayana literatures. In addition to these nine virtues, the Bud-
dhists know the Buddha as one who is endowed with great compas-
sion. In fact it is held that the very driving force behind his act of
becoming the Buddha was the great compassion he felt toward all
beings who suffer in the samsara. The forty five years of the mission
of the Buddha is understood as a result of nothing other than his
great compassion for all living beings.
THE DHAMMA
The Dhamma basically refers to the teaching of the Buddha. Pop-
ularly, it is symbolized by a traditional palm-leaf book. The term
dhamma has numerous meanings in Buddhist Pali literature, just as

its Sanskrit equivalent dharma does in Hindu literature. Dhamma-
as what is taught by the Buddha- is by far the most commonly
understood sense of the term. On his deathbed the Buddha said to
his disciples that the Dhamma he taught (and the vinaya he pre-
scribed) would be their teacher once he was no more. This advice was
understood by his closest disciples as referring to the teaching con-
tained in the discourses. In this sense, traditionally, dhamma is said
to refer to eighty-four thousand aggregates of Dhamma. Dhamma
also refers to a thing, a phenomenon, or an entity. In this sense
Dhamma refers to the "nine transcendental phenomena," namely,
the four paths, the four fruits, and nirvana (to be described in Chap-
ter 4). Although it looks as though the two references to the term are
far from each other, on closer scrutiny they are very much the same;
we may describe the first as the propositional sense of the term, and
the second as its "metaphysical" sense, or as a psycho-ethical experi-
ence. The virtues attributed to the Dhamma in the popular formula
referred to above seem to be equally applicable to both. They are:
well-taught by the Buddha, to be seen in this very life, timeless, wor-
thy of saying "come and see," to be internalized, to be understood by
the wise each for oneself.
THE SANGHA
The term sangha basically means a community or a group. In this
broad sense, it should be understood as referring to the entire com-
munity of the followers of the Buddha, namely, the bhikkhus, bhik-
khunis, upasakas, and the upasikas, that is, the four groups. In the
early discourses what is understood by the term are those followers of
the Buddha who have attained any of the four paths or fruits. In the
subsequent Theravada tradition, however, the term gradually came
to denote only bhikkhus, the male members of the monastic followers
of the Buddha; bhikkhunis and male and female householders were
no longer included in the term.
In "taking refuge," however, what is meant refers to the original
sense of the term, namely, those who have attained any of the four
paths or fruits (see the next chapter for details). This means that the
Sangha could technically refer to anyone who had achieved a higher
The Triple Gem 23
state of development, as is made clear in the teaching of the Buddha

irrespective of gender or social setting. When Buddhists today recite
the formula containing the virtues of the Sangha, what they basi-
cally have as their point of reference is those members of the Sangha
of yore who are believed to have achieved higher states of freedom
from dukkha. Although there is a popular belief (which could well be
wrong) that there are no longer such people who have attained these
higher states, still, those who take refuge in the Sangha could have in
their mind a picture of the present-day male monastic Sangha as rep-
resentative of the unbroken continuity of the original Sangha.
The virtues of the Sangha listed in the formula are: being with
good conduct, being with upright conduct, being with conduct lead-
ing to knowledge, being with amicable conduct, being worthy of gift,
being worthy of hospitality, being worthy of gifts given for the sake
of the departed, being worthy of reverential salutation, and being an
incomparable field of merit for the world.
The most notable use of the formulae listing the virtues is the
daily worship of the Triple Gem. These three formulae are the first
things children learn, in addition to the chants for taking refuge and
the five precepts, when they begin their religious training. All Thera-
vada Buddhists learn these Pali-language formulae by heart and con-
tinue to keep using them throughout their lives. This does not mean
that all those who use these age-old traditional religious formulae
understand fully what they are uttering even with the utmost reli-
gious devotion. Although they will not necessarily be able to articu-
late what these virtues are, what they do know when they repeat each
of these three formulae is that they recognize the virtues of the Tri-
ple Gem. Perhaps this much is enough for many religious purposes.
More intellectually oriented followers have stressed putting these
virtues in their local Southeast Asian languages so that they under-
stand fully what they are saying. But the tradition associated with
religious language seems to persist in most areas, serving the "heart"
of religious practices better.
A more serious use of the virtues of the Triple Gem is through
reflection on them as aids to developing calmness of mind, recom-
mended by Buddhaghosa in his renowned manual, The Path of Puri-
fication. Reflection on the virtues of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and
dhamma has numerous meanings in Buddhist Pali literature, just as

its Sanskrit equivalent dharma does in Hindu literature. Dhamma-
as what is taught by the Buddha-is by far the most commonly
understood sense of the term. On his deathbed the Buddha said to
his disciples that the Dhamma he taught (and the vinaya he pre-
scribed) would be their teacher once he was no more. This advice was
understood by his closest disciples as referring to the teaching con-
tained in the discourses. In this sense, traditionally, dhamma is said
to refer to eighty-four thousand aggregates of Dhamma. Dhamma
also refers to a thing, a phenomenon, or an entity. In this sense
Dhamma refers to the "nine transcendental phenomena," namely,
the four paths, the four fruits, and nirvana (to be described in Chap-
ter 4). Although it looks as though the two references to the term are
far from each other, on closer scrutiny they are very much the same;
we may describe the first as the propositional sense of the term, and
the second as its "metaphysical" sense, or as a psycho-ethical experi-
ence. The virtues attributed to the Dhamma in the popular formula
referred to above seem to be equally applicable to both. They are:
well-taught by the Buddha, to be seen in this very life, timeless, wor-
thy of saying "come and see," to be internalized, to be understood by
the wise each for oneself.
THE SANGHA
The term sangha basically means a community or a group. In this
broad sense, it should be understood as referring to the entire com-
munity of the followers of the Buddha, namely, the bhikkhus, bhik-
khunis, upasakas, and the upasikas, that is, the four groups. In the
early discourses what is understood by the term are those followers of
the Buddha who have attained any of the four paths or fruits. In the
subsequent Theravada tradition, however, the term gradually came
to denote only bhikkhus, the male members of the monastic followers
of the Buddha; bhikkhunis and male and female householders were
no longer included in the term.
In "taking refuge," however, what is meant refers to the original
sense of the term, namely, those who have attained any of the four
paths or fruits (see the next chapter for details). This means that the
Sangha could technically refer to anyone who had achieved a higher
The Triple Gem 23
state of development, as is made clear in the teaching of the Buddha

irrespective of gender or social setting. When Buddhists today recite
the formula containing the virtues of the Sangha, what they basi-
cally have as their point of reference is those members of the Sangha
of yore who are believed to have achieved higher states of freedom
from dukkha. Although there is a popular belief (which could well be
wrong) that there are no longer such people who have attained these
higher states, still, those who take refuge in the Sangha could have in
their mind a picture of the present-day male monastic Sangha as rep-
resentative of the unbroken continuity of the original Sangha.
The virtues of the Sangha listed in the formula are: being with
good conduct, being with upright conduct, being with conduct lead-
ing to knowledge, being with amicable conduct, being worthy of gift,
being worthy of hospitality, being worthy of gifts given for the sake
of the departed, being worthy of reverential salutation, and being an
incomparable field of merit for the world.
The most notable use of the formulae listing the virtues is the
daily worship of the Triple Gem. These three formulae are the first
things children learn, in addition to the chants for taking refuge and
the five precepts, when they begin their religious training. All Thera-
vada Buddhists learn these Pali-language formulae by heart and con-
tinue to keep using them throughout their lives. This does not mean
that all those who use these age-old traditional religious formulae
understand fully what they are uttering even with the utmost reli-
gious devotion. Although they will not necessarily be able to articu-
late what these virtues are, what they do know when they repeat each
of these three formulae is that they recognize the virtues of the Tri-
ple Gem. Perhaps this much is enough for many religious purposes.
More intellectually oriented followers have stressed putting these
virtues in their local Southeast Asian languages so that they under-
stand fully what they are saying. But the tradition associated with
religious language seems to persist in most areas, serving the "heart"
of religious practices better.
A more serious use of the virtues of the Triple Gem is through
reflection on them as aids to developing calmness of mind, recom-
mended by Buddhaghosa in his renowned manual, The Path of Puri-
fication. Reflection on the virtues of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and
the Sangha are three among forty such practices described by the
celebrated commentator. While some reflect on all the virtues listed
above, others would concentrate on one exclusively, or on one at a
time. Although reflection on the virtues of all three gems has been
recommended, the practice seems to be more focused on the virtues
of the Buddha alone. It has also become customary for these prac-
titioners to use a rosary in the process, a custom that has become
increasingly popular among Theravadins, monks and laity alike,
probably due to Mahayana influences.
Seeking Refuge
The idea of going for refuge that is fundamental to Theravada Bud-
dhism seems to have originated long ago in the general practice of
people relying, or depending, upon some personality or object for
their protection from evil. A series of stanzas occurring in the Dham-
mapada (188-192) contrasts taking refuge in a popular religious sense
with the sense in which the followers of the Buddha would do the
same. The Buddha says:
Stricken by fear, many go to hills, woods, groves, trees, and
shrines for refuge. Such refuge is not safe; nor is it supreme. By
resorting to such refuge one is not freed from suffering. He who
has gone for refuge to the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha,
sees with right knowledge the four noble truths, namely, suffer-
ing, its origin, its cessation, and the path leading to its cessation.
This, indeed, is secure refuge. This, indeed, is refuge supreme. By
seeking such refuge one is freed from all forms of suffering.
Fear-as an emotion-has been identified by many anthropologists

who have studied the origin of religion in primitive societies as a
basic motivating factor behind religious belief. This fear is concerned
with how to protect oneself from powers beyond one's control. What
is meant by "fear" in such contexts is the fear caused by the calamities
of life that visit all living beings: disease, death, and natural disasters
such as floods, hurricanes/typhoons, famines , droughts, and other
uncontrollable horrors.
The Buddhist practice of "going for refuge," too, seems to have
originated from a deep sense of fear, which is referred to as "the fear
The Triple Gem 25
of samsara" or the fear of the repeated cycle of birth and death. The
belief obviously is not that the Buddha, the Dhamma, or the Sangha
is capable of saving people from disease or death or the calamities of
life caused by a sometimes hostile nature. It was, in fact, the kind of
fear that Siddhartha experienced when first he encountered old age,
disease, and death-a fear common to everyone, including himself.
But in spite of his fear he did not seek a deity or other supernatural
power that might be capable of giving him blissful and everlasting
life without ever suffering old age, disease, or death. The need, as he
understood it, was to conquer these evils, to overcome them, and to
develop the mind in such a way that it was not affected by them. In
this, of course, he was influenced significantly by the Brahmanic and
Sramana beliefs of his time, many of which he later came to reject,
while yet working within the same conceptual framework-with the
notable exceptions of the concepts of Soul and God.
In attaining the Buddha-hood it is believed that the Buddha real-
ized the state of deathlessness, thus described in the words uttered by
him immediately afterwards: "the liberation of my mind is unshak-
able; this is my last birth; there is no rebirth; the birth has been fin-
ished; the noble life has been lived; done what needs to be done; there
is nothing further to be done." The idea of taking refuge is to rely on
or trust the Buddha in order to attain the same imperturbability of
mind as he achieved; to count on the Dhamma as the "road-map" to
attain deathlessness; and to count on the Sangha as the living proof
of the achievability of the goal. The simple formula used to take
refuge in the Triple Gem runs as follows:
Buddham saranam gacchami I go for refuge to the Buddha.
Dhammam saranam gacchami I go for refuge to the Dhamma.
Sangham saranam gacchami I go for refuge to the Sangha.
(This chant is repeated twice, adding dutiyampi, "for the second

time," and tatiyampi, "for the third time.")
The idea of taking refuge is associated with trust (saddha), which
is usually understood as faith; but that is not quite correct. It is useful
at this point to consider a little the Theravada concept of"faith." Par-
ticularly in God-centered religions, it is common to stress the indis-
pensability of faith. Like any other religion, Buddhism also finds the
concept of trust to be indispensable. Without trust, one cannot take

refuge in the Triple Gem; and without taking refuge, one cannot be
a follower of the path taught by the Buddha. So this trust can cor-
rectly be considered the starting point of life as a Buddhist. However,
although it is close to the sense of faith, trust must be recognized as
being more crucial for Buddhism. Why one should trust the Buddha
is clear. But just how one should go about developing that trust needs
explanation. The Buddha addressed this issue in several instances.
He recognized that trust can arise from many sources, both emo-
tional and rational. Distinguishing between these two categories, the
early discourses introduce two terms, "rootless" trust and "rational"
trust. "The Discourse on Inquiry" (The Middle Length Discourses 47)
describes the process of how rational trust is developed. The Bud-
dha says:
Bhikkhus, a bhikkhu who is an inquirer, not knowing how
to gauge another's mind, should investigate the Tathagata with
respect to two kinds of states, states cognizable through the eye,
and through the ear thus: Are there found in the Tathagata or
not any defiled states cognizable through the eye, or through the
ear? (The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, Nanamoli and
Bodhi, 1995/2001, p. 415)
Even after being satisfied with this first step, the investigation
should proceed to ascertain whether or not there are mixed states
cognizable through the eye or ear. Once satisfied with that, the
investigator should further explore whether or not the Tathagata has
cleansed states cognizable through the eye or through the ear. Hav-
ing found that he has such cleansed states, he could further inves-
tigate whether the Venerable One has achieved these states over a
long period of time or attained them recently. Being satisfied on this
point, he should investigate further to discover whether or not the
Tathagata has acquired renown and attained fame to the degree that
the dangers connected with renown and fame are present in him.
Having found that there are no such dangers in him, he should fur-
ther question thus: Is this Venerable One restrained without fear, not
restrained by fear, and does he avoid indulging in pleasures because
he is without lust through the destruction of lust? If he finds that
The Triple Gem 27
the Tathagata has destroyed lust, the rational questioner should,

as the last measure, question the Tathagata himself on these mat-
ters. It is through this process that one can place confidence in the
Buddha. It is only then that he can assert: "the Blessed One is fully
enlightened, the Dhamma is well proclaimed by the Blessed One, the
Sangha is practicing the good way." The Buddha concludes his expla-
nation with these words: "Bhikkhus, when anyone's trust has been
planted, rooted, and established in the Tathagata through these rea-
sons, terms, and phrases, his trust is said to be supported by reasons
[rational trust], rooted in vision, firm ... ."
Rational trust is also described in the "Discourse to Brahmayu"
(The Middle Length Discourses 91), which records how Uttara, a
young Brahman student, was asked by his teacher Brahmayu to
investigate whether or not the Buddha had had all the virtues that
people claimed him to have had. The former followed the Buddha
"for seven months like a shadow" and finally reported to his teacher:
We have seen Master Gotama walking, sir, we have seen him

standing, we have seen him entering indoors, we have seen him
indoors seated in silence, we have seen him eating indoors, we
have seen him seated in silence after eating, we have seen him giv-
ing the blessing after eating, we have seen him going to the mon-
astery, we have seen him in the monastery seated in silence, we
have seen him in the monastery teaching the Dhamma to an audi-
ence. Such is the Master Gotama; such he is; and more than that.
(The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, trans. Nanamoli
and Bodhi, 1995/2001, p. 749)
Similarly, in the "Shorter Discourse of the Simile of the Elephant's
Footprint" (The Middle Length Discourses 27), the Buddha lays stress
on the importance of not believing that the Buddha is fully enlight-
ened, that the Dhamma is well proclaimed by the Buddha, and that
the Sangha practices the good way until one realizes by oneself that
this is the case. The process is compared to the practice of a clever
elephant tracker who would not draw a hasty conclusion but con-
tinue to follow the marks indicating the presence of an elephant until
he actually sees the elephant itself. What is clear from these exam-
ples is that the trust Buddhism upholds is one based on concrete evi-
dence. In other words, the idea of religious rationality in the teaching

of the Buddha is characterized as being supported by one's own per-
sonal knowledge of relevant "facts."
Thus the concept of trust in Theravada Buddhism is qualitatively
different from faith as it is usually considered in the context of reli-
gion. This, however, is not to say that all Theravada Buddhists base
their beliefs on rational trust. Many people who came to follow the
Buddha over the centuries did so on such grounds; but for an even
larger group of people, beginning back in the time of the Buddha
himself, this rational orientation remained merely an ideal. In tra-
ditional Theravada societies, being a Buddhist is very largely a mat-
ter of family upbringing and culture. Trust is generated by the cul-
ture itself. Only a few would venture to justify their religious beliefs
on rational grounds. Trust in the Theravada tradition is not devoid
of emotional elements of devotion (Pali bhatti, Skt. bhakti) and love
(Pali pema, Skt. prema). While those who have reached the ultimate
goal will naturally develop such emotional elements along with their
conviction that the Buddha is fully enlightened, and so on, ordinary
people will have those emotions developed in them owing to the
strength of the trust nurtured through their culture.
It is nonetheless important to stress that devotion and love for
the Triple Gem in general, or for the Buddha in particular, has never
taken the shape of such emotions as those found in theistic tradi-
tions, or even in some later Mahayana schools for that matter. In
other words, in a Theravada society even the most uninstructed Bud-
dhist would not expect the Buddha to play the role of a divine being
who is capable of granting his/her wishes. He/she would offer flow-
ers, liquid refreshment, and even food to the Buddha knowing full
well that he is no more and that he is not present to listen to his/
her prayers. Consequently, Theravada Buddhists do not use prayers.
This, again, does not mean that Buddhists do not have any griev-
ances to complain about or rewards to ask for. But for these pur-
poses, traditional Buddhist societies have always had a whole pan-
theon of both local and foreign gods upon whom to rely. As we shall
see in more detail later, the Theravada Buddhists turn to these gods
for their mundane needs. The point is that Theravada societies have
been remarkable in not confusing these roles.
The Triple Gem 29
I
The ubiquitous presence of Buddha statuary in all Theravada
countries might seem to contradict this claim. Sculptures of highly
variable sizes and shapes are found everywhere throughout the
Buddhist world. In the East Asian Mahayana tradition, for exam-
ple, Kuan Yin is believed to protect the world. The statue of her/him
in this way is a symbol of the living presence of this compassionate
being. But the Buddha statues in Theravada societies-where they
are equally ubiquitous-do not have the same significance among
peoples who believe that the Buddha is no more and that there are no
other known buddhas in existence at present. Statues representing
the historical Buddha Gotama in Theravada societies have a differ-
ent significance from those of the Mahayana Kuan Yin, the infinitely
compassionate heaven dweller. In the former they are simply visual
aids to preserve the memory of the Buddha.
Various forms of offerings also serve the purpose of respect-
ing and remembering the Buddha. In Theravada societies, people
believe in the "power of the virtues of the Buddha," and they fur-
ther believe that this power can provide protection for them from
evils. Thus a statue or a picture of the Buddha is understood to rep-
resent the power of his virtues. In addition to this, the public display
of his statue is meant to serve a social or political purpose. In this
religiously competitive globalized society, a statue of the Buddha is a
public expression and affirmation of one's trust-or "faith," in much
the same manner as in other religious traditions. Throughout its long
history Buddhism has existed alongside many other religions, and
often in not altogether friendly atmospheres. Adherents have found
the need to affirm their belief as clearly and visibly as they could, and
the bigger the statue or greater the quantities of them, the more pow-
erful the expression of faith.
Conclusion
To reiterate, to be a Theravada Buddhist is to take refuge in the Tri-
ple Gem of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha. During his
lifetime, the Buddha was a real person living in a specific society; he
could be seen and heard. What was significant, however, was not that
he was a mere person but that he was an awakened person. It is the
awakening that made him worthy of being approached as a refuge.
The Buddha articulated the Dhamma to the world. But the Dhamma
itself is an abstract concept. The concept of Sangha is evidenced by
the individual members of the monastic Sangha, although strictly
speaking "Sangha" in this context refers to those who have realized
any one or several or all of the noble paths and fruits. In either sense
the Sangha, too, as the ideal group, is an abstract concept. Therava-
dins are consistent in believing that the Buddha terminated his sam-
saric existence with his final birth, and that there is no extra-sam-
saric existence for him. In the Theravada tradition this impersonal
character at the center of the "religion" still remains intact. -
From a philosophical point of view, one could argue in fact that
for a practitioner of Theravada Buddhism today there is no real need
of the Buddha, for what is required is the Dhamma, or the teach-
ing. So long as the teaching leads its followers to the goal, one might
maintain, the presence or the absence of the Buddha is of no crucial
importance. On the other hand, it is impossible to think about the
Dhamma without thinking about its author. Therefore, in a manner
true to the teaching of the Buddha, the relation between the Buddha
and the Dhamma has to be understood as one of dependent origina-
tion, the central insight behind the Dhamma itself. It is to a study of
the fundamentals of the Dhamma that I now turn.
CHAPTER 3
The Basic Teachings

of the Buddha
The Theravada tradition holds that just after his Enlightenment the
Buddha felt the need to have a teacher for himself. This seems very
odd, but it seems he felt that, insofar as his enlightenment was con-
cerned, he had had no teacher in the sense of one who instructed and
guided him to achieve his goal. Thus he decided to treat the Dhamma
as his teacher. This story is clearly symbolic. As we saw in the pre-
vious chapter, the Triple Gem follows the sequence of the Buddha,
the Dhamma, and the Sangha. According to this episode in the Bud-
dha's life, however, ideally the Dhamma should be treated as higher
in standing than the other two gems.
Despite this legend, the Dhamma and the Buddha cannot be sep-
arated: it is the Buddha who discovered the Dhamma; but it is due
to the Dhamma that the Buddha is the Buddha. As the well-known
statement goes, one who sees the Buddha sees the Dhamma, and
one who sees the Dhamma sees the Buddha. This equation is usu-
ally understood as highlighting the absence of a discrepancy between
what the Buddha said and what he did. It also suggests that the Bud-
dha is the embodiment of the Dhamma. In the ultimate sense, what
really matters is the Dhamma, although in the absence of any con-
crete form of the Dhamma it is mainly through the Buddha, and to
a lesser extent through the Sangha, that the Dhamma is manifested
to the world.
As we found in our earlier considerations, the term dhamma in
this context means two things: one is the teaching of the Buddha
or what he taught; the other is what is realized or achieved by prac-
ticing what the Buddha taught, namely, "ninefold world-transcend-

ing Dhamma" (i.e., the four paths, the four fruits, and nirvana). If
the former is what the Buddha taught-the Dhamma in its proposi-
tional sense-the latter is what he realized-the Dhamma as a psy-
cho-ethical experience. In this chapter I will focus mainly on what
the Buddha taught, the Dhamma in the propositional sense, and will
conclude the discussion with an exposition of the Dhamma in the
experiential sense, namely, the four stages of realization along with
nirvana, the ultimate happiness.
What is presented in this discussion as "what the Buddha taught"
does not exhaust all that he actually taught. Although "soteriology"
occupies the most important aspect of the teaching of the Buddha,
his advice to householders on matters of wealth, economy, social har-
mony, family life and relations, and happiness form a very impor-
tant part of it. (These practical matters are the subject of Chapter 5.)
Although karma as a basic teaching of the Buddha should logically
be included in this chapter, it is discussed separately in Chapter 4
because of its crucial character and thus the relatively greater space a
fuller discussion of it necessarily demands.
The manner of presentation of what the Buddha taught requires
a brief explanation. Instead of starting with the four noble truths,
which constitute the essence of the realization of the Buddha, I shall
begin with the teaching of what is known as "dependent co-origina-
tion," or the Buddhist view of causality. The reason for this choice is
the fact that the doctrine of dependent co-origination is the philo-
sophical basis for the entire Buddhist teaching as well as the insight
into reality that provides the rationale for the whole of Buddhist
metaphysics. In this sense, the doctrine of dependent co-origination
is not on a par with the other teachings, because all of them have to
be understood on the basis of that concept. As the Buddha himself
said, whoever sees dependent co-origination sees the Dhamma, and
whoever sees the Dhamma sees dependent co-origination (The Mid- _
die Length Discourses 28).
Dependent Co-origination
The idea of dependent co-origination articulates how causation is
understood in Buddhism. It basically deals with causes and con-
The Basic Teachings of the Buddha 33
ditions, depending on which reality exists and evolves, and conse-

quently what things happen. The basic abstract formula of the theory
runs as follows:
In the presence of this, this is.

From the arising of this, this arises.
In the absence of this, this is not.
From the cessation of this, this ceases.
Having provided this abstract form, the discourses immediately

show the concrete application of this abstract formula, namely, how
dukkha arises and ceases dependently. This explanation makes use
of twelve concepts to describe the process: ignorance, volitional con-
structions, consciousness, psychophysical entity, six sense bases,
contact, feeling, thirst, clinging, existence, birth, and decay and
death. The twelve aspects in their essential details are as follows:
Ignorance (avijja): lack of knowledge about dukkha, its origin,

its cessation, and the path leading to its cessation
Volitional constructions (sankhara): physical, verbal, and mental
volitional actions
Consciousness (vinnana): the six (not five) kinds of conscious-
ness-namely, eye consciousness, ear, nose, tongue, body,
and mind consciousness
Psychophysical entity (nama-rupa): feeling, perception, volition,
contact, and attention are called "name"; the four basic mate-
rial elements and matter derived from them are called "form."
The two together are called a psychophysical entity (or
name-and-form)
Six sense bases (salayatana): the eye base, ear, nose, tongue, body,
and mind base
Contact (phassa): Contact means the union of three things-the
sense organ, the relevant object, and the associated conscious-
ness. Taken together, they are sixfold-as eye contact, ear,
nose, tongue, body, and mind contact
Feeling or the act of feeling (vedana): These are sixfold-as the
feeling born from eye contact, ear contact, nose contact,
tongue contact, body contact, and mind contact
Thirst, or the act of desiring (tanha): It is sixfold as the thirst

for material forms, sounds, odors, tastes, tactile objects,
and mental phenomena
Clinging, or the intense act of grasping (upadana) : It is fourfold
as the clinging for sensual pleasures, clinging to views,
clinging to rules and rituals, and clinging to the view of self
Existence (bhava) : It is the three planes of existence as sense
sphere, fine material sphere, and nonmaterial sphere
Birth (jati): The birth of a being into any one of the above-
mentioned three planes of existence
Decay and Death (jara-marana): the ageing and the passing
away of beings after they have been born
The process of the arising and the cessation of dukkha as an inter-

dependent phenomenon is traditionally described in the following
manner:
Conditioned by ignorance, volitional constructions arise.

Conditioned by volitional constructions, consciousness arises.
Conditioned by consciousness, psychophysical entity arises.
Conditioned by psychophysical entity, six sense bases arise.
Conditioned by six sense bases, contact arises.
Conditioned by contact, feeling arises.
Conditioned by feeling, thirst arises.
Conditioned by thirst, clinging arises.
Conditioned by clinging, existence arises.
Conditioned by existence, birth occurs.
Conditioned by birth, decay and death arise.
In this manner the entire mass of dukkha arises.
The cessation of dukkha is described following the same sequence in

reverse: "From the complete cessation of ignorance, volitional con-
structions cease. [The process continues to its conclusion, namely,]
... From the cessation of birth, decay and death cease. In this man-
ner the entire mass of dukkha ceases."
The Buddha makes a distinction between dependent co-origi-
nation and dependently co-arisen phenomena. The doctrine that
explains the dependently arisen character of reality, as articulated in
the abstract theory given at the beginning of this discussion, is what

is called "dependent co-origination." Although the theory remains
the same, the application of it may differ depending on what aspect
of reality is meant to be explained. When the need is to explain the
persistence and the termination of dukkha, it is done with reference
to the twelve factors referred to above. In this context, the twelve fac-
tors are what are called "dependently co-arisen phenomena." It is the
conditionality working among these factors that is responsible for
generating dukkha.
In the explanation of the process of suffering, ignorance has been
singled out as the starting point. This does not mean that ignorance
is the very first beginning of suffering. In fact, Buddhism does not
recognize any first cause as such. All the twelve factors given here,
including ignorance, are dependently arisen. About ignorance the
Buddha says, "Ignorance is impermanent, conditioned, dependently
arisen, subject to destruction, vanishing, fading away, and cessation"
(The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, trans. Bodhi, 2000, p. 551),
and further states that there is no point at which one can say, "Igno-
rance was not there prior to this; it started only from here!"
The process of the arising and cessation of suffering as explained
in this formula may be understood as involving two different dimen-
sions: one immediate, involving the constant present; the second, a
larger, multi-lived existence at the heart of Indian metaphysics. One
must first understand the concept as an explanation of the origin
and cessation of suffering in the present life of any being, as some-
thing taking place every moment in one's life. This is clearly true
for the arising aspect of suffering that happens in a nearly spontane-
ous manner for all those who are not enlightened. The conditions for
the cessation aspect have to be specifically practiced and cultivated,
which is a process equally dependently arisen.
The second, more metaphysical dimension of the concept is to
understand the process as involving the larger samsaric picture of
one's life starting from the past, going through the present, and
extending to the future. This way of understanding has been devel-
oped by Buddhaghosa in numerous commentaries. According to
it, there are five causes pertaining to the past and five effects per-
taining to the present; there are five causes pertaining to the pres-
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
ent and five effects pertaining to the future. These are, respectively,
(1) ignorance, constructions (craving, grasping, and existence);
(2) consciousness, name and form, six bases, contact, and feeling;
(3) ignorance, constructions (craving, grasping, and existence);
and (4) birth, decay, and death (of consciousness, name and form,
six bases, contact, and touch). In this analysis what is included in
parentheses is what is subsumed by the major factors. This analysis
is meant to capture the process of suffering in its samsaric dimen-
sion, and is thus only an extension of the basic teaching given in the
discourses.
Although what is described here constitutes the most important
application of the doctrine, its range of application is not confined
to the phenomenon of suffering. In the Buddhist understanding of
reality, it is not only humans who suffer, but everything that happens
follows a similar process, which means that nothing happens for no
reason, or for any absolute reason, such as through an almighty God.
Buddhist texts usually refer to five areas where one finds this pro-
cess active. They are the principle of seasons: seasonal changes in the
world that take place due to interdependent causes and conditions;
the principle of seeds: the process of seeds producing plants and their
growth that take place due to interdependent causes and conditions;
the principle of action: human actions, in particular moral actions,
and related results, that follow a similar process; the principle of
nature: events belonging to nature, including those that appear to be
miraculous, that take place following a causal process; and the prin-
ciple of mind: the working of the human mind that follows a similar
process, for there is no "thinker" or soul responsible for thinking.
These five principles seem to cover the workings of the natural world
and the moral and psychological spheres of human life.
This doctrine and its manifestations in different aspects of real-
ity highlight the fact that there is no "doer" in an ontological sense,
no substantial entity that does not change over time; what is "real"
is only a complex web of causes and conditions. The absence of a
doer is understood at both the universal level-according to which
there is no creator God responsible for the world-and at the indi-
vidual level-according to which there is no soul or self believed to
be the essence of human beings. The Buddhist denial of these two
major views of theism and substantialism follows from the under-

standing of reality as dependently originated. It is this worldview
that provides the rationale for what is called "Buddhist naturalism"
and illustrates a primary difference between it and other religious
philosophies.
The absence of a doer at either the macro- or micro-level does
not mean that things happen haphazardly for no reason. Nor does
it mean that there is no order or sense of stability to be found in the
world. The process of dependent co-origination has been described
as having the following four characteristics:
I. Objectivity (tathata): This means that dependent co-origina-

tion is real, not a fabrication or a mere theory. The Buddha
said that the dependent nature of reality exists whether
buddhas were to appear in the world or not, and what the
buddha would do is to reveal the true nature of the world,
enabling people to see what has been in existence all the
time.
2. Necessity (avitathata): This characteristic assures that there
is stability in the process.
3. Invariability (anannathata) : This characteristic assures that
there is constancy and uniformity between causes and e
ffects.
4. Conditionality (idappaccayata): Being conditioned by a
multiplicity of factors is the key characteristic of the process.
The emergent picture of reality is not chaos or "anything goes," but

a regulated, uniform, and stable world insofar as it is determined by
causes and conditions.
The doctrine of dependent co-origination, broadly speaking then,
is the Buddhist understanding of reality. Reality includes every-
thing-the natural world, environment, birds and beasts, human
beings, their thoughts and actions, and, more than anything else,
their unpleasant realities, dukkha. The most crucial application of
this doctrine, as we have already seen, is the origin and the cessa-
tion of dukkha, which is seen in Buddhism as similar to any other
phenomena that come under the nature of dependent co-origina-
tion. Dukkha has been explained without resorting to such extreme
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
positions as eternalism and annihilationism or existence and non-

existence. The following conversation between the Buddha and the
naked ascetic Kassapa illustrates how the Buddha, by using the idea
of dependent co-origination, avoided the two extremes of eternal
existence and total destruction of the soul:
KASSA PA: Is suffering done by oneself?

THE BUDDHA: It is not so.
K: Is suffering done by another?
B: It is not so.
K: Is suffering done by both oneself and another?
n: It is not so.
K: Is suffering, done neither by oneself nor by another, but arisen
accidentally?
B: It is not so.
K: Is it the case that there is no suffering?

B: No; suffering is.
K: In that case, you do not see it?
B: I do see it. (The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, trans.
Bodhi, 2000, p. 546)
Without committing himself to any one of the four positions out-

lined in this dialogue, the Buddha describes suffering as a depend-
ently arisen phenomenon. The first position rejected in this conversa-
tion indicates the belief in a soul as the agent who both commits acts
and experiences their results. The second indicates the position that
the doer and experiencer are not causally connected; consequently it
indicates the denial of efficacy of moral behavior. The third is a com-
bination of two wrong views; and the fourth indicates a rejection of
causation that would amount to a denial of moral responsibility. In
rejecting these positions the Buddha explained (human) misery, how
it originates and ceases "naturalistically" through this doctrine. In
the ultimate analysis, the doctrine of dependent co-origination rep-
resents the soulless and godless worldview of the Buddha.
Insofar as the explanation of dukkha and its cessation is con-
cerned, there is no fundamental difference between dependent co-
origination and the four noble truths. While the former places suf-
fering in the broader perspective of reality and analyses it in terms
of human psychology, the latter presents the same phenomenon as a

comprehensive ethical program.
The Four Noble Truths

In what Theravada Buddhists believe to be the first sermon of
the Buddha, "The Discourse on the Turning of the Wheel of the
Dhamma" (The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, trans. Bodhi,
2000, pp. 1843-1847), the Buddha explained to his five human lis-
teners (described in Chapter i) the four noble truths-namely, the
noble truth of dukkha, that of arising of dukkha, that of cessation
of dukkha, and that of the path leading to the cessation of dukkha.
These four truths are known in the discourses in abbreviated form
as suffering (dukkha), arising (samudaya), cessation (nirodha) and
the path (magga). That these four truths represent the crux of his
entire teaching is affirmed by the following statement the Buddha
made on various occasions during his subsequent life as a teacher:
"Monks, even before and even now, I teach only dukkha and its
cessation."
Importantly, everything the Buddha said has something to do
with these four truths. When Malunkyaputta, an inquisitive bhikkhu
who demanded that the Buddha answer his questions on the extent
and duration of the universe and the like, the Buddha responded to
him in the following words:
Malunkyaputta, take what I have taught as what I have taught;

take what I have not taught as what I have not taught. What have I
taught? I have taught "This is dukkha"; I have taught: "This is the
origin of dukkha"; ... "This is the cessation of dukkha"; ... "This
is the path leading to the cessation of dukkha." What have I not
taught? I have not taught "The universe is finite," "The universe is
infinite," etc. (The Middle Length Discourses 63)
The reason for this emphasis is not hard to find. The Buddha saw
dukkha as the most immediate and crucial issue with which human
beings have to deal. In the subsequent discussion with the same
Malunkyaputta, the Buddha explained that when a man is hit with
an arrow his priority is to remove it and treat the wound as soon as
possible, not to bother about peripheral issues such as who the archer
was or where he came from. The four noble truths are all about
dukkha in the samsara and freedom from it in nirvana. Hence, the
Buddha said: "Bhikkhus, due to non-understanding and non-real-
ization of these four noble truths you and I have wandered through
this samsara for a long period of time" (The Connected Discourses
of the Buddha, trans. Bodhi, 2000, p. 1852). The four truths require
four different types of action. Dukkha needs to be comprehended, its
cause needs to be abandoned, its cessation needs to be realized, and
the path for its cessation needs to be practiced.
DUKKHA
The Discourse on the Turning of the Wheel of the Dhamma describes
the first noble truth in the following words:
Birth is dukkha, decay is dukkha, illness is dukkha, death is
dukkha, to be associated with the unpleasant is dukkha, to be dis-
sociated from the pleasant is dukkha, not getting what one yearns
for is dukkha; in brief, the five aspects [of a person] characterized
by grasping are dukkha.
The Buddhist tradition understands the term dukkha to have the
following three different meanings: (1) sorrowful suffering (duk-
kha-dukkha): ordinary mental and physical suffering character-
ized by pain, illness, and so on-suffering in its most ordinary, and
best understood, sense; (2) suffering caused by change (viparinama-
dukkha): unsatisfactoriness caused by the mutability of things, mean-
ing thereby pain caused by old age, decaying of the body, and changes
in situations and people and the like; and (3) suffering associated with
constructed things (sankhara -dukkha). This last refers to the basic
unsatisfactory character associated with all impermanent things.
For the third aspect of dukkha, the term sankhara is usually
invoked, and is understood as referring to phenomenal construc-
tions, which includes everything that is causally conditioned and
dependently arisen, namely, the physical world and everything in it.
Since the particular focus of the teaching of the Buddha is human
unsatisfactoriness, sankhara dukkha basically refers to suffering
associated with individuals. What is described in the standard anal-
ysis of dukkha as "the five aggregates [of the individual] character-
ized by grasping" is understood as referring to this deep manifesta-

tion of dukkha .
In order to understand the human being as a dependently arisen
phenomenon, it is necessary to analyze the characterization of human
being as composed of the five aspects. The five aspects that make
up a human being are (1) material form, (2) feeling, (3) perception,
(4) "constructions," and (5) consciousness. To elaborate: (1) Material
form refers to the physical body of a person, which undergoes con-
stant change from the moment it is born until it dies. (2) Feelings are
the happy, unhappy, or neutral feelings a person experiences. (3) Per-
ceptions are what one perceives through one's senses-eyes, ears,
nose, tongue, body, and mind. (4) "Constructions" in this context
refer to mental and physical actions. (5) Consciousness is the mental
element that arises based on the six sensory bases, namely, eye con-
sciousness, ear consciousness, and so on. It is the interaction of the
five aspects that gives the impression of "I" or "myself" in the form
of a permanently existing being and that serves as the foundation of
all self-centered desires.
In the Theravada tradition there is no doubt about the founda-
tional character of the doctrine of the four noble truths as the Bud-
dha's key insight into reality. Within the four noble truths themselves
is the central conception of dukkha. In fact, one could even describe
this whole scheme as one truth with four perspectives. Accordingly,
the Buddha says that to see dukkha is to see its origin, its cessation,
and the path leading to its cessation.
The centrality of the concept of dukkha, however, does not make
the teaching of the Buddha pessimistic, as some would anticipate.
The Buddha does not discuss suffering as a mere outlook or perspec-
tive but instead refers to it simply as a reality. In the earlier discus-
sion we observed how the teaching of dependent co-origination was
described as being an objective account of the world. In like man-
ner, the doctrine of the four noble truths, too, has been described
by the Buddha in the same way, as having objectivity, necessity, and
invariability, dropping only the fourth characteristic, conditionality,
which is not directly relevant. This method of characterizing empha-
sizes the fact that dukkha, from its simplest to its most complex
form, exists whether we are ready to admit it or not. As in the case
of dependent co-origination, what the Buddha does is to reveal it to

the world. The ultimate purpose of the analysis is to point out that an
escape from dukkha does exist-namely, the happiness of freedom.
THE ORIGIN OF DUKKHA (THIRST)

The second noble truth is how dukkha arises, or its cause, namely,
craving (literarily, "thirst"). It is described in the following manner:
"It is this thirst which produces rebirth, associated with passionate
desire, and which finds delight now here, now there-namely, the
thirst for pleasures, the thirst for existence, and the thirst for non-
existence.'' In this analysis, the thirst is described as responsible for
producing rebirth and causing attachment in whatever situation one
finds oneself, as well as having the characteristic of excessive desire.
Thirst is threefold. First is the thirst for the pleasurable objects one
perceives through one's senses, namely, eyes, ears, nose, tongue,
body, and mind. Depending on any of the senses, in the presence of
the relevant object, the particular consciousness arises; the union of
the three (sense organ, object, and consciousness) is contact; from
contact arises thirst, and thirst causes dukkha. This is the most ordi-
nary and gross form of desire aimed at sensual gratification. The sec-
ond is thirst for existence-the thirst to remain in different realms
of existence, namely, the world of pleasures, the world of fine mate-
riality, and the world of immateriality. The third thirst-of a differ-
ent kind but a thirst nevertheless-is for nonexistence: the desire for
self-annihilation.
This threefold pattern of thirst covers the three aspects of human
desire, according to Buddhism. All three are based on the idea of
one's self as a separate and unique individual with an imperishable
soul. The second aspect of desire in particular represents the belief
in a soul that was understood as surviving one's death. The three dif-
ferent realms begin with the most mundane form of existence and
move to more refined states, such as fine material and nonmaterial
existence, which nevertheless are manifestations of the desire for the
continuity of one's self. This belief is described as "eternalism.'' The
last of the aspects of desire is the paradoxical state of desire for non-
existence or self-destruction, which, again, is based on the belief in
soul and is called "annihilationism.''
Although thirst is correctly described as the cause of misery, the

tradition makes it clear that it should not be understood as the sole
cause. In Theravada literature one finds references to "three roots
of unskillfulness," namely, desire, hatred, and ignorance. Desire and
hatred represent polar characteristics of mind, and the third, men-
tioned as ignorance (avijja in the doctrine of dependent co-origi-
nation), represents the basis for the other two. In this classification,
thirst is included in desire, adding to it the equally important other
aspects. Nirvana is portrayed as the liberation of mind from these
unwholesome phenomena, and it is in relation to them that the final
attainment is described as liberation or freedom.
TERMINATION OF DUKKHA (NIRVANA)

The third noble truth means the state of freedom from dukkha that
results from the total eradication of thirst. It is characterized by a
resultant happiness. This state is known as nirvana. The termination
of dukkha has been described in the following manner: "The absolute
nonattachment and cessation of that very same thirst, its giving up,
abandonment, release, and lack of affection is called cessation of duk-
kha." Following the analysis of the origin of suffering as thirst, the
cessation has been described here as the eradication of that thirst. In
more general terms, the question "What is nirvana?" has usually been
answered as the extinction of desire, hatred, and delusion (moha).
There have been many discussions on what constitutes nirvana.
Controversies are as plentiful as discussions, and from the time of
the Buddha himself there have been many questions about the final
goal. These queries seem in particular to have focused on two areas.
One is the nature of the experience of nirvana, and the other is what
happens after death to the person who has realized nirvana. In par-
ticular, it was misunderstood that the person who attains nirvana
becomes extinct after death. Based on this misunderstanding, the
Buddha was criticized as an advocate of the destruction of the per-
son and personhood. In standard Indian philosophy Buddhism has
been included among the annihilationist systems. All systems that
affirmed the existence of soul were classified as affirmative, so Bud-
dhism, along with materialism, was thus categorized under the head-
ing of negative systems.
The Buddha very clearly stated that he did not proclaim the
annihilation or cutting off of an individual who really exists; his
point was that he denied the reality of an individual who exists
independently. This effectively means that there is no individual
who is destroyed in the realization of nirvana because there is no
individual to begin with. What really occurs at realization is the
understanding that the whole operation has been a dependently co-
arisen phenomenon lacking in any substance. With this realization
one's thirst in all its forms becomes extinct, and consequently one's
samsaric existence comes to an end. To use an ancient simile, like
a lamp, enlightened people become extinguished. When a fire is
extinguished due to lack of fuel, there is no point in asking "Where
has the fire gone?" Similarly, when all one's samsaric fuel-in the
form of defilements-are gone, there is nothing left to cause rebirth.
The end of the life of such a person is not called death but rather a
"comprehensive blowing out" (Skt. parinirvana). Once an arahant
attains parinirvana, there is nothing left to consider about him, for
"he" no longer has a referent. In this sense, early Buddhism does
not talk about an "experience" of nirvana beyond the parinirvana
of the arahant.
Although parinirvana is usually understood as referring to the
passing away of an arahant or the Buddha, the term is also used in
the discourses to describe the state of mind of the liberated person
while he is still living. Two key terms used to describe the nature
of a liberated person are "purification" (visuddhi) and "liberation"
(vimutti). The former is in contradistinction to the defiled state of
the ordinary mind, and the latter to the bound state of that mind.
The mind of the arahant could then be described as being free from
all defilements, and thus liberated. These are modes of feeling no less
than of consciousness, but are not exactly ordinary modes of feel-
ing, as is made clear in the following episode. When Sariputta, one
of the two chief disciples of the Buddha, described nirvana as hap-
piness, a puzzled Udayi, another disciple, asked, "What is the happi-
ness in nirvana where there is nothing to be felt?" In responding to
this query Sariputta replied, "The very fact that there is nothing to be
felt is happiness" (The Book of Gradual Sayings, vol. 5, pp. 279-280).
What Sariputta seems to be saying is that happiness derived from
what is felt through senses does not exhaust the domain of happiness,
and that nirvanic happiness is beyond that which is familiar to us in
the sphere of the senses.
Nirvana described in the early discourses-in nonmystical expe-
riential terms-came gradually to be seen as a distinct metaphysical
entity in the subsequent Theravada tradition. In the Visuddhimagga,
the most authoritative noncanonical statement of the teaching of
the Buddha, the great commentator Buddhaghosa argues that nir-
vana is not nonexistence but existence. A critique, from an early
Buddhist point of view, would be to point out that both existence
and nonexistence in absolute terms are extremes that are no differ-
ent from each other, and that the Buddha had always rejected any
extremes of this sort. But the subsequent tradition seems to have
been keen to establish the "is-ness" of nirvana to counter possible
criticisms of nonexistence. "Nirvana is not nonexistent like a rabbit-
horn or a son of a barren woman; it is a transcendental phenomenon
to be realized by the liberated person," as Buddhaghosa argued. At
the heart of this issue seems to lie a misunderstanding of the gram-
mar of language. The end result of this trend is the popular view of
nirvana as a realm that is happiness, and nothing but happiness, in
its highest degree.
The tradition nevertheless seems to be quite aware of the radical
difference between happiness in nirvana and the happiness in vari-
ous heavenly abodes mentioned in both Theravada and Mahayana
Buddhist literature. Buddhists seem to understand that nirvana is
only the very final leg of their samsaric journey. But, being true to
their ordinary human nature, they know that before this grand finale
they have many things to do and much happiness to enjoy. Therefore,
in the long samsaric journey nirvana is something to be achieved
someday in the indefinite future. Theravada followers comprehend
that nirvana is to be achieved, not in any hurry, but when the future
Buddha Maithreya appears in the world to unfold the Dhamma once
again. The standard admonition a monk delivers to his devotees at
the conclusion of a "meritorious action" is to aspire to nirvana only
after they have exhausted all forms of happiness, both human and
divine. It is in this way that they often reconcile the contradiction
between samsara and nirvana.
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
THE EIGHTFOLD PATH LEADING

TO THE TERMINATION OF DUKKHA
The fourth noble truth is the path to be followed in order to achieve
nirvana, which is the end of dukkha. Commencing his first ser-
mon the Buddha said: "Bhikkhus, there are these two extremes that
should not be associated with by one who has renounced his worldly
life. They are indulgence in sensual pleasures which is low, vulgar,
and belonging to the unenlightened, and self-mortification, which
is painful, ignoble, and harmful. Avoiding these two extremes is
the Middle Path realized by the Buddha, which is productive of eye,
knowledge, wisdom, science, and light." The Middle Path referred to
in this statement is the eightfold path itself, namely:
Right View (samma-ditthi)
Right Concept (samma-sankappa)
Right Word (samma-vaca)
Right Action (samma-kammanta)
Right Livelihood (samma-ajiva)
Right Effort (samma-vayama)
Right Mindfulness (samma-sati)
Right Concentration (samma-samadhi)
To elaborate, right view is to understand the four noble truths.

Right concept is to develop thoughts of renunciation, non-hatred,
and harmlessness. Right word is to refrain from telling lies and
speaking only truth, to refrain from repeating gossip, and eschewing
harsh language and meaningless words, using only conciliatory, soft,
kind, and meaningful ones. Right action is to refrain from killing
and to practice kindness toward living beings, to refrain from tak-
ing what does not properly belong to oneself and to protect others'
belongings, to refrain from sexual misconduct and live an ethical
life. Right livelihood is to avoid a wrong means of earning a liveli-
hood and live one's life adhering to right means. Right effort is to
strive to (1) prevent the arising of evil and unwholesome states not
already present; (2) to get rid of evil and unwholesome states already
arisen; (3) cause good and wholesome states that have not arisen
already to arise; and (4) to develop and enhance good and whole-
some states already arisen. Right mindfulness is to be resolute, well

aware, and mindful, to avoid attachment and aversion, and to reflect
on the activities and states of one's physical body, feelings, states of
mind, and phenomena. Right concentration is to develop the one-
pointedness of mind leading specifically to the first four stages of
serenity known as jhana (Skt. dhyana).
The eightfold path encapsulates the entire Buddhist practice
intended to result in the realization of nirvana. At the same time, it
represents the Buddha's most general statement of the path. In the
numerous explanations provided by the Buddha in his lifetime, there
are many expositions with varying emphases given to various listen-
ers to suit each person's or group's state of development and experi-
ence of the path. For a beginner this could be perplexing at times. A
closer look, however, shows that all the parts fit into a harmonious
whole.
The eightfold path is usually understood to include what are called
the "three trainings.'' These are morality (sila), concentration (sama-
dhi), and understanding (panna) . The several aspects of the eightfold
path are all subsumed within these three categories. Accordingly, the
first two aspects of the eightfold path, right view and right thought,
are included in understanding. The next three-right word, actions,
and livelihood-are included within morality. And the last three,
right effort, mindfulness, and concentration, are included in concen-
tration. Although the path is described as the eightfold path in the
context of the teaching of the four noble truths, the exposition of the
path most often found in the discourses is referred to simply as the
"three trainings."
The Three Trainings

Treading the path in accordance with the three trainings begins with
morality and then proceeds to concentration and understanding.
That the path is gradual, and that it becomes deeper and deeper as
one moves along it was emphasized by the Buddha, who compared
it to the ocean, which deepens gradually not abruptly. It is under-
stood that one has to begin with morality, without which one cannot
reach the next stage, concentration, without which one cannot reach
the final stage of understanding. The path consequently has been
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
described as "gradual training, gradual action, and gradual practice."

This gradual progress should not be understood as leaving behind
the earlier stages upon reaching the next: in fact, one who develops
concentration does so fortified by morality, and the same holds true
for concentration in relation to understanding.
Now let us look at each of the three aspects of the training within
which the eightfold path is included. The first is sila or morality,
defined as the restraint of one's physical and verbal behavior. In the
eightfold path this aspect is covered by right speech, action, and live-
lihood. Right action and right livelihood have certain differences
when applied to ordinary laypersons and monastic followers. For
example, the third aspect of right action for laypeople is to refrain
from sexual misconduct, indicating thereby that right sexual con-
duct is permissible for them. Monastic members of Buddhism, how-
ever, are to abstain from sex altogether. Right livelihood for monks
is to avoid all kinds of unacceptable gestures, words, and modes of
behavior connected to gaining food, clothing, lodgings, or medicine.
For laypeople, right livelihood is to make a living while avoiding
wrong modes of earning money, such as selling animals, weapons,
meat, poison, and liquor.
Thus we see that the sila for laypeople differs from that of the
monastic community. Laymen and laywomen are expected to
observe what are called the five precepts as their regular morality. In
the Theravada tradition these precepts are articulated in the follow-
ing manner:
I undertake to observe the precept of refraining from killing life.
I undertake to observe the precept of refraining from taking
what is not given.
I undertake to observe the precept of refraining from sexual
misconduct.
I undertake to observe the precept of refraining from telling lies.
I undertake to observe the precept of refraining from alcohol
that causes intoxication and negligence.
Buddhists utter the Pali formula containing the five precepts as a
part of their daily practice of religion at home or at a temple. Before
any public function/ceremony begins, a monk is normally invited to
perform the ritual of administering the five precepts preceded by the

formula for taking refuge (as we saw in the previous chapter}.
In addition to these, lay Buddhists observe additional precepts on
special religious days, usually days of the full moon and, to a lesser
extent, especially by the elderly, on no-moon days. Among these pre-
cepts are refraining from taking meals at undue times, from engag-
ing in dancing, singing, and music, watching funny performances,
wearing garlands or perfume for the purpose of decorating one-
self, and using high and valuable beds and seats. Some add refrain-
ing from accepting "silver and gold" (meaning, dealing with money)
and observe ten precepts by counting the precept on refraining from
dancing and so on as two. When one undertakes to observe eight
or ten precepts, the usual third precept on refraining from sexual
misconduct changes to refraining from sexual conduct altogether.
Usually people observe these precepts during the whole twenty-four-
hour full-moon day, but nowadays a larger majority would observe
them only during the day and return to their homes in the evening.
Before leaving for home, either assisted by a monk or by themselves,
they would terminate their special observance by returning to the
usual practice of the five precepts.
The sila for the monastic community is larger in both extent and
scope. Among these two groups of monks and nuns (in the past)
there were samaneras and samaneris-male and female novices. One
usually entered the monastic life as a novice and only subsequently
was allowed to become a full member. Receiving the initial admis-
sion to the Sangha organization is called "going forth" or (more lit-
erally) "(voluntary) banishment" (pabbajja). At the next stage, the
novice is given full admission (upasampada). In order to be admit-
ted as a member one must be twenty-one years old, familiar with the
basic teachings and disciplinary rules, physically fit, and have per-
mission from one's parents or spouse. Usually a novice receives this
training under a teacher. During the time of the Buddha, when the
majority who entered the Sangha were grown up and mature peo-
ple, one would be admitted to full membership right away. Currently,
however, when the large majority enters the Sangha as young chil-
dren, upasampada is always carried out separately. It is with this full
admission that a novice is recognized as a bhikkhu or bhikkhuni. Ini-
tial and full admission procedures were internal Sangha activities in

early Theravada, but today they have evolved into public ceremonies
attended by large gatherings of people.
As far as sila is concerned, the new novice is required to observe
the ten precepts mentioned earlier. This is called "novice-moral-
ity" and is the same for both male and female novices. It is with the
admittance to the Sangha that one is expected to observe sila in its
entirety. The sila relevant to a bhikkhu is divided into two groups,
namely, "basic morality pertaining to the noble life" and "morality
pertaining to good behavior." The rules belonging to the first cat-
egory are considered more important. In the Theravada tradition
there are two hundred and twenty in number (also counted as two
hundred and twenty-seven by adding the seven measures to resolve
violations) for bhikkhus that are called patimokkha sila, meaning
"very important or quite fundamental rules." (The collection of these
rules itself is known as the Patimokkha.) The collection starts with
the four most serious violations, called "defeat": sex, killing a human
being, stealing, and falsely pretending to have supernormal powers.
The commission of any of these offenses causes the offender to lose
his membership in the Sangha. The rest of the offenses continue in a
gradually decreasing order of severity. All two hundred and twenty
taken together are the rules or "laws" promulgated by the Buddha.
From them has developed a complex legal system involving punitive
procedures and recovery measures.
In the Theravada canonical vinaya literature these rules have been
dealt with in detail in the two works, and the morality/sila pertain-
ing to good behavior are included in two other vinaya texts dealing
with the traditions and conventions that developed around the vari-
ous aspects of monastic life, such as food, clothing, residence, medi-
cine, ecclesiastical activities, and so on. The fifth canonical vinaya
text deals with procedural and explanatory details relevant to both
the rules and behavior groupings (see Appendix 2). The sila relevant
for bhikkhunis is dealt with in these same canonical works, except
that the number of rules they were obliged to follow numbered three
hundred and four (also counted as three hundred and eleven by add-
ing the seven measures to resolve violations).
The monastic followers were expected to gather at specifically
designated places once in every two weeks according to the lunar cal-
endar to recite together the collection of the vinaya rules (Patimok-
kha). These meetings served the purpose of enhancing solidarity and
forging a spiritual bond among the members of the Sangha, in addi-
tion to the fundamental goal of strengthening the monastic disci-
pline. The practice still continues with varying degrees of frequency
among Theravada monastic communities.
Despite its many details and precepts, sila in the ultimate sense
is to tread the path of the threefold training. Once a bhikkhu com-
plained to the Buddha that he could not possibly adhere to this large
a number of precepts. The Buddha asked the disgruntled disciple
whether or not he was capable of training himself in the three train-
ings instead. To this he answered in the affirmative, and the Buddha
said that it was enough. This demonstrates that sila is not mere physi-
cal and verbal discipline but the foundation of the whole path.
CONCENTRATION
The second aspect of the training is to develop serenity and calm-
ness of mind. The calmness of mind spoken of here is called samadhi
and is defined as "concentration of the wholesome mind." Samadhi
in the Buddhist tradition arises in a mind developed by meditation
or bhavana. The word bhavana is a noun derived from the verb form
bhaveti, "to develop" or "culture." The teaching of the Buddha on
the one hand emphasizes the crucial importance of developing one's
mind and on the other hand underscores the crude and untamed
nature of the ordinary mind. The serious practice of the path begins
with developing concentration of mind. Meditation in Buddhism is
not some kind of inner engagement or communication with what
is believed to be the transcendental or unknown. At its basic level,
meditation is to practice one-pointedness of mind with the aim of
gaining mastery over it.
Bhavana is twofold, namely, serenity meditation (samatha bha-
vana) and insight meditation (vipassana bhavana). The former leads
to concentration, whereas the latter leads to understanding. Samatha
meditation is sometimes called "mind development" (citta bhavana),
for it is exclusively meant for making one's mind pliable for the more
advanced purpose of generating understanding/wisdom. In what
follows we shall see how these two forms of meditation are put into
practice.
The advance from morality to concentration is not automatic; it
needs preparation. According to the texts, the prospective practitio-
ner, before starting meditation, must be in the proper moral frame of
mind, capable of restraining the senses, and content. Then he needs
to find a suitable place for meditation and sit cross-legged with an
erect body. He should concentrate, keeping mindful of his physical
and mental behavior.
The next step is to remove from the mind what are called the five
hindrances. According to the "Discourse on the Fruits of Monastic
Life" (The Long Discourses 2):
Abandoning worldly desires, he dwells with a mind freed from

worldly desires, and his mind is purified of them. Abandoning ill-
will and hatred ... and by compassionate love for the welfare of
all living beings, his mind is purified of ill-will and hatred. Aban-
doning sloth and torpor ... perceiving light, mindful and clearly
aware, his mind is purified of sloth and torpor. Abandoning
worry and flurry ... and with an inwardly calmed mind his heart
is purified of worry and flurry. Abandoning doubt, he dwells
with doubt left behind, without uncertainty as to what things are
wholesome, his mind is purified of doubt.
The state of the mind affected by the five hindrances has been com-
pared to being in debt, being ill, being in a prison, being a slave, and
being in a desert. The relief one experiences after these hindrances
are gone is thus compared to the state of mind after paying off the
debt, recovery from illness, being released from prison, being freed
from slavery, and crossing a desert safely. When one finds that the five
hindrances are no more, one feels glad, then one becomes delighted;
by the delight in one's mind the body is tranquilized; with a tranquil-
ized body one feels joy; and with joy the mind is concentrated. At this
stage one enters and remains in the first jhana, "which is with think-
ing and pondering, born of detachment, filled with delight and joy."
With the further development of the process one attains the second,
third, and the fourth jhanas characterized by increasing aloofness
from conceptualization and sensory experiences.
What is meant by right concentration in the eightfold path is the

attainment of these four jhanic states. Although we find the above
description in the early discourses, the standard Theravada expla-
nation of the process was given by Buddhaghosa in his Visuddhi-
magga. In his analysis, Buddhaghosa elaborates in detail the aids to
the development of concentration. He lists forty "subjects of medita-
tion" from which one can select. The rationale for this multiplicity
of subjects are the character differences observed among meditators.
Buddhaghosa classified meditators as having predominant charac-
ter traits oflust, hatred, delusion, faith , intelligence, and speculation.
A competent meditation teacher should judge the prospective medi-
tator with respect to these character traits and prescribe a suitable
subject for him. The subject of the meditation is initially adopted by
seeing, hearing, or touching, depending on the case. For instance, if
the subject of the meditation is the earth, it is undertaken by look-
ing at a patch or circle of earth prepared especially for the purpose.
If the subject is air, one's feeling of air becomes the means. When the
subject is virtues of the Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, and so on, it is
undertaken by listening to an account of such virtues. The medita-
tor initially concentrates on his chosen subject until it becomes very
clear in his mind. Subsequently, as the calmness of mind advances,
and with the abandonment of the five hindrances, mind attains con-
centration. By refining this concentration further, the meditator
ascends to the fourth stage of concentration; and from that point the
meditator proceeds to develop understanding, the final stage of the
path.
UNDERSTANDING
The final aspect of the path is to develop understanding (panna) .
What is meant by understanding in this context is to see reality in
its true character, which is to see it as impermanent (anicca), unsat-
isfactory (dukkha), and no-soul (anatta). In the eightfold path-right
view and right thought-only a broad picture of this understanding
is highlighted. Understanding, as the last stage, involves the entirety
of the path and the fruit attained from following it. Hence the eight-
fold path analysis is subsumed within the three trainings analysis.
The practice of meditation involved at this stage is called "insight" or
vipassana meditation. The Pali words vi + passana (passa, "to see")

mean "seeing in a special manner." This special manner of seeing
reality is also known in the Buddhist literature as "the knowledge
of seeing things as they really are" (or more literarily, "as they have
come to be": yatha-bhuta nana). Now I shall turn to the three charac-
teristics that constitute the true nature of reality according to Thera-
vada teachings.
The first character of reality seen in insight meditation is imper-
manence. The Buddha says that all constructed phenomena are
impermanent. What is meant by "constructed phenomena" (san-
khara) in Buddhist parlance is everything that is causally condi-
tioned and dependently arisen. As we saw in Chapter 2, when Sid-
dhartha articulated his dissatisfaction about life in the following
words: "This world has fallen upon trouble. There is getting born
and decaying and passing away and being reborn. And yet from this
suffering, from decay and death, an escape is not known," what he
was referring to is nothing other than the impermanent character of
human existence: people are born, they grow old, get sick, and die.
We are unable to hold on permanently to anything we love; every-
thing changes. The Buddha said whatever is impermanent is unsat-
isfactory. Whatever is unsatisfactory cannot have anything substan-
tial like soul (atta; Skt. atman) which is believed to be permanent and
everlasting. This leads us to the third characteristic, namely, no-soul.
The denial of soul can be considered the unique characteris-
tic of the teaching of the Buddha. It was on account of this denial
that Brahmins and others who believed in the existence of the soul
included the Buddha in the category of materialists and accused him
of being an "advocate of destruction." For the Buddha, both eter-
nalists and annihilationists (as the Buddha would call them) were
basically two sides of the same coin: one group held the soul to be
everlasting, whereas the other believed it was destroyed at death. By
avoiding these two extremes the Buddha showed that human beings
and reality all, as constructed phenomena, are dependently arisen
and hence impermanent.
As we saw in our earlier consideration of Brahmanism, the idea
of soul was held to refer to a permanent substance residing within all
living beings, in particular human beings. It was the thinker behind
thoughts, the perceiver behind perception, and the doer behind

actions. It survived death and transmigrated from one physical body
to another at the death of the holder. The Buddha rejected this idea
as unprovable and argued for its rejection through the analysis of
human beings as composed of the five aspects (panca-khandha) dis-
cussed earlier. By showing that human beings are constituted of only
these aspects and nothing more, the Buddha emphasized the fact
that there is nothing hidden here. Looking for something over and
above these five aggregates is to misunderstand linguistic conven-
tion. Hence it is said: "The word 'chariot' occurs owing to the collec-
tion of parts; in the like manner, in the presence of aggregates there
occurs the convention called 'being"' (The Connected Discourses of
the Buddha, trans. Bodhi, 2000, p. 230).
The closest element that relates to "soul" in this classification is
"consciousness." But consciousness is always understood as one of
six kinds, namely, eye consciousness, ear, nose, tongue, body, and
mind consciousness. The eye consciousness arises "depending on
eye, in the presence of physical form." This is true, too, of the other
consciousnesses. There is no pure or primordial consciousness from
which all other forms of consciousness emerge. In Buddhist literature
there is a story about a bhikkhu named Sati who held a view that "it
is the same consciousness that runs through and wanders around."
The Buddha rebuked the disciple for holding this wrong view and
said: "I have explained consciousness as dependently arisen; without
condition there is no arising of consciousness." The Buddha rejected
soul and any soul substitutes like consciousness, that were believed
to be independent and arising without conditions. In reality an indi-
vidual or a being does not exist. Buddhaghosa articulates this posi-
tion in the following manner: "Suffering alone exists, not a sufferer;
action alone exists, not an actor; extinguishment alone exists, not
one who is extinguished; path alone exists, not one who treads on it"
(Visuddhimagga, chap. i6).
This view of soul as constituting an indestructible essence is the
foundation for the false belief"! am." On this belief one builds a uni-
verse having oneself as its center. The purpose of the five-aggregate
analysis is to demonstrate that the belief in "I" or "Mine" does not
have any factual basis. Once one realizes that "I" is a mere illusion,
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
the universe one has built around it collapses. The Buddha explained
this in the following discussion:
What do you think, bhikkhus, is material form permanent or
impermanent?
Impermanent, venerable sir.
Is what is impermanent agony or happiness?
Agony, venerable sir.
Is what is impermanent, agony and subject to change fit to be
regarded thus: "This is mine; this I am, this is my self?"
No, venerable sir.
The conclusion of the argument is the following:
Therefore, bhikkhus, any kind of material form whatsoever,
whether past, future or present, internal or external, gross or sub-
tle, inferior or superior, far or near- all material form should be
seen as it really is with correct wisdom thus: "This is not mine,
this I am not, this is not my self." (The Connected Discourses of the
Buddha, trans. Bodhi, 2000, p. 902)
(The same argument is applied to the rest of the four aggregates too.)
Following this discussion we may conclude that there are two
interconnected meanings in the Buddhist concept of anatta. The
first is the denial of the factuality of the Brah manic concept of atta/
atma as the indestructible individual essence. The second is the ethi-
cal implication Buddhism derives from it, namely, that there is noth-
ing to be taken as 'T' or "belonging to I." To see this by means of
wisdom represents the dawn of liberating knowledge. This is what is
meant by "understanding" in the threefold training.
Thus the eightfold path has to be understood within the broader
category of the three trainings-virtue, concentration, and under-
standing. Understanding essentially is to realize the four noble
truths. The two classification schemes are complementary to each
other, and by practicing one, the other is automatically followed.
In a revealing statement (The Connected Discourses of the Buddha,
trans. Bodhi, 2000, p. 158) the Buddha says that the world, its origin,
its cessation, and the path leading to its cessation, all exist within
this fathom-long body with perception and mind. In this context
the Buddha uses the word loka denoting "world," not to refer to the
material world per se, but to refer to the human being. According
to this understanding, the world that human beings create within
themselves is nothing other than unsatisfactory. Dukkha in the world
and dukkha in the individual are inseparable in the final analysis.
Both the problem and the solution are within the reach of all human
beings.
The development of concentration (samadhi) and understanding
(panna) through meditation does not involve two different, clear-
cut forms of practice as one may have tended to assume by now.
Although it is possible to develop concentration merely for its own
sake, in the practice of meditation to attain nirvana, concentration
cannot be separated from the development of understanding. The
best illustration of this is the meditation on the establishment of
mindfulness (satipatthana), the most widely practiced of all Thera-
vada meditation techniques. According to the standard analysis of
the path, as we have already seen, development of mindfulness is a
factor leading to concentration and described in the eightfold path
as right-mindfulness (samma-sati). The actual practice of the medi-
tation, however, cannot be narrowed down to a practice leading to a
mere concentration of mind. It leads to seeing reality as it is, which is
part and parcel of understanding.
Mindfulness is established by focusing on four different aspects of
reality-internal and external-namely, body, feelings, thoughts, and
phenomena. Under the contemplation of body one develops mindful-
ness on in-breathing and out-breathing, initially in order to develop
one-pointedness of mind, and subsequently to develop an objective
vision characterized by the absence of both attachment and aversion
to one's body, which is to develop understanding. First, one may fur-
ther focus on bodily movements, postures, elements of which body
is made, foulness of body, and decomposition of dead body, as one's
practice requires. The object of all these contemplations is to escape
from lust and its opposite, the hatred one tends to have toward one's
own body and those of others.
Second, in like manner, one may contemplate such various feel-
ings as pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral, with the aim of avoiding
lust and aversion and developing neutrality of mind. Third, one may
reflect, with the same aim, on various kinds of thoughts, those with
lust and those without, those with hatred and those without, those
with delusion and those without, and so on. The last focus of con-
templation is on phenomena associated with mind, such as the hin-
drances to meditation (desire, ill will, sloth and torpor, restlessness
and remorse, and the wavering character of the mind), the five con-
stituents of human personality, sense bases and their objects, seven
factors of awakening, and the four noble truths. The meditator
may reflect on these phenomena with the aim of developing ethi-
cally good phenomena, abandoning ethically bad phenomena, and
understanding as they are really all phenomena-including those
that are ethically neutral. Mindfulness, in this manner, is not merely
for the development of one-pointedness of the mind but even more
for generating understanding that leads to the cessation of suffering
(dukkha) .
Path, Fruit, and Realization

By following the path described, one attains the fruit of freedom
from dukkha at four different levels. As we mentioned at the outset of
this consideration, the path, fruit, and realization constitute, respec-
tively, the Dhamma as a process of practice, its results, and the final
experience of freedom, namely nirvana. If what I have discussed so
far is the propositional sense of the Dhamma, realization is its expe-
riential manifestation. There are four stages of realization. The first
is called "stream entry" (sota-apatti), and at this initial stage one has
successfully abandoned self-view, doubt, and distorted grasp of rites
and rituals, the first three of which are described as "fetters." The
metaphor of a stream indicates that the person at this level is des-
tined to attain the goal, for he has entered the stream leading to nir-
vana. It is said that he will never have any doubts about the Triple
Gem and that he will not ever adhere to a wrong belief. He will attain
nirvana within the maximum of seven births. At the second stage-
"once-returner" (sakadagami)-the fourth and fifth fetters, sensual
desire and ill will, will become weak, and he will be born only once
into the world of sensual pleasures before he attains nirvana. The
third stage is called "non-returner" (anagami), at which the fourth
and fifth fetters disappear. He is called non-returner, for after death
he will be born into one of the abodes of brahmas (a type of higher

gods) and attain nirvana there without ever returning to the sen-
sual existence. The final stage is called the "state of being worthy"
(arahatta), and at this stage the rest of the five fetters-lust for form,
lust for the formless, conceit, restlessness, and ignorance-totally
disappear.
At the three earlier stages the practitioner experiences freedom
and purity corresponding to the degree of eradication or weakening
of the particular fetters. At the last stage he experiences total freedom
from suffering, misery, unsatisfactoriness, and anguish. Tradition-
ally, this whole scheme has been described as the "nine world-tran-
scending Dhamma" comprised of four paths, four corresponding
fruits, and the final experience-namely, nirvana. It is for the real-
ization of the Dhamma in this sense that one practices the Dhamma
taught by the Buddha.
Conclusion
This teaching of the Buddha discussed so far is the second of the Tri-
ple Gem in which Buddhists take refuge. What comes into the mind
of the average Buddhist when she/he thinks about the Dhamma is a
set of palm-leaf volumes kept reverentially in a sacred place. In con-
trast to this static picture, there is a dynamic aspect of the doctrine-
namely, the teaching, studying, and preaching of it that involve both
monastic and lay followers. In Theravada Buddhist countries, the
Dhamma is taught to young children at state schools as a subject like
any other, and it is exclusively taught in Sunday Dhamma schools
with more emphasis on practice. For grown-ups Dhamma classes
are conducted particularly in urban areas. The monastic mem-
bers have their own system of Dhamma study, which dates back to
ancient times in the Theravada Buddhist countries. The practice of
the Dhamma is understood as a lifelong activity that is not confined
to any particular time of the day. The more recent usage of the term
"practicing Buddhist" denotes something unfamiliar to traditional
Theravada Buddhists.
A vastly popular practice is the preaching of the Dhamma done
mostly by monastic preachers and, to a lesser extent, by lay preachers
in the temples, at public places, and in religious organizations. These
sermons and discussions are abundant on monthly full-moon days,

take place continuously from morning to late evening, and are also
available through a score of radio and television channels. Printed
matter on the Dhamma in the form of pamphlets and booklets for
free distribution, articles in newspapers, some of which focus exclu-
sively on Buddhism, and full-length books commercially distributed
are equally available. The Dhamma is constantly being taught, inter-
preted, reinterpreted, and debated over by these numerous preach-
ers and writers on a daily basis in Theravada Buddhist countries.
Preachers' and speakers' reputations rise and fall in accord with the
number of their waxing and waning admirers. Preaching and listen-
ing to the Dhamma, two of the ten good deeds mentioned in the dis-
cussion of karma, are favorite pastimes of Buddhists in these lands.
So, in all these ways, the Dhamma is something dynamic, vibrant,
popular, and even at times sensational and controversial.
CHAP TE R 4
Karma and Its Results
The concept of karma (Pali kamma) is a pan-Indian religious and

philosophical belief. It is basically defined as "action." What is gen-
erally intended by this is action that can be evaluated ethically. The
early Indian beginnings of this concept can be seen in Vedic litera-
ture, where the sacrificial act, which is considered to be the precursor
of karmic belief, is mentioned. The elementary forms of the concepts
of good (Skt. punya/Pali punna) and bad (Skt. and Pali papa) are
found in the early post-Vedic period. Among the Sramana groups,
Jains believed in good and bad karma as forming a part of the indi-
vidual soul and in the need to burn away such karmas through severe
forms of asceticism. The annihilationists, on the other hand, rejected
the whole concept of the moral efficacy of human action that was
held in association with the belief in soul and afterlife. The Buddha,
though he rejected the concepts of god and soul as the annihilation-
ists did, nevertheless accepted the concept of karma and its efficacy
as a dependently arisen phenomenon.
Two Dimensions of Karma in Buddhism

Karma is one of the central teachings in Buddhist thought. Usu-
ally discussed under karma in Buddhist studies is its moral dimen-
sion. There is, however, an equally important dimension of karma as
human action that accounts for one's identity in the absence, accord-
ing to the teaching of the Buddha, of the soul held to be the essence in
every human being. This second aspect may be described as the iden-
tity dimension of karma, which I shall examine first, as it has been
somewhat neglected in Buddhist studies.
KARMA AS CONSTITUTING DYNAMIC HUMAN IDENTITY

We know that Buddhism denies the existence of soul as constitut-
ing an unchangeable essence in a human being. In the absence of
any such entity the Buddha was faced with the problem of explain-
ing apparent differences and distinctions among human beings. In
the Brahmanic tradition, for example, the society was classified into
four groups, and it was claimed that these groups were set up as such
by the Creator. In other words, this belief amounted to saying that,
for example, brahmana-ness was hereditary and was constituted of
an essence that made a Brahmin a Brahmin and nothing else. This
form of essentialism founded on the concepts of atman (individual
soul) and brahman (universal soul) was clearly rejected by the Bud-
dha. The following well-known statement of the Buddha articulates
this position: "One does not become a Brahmin on account of birth.
Nor does one become an outcaste on account of birth. One becomes
a Brahmin by one's deeds. One becomes an outcaste by one's deeds"
(Suttanipata 136). This rejection of hereditary claims of high and low
follows from the rejection of divine creation and belief in a soul. In
the place of such a static view as soul the Buddha introduced human
action as constituting the "essence," if existent at all, of a human
being.
The Buddha's argument against Brahmanic essentialism based on
human action is quite simple. As he explained to the young Brah-
min called Vasettha, one who makes his living by agriculture is
called a farmer, not a Brahmin; one who makes his living by mer-
chandise is called a merchant, not a Brahmin; one who makes his
living by serving others is called a servant, not a Brahmin; and one
who makes his living by stealing is called a robber, not a Brahmin.
He concluded the argument by summing up: "I do not call anyone a
Brahmin because of his origin and lineage" (The Middle Length Dis-
courses 98). Although this argument is presented in the context of
the caste distinctions that prevailed in the ancient Indian society, the
"philosophy" behind the argument is a nonsubstantialist (anatma)
way of defining a person. Defining a person with reference to what he
does is surely not static. Because we do many things in our daily lives,
in addition to what we do as our profession or in long-term activities,
the definition of a person by his actions can be quite volatile and even
short-lived. On the other hand, this perception fits very well with the
Buddhist idea of personality understood as dependently arisen and
impermanent. Truly speaking, people do not have fixed or perma-
nent identities, although some identities may last longer than others.
Morally speaking, although one who lives by means of stealing is a
robber, once he discontinues his wrong act, he is no longer a robber.
This argument applies equally to good behavior. The possibility of
spiritual development or otherwise, in this view, rests on the under-
standing of the human being as not having any fixed identity of good
or bad, but as one capable of acting in either a good or a bad man-
ner, and as dependently arisen and impermanent. This definition of
human being as a dynamic process carries an important implication
for the Buddhist karma theory.
THE MORAL DIMENSION OF KARMA
As I noted in my consideration of the eightfold path, right thought,

action, and speech figure prominently. This emphasis on distin-
guishing between right and wrong actions is further confirmed by
the following Dhammapada (183) statement, which summarizes the
teaching of the Buddha: "Not doing any evil action, doing skillful
action, and purifying one's mind: this is the instruction of the Bud-
dhas." In accordance with this emphasis, the Buddha defines what
karma is and also identifies good and bad karmas.
According to the ~uddha, then, karma is action with intention:
"Intention [cetana], bhikkhus, I call karma. Having intended, one
acts physically, verbally, and mentally" (The Book of the Gradual Say-
ings, vol. 3, p. 294). It depends on the nature of the intention whether
one's physical, verbal, or mental actions become either good or bad.
The two very first stanzas of the Dhammapada combine three cen-
tral ideas of the karma concept, namely, the intentionality (cetana),
the action, and its result:
Things have mind as forerunner; they have mind as supreme,

and they are mind-made. If one were to say or do something with
polluted mind, suffering arising from it follows him like the wheel
that follows the bearer's foot.
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
Things have mind as forerunner; ... mind-made. If one were

to say or do something with refined mind, happiness arising from
it follows him like the shadow that would not leave one behind.
The nature of the intentionality that serves as the basis of action is

described in Buddhist thought by means of two sets of popular con-
cepts. They are, good (punna) and evil (papa), and skillful (kusala)
and unskillful (akusala). Although these two sets of concepts in most
instances are interchangeable, they do possess their own unique
senses too. The concepts of good and evil are pan-Indian and carry
the basic idea of morally good and bad actions. Buddhism, too,
accepts this basic division and classifies actions accordingly. How-
ever, the concepts of skillful and unskillful are uniquely Buddhist
and refer back to the psychological roots that make actions either
skillful or otherwise. Three roots of unskillful actions are desire
(lobha), hatred (dosa), and delusion (moha). Their opposites, non-
desire (alobha), non-hatred (adosa), and non-delusion (amoha), are
the roots of skillful actions.
The psychological roots that render an action either evil (papa)
or unskillful (akusala) are the same, and in this sense "evil" and
"unskillful" are interchangeable concepts. Hence all unskillful
actions are evil actions and vice versa. On the other hand, although
all skillful actions may coincide with good, not all good actions are
skillful. A case in point is to donate something (which is good) with
the hope of future reward (which is to be motivated by desire). In the
Buddhist belief, all (human) beings wander in the samsara, endlessly
experiencing pleasure and pain in correspondence with their actions.
Those who do evil actions tend to suffer more often and those who
do good tend to experience pleasure more often. From the samsaric
point of view, it is always good to do good things and to be born
into good circumstances rather than do evil things and be born into
unfortunate circumstances. From an ultimate nirvanic point of view,
however, both good and evil actions need to be transcended, for they
prolong samsaric existence, which is ultimately unsatisfactory even
if one is born into a pleasurable existence, and instead skillful actions
should be practiced, for they help liberate one from samsara. (In the
next chapter I shall discuss so-called karmic Buddhism and nirvanic
Buddhism, both of which are based on this distinction between good

and skillful actions.) For this reason, liberated people like the Bud-
dha and the arahants are described as "gone beyond both good and
evil." Their behavior is described purely as skillful.
Focusing on the types of karma in the normal ethical sense, the
"five evil deeds" are those most widely known. They constitute the
violations involved in the five precepts-killing, stealing, sexual mis-
conduct, lying, and taking intoxicants. Giving (dana), virtue (sila),
and meditation (bhavana) are mentioned as "threefold good deeds."
Buddhists are expected to veer away from the five evil deeds and
instead perform threefold good deeds as their regular practice. A
more elaborate classification of good and evil deeds is known as "ten
skillful actions" and "ten unskillful actions." (1) Killing, (2) steal-
ing, (3) sexual misconduct, (4) lying, (5) malicious gossip, (6) utter-
ing harsh words, (7) engaging in frivolous talk, (8) severe craving,
(9) severe hatred, and (10) wrong view are the ten unskillful actions.
Refraining from these actions and practicing their opposites are
known as the ten skillful actions.
Another classification with widespread popularity are the "ten
good deeds," which comprise (1) giving, (2) morality, (3) medita-
tion, (4) transferring merits, (5) rejoicing in merits, (6) attending (on
those who are attendance-worthy), (7) paying respects (to those who
are respect-worthy), (8) teaching the Dhamma, (9) listening to the
Dhamma, and (10) straightening one's views. All these categories
demonstrate the richness of the ethical dimensions of action devel-
oped within the Buddhist tradition. They also show how the two cat-
egories of good and evil and skillful and unskillful acts are inter-
changeable in some instances.
The Result of Karma

The general theory of the result (vipaka) of karma is that good kar-
mas produce good results and bad karmas produce bad ones. Bud-
dhism shares this belief with many other Indian traditions. But the
differences are important and crucial when it comes to the details.
Buddhism departs from some of these traditions in not holding to
what can be called karma determinism. For that matter, Buddhism
does not espouse any varieties of determinism such as theistic or nat-
66 TH E RAVADA BUDDHISM
ural determinism. Those who believe in karma determinism claim

that all pains and pleasures that people experience are due to their
past karma. The Buddha rejected this view, saying that if one were
to believe it, the holy life of monkhood would become meaningless.
It would also render any type of ethical behavior impossible, because
there would be no grounds on which to hold anyone responsible for
their actions. The Buddha accepted, as a matter of obvious fact, that
human beings are capable of acting freely. At one point, demonstrat-
ing this, he said: "How can one who moves forward and backward on
one's own deny one's acts or others' acts?" (The Book of the Gradual
Sayings, vol. 3, p. 238). Another example: illness, being an obvious
form of human suffering, some would consider to be caused exclu-
sively by karma. The Buddha had a different view. He listed various
causes of illness such as air, bile, phlegm, seasonal changes, improper
behavior, and vicious contrivance, and listed karma as the last pos-
sible cause of illnesses. Though he accepted past karma as a factor in
determining present life, the Buddha made it very clear that it was
not the only factor.
Although good and bad karmas produce corresponding results,
the Buddha denied that karma can be divided clearly and simply
into black and white. This implies that its results, too, cannot be
so simplistically divided. The Buddha instead classified karma and
its results into the following four types: (1) black karma with black
results; (2) white karma with white results; (3) both black and white
karma with both black and white results; (4) neither black nor white
karma with neither black nor white results (The Book of Gradual Say-
ings, vol. 4, p. 232). The first two types represent the normal proce-
dure. The third represents a karma mixed with both good and bad
intentions, and hence producing mixed results. The fourth points
to a type of karma that transcends the usual categories of good and
bad that are instrumental in keeping a being in the samsara. It leads
one to nirvana, which cannot be understood as a heaven resulting
from good actions. This analysis of the four types demonstrates that
the Buddhist concept of karma and its associated results goes far
beyond the standard conception of karma with its simple and clear-
cut outcomes.
In our earlier discussion of the doctrine of dependent co-origina-
tion we observed five areas, including karma, where dependent origi-

nation is active. Karma is thus a natural principle. Buddhism tries to
understand the whole process of karma and its result as an instance
of dependent co-origination. This shows not only that there is no
doer but also that there is no one to bear responsibility for executing
the result. The process of karma producing its corresponding result
has been analogically explained as a cultivator reaping the harvest of
what he sowed. Karma producing the result is an aspect of moral cau-
sation for which there is no need of an agent. The great commentator
Buddhaghosa confirmed this view when he said: "There is no doer
of the karma; nor is there experiencer of the result. Pure phenom-
ena alone exist; this is the right vision" (Visuddhimagga, chap. 18).
In popular Theravada, there exists Yama (king of the underworld),
who is ascribed the function of inflicting punishments on wrong-
doers. According to the doctrine of dependent co-origination, no
being can exist over and above karma causation. Apparently the tra-
dition seems to have noticed this anomaly of the existence of Yama
as someone in precisely that position. Hence the popular view that
Yama himself is paying for his former misdeeds by being destined to
suffer by inflicting suffering on others!
Although the explanation of Buddhist karma does not include
dependence on an agent in any metaphysical sense (belief in soul),
and in spite of the fact that the Buddha has provided a naturalis-
tic explanation of what it is and how it produces results, there still
remains room for skepticism about the whole process involving
belief in rebirth after death. What was the attitude of the Buddha to
such skeptics? A good example can be found in what the Buddha said
to the householders of a township called Sala (The Middle Length
Discourses 60). When he visited them they started the conversation
·with him by confessing that they did not have any faith in any one
particular religious teacher. To them the Buddha explained what he
called "the incontrovertible teaching," which, he said, would be use-
ful in their lives. What is presented here resembles Pascal's wager on
the existence of God. The difference is that the Buddha uses his argu-
ment in support of moral behavior.
The argument runs in the following manner. When there are
two religious teachers who make totally contradictory claims-one
asserting that there is an afterlife where a doer of good will be born

into a pleasurable state and a doer of evil will be born into a miser-
able one, and the other that no afterlife exists and therefore there
is no need to conduct oneself morally-then the question arises
as to which belief the rational person should choose. If he accepts
the teacher who believes in the afterlife, he will behave morally in
this life. If the assertion is true, then he will be praised for his good
behavior in this life and will be reborn into a happy state after death.
If what he accepted turns out to be untrue, still his moral behavior
will bring him praise from the wise. On the other hand, if this person
accepts the teacher who denies an afterlife, he will be free to disre-
gard moral behavior. Now if the assertion happens to be false, he will
be censured by the wise for his immoral behavior here in this life and
he will be born into a state of misery after death. If the assertion hap-
pens to be true, he will still be censured by the wise for his immoral
behavior here in this life. The conclusion is that it is more beneficial
to behave on the assumption of the existence of an afterlife whether
an afterlife exists or not.
The Buddha made essentially the same argument in a somewhat
abridged form when he addressed the Kalamas, who were equally
skeptical about claims related to karma and the afterlife (The Book
of Gradual Sayings, vol. i, pp. 170-175). Having admonished the Kala-
mas not to accept any claim purely on the grounds of personal or
traditional authority or on logical grounds, the Buddha persuaded
them to see that any behavior prompted by the three roots of unskill-
fulness-namely, desire, hatred, and delusion-were harmful, and
therefore that the opposite behavior would be beneficial. He summed
up his discussion with them by saying that one who behaves mor-
ally enjoys four reliefs in this very life. (1) One who behaves morally
feels the relief that he will be happy in the next life, if there is such a
life. (2) If there is no afterlife, he will still experience the relief that
he is living a life full of bliss without any animosity or anger toward
anyone. (3) If it is true that one encourages an evil state by commit-
ting evil acts, then by refraining from any such deeds he is relieved
to think that he will be safe in the afterlife. (4) Even if evil deeds do
not breed evil states, by not doing any such deeds he obtains the relief
that his present behavior is pure.
Both these instances strongly suggest that the Buddha did not
impose the belief in karma, and its result in the next life, as dog-
mas to be accepted no matter what the situation. His attitude toward
these beliefs, which have a metaphysical element to them, seems to
have been one shaped by moral pragmatism. Although for himself
and for most of the arahants (due to their knowledge of their own
past births and those of others) karma and its result were not a mys-
tery, the Buddha never resorted to beyond-experience arguments in
order to prove such claims. For him these claims ultimately rested on
moral claims pertaining to one's present life. In other words, skepti-
cism was not consider.e-9 a reason for suspension of moral judgment
or for inaction.
Conclusion
The belief in karma and its results has become a central compo-
nent in the Theravada belief system. As will emerge from my dis-
cussion on the living Theravada traditions, what is called "karmic"
Buddhism plays a crucial role in the day-to-day life of Buddhists in
Theravada lands. For many of these people, karma, and its associ-
ated results, contribute to a very important part of their view of life.
Although karma is not supposed to be understood as involving fatal-
ism or determinism, for many Buddhists it simply provides the ulti-
mate explanation for otherwise inexplicable occurrences, partic-
ularly for those unfortunate events that one is bound to encounter
in one's daily life. Having exhausted all other explanatory resources
at one's disposal, one tends to turn to the belief in karma as a last
resort. This, obviously, is an unintended result of the original teach-
ings about karma. Nonetheless, it is now perceived as a fact in the life
of the average Theravada Buddhist of today.
CHAPTER 5
The Social Teachings of the Buddha
In the two previous chapters I discussed the basic teachings of the

Buddha. Now I shall move on to the social teachings of the Buddha.
One might form the impression that what will be discussed here is
not the teaching proper but some sort of secondary aspect of it. The
popular view among Western readers of Buddhism is that it does not
contain any social teaching. For instance, the celebrated sociologist
Max Weber was of the opinion that Buddhism, which is soteriologi-
cal and meant for a monastic community, cannot have anything to
do with worldly affairs. Therefore, whatever exists today as social
teaching must have been added later, because in early Buddhism the
householders were simply tolerated for their usefulness in maintain-
ing the monastic community.
It is not my intention here to develop lengthy arguments to prove
that such opinions are wrong. I shall simply and clearly elaborate on
some salient aspects of the social teachings of the Buddha. My ear-
lier explanations have shown that the Buddha considered his "group"
as fourfold, of which male and female householders represented a
half. They formed an integral part of the community and shared
the same goal of achieving freedom from suffering. But the path to
this freedom, for the majority of householders, was not direct but
roundabout. The well-known simile of colorful peacock and simple
swan, referred to earlier, captures the essential difference: one group
is colorful but slow and the other is simple but swift. For the color-
ful and slow, the Buddha spoke about, in addition to the final free-
dom, the happiness of worldly living, which included such aspects as
social relations, duties, marriage, wealth, investment, and good gov-
The Social Teachings of the Buddha 71
ernance. All these teachings are underpinned by one important basic

assumption-namely, that household life is well within the scope of
the overall nirvanic scheme of the Buddha.
Both Here and Hereafter

When instructing the householders' the Buddha always referred to
the present life as well as to the life to come. These contexts made
it clear that what was meant by these two categories was economic
and social well-being as well as the inner development of virtues. For
example, once the Buddha spoke about three types of people, those
who are blind in both eyes, those blind in one eye, and those who
see from both eyes. The first sees neither his worldly advancement
nor his inner development; the second sees only his worldly advance-
ment; whereas the third sees both, and is commended for this broad
perspective. Addressing a wealthy householder called Dighajanu
(The Gradual Discourses, vol. 8, p. 54), the Buddha further elabo-
rated upon these two aspects. He taught four requirements condu-
cive to the well-being of worldly life, namely, energy to initiate new
ventures, protection of what is earned through such means, keeping
good friends, and living a balanced life. He further pointed out four
virtues to be developed for one's inner happiness: trust in the Triple
Gem, morality, generosity, and understanding.
Although the Buddha identified the overall samsaric existence as
marked by unsatisfactoriness, within such an existence, he claimed,
both householders and those who had left household life could enjoy
happiness. The happiness for householders is fourfold: happiness of
ownership (wealth), happiness of consuming such wealth, happiness
of being debtless, and happiness of being blameless. One can see,
particularly in the fourth aspect that underscores the moral life, how
the Buddha has combined both the outer and the inner aspects of life
in his scheme for householders.
An important element that emerges from this consideration is the
attitude the Buddha held toward money and wealth and the ways and
means of acquiring them. As we have already observed, the Buddha
1. It is only at a later stage that they were considered as "lay" followers.

agreed with the common social belief that owning wealth was good.
He described how one should acquire it, namely, by working for it
with hard labor ("wealth acquired by energetic striving, amassed
by the strength of his arms, earned by the sweat of his brow ...").
The Buddha immediately added to this that one must earn wealth
through righteousness and by righteous means. It appears that he
did not set a definitive upper limit for how much one should earn.
He only established an ethical limit to the ways and means of acquir-
ing wealth, in other words, that one can earn any amount of money
so long as one does not violate the limits of righteousness (dharnrna) .
The next important thing, as highlighted by the happiness afforded
by the consumption of wealth, is that one must not hoard such wealth
but spend it for one's own happiness and that of one's family, in-laws,
and others such as friends and people of religion.
Ethics for Household Life

In the well-known discourse called "Advice to Sigala" (The Long
Discourses 31), the Buddha proposes a comprehensive set of ethics for
social life. The significance of this discourse in molding the social
life of people was such that in the later tradition it has been described
as the Buddhist "ethics for household life" (gihi-vinaya), almost as
something equivalent to the monastic vinaya, although the Buddha
never declared a code of law for the household society, which was
beyond his jurisdiction. The key aspect of the discourse concerns
the mutual relations one needs to maintain with six social groups,
described by the term "securing six directions." This social ethic is
presented within the context of a broad perspective on life.
The Buddha begins by outlining four vices to be avoided by one
who is desirous of advancement in both this and the next life. They
are killing, stealing, adultery, and lying. Then he points out four
factors leading to biased behavior-namely, desire, anger, fear, and
confusion. One must not become partial and influenced in one's
behavior toward others because of these. Next the Buddha outlines
six roads to the dissipation of wealth. These are drinking alcohol,
frequenting streets at unseemly hours, habitually patronizing fairs,
gambling, associating with evil companions, and idleness. The Bud-
dha continues by explaining evil and good friends . There are four
types of evil friends to be avoided. They are one who is there to get
whatever he can, one who pays only lip service to friendship, one
who flatters, and one who is present to support evil actions. How-
ever, on the other hand there are four friends with whom it is good
to associate. These are a friend in need, one who is constant in both
happiness and adversity, one who gives good counsel, and one who
is compassionate.
With this broad context explained, the Buddha goes on to elab-
orate how one should safeguard six directions. It is said that the
Buddha found Sigala, the young householder to whom he gave this
advice, paying respect in the early morning to six directions-east,
west, north, south, below, and above. The Buddha said to him that
in the noble discipline the six directions were different, and instead
identified parents with the east, teachers with the south, family with
the west, friends with the north, slaves and workers with the "below,"
and religious people with the "above." These six directions have to be
covered and secured in the following manner.
Children should minister to their parents in the following five
ways: (1) support the parents who once supported them; (2) by doing
their work; (3) by maintaining the lineage and the tradition of the
family; (4) by looking after what they inherited from parents; and
(5) by performing religious rites when they are no more. Thus min-
istered to by their children, the parents, in their turn, show their
kindness to them in five ways: (1) they restrain them from evil;
(2) they guide them to good; (3) they train them for a profession;
(4) they arrange suitable marriages for them; and (5) in due time,
they hand over inheritance to them.
A pupil should minister to his teacher in five ways: (1) by rising
from his seat as a mark of respect; (2) by waiting upon them; (3) by
showing eagerness to learn; (4) by supplying personal service; and
(5) by accepting what they teach with eagerness. Once ministered to
by pupils in this manner, teachers reciprocate in the following five
ways: (1) they train the pupil well; (2) they make sure he grasps what
he has learnt; (3) they instruct him thoroughly in every art; (4) they
introduce him to their friends and companions; and (5) they provide
in every way for his security.
A wife should be ministered to by her husband in five ways:
(1) by respecting her; (2) by not disrespecting her; (3) by being faith-
ful to her; (4) by handing over authority to her; and (5) by providing
her with ornaments, and so on. Thus ministered to, a wife should
reciprocate to her husband in the following five ways: (1) by doing
well what she needs to do; (2) by showing hospitality to servants; (3)
by being faithful to him; (4) by looking after his earnings; and (5)
through skill and industry in all her activities.
In five ways one should minister to one's friends: (1) through
generosity; (2) with courtesy; (3) by being benevolent; (4) by treat-
ing them with equality; and (5) by being true to one's word. Thus
ministered to, the friends will reciprocate in the following five ways:
(1) they will protect him when he needs protection; (2) they will
look after his property when required; (3) they will become a refuge
in danger; (4) they will not forsake him when he is in trouble; and
(5) they will also respect others related to him.
A master should minister to his slaves and workers in five ways,
namely, (1) by assigning them work according to their capacity and
strength; (2) by supplying them with food and wages; (3) by tend-
ing them in sickness; (4) by sharing unusual delicacies with them;
and (5) by giving them leave and gifts at suitable times. Ministered
to thus, slaves and workers will reciprocate to their master in the fol-
lowing five ways: (1) they will wake up before him; (2) they will go to
sleep after him; (3) they will take what is given to them; (4) they will
do their work well; and (5) they will speak well of him and circulate
his good name.
One should minister to religious people in the following five ways:
(1) by affectionate acts; (2) by affectionate words; (3) by affectionate
thoughts; (4) by keeping open house for them; and (5) by providing
them with their worldly needs. Ministered to in this manner, reli-
gious people will reciprocate in the following six ways: (1) they will
keep him away from evil; (2) they will exhort him to do good; (3) they
will direct kindly thoughts toward him; (4) they will teach him what
has not been learned; (5) they will correct and refine what he has
learned; and (6) they will reveal to him the way to heaven.
The Buddha summed up this exposition by emphasizing the cru-
cial significance of mutually performed duties among these social
groups. He said that were it not for these mutual duties there would
be hardly any difference between children and parents. Nor would

parents receive respect from their children for being their parents.
The duties he enumerated are comparable to the axle pins of a char-
iot that prevent its wheels from flying off. In the absence of these
mutual duties, society would cease to function.
Economy and Polity according to the Buddha

The Buddha believed economic stability to be crucial to a good soci-
ety. In the previous discussion we saw how individual initiative and
hard work have been emphasized as the desirable means of acquiring
wealth. These qualities alone, however, are not sufficient; they must
also be supported by the ruler. The ruler has a crucial role to play
in providing the infrastructure, guidance, and social stability neces-
sary for development. I shall now examine some discourses in which
the Buddha articulated his views on this important interrelationship
between economy, polity, and morality.
The "Discourse on the Lion's Roar of the Universal Monarch"
(The Long Discourses 26) highlights the close connection between
economic instability and social disorder leading ultimately to moral
deterioration. The story begins by portraying a happy rule by a uni-
versal monarch with the power of his "wheel-jewel." 2 Once the king
leaves, handing over his kingdom to his son, the wheel-jewel dis-
appears and the new king finds himself powerless, so he seeks his
father's guidance. The father reminds his dismayed son that the pow-
erful wheel-jewel is not a paternal heritage; he has to behave in such
a way that he deserves it.
My son, first you yourself should depend on the dhamma
[righteousness], and honor it, revere it, cherish it, do homage to
it, and venerate it; next, having dhamma as your badge and ban-
ner, acknowledging dhamma as your master, you should estab-
lish guard, ward, and protection according to the dhamma for
(1) your own household; (2) your troops; (3) your nobles and vas-
sals; (4) Brahmins and householders; (5) town and country folk;
2. A wheel-shaped jewel symbolizing the royal authority.

THERAVADA BUDDHISM
(6) religious people; and (7) beasts and birds. Let no crime pre-
vail in your kingdom, and to those who are in need, enable them
to generate wealth, and listen to those ascetics and Brahmins who
have renounced their worldly life.
By behaving in this manner the king regains his wheel-jewel and his
country becomes stable again. However, subsequent rulers neglect
the dhamma, lose their wheel-jewel, and affairs fall into disarray. The
country becomes poor, and some people start stealing. Misdiagnos-
ing the situation, the king thinks that these are isolated cases and
tries to remedy them by giving money to those who have resorted to
stealing. This misfires and more people start to steal. Then the king
punishes them and the situation grows worse. Robbers arm them-
selves and challenge the king. As this unsatisfactory state of affairs
continues, society gradually deteriorates to the lowest level of beastly
behavior. Finally, people themselves realize the seriousness of the sit-
uation and, emerging from this abysmal state, gradually restore the
former glory. The message of this discourse is its demonstration of
the close interconnection of economy, polity, and morality. It conveys
the message that even the king himself has to be subject to the limits
of dhamma at all times and in all his dealings.
The crucial importance of the economic stability of a society is
also emphasized in the "Discourse to Kutadanta" (The Long Dis-
courses 5). Here the context is a king's desire to perform a large sac-
rifice at the expense of his taxpayers. The wise adviser to the king
convinces him that it is not the proper time for such an extrava-
gant act, for the country is economically unstable. Instead he advises
him to provide capital and fulfill infrastructural requirements for
people so that they can improve their economy. Collecting taxes is
fair only when the king has provided these facilities for people and
the country is prosperous. Here again, the connection between eco-
nomic instability and social unrest is stressed. The idea of the just
distribution of resources is an ongoing theme in these early Buddhist
discussions.
The Buddha assigned a crucial role to the ruler in maintaining
economic stability and peace in society. For this purpose the ruler
himself has to represent the embodiment of righteousness. In Bud-
dhist literature, the ideal ruler is portrayed as endowed with ten vir-
tues-namely, generosity, virtue, sacrifice, straightness, mildness,
austerity, non-hatredness, harmlessness, forbearance, and noncon-
flict . It is said that the ruler has to be guided by these virtues in his
statecraft. Generosity, pleasant speech, working for the welfare of
others, and treating others as one would treat oneself are four prac-
tices advocated by the Buddha for successful social relations.
The following seven practices have been declared by the Bud-
dha as virtues that assure progress in any society: (1) holding regu-
lar and frequent assemblies; (2) meeting in harmony, breaking up in
harmony, and carrying out business in harmony; (3) not authorizing
what has not already been authorized, and not abolishing what has
been authorized, but proceeding according to what has been autho-
rized by ancient tradition; (4) honoring, respecting, revering, and
saluting the elders in the society and considering them worth lis-
tening to; (5) not forcibly abducting others' wives and daughters; (6)
honoring, respecting, revering, and saluting the shrines at home and
abroad, and not withdrawing the correct support agreed upon and
provided earlier; and (7) making proper provisions for the safety of
arahants (holy people) so that they may come in future to live there
and those already present may dwell in comfort. The nature of these
practices indicates that they are intended primarily for rulers. When
a ruler is upright and righteous it is believed that his subjects, too,
will follow suit and the society will become prosperous. The follow-
ing lines uttered by Buddhists in Theravada societies at the conclu-
sion of meritorious deeds captures the perennial aspirations of peo-
ple for a good life:
Deva vassatu kalena-sassa sampatti hotu ca
Phito bhavatu loko ca-raja bhavatu dhammiko
Let rains fall on time! Let there be abundance in harvest!
Let the world be prosperous! Let the king be righteous!
Conclusion
The social life envisaged by the Buddha is one of happy and con-
tented people maintaining balance between their economic growth
and inner stability and integrity. They are sufficiently rich in material
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
resources to perform their social duties, including the maintenance

of the sramanas and Brahmans who do not produce for themselves.
They own wealth and spend that wealth for their own happiness and
for that of others associated with them. They are happily married
and have children who can follow in the footsteps of their parents.
Women are well taken care of and household authority is handed
over to them. Men do not use force on them. People live in societies
where rulers are righteous and subject themselves to the rule of the
Dhamma as everyone else should.
Did this ideal society actually exist at any time in Theravada his-
tory? Like any other idealistic society, this one may not have existed
in exactly the same way anywhere in the world. But history is full
of efforts made by rulers, particularly where Buddhism was prac-
ticed, to approximate this ideal. They have thus shown that the ideal
is not impractical. What the Buddha said about social life, the econ-
omy, and the polity has, unfortunately, been presented to us in the
form of ancient Indian traditions. This, however, does not mean
that the insights therein have outlived their usefulness. As many
who have studied Buddhist social philosophy have noted, compared
with Christian or Islamic social philosophies, it still demands to be
more clearly articulated in modern terms. This perhaps represents
one of the key challenges awaiting future students of Buddhist social
philosophy.
CHAPTER 6
The Traditional Theravada World
Having dealt with the concept of "precept" in Theravada in the

previous two chapters, now is the place to discuss its practice. As
a prelude to this discussion on practice I shall outline the history
of Buddhism in the traditional Theravada world, namely, in South
and Southeast Asia. Of the three Buddhist traditions existing in the
world today Theravada, being the oldest, naturally has the longest
history. Although we do not possess many records of its continua-
tion in its place of birth after the period of Asoka, we do have an
unbroken record of its practice in Sri Lanka from the third century
BCE. Myanmar received Theravada in the eleventh century from
the Mons of a neighboring kingdom, whilst in Thailand Theravada
became established in the thirteenth century, whence it subsequently
spread to Cambodia and Laos. The traditional habitats of Theravada
thus consist of Sri Lanka in the region of South Asia, and Myanmar,
Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos in Southeast Asia.
The gradual disappearance of Buddhism from India is a much dis-
cussed subject. While Mahayana had spread toward the north even
before the Islamic invasions came, the Tantric tradition sought ref-
uge in the Himalayan region to escape these invasions. The so-called
Hinayana traditions seem to have disappeared despite their struggle
to maintain their identities. We have clear records that Theravada
was flourishing in the southern part of India in and around the fifth
and sixth centuries. But why, how, and exactly when the demise took
place is not known. By the tenth century Buddhism was nonexistent
in India as a recognized countrywide religious tradition, although it
seems to have existed sporadically until the fourteenth century.
Presently there are about one million Buddhists centered in and

around Maharashtra. They almost exclusively belong to so-called
scheduled classes (untouchables), who embraced Buddhism in 1956
with Bhim Rao Ambedkar (1891-1956), their leader, a renowned
scholar and lawyer who was also the first minister of law in inde-
pendent India and the principal architect of its constitution. The
kind of Buddhism practiced by these people is Theravada, with a
visible influence of Ambedkar's own interpretation of some of the
key teachings. Mention must also be made of several hundred thou-
sands of Tibetan Buddhists, headed by the Dalai Lama, who have
been settled in Dharmasala and many other places in India since the
last half of the twentieth century. Although these new beginnings of
Buddhism in India are very significant developments in the religion's
recent history, their relevance to my present considerations appears
to be minimal. I shall therefore concentrate on the world of tradi-
tional Theravada ignoring India, the birthplace of Buddhism and its
Theravada school.
Sri Lanka
An island in the Indian Ocean with a population of twenty million,
Sri Lanka has been a Theravada country from the time it received
the tradition through the efforts of the missionaries sent by Emperor
Asoka of India in the third century BCE. Although this was the first
historical introduction of the religion to the island, legend has it
that the Buddha visited Sri Lanka three times. During these visits,
it is said that he sanctified places that were to become revered once
Buddhism was established in the country. The belief in the visits
of the Buddha to the island, though supported by scanty historical
evidence, still exerts an enormous influence on people's minds by
legitimizing a very special connection between Buddhism and Sri
Lanka.
Buddhism was brought to the island by a group of missionaries
headed by Arahant Mahinda, who was a son of Asoka. The mission
was a result of Asoka's initiative to propagate Buddhism in neighbor-
ing countries. The king of Lanka, Devanampiya Tissa (247-207 BCE),
accepted Buddhism along with his family and followers. Encour-
aged by this royal example, the new religfon spread far and wide in
The Traditional Theravada World 81
the country. Many opted to join the Sangha. The Maha Vihara, the
Great Monastery, of Anuradhapura became the stronghold of ortho-
dox Theravada tradition not only in the country but also in the entire
Buddhist world. A branch of the sacred Bodhi Tree under which the
Buddha attained enlightenment was brought by Sanghamitta, a bhik-
khuni (nun) and sister of Arahant Mahinda. She initiated the bhik-
khuni order in the country. Soon Anuradhapura, the capital of the
country for nearly fourteen centuries (377 BCE-1017 CE), developed
into the main center of Buddhism. The vast number of Buddhist
monuments and ruins still remaining in Anuradhapura testify to its
glorious past.
Among the landmarks in the history of Buddhism in the coun-
try were King Dutugemunu's victory over the Tamil King Elara
and the reestablishment of the Sinhala-Buddhist kingdom (161-137
BCE); the commitment into writing of the Pali canon, which had
until then been carried by memory (89-77 BCE during the reign
of Vattagamani); the arrival of the Tooth Relic of the Buddha from
India (362-409 CE during the reign of Mahinda); Buddhaghosa's
editing and translation of the Sinhala commentaries into the Pali
language (409-431 CE during the reign ofMahanama); and the com-
position of the Mahavamsa, Great Chronicle, arguably by a Mahavi-
hara monk named Mahanama (in the latter part of the fifth century
CE), which contains the records of the history of the country and the
religion, and has remained a tradition up to the present.
The diminution of Buddhism started after the collapse of Anu-
radhapura. Although during much of the Polonnaruva period (1017-
1232) Buddhism remained strong, the attacks from South India,
which marked the end of that era, proved nearly fatal for the Bud-
dhist centers and monasteries. The Buddhist monastic tradition
never really fully recovered from these attacks, and by the time the
first Europeans landed on the island at the end of the fifteenth cen-
tury CE, Buddhism had lost much of its vitality, although the Sin-
hala people remained Buddhist. Portuguese power in the maritime
regions lasted almost one and a half centuries. They brought Roman
Catholicism into them and used extremely harsh methods to force it
upon some people, as a consequence of which Sri Lanka's population
is currently 7 percent Roman Catholic. Subsequently, the Dutch came
and ruled the maritime regions until 1815. They introduced Protes-
tantism. In 1815 the entire country came under British rule, and Eng-
lish churches became very powerful in the religious and social life
of the people. With i percent of the population Protestant, today Sri
Lanka has a total Christian population of 8 percent.
Until the arrival of European religions, Sinhala society had
remained Buddhist (although its practice had begun to include some
Hindu elements), and it was understood that to be Sinhala was to be a
Buddhist.' This equation changed for the first time with the introduc-
tion of Christianity to the Sinhalese. The coexistence of the two reli-
gions was not always cordial, and with the advent of hostile foreign
powers Buddhism rapidly declined. By the middle of the eighteenth
century the monastic succession resulting from full admission had
been discontinued and there was no longer a well-maintained Bud-
dhist Sangha in the country. However, a Buddhist revival movement
was initiated by a great reformist monk named Welivita Saranan-
kara Sangha Raja (1698-1789) by reestablishing the full admission
with the help of the Theravada Sangha from Thailand. A chapter
of the Sangha was started by his initiative and named the Syamo-
pali Maha Nikaya; it is the largest and oldest among the three chap-
ters (n ikayas) currently in existence in Sri Lanka. The other two, the
Amarapura and Ramanna chapters, were established in the early and
middle nineteenth century by members of the Sangha who received
their higher ordination at different places in Myanmar (then Burma).
The revivalist movement reached its peak toward the second half
of the nineteenth century with the debates on Buddhism and Chris-
tianity that culminated in the famous "Panadura Debate" (1873),
during which the eloquent Buddhist monk Migettuwatte Gunananda
(1823-1890), carried the day and brought challenges for debates
from the Christians to an end. The arrival of Henry Steel Olcott,
a theosophist from America, with Madame Blavatsky, theosophist
and occultist from Russia, at the end of the nineteenth century was
1. It was the same for Tamil Hindus from the south of India who had
settled in the island from time to time. Muslims in Sri Lanka, however, are
an ethnically mixed community.
the result of their reading the reports of this debate. Their activities
turned over a new leaf in the revivalist movement with the introduc-
tion of the six-colored Buddhist flag and the Buddhist public school
system. Subsequently, Anagarika Dharmapala (1864-1933) and many
others continued the revivalist program into the twentieth century,
creating a renewed awareness and recognition of Buddhism as a reli-
gious and sociocultural force to be reckoned with.
Currently there are about thirty thousand monks belonging
to the three chapters and their subdivisions. Of the population of
twenty million, 69 percent are Buddhist. The remaining 31 percent
are Hindu (16 percent), Christian (8 percent), and Muslim (7 percent).
Myanmar
According to the Mahavamsa, the chronicle of the Theravada
Sangha in Sri Lanka, Emperor Asoka sent missions to nine countries
after the third council was convened by him. A group headed by two
bhikkhus named Sona and Uttara was sent to Suvanna-bhumi. The
Myanmar people believe that Suvanna-bhumi-the golden land-
mentioned in the list is Thaton (a city to the east of Yangon). Thais
believe that this refers to Nakhom Pathom in their country. In the
absence of any conclusive evidence for either, many tend to believe
that Suvanna-bhumi refers to the whole area covering the present
Southeast Asia region.
According to Myanmaran belief, their contacts with Buddhism
started from the time of the Buddha himself. As in Sri Lanka, Myan-
mar people believe that the Buddha visited their country on four dif-
ferent occasions and taught the Dhamma. In addition to this they
believe that the two merchants Tapassu and Bhalluka, who met the
Buddha immediately after his Awakening and received hair relics
from him were from their country and that, upon returning, they
enshrined these relics where later the Shwedagon pagoda was built.
Although there is little historical evidence to substantiate these age-
old beliefs, one cannot overestimate their value in the tradition.
In the recorded history of Myanmar there have been four differ-
ent dominant ethnic groups-the Mon, Pyu, Myanmar, and Shan.
In a way, the history of Myanmar is the history of the interactions,
not always cordial, of these four groups with one another. Theravada
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
Buddhism flourished among the Mon and Pyu who occupied parts
of lower Myanmar until about the eleventh century. In that century
they were overcome by armies of Myanmar under Anuruddha or
Anawratha (1044-1077), who was converted to Theravada Buddhism
by a Mon monk named Shin Arahan. Not finding any Buddhist rel-
ics or copies of the Tri-pitaka, he requested them from the Mon king
but was refused . Anuruddha then took what he wanted by force. He
captured the king and moved many learned monks and skilled work-
men to Pagan, absorbing the best of Mon culture into Myanmar. The
relationship between Sri Lanka and Pagan during this time was very
close. While Myanmar monks were sent to Sri Lanka to revive the
Sasana, King Wijayabahu of Sri Lanka sent back Pali scriptures to
Anuruddha. Many Myanmar monks started traveling to Sri Lanka
in search of the correct vinaya tradition. Among such monks was
Chapada, who received both his full admission and education in Sri
Lanka. Returning to Pagan in 1180, he started a new fraternity called
"Sinhala Sangha," which placed much emphasis on the correct obser-
vance of vinaya.
Almost without exception, the kings of Myanmar took upon
themselves the task of unifying the Sangha, protecting its purity,
and, less magnanimously, controlling it. King Dhammazedi (1472-
1492) of Pegu stands out among these medieval kings who took great
pains to stabilize the Sangha. Before ascending the throne he had
been a monk in the order of the Sinhala Sangha and consequently
had very strong ideas about the Sangha's purity. He sent groups of
monks to Sri Lanka to receive higher ordination, and upon their
return, as a measure of assuring purity, the king made many of them
who were deemed unfit leave the Sangha, with almost all the rest
receiving full admission anew. Bodawpaya (1782-1819) was another
king very concerned with the purity of the Sangha who took simi-
lar measures. By this time the Sangha in Myanmar was so advanced
in virtue and education that monks from Sri Lanka traveled there in
order to receive pure full admission. While many subsequent kings
continued this tradition of supporting, stabilizing, and controlling
the Sangha, the last and greatest of the line of kings was Mindon
(1853-1878). He has gone down in history as the one who convened
what is considered to be the Fifth Council in Theravada history. The
version of the Pali canon approved by this assembly was engraved on

729 marble tablets by the king.
Myanmar fell under British rule in 1885, marking the end of the
period of kings who were perceived by people as the protectors of
the Sasana. The British did not assume the traditional religious role
of the king. Instead, Christianity became powerful in the country,
partly as a result of its system of education. In the absence of kings,
many learned monks, known as Sayadaw, carried on their struggle
to maintain the discipline of the Sangha. At the same time many
other monks were active in protest movements against British rule,
and in particular against their disrespectful behavior, manifest, for
instance, in their refusal to remove their shoes when entering monas-
tic premises. After many revolts, protests, agitations, and hunger
strikes, independence was finally won in 1948.
The first prime minister of independent Myanmar was U Nu, an
ardent Buddhist and scholar with socialist leanings. His vision for
the country was to create an ideal Buddhist state through a unique
political philosophy combining Buddhist and socialist values. Fol-
lowing the age-old royal tradition, U Nu was very keen to promote
and safeguard the Sasana. His enthusiasm for Buddhism was amply
demonstrated when he convened the Sixth Council (1954-1956) with
the participation oflearned monks from the entire Theravada world.
Although the great gathering, organized at great expense, brought
fame to the country as well as to the man responsible for it, his pre-
occupation with Buddhist affairs brought him trouble. For instance,
his effort to bring all the monks under one central authority was met
with opposition from the Sangha. In 1962 the government was taken
over by General Ne Win, and Myanmar has remained under military
rule ever since. Ne Win, perhaps following the ancient royal tradi-
tion, initiated a Sangha conference in 1980 with the purpose of form-
ing a governing body for the entire Sangha. The task seems to have
been successful, and consequently Myanmar currently has one of the
most effective Sangha administrations in the Theravada world.
The outstanding feature of Myanmar is the universal presence of
monks with their reddish-brown robes and pagodas with tips point-
ing to the sky. Out of the fifty-five million population 89 percent are
Theravada Buddhist, with the remainder 4 percent Christian, 4 per-
cent Muslim, 2 percent others, including Mahayana, and i percent

followers of native cults.
Thailand
The beginning of Buddhism in Thailand goes back to Asoka's mis-
sion. The Thais believe that the Suvanna-bhumi, referred to above,
is really their country. This claim is supported by the discovery of
many Buddhist remains belonging to a very early period at Nakhom
Pathom, about fifty kilometers to the west of Bangkok, which in orig-
inal Sanskrit means "the first city." The dagoba (the Sinhalese word
for pagoda) found there is still called Pathom Chedi, or "the first
cetiya." Undoubtedly the site is the oldest in the region, and probably
it could be in this area that the first missionaries to Suvanna-bhumi
operated. After this first introduction we do not hear much more
about Buddhism in the country until Theravada was reintroduced by
King Anwaratha of Myanmar, whose rule included the northern part
of Thailand. Mahayana was introduced to southern Thailand around
the eighth century and later reintroduced under the influence of the
Suryavarman dynasty, whose Cambodian empire included pres-
ent-day Thailand. The presence of Mahayana and Hinduism was
felt strongly in the whole country. It seems that both Theravada and
Mahayana coexisted, the latter eventually merging with the former.
Hindu Brahmanic influences are still very evident in Thai Buddhist
culture.
The Theravada history proper of Thailand begins in 1260 when
Sukhotai was freed from Khmer rule. King Rama Khamheng (1275-
1317) made Theravada Buddhism the official religion of the country.
During this period Thai Buddhism came under the influence of the
Sri Lanka Theravada tradition. The Sinhalese Sangha was invited on
various occasions to the country in order to provide guidance to the
affairs of the Sasana. Buddhism flourished in Sukhotai and contin-
ued throughout the Ayudhya period (1350-1767). It was during this
period, in the reign of King Maha Dhammaraja II (1733-1758), that
missions from Sri Lanka were sent to Thailand in order to obtain
Thai monks for the reestablishment of the succession of full admis-
sion in Sri Lanka. The Thai monks, headed by the Elder Upali,
accomplished this task in 1753. When Ayudhya was destroyed by an
invading Myanmar king in 1767, the capital was moved to Thonburi

by King Taksin (1767-1782) who restored independence. King Rama
I, the first king of the present Chakri dynasty, moved the capital to
Bangkok.
Thai kings took it upon themselves as their duty to reform and
regulate the Sangha. Much concerned with the purity of the Thera-
vada tradition, their directives were meant to prohibit practices alien
to Theravada and thereby to safeguard its authenticity. King Rama
IV, or Mongkut (1851-1868), is considered to be the foremost of such
reformers. Before he ascended the throne he had lived as a monk for
twenty-seven years. He started a reformist movement among the
Sangha while he was still a monk. This was named the Dhammayut-
tika-nikaya, and its members were expected to follow vinaya rules
more strictly than their counterparts in the Maha-nikaya, which
constituted the majority. Once he became king, he subjected the
Maha-nikaya monks as well to thorough reform and rehabilitation.
Unlike other Theravada countries, Thailand never came under
the influence of Western powers. It is the only country where the
king has to be a Buddhist and where Buddhism is the state religion
as dictated by the constitution. Of its sixty-five million people, 94.6
percent are Buddhist, 4.6 percent Muslim, and .8 percent Christian
and of other religions.
Laos
With six million people, Laos is the smallest of the traditionally Bud-
dhist countries. The fact that it is landlocked, between Thailand and
Vietnam, and sharing shorter borders with Cambodia and Myan-
mar says much about its historical position among its more power-
ful neighbors. The Lao people ethnically are related to the Thais. The
history of Laos as one country and of the Theravada in Laos begins
with Fa Ngum's coronation in 1353 at Luang Prabang. Up to that point
the area belonging to Laos was divided among its neighbors. Records
of the existence of Buddhism in the area are available long before this
event. It is believed that Theravada was first introduced to the region
during the seventh and eighth centuries CE from the kingdom of
Dvaravati. Tantric and Mahayana forms of Buddhism, too, were
introduced around this same time. During the eleventh and twelfth
centuries, when the Luang Prabang area was under Cambodian rule,
Mahayana became the dominant religion.
Fa Ngum was brought up in the Khmer royal court. There he
learned Theravada Buddhism from a Theravada monk. When he
established his new kingdom, Fa Ngum brought to it his Khmer
Theravada teacher, named Phramaha Pasaman, and made him the
royal adviser. It is said that he brought with him a revered image of
the Buddha known as Phra Bang, which subsequently became the
symbol of the new kingdom. Continued relations with Myanmar
and the Thai kingdom, though not always on equal terms, provided
added reason for the persistence of Theravada, which finally came to
provide the outstanding character of Lao culture.
Luang Prabang was gradually developed as a center of Buddhism.
King Visur (1501-1520) was known for completing Buddhist con-
struction projects that had been started by earlier kings. Although
the capital had to be shifted to Vien Chan during the reign of Settha-
thirat (1548-1571), as required by a treaty signed with the Thai king,
Luang Prabang remained, and still remains, a center of Buddhism
with some splendid monuments. Setthathirat built a grand temple in
Vien Chan to house the precious jade Buddha statue known as Phra
Kao. In 1887 Thailand invaded southern Vien Chan and seized con-
trol of the whole country, including northern Luang Prabang, and
transported both the precious Buddha statues, the Phra Bang and
Phra Keo, to their country. Later, the Thais returned Phra Bang, and
today it is displayed as the prize piece in the Royal Museum ofLuang
Prabang. However, Phra Keo still remains in Thailand at Wat Phra
Keo as Thailand's most precious religious object.
The more recent history of Laos commences with the French take-
over of the country from Thailand in 1893. With the exception of
a short period during World War II, French rule lasted until inde-
pendence in 1954· During the next twenty years Laos was an unsta-
ble country with pro-Western and pro-socialist groups fighting each
other. Finally, with the defeat of the American forces in Vietnam in
1975, Laos became a communist country. Although the new regime
was not that open to, or trustful of, Buddhism, there is no evidence
that it was actively hostile to it, as was the case in Cambodia.
Today Buddhism existing in Laos enjoys much more openness
and freedom. Of the six million people, according to some estimates,

65 percent are Buddhist, 33 percent follow animistic beliefs, and 1.35
percent are Christian. The Lao adherence to animistic beliefs is so
prevalent that it may not be correct to specify any definite numbers
of believers. According to some estimates, 90 percent of the people
are Buddhist, although they may also continue to hold their own
native beliefs.
Cambodia
Theravada Buddhism became the state religion of Cambodia in the
thirteenth century CE, but its existence there has a longer history.
The general belief is that Buddhism, in the form of the Theravada
school, reached Cambodia as long ago as Asoka's time in the third
century BCE. This popular belief apart, in the recorded history of
Cambodia of two thousand years, Buddhism may have been prac-
ticed from a very early period. During the first thousand years the
country was ruled by Hindu kings, with a few exceptions. By the end
of the tenth century CE, the Hindu empire in Angkor had reached
its peak as represented by the massive Hindu religious structures
reflecting the "god king" (deva-raja) ideology that had developed. A
remarkable character of many of these kings was that they allowed,
and even encouraged, Buddhism in their kingdom. For instance, Jay-
awarman II (802-869), the Khmer king of Angkor, proclaimed him-
self to be a god king and followed Hinduism but was supportive of
Mahayana Buddhism. Many other kings acted in similar manner,
studying and encouraging Buddhism while themselves being Hindu
followers. Religion for many of these rulers seems to have been quite
a fluid affair, a dynamic mixture of Hindu and Buddhist beliefs with
Tantric practices.
Buddhism, both Mahayana and Theravada and later Tantrism,
existed together alongside Hinduism. The Chinese traveler I Ching
reported the existence of Buddhism in Cambodia toward the end of
the seventh century CE. As revealed by many artifacts found in the
region, this was predominantly Mahayana Buddhism. Suryavarman
(1002-1050) was one of the early great followers of Mahayana Bud-
dhism. Gradually the Hindu god-king ideology started to give way
to the Mahayana bodhisattva concept. Jayawarman VII (1181-1215)
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
is considered the greatest of the Khmer Buddhist kings. He claimed

himself to be a bodhisattva. Although he followed Mahayana, the
influence of Theravada was quite evident by this time. The urge for
pure Buddhism, as displayed by monks in the Myanmar and Thai-
land regions, existed in Angkor too. King Jayawarman VII sent his
son Tamilinda with a group of Myanmar monks to Sri Lanka to
receive full admission and to study Theravada. He remained in Sri
Lanka for ten years (1180-1190) and returned as an "elder" (thera)
qualified to confer full admission on others. This marked a defini-
tive step in the direction of Theravada in Cambodia. Although the
exact dates are not known, an inscription dating to 1230 CE refers to
the conversion of Angkor to Theravada.
Historians have been puzzled by the sudden change of Angkor
to Theravada Buddhism. There are indications that Theravada had
been active among the people even though the royal court was basi-
cally Hindu and Mahayana. With the acceptance of Theravada,
grand Angkor projects were relinquished. It is understandable that
people were eager to reject a tradition that oppressed them because
of massive building projects and were content to have it replaced by
the much simpler Theravada. Theravada monks not only worked for
the moral uplift of their people, they also developed their literacy
and knowledge. Gradually, monasteries became both religious and
educational centers. In the following centuries Buddhism continued
to grow, notwithstanding the arrival of Europeans bringing Chris-
tianity with them. During the seventeenth through the nineteenth
centuries, a major influence on Khmer Theravada was Thai Bud-
dhism. The characteristic urge for purity and strict observance of
vinaya continued. In line with this emphasis on the strict observance
of vinaya, the Dhammayuttika nikaya was introduced into Cambo-
dia from Thailand in 1864.
Cambodia came under French rule in 1863. The history of the
country until the Khmer Rouge takeover in 1975 is a story of strug-
gles, first for independence from the French, and subsequently
infighting between pro-communist and pro-American groups. The
four years under the Khmer Rouge was one of the most devastating
times in Cambodian history. During this period the Khmer Thera-
vada Buddhist tradition, with its monks and monasteries, was almost
completely destroyed. Although all monasteries were not devastated,

those which remained were abandoned and left unattended. Of the
65,000 to 80,000 estimated monastic communities in existence prior
to 1975, only 3,000 were reported to remain by 1980. This period
ended with the Vietnamese invasion in 1979. Ever since, freedom
of religion has been permitted, and Buddhism has been gradually
emerging from its ruins. Of the fourteen million people in Cambo-
dia, 95 percent are Theravada Buddhist, while the remaining 5 per-
cent include Muslims, Christians, and others.
Conclusion
The most important cultural link between Sri Lanka in South Asia
and Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia in Southeast Asia is
Theravada Buddhism. Among the very distinct ethnic and linguistic
differences in the two regions, Theravada Buddhism has succeeded
in creating a homogeneous religious culture that has continued ever
since its ancient beginnings. The discussion in the next chapter will
illustrate this rich cultural legacy.
CHAPTER 7
The Traditional Theravada Practice
In the parlance of Western Buddhists, "practice" usually means med-

itation, which is understood as something one does during a spe-
cific allocated time set aside for it in one's daily life. This concept
is almost nonexistent in traditional Theravada life. Although some-
times "practicing Buddhists" are spoken of and compared to "not
practicing Buddhists," the contrast is more value-laden than factual.
In traditional Buddhist societies all Buddhists are Buddhists, but
with obvious differences in the number of practices they undertake
that they would call Buddhist or religious.
It is possible to discuss separately the practice of Theravada in
each of the countries discussed in the previous chapter. In fact one
could argue that such individual treatment may be the most appro-
priate way to approach the subject, because it enables one to address
details particular to each country. In this chapter, however, I have
taken a different approach, mainly because similarities in the larger
picture outnumber the minor differences on its fringes. From view-
ing the practices of all these countries together, one is bound to
observe the remarkable continuity of the tradition across two dis-
tinct geographical areas, an important phenomenon that would not
be clear from individual descriptions.
From the time Theravada became the state religion in the region
there has been a constant two-way flow of religious and cultural
exchanges between Sri Lanka and the countries of Southeast Asia.
Furthermore, it was on Sri Lanka that Myanmar and Thailand
depended for the authentic Theravada. What they received from
these encounters was a Theravada that had experienced its own
The Traditional Theravada Practice 93
Sri Lankan development for more than fourteen centuries earlier.

Therefore, it is very important to investigate the Sri Lankan roots
of the Theravada, along with its own peculiarities, in order to bet-
ter understand its vicissitudes in the Southeast Asia region. It is for
these reasons that I propose to discuss the practice of Theravada as
a whole, highlighting individual differences where necessary. Let me
begin with key aspects of the Theravada practice and then move on
to a consideration of the roles played by Buddhist monks and layper-
sons in overall Theravada practices.
Merit Making
It has been claimed that there are two forms of Theravada prac-
tice, kammatic and nibbanic. In the former are included all types
of religious behavior intended to generate "merit" (punna), which
are believed to further one's interests and ambitions in the samsaric
existence-that is, the cycle of existence that includes past, present,
and countless future lives. Nibbanic Buddhism, on the other hand, is
the path followed by those who do not have samsaric aspirations or
ambitions but wish to bring to an end samsara as soon as possible.
Our examination will show that the distinction is basically valid. It
will also show that it is not at all correct to believe that monks and
laypeople are sharply divided along these lines. In fact, it will become
clear that the boundaries between these two forms of religious prac-
tice are quite fluid.
Buddhists believe that they wander in the wheel of existence
(samsara} by way of an endless cycle of repeated births and deaths,
depending on their good and bad actions (karma). Good actions pro-
duce pleasant results, bad actions unpleasant ones, and both jointly
provide "fuel" for the samsaric journey. The Buddha has said that the
starting point of the samsara of anyone is not known (The Connected
Discourses of the Buddha, trans. Bodhi, 2000, p. 651). This indicates
that one's samsaric existence could be unimaginably long, both in
the past and into the future. Realization of nirvana is what marks
the end of samsara. But this is not an easy task, in particular for a
householder, who "wears white cloths, handles money, enjoys sleep
interrupted by children." The best that such a person can expect to
achieve is to be born into a good place-namely, heaven-and to
avoid birth into an unpleasant existence-namely, hell. Accumulat-

ing merit or doing meritorious deeds capable of producing pleasant
results, and avoiding demerit, which is capable of producing unpleas-
ant results, must be understood in this context.
The difficulty a layperson faces in attaining nirvana immedi-
ately or in the present life has been made evident in the discourses.
From that early period it seems that aspiring to be born into heaven
has been considered the more realistic goal for the layperson. This
does not necessarily mean that nirvana as the ultimate goal is totally
beyond his reach. In fact , during the time of the Buddha there were
laypeople who realized the final goal. The received view about their
alleged inability to attain nirvana was challenged in the late nine-
teenth and early twentieth centuries by those who had a modern-
ist approach to religion. (I shall consider this again in the last chap-
ter.) Although all Buddhists, whether monks or laypeople, aspire to
attain nirvana as their goal, the reality is that the laity cannot devote
their lives entirely to this purpose. What usually happens is that at
the conclusion of every meritorious act they make a wish to attain
nirvana as a result of having performed that particular good deed.
But this is basically an effort to stay in focus .
How exactly an average Buddhist understands nirvana is not very
clear. The perception from the popular descriptions given by monks
is that it is the highest happiness, a state in which none of the troubles
associated with worldly life are present, a state of sublime bliss, and
the like. Everyone without exception believes in the desirability of
this ultimate goal. However, a compromise is always made between
nirvana, which is ultimate and final, and samsara, which is imme-
diate and contains possible pleasures. This is achieved in two ways:
by defining nirvana as the very final stage of a long series of imag-
inable samsaric pleasures, or by aspiring to realize this final goal at
the feet of the future Buddha Metteyya (Maitreya), the next Buddha
to appear in the world-but only after a very long time. So nirvana is
not forgotten, it has only been postponed to a distant future.
It is incorrect to understand this compromise between sam-
sara and nirvana as applicable only to laypeople, however. In the
very earliest period of Buddhist monastic life it is clear that such a
compromise did not exist. Those who entered monkhood strove to
attain nirvana in this life. However, with changes in monastic life,

monks started to share the same attitude; consequently their life,
too, has to be understood as dedicated to the pursuit of merit. This
does not mean that today there are no Buddhists who work toward
their final goal as their immediate objective. As I shall discuss later,
the only difference is that merit making and the consequent com-
promise between samsara and nirvana cannot be understood any
longer as applicable only to one particular group.
The regular life of a Buddhist is characterized by merit making. In
fact, it is correct to say that everything he does as a Buddhist has to
be understood with reference to merit making. In this context there
are three meritorious deeds, namely, giving (dana), morality (sila),
and meditation (bhavana). The idea is that one must engage in these
activities as much as possible, as the more one does, the more one
accumulates merit; and the more one accumulates merit the better
his life in the samsara will be.
Buddhists obviously are not worried about any contradiction
between the belief that their present karmas produce future conse-
quences and the idea that there is no permanent and everlasting soul.
The identity and continuation of an interdependent person through
samsara has never been an issue in the Buddhist tradition. The Jataka
literature, which contains stories of the Buddha's past births, delin-
eates most clearly the identity between those past characters and the
present Buddha. The concept of anatta (no-soul) has been a problem
for the learned but never a problem for the average Buddhist. Karma
and its responsibility have never been connected with the doctrine of
anatta at this level. Buddhists perform meritorious deeds believing
that their samsaric life will be more pleasurable, and that such deeds
ultimately will contribute to their nirvanic goal. Let us now look at
how they perform the three types of meritorious deeds and the role
that this practice plays in daily life.
DANA (GIVING)
Of the three meritorious deeds, dana is the most practiced, most
praised, and most loved. Classical Buddhist literature in the Thera-
vada countries is replete with stories of the practice by various people
ranging from kings to beggars. The famous Jataka collection, con-
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
taining 547 stories of the past births of the Buddha as the bodhisattva
fulfilling the virtues necessary for the attainment of the Buddha-
hood, portrays the future Buddha as one who gave away not only his
material wealth but also his "eyes, heads, flesh, and blood," children
and wives, and finally life itself. The significance of dana basically
derives from its direct connection with getting rid of one's cravings
or thirst for pleasures: one needs to practice dana in order to exhaust
one's desires. This soteriological applicability apart, dana automat-
ically produces its good results (vipaka) in the future. This means
happiness and the abundance of pleasurable things in a future life. By
giving, you reduce your craving; but at the same time you get more
and more (whether you wish it or not). Furthermore, it is believed
that the result of dana is increased when the recipients are most
worthy to receive it. From this perspective, there is no one else to
receive dana other than the members of the Sangha, who have been
described as "the incomparable field of merit." An additional reason
is the crucial significance of dana for the survival of the monastic
order because it is not involved in activities connected with produc-
tion. It is therefore understandable that showering the givers with
praise is a prominent feature in classical Buddhist literature, most of
it authored by monks.
Maintenance of the monastic order by providing it with the
basic requisites-namely, food, clothing, residences, and medi-
cine-has been considered the foremost duty of the lay Buddhist
society. There are stories of how people did not fail in this duty even
during such hard times as famines. Even today people forget their
own economic hardships when it comes to giving dana to monks.
Dana also means that which is given; in this context what is given
is mostly food, and secondarily other requisites. Dana is usually a
feast: even the poorest would do her best when it comes to giving
to monks. "Her" in the previous sentence is not simply an instance
of sex-neutral language; it is always the woman who cooks and
offers dana to monks, even though the money spent for it could be
a man's earnings, although even that is not necessarily so. Usually
dana is provided with the support and consent of the man. The
most visible practice of dana is offering food and other basic needs
such as a toothbrush, soap, and so on to monks in their morning
alms round (pinda-pata). This is a spectacular scene every morn-

ing in Southeast Asian countries. Thousands of monks walk on the
roads and byroads in the early morning to accept food from people
lined up on either side. It is mostly women who are ever ready to
perform this meritorious deed, although men are not totally absent.
In Sri Lanka the practice of pinda-pata is not seen as much as in
countries like Myanmar and Thailand. In Colombo one hardly sees
a single monk going for pinda-pata. The practice there is to take
dana to the monastery or to send it through someone when people
are busy with other activities.
This is the simplest and most regular form in which dana is prac-
ticed. The obvious motive is the maintenance of the Sangha. When
a Buddhist undertakes to give dana to his village monastery once a
month or once in three months, as the case may be, what he has in
mind is not necessarily that he is engaged in something that helps
reduce his craving, but that it is his duty to help the Sangha by way of
helping his village monastery. Ideally, dana is given without having
any particular monk or monastery in mind but by considering the
Sangha as a nameless and faceless community. In other words, the
object of dana is "the Sangha belonging to the four quarters, gath-
ered and not gathered at the site (of dana)." But in real practice peo-
ple look for monks with whom they are acquainted, for those who
are well known, and popular preachers to whom to give dana. That
the original intention is not entirely lost, however, is demonstrated by
the fact that givers do not discriminate against monks who are not
known. Although knowing a particular monk can serve as an added
incentive, the fact that one does not personally know the monks who
are there to accept one's dana is no reason to withhold the act. In fact,
giving to totally unknown monks who may be visiting is considered
to be even more meritorious than a regular dana.
In addition to these regular forms of dana, a very popular mode
of giving dana is to invite monks (the number depending on one's
capacity and requirement), to one's home, or to one's workplace,
office, or any other public place. Usually people invite monks to
their homes for dana for such purposes as transferring merit to the
departed, invoking blessings on someone celebrating a birthday,
wedding, wedding anniversary, or leaving for a foreign country, a
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
housewarming, opening a new office building, and such events. Of

all these occasions, transferring merit to the departed is the most
common reason for inviting monks home for dana. Usually in such
situations dana is given at the completion of the seventh day, three
months, and one year after a death. In addition to dana for a specific
departed family member, many families follow the practice of invit-
ing monks annually for dana at home in order to transfer merit to all
the departed members from a family.
Usually Buddhists prefer to give dana to monks, for, as we saw
earlier, it is believed that the higher the degree of virtue of the one
who accepts the dana, the larger the amount of merit generated by
the act. This very same belief causes them to look for monks known
for their virtue as recipients of their dana. Consequently, the mon-
asteries in which such monks live receive abundantly, whereas other
and more ordinary monasteries do not receive so much. It is believed
that monks who live in forests are more virtuous than those who
reside in villages. Consequently, people go annually to forest mon-
asteries to give dana. They take their village monk along with them
in this quest for more merit, for the monk himself tacitly admits that
forest living is an ideal he himself cannot meet. I shall discuss this
distinction that exists among monks later.
Dana usually, but not exclusively, refers to food given to monks.
Along with food, they are also given other necessities such as robes,
medicine, and objects for daily use such as toothbrushes, soap, writ-
ing pads, and so on. Making a donation of a residence or funding a
building project at a monastery, or giving things such as pots and
pans, tables and chairs, computers, and the like are considered to
generate higher merit. Such offerings then belong exclusively to the
particular monastery and cannot be passed on without the express
consent of the Sangha. People particularly like to give such items as
dana to monks.
Kathina-dana
The most demanding of all the dana is kathina-dana. This is the
offering of robes to the monks at the conclusion of their observance
of the rainy season, three months starting from the full-moon day of
July. Although the rainy seasons in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia do
not coincide with that in ancient India, Theravada monks all over
the world still adhere to this ancient tradition. Buddhism adopted
the observance of the rainy season from early Indian religious tra-
ditions. Various religious groups, who were mostly itinerant, devel-
oped the custom of remaining stationary during the rains, primar-
ily for practical reasons. In addition, it was thought that damaging
freshly grown grass by walking on it was not an acceptable action for
religious people. The initial disregard of this popular custom by the
monastic followers of the Buddha evoked public criticism. Conse-
quently, the Buddha absorbed it into his system.
Once the practice had been adopted, both monks and laypeople
found it mutually beneficial. For monks, being removed from the
possible hazards associated with itinerancy provides a period to ded-
icate themselves solely to pursuing further spiritual progress. For
laypeople, it affords an opportunity to associate more closely with
monks and to receive guidance from them for their own spiritual
progress. At the end of the three-month period monks resume their
usual routine. Before doing so they thank the laypeople who have
supported them, and they, in return, offer robes to the departing
monks.'
What was simple practical behavior during the time of the Bud-
dha has developed into an elaborate religious activity. Although
today monks are no longer itinerant and the rainy season does not
coincide with that of ancient India, Buddhist monks in Theravada
societies still observe the rainy season during the three months of
July through October. People gather in the monastery on the full-
moon day of July and invite the resident monks to observe the rainy
season. Sometimes, too, they will invite a renowned monk from
outside to come and stay for three months. This invitation is tanta-
mount to promising that the monks will be well looked after during
i. Buddhist monks are prohibited from owning more than three robes at
a time, but they are allowed to accept an additional robe at the conclusion
of this rainy season observance. This robe was called "kathina robe,"
referring to the wooden structure on which the cloth was fastened for its
preparation.
I
this period. Once the invitation is accepted, a monk is not allowed

by vinaya to leave the place except for a very special reason. Even
if he does leave he cannot be away for more than six nights; if he
exceeds seven nights his observance is considered broken. Today in
Theravada societies these three months have evolved into a period
of intense merit making by laypeople. In Southeast Asian Theravada
countries many young and old people temporarily enter monkhood
during this period.
The month following the full-moon day of October is called robe
month (civara-rnasa), for it is during this period that the kathina robe
is offered to monks. In each monastery today this particular robe-
offering meritorious deed is a joyous festive occasion, involving not
only regular supporters of the monastery but also many people from
adjoining localities. In densely populated urban areas with many
Buddhist monasteries, the entire month comes alive with religious
festivities. The custom is that the kathina robe has to be brought to
the monastery in the early morning before sunrise. The robe is car-
ried in a colorful procession accompanied by local traditional danc-
ing, music, decorations, flags, and floral arrangements. In Southeast
Asian Buddhist countries the festivities associated with the occasion
are even more elaborate.
Giving a kathina-dana is a lifetime aspiration of many pious
Buddhists. One needs considerable financial resources at one's dis-
posal to be able to act as the sole or even as the principal sponsor of
kathina-dana. Nevertheless, giving a kathina is never an individual
act. People take part voluntarily by contributing materially, physi-
cally, or monetarily so that they can also share in the good karma.
All people who join the procession carrying the kathina robe to the
monastery do not forget to bring along something to be given to the
Sangha, small or large depending on one's means. All the offerings
brought to the monastery in this manner are fixed to a small tree
or a branch of a tree kept particularly for that purpose inside the
Dhamma hall of the monastery. The tree symbolizes the "wish-ful-
filling tree" believed to exist in heaven, from which anything one
wishes can be obtained. The number of objects hung on this tree or
amassed around it is really vast, containing every imaginable item,
including medicine to be used by monks. Usually the kathina-dana
is concluded with a thanksgiving sermon delivered by a senior monk

of the monastery, the purpose of which is meant to motivate people
to perform more kinds of similar meritorious deeds.
Dhamma-dana
Dana is not exclusively material. Among other things that can be
given are one's knowledge, time, physical effort, sense of freedom
from fear, and Dhamma. A teacher giving meditation instructions
or a monk chanting protections or preaching a sermon, for instance,
is giving his knowledge, time, and energy in addition to Dhamma.
In Buddhist parlance all these are included within Dhamma-dana,
or gift of Dhamma. The preaching of Dhamma is immensely val-
ued by tradition. Usually it is the monk who gives this particular
dana. In the Dhamma-dana the roles reverse- the monk who is the
usual recipient becomes the giver and vice versa. In classical Thera-
vada traditions there are rarely laypersons preaching Dhamma; it has
always been the monopoly of the monk. An interesting story about
the Sri Lanka king Dutugemunu (161-137 BCE) exists in this tradi-
tion. Having given all types of dana, the king finally wished to try
his hand at Dhamma-dana, which meant that he had to preach a
sermon before an audience. Naturally many monks gathered to lis-
ten to the good king. Seeing the exalted audience, the story contin-
ues, the king broke into a sweat and had to give up! Ever since, no
other king in Sri Lankan history seems to have had the courage to
try his luck at this kind of dana again. In its place, what was done
was to shower preachers with all sorts of gifts as a mark of respect for
the Dhamma. What is given in this manner to the preacher is called
"Dhamma-puja" (what is given for Dhamma). It has been the cus-
tom that whenever a monk preaches the Dhamma, at the end of the
sermon many offerings are made to the preacher as Dhamma-puja.
These can include anything from books, objects to be used in daily
life, food items, robes, and in some rare cases even a motor vehicle,
depending on the resources of the donor.
There is, however, another way that an ordinary layman can give
the Dhamma-dana. It is to sponsor a sermon so that others may have
an opportunity to listen to the Dhamma. Because by sponsoring a
Dhamma sermon one is indirectly giving the Dhamma to others,
this type of dana is considered to be the highest of all gifts. Usually

Buddhists in Theravada countries sponsor Dhamma sermons either
individually or as a group in order to acquire this particular merit.
On full-moon days several Dhamma sermons are usually conducted
at any monastery. In urban areas monasteries hold sermons on week-
ends. Many Buddhist societies facilitate weekend Dhamma sermons.
This is in addition to what is broadcast and televised on many radio
and television stations. In Sri Lanka, for instance, the state-run radio
broadcasts two hour-long sermons every morning and evening. All
these events can be sponsored by people who are desirous of acquir-
ing merit. Although Dhamma sermons are given by monks alone,
inviting a lay Buddhist, usually a scholar, to deliver a Dhamma talk
at the temple on a full-moon day is quite commonplace today. Lay
Buddhist preachers are becoming increasingly visible in the Thera-
vada world.
A unique Dharnrna-dana, although of a somewhat different
nature, is practiced by the pious Buddhists of Southeast Asia, par-
ticularly in Myanmar and Thailand. This is the sponsoring of the
recital of "Vessantara-jataka," the most popular of all Jataka stories
in the Theravada Buddhist world. Although the practice is common
in the region, the account is based on the recital occurring in Keng-
tung, an area in the eastern Shan state of Myanmar. The Vessantara-
jataka describes the Buddha's penultimate birth as Prince Vessantara,
who gave away his wife and children in fulfillment of his generosity.
The story is a long narrative that arouses many sentiments in the lis-
tener. The recital is usually held in a monastery after the harvest or
during the rain retreat of the monks. One way to hold the recital is to
make it an annual event organized by people of a particular village.
Its aim can be to raise funds for a new building for the monastery or
to invoke blessings or to acquire merit. Another method is to have the
recital sponsored solely by one wealthy family in order for them to
acquire merit and transfer that to the departed. Either way, the recital
is one of the most merit-generating events and is the lifetime ambition
of any pious Buddhist. It is respected as an indication of an accom-
plished Buddhist life.
Such a recital requires a great deal of preparation. The monas-
tery has to be tidied up with necessary repairs and repainting. A spe-
cial seat for the preacher has to be prepared and decorated. Paintings
depicting special occasions taken from the Jataka story have to be
prepared. Gifts for the preachers have to be arranged. The event itself
is religious and joyful. All family members of the sponsor and his/
her relatives are invited. In addition, a large number of people gather
round for support. All these people and the participants in the event
have to be well looked after during the ceremony.
Usually one recital takes three days and three nights. The Jataka
itself is recited within one day, starting from early morning and last-
ing until late evening. There are other texts to be recited the day
before this and the day after. A number of reciters are involved; usu-
ally the whole ceremony requires about fifty monks and novices. The
Jataka is divided into twenty-six sections. Each section requires a
separate reciter. Very often the reciters are experts in preaching spe-
cific sections. Each reciter needs to be sponsored, and this may be
done by one person, one family, or a group of people. Depending on
the number of sponsors, each section may be further subdivided into
another three sections, thereby permitting more sponsors to take
part. Sponsoring essentially means paying all the expenses involved.
In a group sponsorship, in addition to bearing the general cost, each
sponsor has to offer gifts (cash or kind or both) to the reciter monk
and to the monastery.
In this kind of complex merit-making activity "experts" are
involved who serve as go -betweens between the monks and laypeo-
ple. They invite the monks and facilitate the meritorious deed by
guiding the laypeople in actions appropriate to the occasion. These
people receive some remuneration from the sponsors for their ser-
vice. If the sponsor is one individual or a family, they have to bear all
the expenses involved. The motivation of the sponsor is to outdo his
"rivals," and consequently each strives to spend more money than the
others. The whole point is that one cannot be frugal in merit making;
one has to do it as well as one can!
Whether it be the result of a group or an individual sponsorship,
the Vessanatara recital remains a costly affair. This is what makes it
both difficult and valuable. Not everyone is able to do it. Only those
people who have enough means can. This is exactly what makes it
a lifetime ambition for many people. One source says that an aver-
104 TH E RAVADA BUDDHISM
age US$5,ooo-6,ooo, a substantial amount for an ordinary person,

is required to be spent on a recital lasting for three days and nights.
This cost factor has been discussed by sociologists. According to
Michael Spiro (who undertook his research in the 1960s), a Burmese
would spend, on average, one-fourth of his income on merit making.
It is a known fact that many people face difficulties after sponsoring
an event of such grandeur. Consequently, methods have been devised
to assist sponsors. For instance, one can go "step-by-step" in spon-
soring a recital. This means that one is not encouraged to embark on
this type of meritorious deed all at once. One has to prove that one
is capable of shouldering the whole expense of an event by first con-
tributing to parts of the event that, with regard to resources, are less
demanding.
In the last section of the recital the good harvest one is bound to
reap for sponsoring this great meritorious deed is described.
Whoever venerates and makes offering to this excellent teach-
ing will have, when he is reborn, a very pleasant physical body,
such as clear eyesight, sharp ears, a good-looking face , strong,
pure, and white teeth, and very good life. He will have . . . very
nice teeth with no smell, a pleasant figure, and a pleasant voice.
He is born where there exists wealth, and animate and inanimate
objects such as a thousand elephants, gold and jewelry, and nine
thousand horses are provided for him before birth. He will lead a
very luxurious life with nine thousand fifteen-year-old beautiful
maidens in beautiful cloths serving him.
Although it is not very likely that anyone sponsoring the recital today
has these things in mind, the whole rationale of a meritorious deed
is to make one's samsaric journey as pleasant as possible until one
attains nirvana. This is made amply clear by the enthusiasm people
display in sponsoring the Vessanatara recital.
Dana to Laypeople
So far what I have discussed is dana provided to the Sangha, which
is described as "the incomparable field of merit for the world." Nat-
urally, the Sangha is the first choice for dana. This does not, how-
ever, mean that people never give anything to anyone else. Increas-
ingly, Buddhists tend to give dana to orphanages, children's homes,

homes for the aged, rehabilitation centers, hospitals, and the like to
celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and even to transfer merit to the
departed. While many adhere to these new modes of giving dana
owing to their sense of social responsibility, some others do so as
an expression of their disapproval of the Sangha. Whether or not
people wish to give to the Sangha, the practice of giving inculcated
in people by Buddhist belief has proved useful in promoting proj -
ects that need material support from the public. For example, when
the tsunami catastrophe hit countries like Sri Lanka and Thailand
at the end of 2004, the local support for the victims was unprece-
dented and unimaginable. The same thing happens whenever other
natural disasters such as floods or landslides occur. Blood donation
campaigns, similarly, receive enthusiastic public responses in these
countries.
On full-moon days many thousands of people spend the day in
monasteries observing the eight or ten precepts. With the higher vir-
tue so obtained, even for a very limited period of time, these peo-
ple are highly regarded and are provided with a midday meal (dana)
and refreshments by those who also wish to acquire merit. Finally,
another form of dana worthy of mention is what is given to the pil-
grims at key religious places and when they are spectators of religious
festivities. In Sri Lanka, usually this happens on the Vesak (May) full-
moon day celebrating the birth, awakening, and the parinirvana of
the Buddha, and also on the Poson (June) full-moon day celebrat-
ing the arrival of Arahant Mahinda, who brought the Sasana to the
country. At key Buddhist places pilgrims are given food and refresh-
ments as dana. On the Vesak full-moon day in particular, practically
all over the country people organize what is known as "dan-sela"-
(dana halls) on highways, byways, four-way junctions, and by the
roadside. A typical dan-sela serving lunch or dinner is prepared to
cater to the large numbers of people who line up to eat. It is customary
for large numbers of people to flock to cities to look at the complex
and multicolored Vesak decorations. People have meals from these
outlets absolutely free of charge. In addition, there are scores of small
dan-selas specializing in particular items such as yellow rice, fried
rice, ice cream, cool drinks, hot drinks, herbal drinks, and so on. It is
not easy to pass these places without patronizing them: passersby are
almost forced to eat or drink from them!
MORALITY (SILA)
Ordinarily, Buddhists are required to observe the five precepts
(panca-sila). What is meant by sila as a meritorious deed is the prac-
tice of observing eight or ten precepts (see the discussion in Chap-
ter 3 for details). A large majority of people observe eight precepts,
whereas some opt to undertake ten. Usually people observe sila on
"sabbath" (uposatha) days. Of the four uposatha days during a month,
many observe higher precepts on full-moon day and a lesser number
on a no-moon day, which comes two weeks after the full moon. The
ideal observance has to last for twenty-four hours, from morning to
the morning of the next day. But increasingly people observe sila on
the day of the full moon. Among full-moon days, some days such as
Vesak (in May) are more important and are celebrated in all Thera-
vada countries. Poson (in June) has only a local significance for Sri
Lanka, for it celebrates the arrival of Buddhism in the country. On
these days thousands of people, both young and old, go early in the
morning to monasteries to observe sila. Many monasteries, partic-
ularly those in urban areas, run well-organized programs accord-
ing to a timetable. Some even have separate programs for children,
youth, and adults. Naturally, people seek out places with better pro-
grams and known monks, and as a result some places attract many
more people than others. Lay Buddhist organizations also run sila
programs on uposatha days, and some people prefer such venues to
monasteries. There is essentially little difference with regard to pro-
grams themselves.
Usually these programs begin with the laypeople receiving
precepts given verbally by a monk. This is followed by a sermon
describing the value of sila and the historical and religious signifi-
cance of that particular full-moon day. Events in the life of the Bud-
dha and the history of the Sasana are usually associated with full-
moon days' ceremonies. For instance, Theravada Buddhists believe
that the Buddha was born, attained his awakening, and passed away
(parinirvana) on the Vesak full-moon day. It is believed that he
preached his first sermon on the full-moon day of July, so the sig-
nificance of that particular day will be highlighted in the sermons

delivered on it.
After the sermons, homage to the Buddha (buddha-vandana) and
offe rings to the Buddha (buddha-puja) are conducted by the monk.
ta ndard formulae describing the virtues of the Triple Gem are used
fi r the homage. Next, flowers, incense, water, and food are offered
Lo the Buddha. Worship is followed by a short session of meditation
usually lasting five to fifteen minutes. After these initial observances
a simple breakfast is served to the devotees. The remaining morning
program contains the Dhamma sermon by a monk, a Dhamma dis-
cussion conducted by a monk or a group of monks, or both monks
and learned laymen together. At about eleven in the morning, a bud-
dha-puja is conducted offering a midday meal to the Buddha. By
noon all the devotees will have finished the lunch offered to them by
an individual or a group desirous of accumulating merit. The next
two hours or so are set aside for rest, individual meditation, reading,
and so on. At around 2:00 p.m. refreshments are served and, again
until evening, a program of Dhamma sermons and discussions con-
tinues. Very often a learned lay Buddhist is invited to give a Dhamma
talk. With a lay speaker, people can feel freer to ask questions and
join in discussions. The program for the day ends with a Dhamma
sermon by an invited distinguished monk followed by a more elabo-
rate buddha-puja. These programs usually run from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00
p.m., and in some instances with vandana and puja extending fur-
ther into the night. Before leaving the monastery those who observed
sila will resume the regular five precepts. A few who may continue to
stay overnight in the monastery spend the rest of the night reading,
discussing Dhamma, and chanting sutras.
MEDITATION (BHAVANA)
In the regular observance of religion by ordinary people-both
monks and laymen-meditation appears to be the least practiced of
the three kinds of meritorious deeds. The very fact that it has been
included is revealing. Originally, bhavana was directly connected to
the path, and it is what one basically did in order to cleanse one's
mind of defilements (kilesa). In other words, bhavana is practiced to
bring samsara to an end, not for its prolongation. But when it is clas-
sified as, and included in, the meritorious deeds, its very nirvanic
orientation is highly compromised. As a meritorious deed, bhavana
has been reduced to something people do (or pretend to do) as the
concluding part of the worship of the Triple Gem that lasts for only
a few minutes.
The practice of meditation has now been much confined to
monastic circles. Historically even among monks, gradually there
developed a group who were forest dwellers and whose main pur-
pose was meditation. This practice came to be known as the "yoke
of insight" (vipassana-dhura). Large numbers of monks who lived
around a village (as opposed to in a forest) became occupied with
helping people in their merit-making endeavors and practicing
what came to be known as the "yoke of books" (gantha-dhura),
which involved learning the word of the Buddha and reading other
supportive literatures. At this very early stage in the history of Bud-
dhism in Sri Lanka an incident occurred that seems to have influ-
enced the entire Theravada attitude toward meditation.
During the reign of Vattagamani Abhaya (29-17 BCE) the coun-
try suffered immensely due to a long and deadly famine. The people
were unable to look after the monks. Many monks went to neighbor-
ing India in order to save their lives as well as to protect the mem-
ory of the Tripitaka that they were transmitting from generation to
generation. Meanwhile, another group of monks decided to remain,
even at the risk of their lives, to preserve the oral tradition. With
much hardship these monks survived the famine. Once the fam-
ine was over, those monks who had gone to India returned. One of
their first acts was to compare the texts they had held in their memo-
ries with the memories of those who had remained. The two parties
found that their memories of them tallied perfectly. Nevertheless,
this calamity had clearly exposed the danger of carrying the precious
knowledge only in memories. This was the major reason for the his-
toric decision to commit the word of the Buddha to writing.
Now a debate arose among the monks as to just what was fun-
damental learning (pariyatti) or practice (patipatti). Understand-
ably, those who represented learning won the debate. As is revealed
in Buddhaghosa's commentary to the Dhammapada (Cakkhupala
story), the attitude was that meditation was more suitable for the
The Traditional Theravada Practice
elderly and the feeble. This incident that took place a little more than
two thousand years ago seems to have greatly influenced the devel-
opmental path of Theravada. The Buddhist tradition in Sri Lanka
created a name for its meticulous and strict observance of the vinaya
and its dedication to the preservation of the precise word of the Bud-
dha. As we observed in our consideration of the Theravada Buddhist
world, monks of both Myanmar and Thailand looked to Sri Lanka
for the correct learning and the unbroken tradition (even though
the present monastic lineages of Sri Lanka owe their origins to those
countries). While the emphasis on vinaya became the hallmark of
Theravada, the stalwarts of the tradition also took the burden of
keeping the word of the Buddha intact very seriously. The tradition
of meditation was thus mainly confined to the forest tradition.
Although it would be incorrect to portray the village tradition
as totally aloof from meditation, it is true that these monks did
take their responsibilities to the society more seriously. It is possi-
ble to imagine that there were many village monks who combined
their social duties with meditation, thus weakening the stereotypi-
cal characterization of village monks as not meditators. By way of
proof, there is a story from ancient Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka of
two monks who were friends . Though one lived in the forest and the
other in the village, the latter ultimately proved to be the real "for-
est" monk. Despite the fact that this story appears in a book presum-
ably written by a village monk who practiced "the yoke of books," it
questions the validity of the sharp dichotomy attributed to these two
categories of monks.
This general apathy toward meditation is still a characteristic of
Theravada to a great extent today. As Jack Kornfield (1977), a West-
ern Vipassana meditator who practiced meditation under Myan-
mar and Thai-Lao teachers, noted, even among "the Burmese people
who are more concerned about their religious life ... the tradition of
self-development through meditation includes only a small percent-
age of monks and general populace," and among the ten thousand
monasteries in Myanmar "only a minority" are meditation monas-
teries. This is even more accurately applicable to other Theravada
countries. Nevertheless, even though the numbers are compara-
tively few, the meditative tradition has continued in the forest where
no THERAVADA BUDDHISM
it has been reestablished but it has also been brought into the vil-
lage. The tradition, which had been revived in Myanmar by pioneers
such as Ledi Sayadaw in the nineteenth century, gradually spread to
Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia, and subsequently, early in the last
century, it reached Sri Lanka. With a strong tradition of learning
the Abhidhamma, the Myanmar people seem to have developed a
greater propensity for meditation, although not all who became well-
known meditation teachers were experts on the Abhidhamma. Ledi
Sayadaw, who pioneered the popularizing of meditation in modern
Myanmar, was a highly learned monk of the entire Tripitaka, and not
only the Abhidhamma in particular. He made use of his extensive
Dhamma knowledge to support his instruction of meditation.
Mahasi Sayadaw of Myanmar and Achaan Chaa of the Thai-Lao
tradition are meditation teachers whose influence has spread far
and wide in the world. They were instrumental in encouraging the
contemporary popularity of Vipassana meditation not only in their
respective countries but also throughout the world. Meditation prac-
tices in Myanmar and Thailand remain very powerful. There are
many renowned teachers, both lay and monastic, teaching thousands
of students both local and foreign. (The modern resurgence ofVipas-
sana meditation will be discussed later in this and the next chapter.)
The ancient forest meditation tradition of Sri Lanka seems to have
gradually died out during the colonial period. The revival effected
by Welivita Saranankara Sangharaja during the eighteenth century
was basically the village tradition with emphasis on monastic vinaya
and traditional learning. Nonetheless, the flavor of ancient medita-
tion traditions and the enthusiasm for the secluded life seems to have
survived among at least some members of the Sangha. Consequently,
two meditation traditions started to emerge during the first half of
the last century-namely, the Vaturuvila and the Kalyani Yogas-
rama. The former now has about 140 centers around the country
while the latter has more than 150. Among various other meditation
centers, one at Kanduboda, on the outskirts of Colombo, was started
in 1956 by Kahatapitiye Sumatipala Thera (1896-1982), who had prac-
ticed in Myanmar. The chain ofTapovana (meditation forest) centers
was started by Kudawelle Vangisa Thera (1922-1982), who belonged
to the Kanduboda tradition.
Of these centers the first two basically cater to monks who still
belong to their respective traditions. The second, which has close
connections with the Myanmar meditation system, and in partic-
ular with that of Pa Auk Sayadaw (1934-), accommodates monks
from Myanmar and other countries. The Kanduboda organization,
unlike the other two, primarily serves laypeople, both local and for-
eign, who are allowed to stay and practice under guidance. Medi-
tation is becoming increasingly popular, and more and more youth
and educated groups find it to be of interest. Meditation in Sri Lanka
remains a very specialized area intended for a limited group much
smaller in number than in Southeast Asian Theravada countries. It
seems that ordinary Buddhists in Sri Lanka are satisfied with look-
ing after meditating monks as best as they can rather than engaging
in meditation themselves.
WORSHIP (VANDANA)
Worshipping the Triple Gem and making offerings is a key aspect
of Buddhist life. Many people practice their daily worship at home
in a small space or room reserved for this purpose. On special days
such as full-moon days people in large numbers visit the monastery
to worship in the evening or during the course of the day. They arrive
in family groups with flowers and incense and oil for lamps. First
they wash their hands and sprinkle water on the flowers . Next they
light oil lamps, burn incense, and place the flowers on flower stands,
then circumambulate the dagoba (pagoda) and Bodhi Tree three
times, keeping their right hand toward the object of veneration. This
ancient Indian practice, which Buddhists follow with much serious-
ness, is called padakkhina (Skt. pradakshina). The usual practice is to
reflect on the virtues of the Triple Gem or chant the formulae con-
taining such virtues while doing so. It is after these preliminaries
that people will sit down before any one of the three sacred objects
for more worship.
In a Buddhist monastery there are three types of sacred objects
to be worshipped. These are the physical relics of the Buddha or
objects or structures such as a dagoba in which such physical objects
are enshrined; objects used by the Buddha or objects representing
them; and symbols representing the Buddha, such as statues of him.
Of these objects, a dagoba containing the bodily relics of the Bud-

dha is the highest in the order of religious significance. The Bodhi
Tree, which is considered to be an object used by the Buddha when
he attained awakening while seated under it, is second in the order;
and objects and symbols representing the Buddha are last. It is stipu-
lated that one should follow this order when worshipping. But since
this is not common knowledge, many do not follow any particular
order. The proper physical posture to adopt when worshipping is
to touch the ground with five limbs-namely, one's two knees, two
elbows, and forehead. Usually, worshipping that lasts for some time
is started and concluded in this posture. In between, people assume
a posture convenient to them. Some even stand. Since there are no
hard-and-fast rules regarding the posture, many do it according to
their preference.
Worship of the Bodhi Tree, popularly referred to as "bodhi-
puja" has gained popularity in recent times, and this has been par-
ticularly so in Sri Lanka for about the last three decades. Although
the worship has a long history extending back to the beginnings of
Buddhism in the country, the practice started to capture the public
imagination in the late 1970s and early 1980s, due mainly to a young
charismatic monk named Panadure Ariyadhamma (1941-1986) who
used his attractive voice in the act of worship. An innovation he
made was adopting stanzas in the Sinhala language instead of the
usual Pali and employing the method of group recitation in the wor-
ship. Along with this new popularity, the worship of bodhi became
identified with people's more worldly aspirations, such as avoiding
periods considered astrologically unlucky, the passing of examina-
tions, securing marriages, regaining health, and the like. In addi-
tion to offering flowers and the other usual articles, people bathe
the tree with a select number of pots of water (often as prescribed
by the astrologer) while circumambulating it and decorate the tree
with flags and garlands of flowers. While most of the bodhi-pujas
are simple rituals practiced by individuals or families, over time a
kind of "professional" conductor of this ceremony has developed
among monks. With their own minor and major innovations, these
monks are in high demand and are invited to participate in special
events. Although any worship ultimately generates merit, the wor-
ship of the Bod hi Tree is special because of its focus on worldly gains,
which have become crucial in this age of competitive open-market
economies.
The practice of worship in general can take the form of an orga-
nized ceremony conducted by a monk or a layman who is an expert
or can be the simple act of an individual. Simple individual worship
begins by first paying homage to the Buddha three times, followed by
the recital of taking refuge and the five precepts, and then the formu-
lae describing the virtues of the Triple Gem. This is followed by recit-
ing stanzas related to the worshipping of the three objects mentioned
above and the Bodhi Tree in particular. Next flowers, water, vari-
ous types of drinks, incense, and oil lamps placed before the object
of worship are dedicated by reciting appropriate stanzas. Before this
simple act of worship is concluded by asking for forgiveness from
the Triple Gem for any inadvertently committed wrong behavior,
merit is transferred to the departed and to divine beings who protect
them, as well as to malicious beings who could cause harm. A wish
is also made that there will not be any association with immature
people until one attains nirvana, accompanied by a final wish that
the entire meritorious deed will bring about nirvana. Usually, the
worship is conducted in the Pali language. Recently there has been
a tendency to translate the Pali stanzas into the local language, and
in some cases to replace Pali with the local language altogether. (See
Appendix I for a translation of the text of a sample worship as prac-
ticed in Sri Lanka.)
Organized and expert-assisted worship is more elaborate and
colorful, involving more recitals, so naturally it takes longer. Wor-
ship dedicated to the names of twenty-eight past buddhas (includ-
ing the present Buddha) is quite commonplace in many monasteries
on full-moon days. This worship is conducted before twenty-eight
statues representing each buddha. Usually offerings are placed before
the buddha statues and appropriate stanzas are recited, guided by
a monk who is familiar with the process. A more elaborate but
less common worship is one dedicated to the seventy-three knowl-
edges attributed to the Buddha. These knowledges have been elab-
orated in the Dhammasangani, the first of the seven books of the
Abhidhamma-pitaka. For the purpose of worship, the names of all
the seventy-three knowledges are written on boards and placed on

a pedestal before laying articles of offering before the name board.
This type of worship is usually conducted by a monk familiar with
the process. In addition, there are some forms of worship at an even
higher level, organized as annual events or events marking a spe-
cial occasion. The offering of eighty-four thousand oil lamps is one.
Buddhists are fond of offering lights to the Buddha; the process is
believed to represent wisdom. Many ordinary people repeat the prac-
tice daily by lighting a single and simple oil lamp at the family shrine.
But one involving eighty-four thousand is understandably an affair
demanding large resources but also generating much merit. Offer-
ing one hundred thousand lotus flowers or the same number of jas-
mine flowers, or acts of a similar magnitude require a large number
of organizational skills, and are often organized by individual monks
or organizations annually at well-known holy places. Their primary
purpose is, of course, to accumulate merit. However, powerful and
charismatic leaders of this type of activity very often use the oppor-
tunity to convey their own messages (religious, nationalist, or even
political) to the people. Thus the world of Buddhism is rife with acts
of worship. The pious have no time to idle!
Monks in Theravada Society

In the preceding considerations on merit making we have discov-
ered that traditionally the Sangha is revered as "the incomparable
field of merit for the world." The Sangha is represented by monks
(bhikkhu) who have received full admission, and it is such monks
to whom the Buddhists refer when they pay respect to the Sangha
as an aspect of the Triple Gem. In Theravada countries monks are
recruited at a very early age in life. Young boys are admitted as nov-
ices (samanera). They have to observe ten precepts and undergo the
training needed to reach full-fledged monkhood, which occurs when
they reach the age of twenty. One has to be twenty years old to receive
full admission, upsampada, which literally means "absorbing" (into
the Sangha). The initial admission or initial entrance is "going forth,"
or "pabbajja," which literally means "(voluntary) banishment." If the
entrant is qualified by age and the necessary knowledge, he can be
given both initial and full admission at the same time. The novitiate
is only a preparatory stage during which one is not considered a full

monk. One becomes an elder (thera) after ten years of full admission
and a great elder (maha thera) after twenty. Although there are no
marks to distinguish novices from monks with full admission, only
the latter are allowed to have a two-tiered robe and fold it on their
shoulder, and to take part in monastic procedural activities. Senior-
ity is counted only by the years one has spent as a fully admitted
monk, not by one's chronological age.
We already know that there have been two types of monks from
a fairly early stage in the evolution of the Sangha, namely, village
dwellers and forest dwellers who, respectively, specialized in learning
(pariyatti) and practice (patipatti). The distinction is still valid today,
but there are no hard-and-fast restrictions on switching affiliations
temporarily or permanently. Up to very recent times, particularly in
Southeast Asia, there were monks who observed difficult vows such
as shunning shelter, surviving exclusively on alms food, and so on,
and were itinerant, never spending two nights in the same place.
These monks are a vanishing breed today but have still not totally
vanished. Occasionally one still comes across a monk shunning all
kinds of modern transport and even hospital beds (for fear of violat-
ing the rule about high and valuable seats), not even touching money,
and totally dependent on alms for food. The spectrum of monks in
the Theravada tradition is quite broad, with the kind just described
at one end and the city-dwelling monks who ride in modern automo-
biles and carry a laptop and hand phone at the other. None of these
behaviors has anything to do with a monk's true morality.
In Southeast Asian Buddhist countries almost every male enters
the monkhood at least once in his life for a limited period of time.
Adolescent boys are encouraged to join the Sangha as a way of quali-
fying for adulthood. It has become a rite of passage, and the major-
ity who enter for this purpose leave after a limited period, although
some stay longer. In addition to those who enter the Sangha on a
more permanent basis, some do so as a way of transferring merit
to their deceased parents, for it is believed that, when one person
enters the Sangha, all his kith and kin up to the seventh generation
go to heaven. Sometimes people enter the Sangha several times in
their lives, as time permits. Often in Southeast Asian societies boys
from villages with not very rich parents enter the Sangha mainly as a
means to obtaining a good education. Later they return to the world
as civilians with better prospects for a better future. Returning from
monkhood poses no problem in these societies. On the contrary,
being a monk, at least temporarily, is perceived as a mark of responsi-
ble adulthood. The situation in Sri Lanka is quite the opposite. There,
people believe "once a monk always a monk." Although temporary
ordination of the Southeast Asian type has been introduced recently,
it will take time to become popular. Consequently, people have a ten-
dency to look down on those who have left the Sangha. But the real-
ity, as articulated by the stock joke popular among the Sri Lankan
monks, is: you ordain boys to the number of hairs on your head,
but they remain in the monkhood only to the number of fingers on
your hand! The difference between the two areas in this respect is
that, whereas the Southeast Asian societies seem to recognize a for-
mer monk for his being in the Sangha, Sri Lankan society seems to
stigmatize him for leaving the Sangha. Although the situation is fast
changing due to the sheer numbers of people who leave, for some for-
mer monks their past is a closely guarded secret. In Sri Lanka there
are about thirty thousand monks; in Myanmar and Thailand there
are several hundred thousand monks, with the exact number con-
tinuously fluctuating.
Monks are the most visible aspect of Theravada, although nuns
with full admission may add to this in the future. One cannot imag-
ine the existence of Theravada without the presence of monks. This
is not merely in a historical sense; it is even more so in a religious
sense. In merit-making functions, monks are indispensable, for they
are "the incomparable field of merit for the world." Of the merito-
rious deeds already discussed, dana cannot be performed without
monks because they are the most worthy recipients of one's dana; it
is plain that without monks one cannot give to monks. Even though
it is possible to give dana to others such as beggars, the belief persists
that what one gives to those who are not spiritually advanced does
not produce high results.
An event in which a monk's participation is crucial, for example,
is the administration of last rites performed for the dead. The cus-
tom is that monks are invited for the funeral, a white piece of cloth
is given as dana, and ensuing merit is transferred to the deceased.

In Southeast Asian societies, these last rites can take even weeks or
months, depending on the financial situation of the family of the
deceased. Monks are invited to chant appropriate passages in Pali,
morning and evening, until the funeral takes place, and offerings are
made to the monks who provide this service. Dana is also given to
monks upon the completion of the seven days, three months, and one
year after the death. Monks' participation in these activities is taken
almost as an essential aspect of their social obligation. A monk's role
in the merit-making dimension of Buddhist life has not diminished
over the years.
Some aspects of the traditional role of the monk, however, seem to
have been replaced by modern developments. In the ancient Thera-
vada societies the monk played a very significant social role. In addi-
tion to being the spiritual example and guide, he was teacher, phy-
sician, arbitrator in discords, counselor, and judge. In the ancient
society characterized by almost self-sufficient and self-contained vil-
lage life, the monk was usually the most educated, most knowledge-
able and, due to his elevated position, the most authoritative. People
usually listened to and obeyed him. With modern social advance-
ment some of these roles have been taken away from the monk and
handed over to other agencies that are secular, and perhaps even
more efficient.
In the premodern period, education was largely a function of the
monastery. Children of a village received their basic literacy skills
and education from monks. This explains the relatively high liter-
acy rate existing even today in some of these countries that are in
other respects poor. Today, children no longer go to the monastery
for basic education. However, the local village monk is still a popu-
lar choice to perform the traditional rite of reading letters to a child
for the first time at an auspicious moment for his learning how to
read. The Buddhist monk's traditional educational role is still vis-
ible in Sri Lanka, where they are often appointed as teachers in state
schools. This system of hiring young graduate monks was started
by the Bandaranaike government in the late 1950s and continues
today, although the practice has also continued to draw criticism
from traditionally minded monks. One reason it has received some
sympathy from the public is the traditional role that monks always
played in the past as teachers in society. In the monasteries, particu-
larly in Sri Lanka, Dhamma schools are conducted for children on
Sundays. This practice, initially started because of the influence of
church-run Sunday schools, thrives today in Sri Lanka. Practically
every monastery has a weekend Dhamma school, and some larger
ones have several thousand students. The system, first started by the
Young Men's Buddhist Association (YMBA) of Colombo at the turn
oflast century, is currently supported by the government. Very often
the chief monk, or a monk nominated by him, serves as the head of
the school.
The monk's role as a physician and astrologer, too, has dimin-
ished to a very large extent. But there are a few monks who remain
engaged in these services. The difference today is that they are no
longer the village monks who used to provide services only to their
own village folk. Now some of these monks proffer their services on
a much larger scale, even advertising their skills to the general pub-
lic through the media. Again, this practice gives rise to serious public
criticism. Nevertheless, it is patronized by a segment of society and
hence it continues. It is the same with all sorts of black-magic prac-
tices (usually the domain of lay practitioners). A few monks seem
to do quite well commercially. Expensive newspaper advertisements
announcing their services are commonplace in Sri Lanka newspa-
pers. In the absence of a central authority, in Sri Lanka matters of this
nature are usually left to the monks' own discretion. In Southeast
Asian Theravada countries with a powerful central authority, par-
ticularly in Myanmar and Thailand, one does not encounter monks
providing similar services on a commercial basis.
Buddhist monks' services that facilitate and enhance mental and
physical well-being and material progress are quite visible in Thera-
vada societies. Its simplest form is the blessing of people by chant-
ing paritta (protection), a collection of selected discourses and other
formulae invoking the blessings of the Triple Gem. In addition to
receiving blessings every time they visit the monastery, people spe-
cifically seek blessings on birthdays, weddings, when starting a new
business venture, ground breaking for a new house or building,
starting a new job, joining a new workplace, starting school, sitting
for an examination, going for a job interview, embarking on foreign

travel, for pregnancy, illness, and the like. In many instances people
visit the monastery to receive blessings from the monks. In cases of
illness or on similar occasions monks visit homes or hospitals and
give their blessings on their own initiative, or they are invited for
this specific purpose. During pregnancy, close to childbirth, monks
are invited to chant a paritta, which is believed to provide protec-
tion, especially at delivery. Usually these sessions are short, lasting
less than one hour.
All-night paritta chanting is done on special occasions at houses
or in monasteries with the participation of twelve to fifteen monks.
Monks sit in a decorated enclosure and chant the entire "Book of
Paritta" until early morning. While all monks take part at the begin-
ning and conclusion, in between they take turns withdrawing to
relax. The meritorious deed meant to invoke blessings is concluded
with the offering to the monks of the morning meal or both meals,
including the one at midday. On very special occasions associated
with monasteries, such as inaugurating a Buddha statue or a new
dagoba, uninterrupted paritta chanting lasting up to seven days is
conducted. But any ceremony lasting more than one night is now
becoming rare. At the end of any paritta chanting, the blessed water
is given to people to drink, and a specifically prepared string is tied
around the wrist of a person's right hand. Monks usually do not tie
these strings on women's hands. However, since physically touch-
ing women without bad intentions is not prohibited, nowadays many
monks do it, except in Thailand where the prohibition against touch-
ing women is strictly observed.
A monk's involvement with laypeople's day-to-day well-being
does not end at this point. In addition to blessed water and strings,
monks also bless objects that last longer. These are mainly various
kinds of amulets blessed by the chanting of paritta a thousand, ten
thousand, one hundred thousand times, or even more. These amu-
lets usually contain abbreviated paritta written on a sheet of metal-
usually copper, silver, or gold. In Southeast Asian countries these
amulets can be a small Buddha statue, a picture of the Buddha or
any saintly monk, a relic of a saintly monk, and the like. These are
either hung around the neck, tied around one's upper arm or waist,
or kept in one's wallet. Usually monks give away these objects free
of charge. In fact, monks do not provide any service for payment.
Ideally, the life of a monk should be one of friendliness, compas-
sion, selfless joy, and equanimity. These virtues are described as the
"four ways of sublime living," and the Buddha, who himself lived a
life encompassing these sublime ways, admonished his followers to
do the same. Any monk who accepts the Buddha's admonition and
practices it throughout his life cannot but be an ideal social worker
transcending the boundaries of selfhood.
MONKS AND SOCIAL ACTIVISM

The monk's role in facilitating merit making for laypeople and
bestowing blessings on them has remained his almost unrivalled
domain throughout history. His role, however, has never been con-
fined to that alone. Instead, it has spread into various aspects of
social life. It is clear that this contrasts with the initial monastic ideal
of being as dispassionate toward society as possible. Monks were
admonished by the Buddha to approach families like the moon-
always new. Familiarity with families was to be avoided. A monk had
to live alone like the horn of a rhinoceros-always single. Undoubt-
edly this ideal has undergone substantial changes. For instance,
when Buddhism came to Sri Lanka and within a very short period
became its national religion, it evolved and developed a clear social
role. Monks soon assumed a new role of being "the guardian deity
of family." Monks early developed the view that protecting and safe-
guarding the word of the Buddha and Sasana itself for posterity was
their bounden duty. With a constant threat from the Hindu rulers
of southern India, monks naturally developed a sense of keenness
concerning the well-being of the Sinhala community and an atti-
tude of reliance on the Sinhala rulership and people for the protec-
tion of Buddhism, thus combining religious with national interests.
In the long history of Buddhism in Sri Lanka there is much evidence
of monks becoming involved in matters of statecraft, with very
mixed results. This is not unique to Sri Lanka. We can observe sim-
ilar monastic involvements in Myanmar and Thailand, again with
mixed results.
In the 1940s the well-known scholar-monk from Sri Lanka, Wal-
pola Rahula, wrote a book that was later translated into English by
the author himself, The Heritage of the Bhikkhu,2 justifying monks'
involvement in politics. Rahula argued his case by citing examples
from the history of Sri Lanka. Although this ideology did not receive
approval from all quarters, it has always had its sympathizers.
The peak of monastic political activism in Sri Lanka was S. W.R. D.
Bandaranaike's coming to power in 1956 with the support of "politi-
cal monks." Although the government did many things to restore
Buddhism to its lost prominence, the prime minister was finally
assassinated in 1959 by two monks who, among others, had helped
him come to power. This merciless act resulted in widespread disap-
proval of monks' involvement in politics.
Monastic political activism nevertheless has continued. Although
not too much in the forefront, some leading monks have always sup-
ported one political party over another. Toward the latter part of the
1990s a charismatic young monk named Gangodawila Soma (1948-
2003) started advocating the age-old concept of"a righteous regime"
(dharma-rajyaya) as the solution to the economic, religious, and
social problems of the country. His popularity rose to such an extent
that some believed he should run for the executive presidency of the
country. These rising aspirations, however, were shattered when he
died during his visit abroad under somewhat mysterious circum-
stances. His cremation was attended by several hundred thousand
people, which was unprecedented. The new political party, Jatika
Hela Urumaya (JHU), headed by monks, came into being with the
expressed intention of carrying on Soma's ideology and vision. In the
2006 general election the party contested, with monks as candidates,
and secured nine seats in Parliament. It is too early to say anything
definitive now about its future.
Although there are many detractors, monks' presence in the heart
of politics, judging by their overall performance during the past four
years, does not seem all that bad. The degree of this involvement, I
however, may lie beyond even the imaginations of the forefathers of
this ideology. No other Theravada country seems to have gone to this
I
2. Godage International Publishers, Colombo, 1974.
extent. In Myanmar, monks (again, not all) have been in the forefront
of opposition to the military regime that has controlled the country
for almost the last five decades. Their latest uprising in 2007, wit-
nessed all over the world through electronic media, although bru-
tally suppressed, will have a lasting impact on the future democracy
of the country.
Buddhists in the Theravada world, both monks and laypeople, are
divided on the issue of the political involvement of monks. However,
there does not seem to be equal opposition to the social welfare activ-
ities of monks. Small and large-scale social welfare projects run by
monks, with emphasis on the spiritual uplift of people, have become
quite visible in recent times. What I refer to here is not the usual vil-
lage-focused service provided by monks in that limited context. The
situation started changing roughly after the second half of the last
century. A pioneer of large-scale social service projects in Sri Lanka
was the Venerable Madihe Pannasiha Mahathera (1913-2003), who
initiated a village development program, through the Sasana Sevaka
Society (started in 1958), in the dry zone of Sri Lanka with support
from both local and international donors such as the Asia Founda-
tion. Subsequently, many monks in Sri Lanka have started large-scale
social service projects providing vocational training, community
development, education for children, and social welfare. Support for
these projects comes locally as well as from foreign nongovernmental
bodies and Buddhists of Southeast and East Asia. What follows are
just a few examples.
The Bellanwila Community Development Foundation is one such
organization focusing mainly on the vocational training of youths.
Started in 1980 by an educated monk, Bellanwila Wimalaratana
(1942-), the foundation currently trains about 1,600 youths annu-
ally in various vocations. In addition, the foundation provides health
care for the needy, provides daycare for the elderly, and runs nutri-
tion programs for children and pregnant women. The Sri Lanka
National, Economic, Social, Educational, Cultural Foundation
(NESEC), started by Seelagama Wimala Thera (1952-) and located in
Ranmutugala on the outskirts of Colombo, as the name of the orga-
nization indicates, is active in many fields focusing on child devel-
opmental activities, vocational training for youths, and the train-
ing of monks. The National Children's Educational Foundation of

Sri Lanka (NCEF) is headed by Badagiriye Somavansa Thera (1956-),
who is an expert in children's education. The organization has been
active in the area of children's education since its inception in 1985,
and it currently runs a well-organized network of preschools all over
the country and has developed its own unique attitude toward educa-
tion inspired by Buddhist philosophy. The headquarters of the orga-
nization with well-equipped facilities is located on seven acres of
land in Mulleriyawa, on the outskirts of Colombo. The Sarana Foun-
dation, the social service wing of the Mallikarama monastery, at Rat-
malana in the suburbs of Colombo, is headed by another resourceful
monk, Ranasgalle Nanavira (1958-). It was started in i996 and spe-
cializes in disaster relief and rehabilitation services.
Theravada monks in Thailand have initiated, during the last three
decades, many social service projects, some of which are very large.
These include organizations involved in the protection of the envi-
ronment, health care for people with AIDS, drug rehabilitation, and
overall religious and cultural developments. The largest and per-
haps the most controversial of such organizations is the Dhammak-
aya Foundation, started by two monks, Phra Dhammajayo and Phra
Dattajivo, in the early 1970s. The main center, located in Pathum
Thani near Bangkok, in an area covering more than one thousand
acres, has facilities for about one hundred thousand people. In addi-
tion, there is a network of branch centers all over the country. Critics
have noted that the organization is right-wing in its ideology, believes
in expansion, and is aggressive in approach. Dhammakaya may not
be taken by all as representative of Thai monastic social service, but
nevertheless it remains perhaps the largest and most influential of
its type.
Although organizations of this magnitude are very evident,
individual monks' social services as teachers remain paramount in
Thai society. Jack Kornfield (1977) discusses five outstanding monks,
Achan Chaa (1918-1992), Achan Buddhadasa (1906-1993), Achan
Dhammadaro (1914-2005), Achan Maha Boowa (1913-2010), and
Achan Jumnien (1954-), and one lay Upasika teacher, Achan Naeb
(1897-1983), as living Thai Buddhist masters. Of these achans only
Jumnien is alive today. Achan Maha Boowa continued to teach until
his recent death and was internationally known as one of the remain-
ing living masters. Achan Chaa and Achan Buddhadasa stand out
as two of the most preeminent Thai monks during the last century.
Achan Chaa was perhaps the most influential of all Thai medita-
tion teachers of recent times. His students have established centers
of meditation in many parts of the world (a phenomenon that I shall
refer to again in the next chapter). Achan Buddhadasa is equally well
known, more for his interpretation of the Dhamma, which under-
scores the intellectual appeal of the teaching of the Buddha. Through
his numerous sermons and writings Achan Buddhadasa extended
the teaching of the Buddha beyond the rites and rituals of popular
religion. In 2006, his birth centenary, UNESCO recognized him as
one of the great personalities of the world. Achan Payutto, currently
in his seventies, an eminent scholar-teacher monk who belongs in the
same genre as Buddhadasa, is perhaps the most well known among
living Thai monks.
In Myanmar, the social service of monks is basically teaching
people the Dhamma, with an emphasis on the Abhidhamma, and
guiding people into meditation. There are no large social service
organizations such as those I have been describing. Institutions of
laypeople have been organized around great teachers with the aim of
facilitating and spreading their work. Some of these teaching monks
are known all over the meditating world. All the Myanmar medi-
tation masters discussed by Jack Kornfield (1977), Mahasi Sayadaw,
Sunlun Sayadaw, Tuangpulu Sayadaw, Monhyn Sayadaw, Mogok
Sayadaw, and U Ba Khin (a lay teacher) have now passed away.
Among the currently living meditation masters, U. Pa Auk Sayadaw,
known around the world, speaks English, and his works have been
published in English and translated into other languages. Sayadaw
U. Pandita (1921-), a disciple of Mahasi Sayadaw and follower of his
method of meditation, although not speaking English, has taught in
the West, and his lectures on meditation have been translated into
English and published there. There are of course hundreds of medi-
tation masters teaching at meditation centers around Myanmar and
outside.
In Cambodia, after the nearly total devastation of Buddhism dur-
ing the Pol Pot regime (1975-1979), the number of monks had been
reduced from an estimated 60,000 to 3,000 both in and outside the

country. Ever since, the Sangha in Cambodia has been trying, amid
political interventions, to emerge from this calamity. After almost
three decades, the situation is improving slowly. Mahaghosananda
(1929-2007), a respected Sangha leader who lived in Rhode Island,
United States, was known for his activities on behalf of peace. He was
recognized as a leader in the Engaged Buddhism movement, and was
nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize several times. In Laos, where
Buddhism has been sharing its fate with a socialist form of govern-
ment, the situation never deteriorated to the degree it did in Cambo-
dia. Monks' roles as healers and teachers are still the most prominent
characteristic of the Lao Sangha. Its heavy involvement with native
cults has been discouraged in more recent times. The Lao meditation
tradition continues in forest monasteries. As a whole, in these societ-
ies, the Sangha still serves as the social institute most trusted by all
segments of society.
With the disappearance of some of the traditional roles for monks,
such as teaching village children and being the (nonprofessional)
physician and astrologer for the village, one might wonder about
their role in current industrialized and globalized societies. The pre-
ceding discussion, however, ought to have shown that there is ample
room for monks in Theravada societies even today. Although they no
longer teach village children how to read and write, they still instruct
at much higher levels of learning and teaching, not only across vil-
lages with blurred boundaries, but also across the entire globe.
MODERNITY AND CHANGE

An important and interesting issue that emerges from these consid-
erations is how the Theravada monastic tradition has responded to
the need for change. Impermanence being a key aspect of the Bud-
dhist understanding of reality, one tends to think that the tradition's
response to change would be quite open-ended. However, for the
Theravada monks the matter has not been that simple. As we already
know, at a very early date in Theravada history, the first council, the
elders headed by the elder Maha Kassapa decided that they would not
change any rules enacted by the Buddha; nor would they introduce
any new rules not enacted by him. It is interesting to observe that
this historical decision still remains active and valid, because monks
have not reversed it since then. This effectively binds the Theravada
tradition to a set of vinaya rules believed to have originated from
the Buddha himself two and a half millennia ago. But does this also
mean that the Theravada Sangha has not changed in its mode of
behavior? The answer is clearly "no." But how, then, did they legiti-
mize change, or did they ever attempt to legitimize it?
The history of Theravada in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asian coun-
tries is replete with instances of kings "purifying" the Sangha. In
Myanmar, for instance, almost every powerful king seems to have
taken it upon himself to do so. In Sri Lanka, when Great Parakra-
mabahu (12th century CE) purified and unified the Sangha with
the support of its leaders, he designed a set of rules to regulate the
conduct of the monks. This famous document was (and remains)
inscribed on a stone slab. A similar effort was made again by another
king around one hundred years later. These documents are called
katikaavata (agreement) and deal mainly with the outward behav-
ior of monks. Now the important issue with regard to conventions
of this nature is that they have never been considered a part of the
vinaya proper, nor are they described as such. Obviously, old katikaa-
vatas are superseded by new ones. But in the entire Theravada his-
tory there has never been an effort to modify or add to the two hun-
dred and twenty standard vinaya rules. In this sense the Theravada
Sangha remains still bound by the decision made at the first council.
On the other hand, the Theravada Sangha has undoubtedly
undergone changes. How do they reconcile these with the apparently
"unchangeable" vinaya? It is interesting to note that the Theravada
Sangha has traditionally adopted some roundabout ways to over-
come such problems. For instance, a monk with full admission is
not allowed to break leaves or branches off trees or destroy any plant
life. So how do they get an unwanted tree in a monastic compound
removed? The monk may say to his helper that he does not like the
tree there, or something to the effect that it is not a good idea for the
tree to be there. The listener has to have enough wits to understand
what the monk wants him to do. Similarly, when a monk needs flow-
ers to offer to the Buddha, he could say something like, "It would be
nice if I had some flowers," or "It is time for me to offer flowers ." A
more complicated problem is posed by money, the use of which is

very widely practiced except by some forest monks and a minority
of village monks. Up until very recent times the accepted practice
was not to touch money physically even though it was owned and
used. A monk may carry money by keeping it in an envelope, thus
minimizing actual physical contact, or he may get someone else to
handle the money on his behalf. These practices are fast disappear-
ing due to practical difficulties. Many take it for granted that dealing
with money is a necessary evil. But the fact remains that the Thera-
vada tradition has never officially changed this rule. Consequently,
money handling remains an awkward matter in Theravada monas-
tic practices.
One could question why the Theravada Sangha cannot simply
change such awkward rules as opposed to finding acceptable ways to
violate them. In fact, to do so is not easy. On the one hand, there is no
central individual authority capable of recommending such changes
and assuring they are made: the Buddha did not appoint any par-
ticular monk as his successor. Although the members of the Sangha
had the Buddha's permission to change minor rules, they still feel
bound by the First Council decision (which they could change). On
the other hand, and more important (in my opinion), not changing
this rule allows those who still wish to adhere to the original rule and
practice the vinaya exactly as taught by the Buddha to do so.
Nevertheless, the traditional character of the Sangha has not
prevented them from, on occasion, being innovative. For example,
when automobiles were first introduced into Sri Lanka at the turn
of the last century, a wealthy supporter sent his vehicle to Vidyodaya
Pirivena, one of the two leading monastic education centers there, to
fetch the monks home to his dana. Many leading monks, including
the head of the Siam Nikaya, were invited for the occasion. When
the motor vehicle arrived, the principal of Vidyodaya Pirivena, Hik-
kaduve Sri Sumangala, who was highly respected for his erudition
and integrity, climbed in and sat down without any hesitation. See-
ing this, the head of the Siam Nikaya, it is reported, said that if this
was thought fit by the principal ofVidyodaya Pirivena then it should
be all right for him, so he followed suit. Ever since then, there has not
been any problem with monks using automobiles. However, roughly
128 T H E RAVADA BUDDHISM
a century after this incident there is currently uncertainty among the

Sangha in Sri Lanka on the subject of monks' obtaining and using
driver's licenses. For instance, in a recent event a monastic applicant
was refused a license by the commissioner of motor vehicles, who
was praised by leading members of the Sangha for his decision, little
realizing, however, that to decide for or against issuance of a license
on extratechnical grounds is not really the function of the commis-
sioner. In the first place, whether or not a monk should apply for a
license has to be decided by the Sangha (in my opinion). Once an
applicant has successfully passed the driving test, the commissioner
has no right to refuse him a license. This example serves to highlight
the ambiguous character of the Theravada approach to modernity
and change.
Lay Buddhists in Theravada

In discussing early Buddhism as part of his larger discussion of Indian
religion, Max Weber, father of modern sociology, said that laypeople
"existed only for the purpose of sustaining by alms the Buddhist dis-
ciple who aspires to the state of grace until he has reached it . ..."3
Weber's views have become influential in shaping subsequent schol-
arly characterizations of the role oflaypeople in Buddhism. However,
this "instrumentalist" understanding captures only one aspect-no
doubt, important-of the relationship between the monk and the
layman. We know how crucial a monk's role is in "merit-making"
endeavors, which are believed to have long-term desirable results pri-
marily for the lay patron. Ultimately, at some point the precise nature
of the relationship becomes so blurred that one would not know who
is whose instrument.
As we have already learned from the "Discourse on the Great
Parinirvana," in the episode of Mara asking the Buddha to attain
parinirvana, the latter rejected this request by saying that he would
not do so until all his disciples, monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen
completely mastered his teaching. The significance of this story is
3. The Religion of India, The Free Press, Glencoe, Illinois, 1958 (second
printing 1960), p.214.
clear. Nevertheless, it should not be understood as meaning that the

master considered all four groups equal. The discourses make it very
clear that those who were directly intent on realizing the goal, usually
monks and nuns, were given the most attention. In the well-known
simile to which reference has already been made, the Buddha com-
pared monks (and nuns) to swans, simple but fast, and laypeople to
peacocks, colorful but slow. The important lesson to be drawn from
this is that both groups tread the same path. The vinaya literature
provides ample evidence to prove that laypeople were not merely pas-
sive givers of alms but essential participants in the growth and main-
tenance of the whole organization of the Sangha. For instance, a large
number of vinaya rules concerning monks and nuns were enacted
by the Buddha in the face of criticisms made by lay supporters. It is
closer to reality to see the relationship as one of mutual support and
help rather than one characterized as "between means and ends."
This also holds true for the present time: laypeople help, support, and
look after the monks materially, and the monks in turn look after
people morally and spiritually. It is even not uncommon for a politi-
cally powerful monk to help laypeople "materially" by introducing
them to those in the social system who matter, by acting as media-
tor, and so on, though this aspect of the relationship is not the norm.
Although there are no restrictions against laypeople reading and
interpreting texts and following the path on their own, this did not
happen in Theravada societies during the premodern period due
to the conditions prevailing in rural societies. Lay teachers are not
unheard of in Buddhist society. During the time of the Buddha there
were laypersons like householders Citta and Khujjuttara who were
well versed in the Dhamma. In classical Mahayana we have Vimal-
akirti, in whose character one can detect influences from house-
holder Citta. In classical Sinhala history we find lay scholars such as
Gurulugomi (9th century CE) and Vidya Cakravarti (13th century
CE) who were prominent as literary figures. Lay Buddhist scholar-
ship is a regular aspect of today's Theravada Buddhism.
Contemporary lay Buddhist activism in Sri Lanka reached new
heights toward the end of the nineteenth century with the advent of
Henry Steel Olcott, an American theosophist, and his fellow traveler,
Madame Blavatsky, who embraced Buddhism. After that time mod-
em ideas and practices began to be introduced into local Buddhist

societies. Although public schools for Buddhist girls and boys were
already in existence, the more modern school system introduced by
Olcott and Blavatsky gradually started producing a group of English-
educated Buddhist elite. Buddhism itself was interpreted as a ratio-
nalist system with no place in it for rites and rituals. Many Chris-
tian elements, such as Sunday schools, carols, and greeting cards,
were incorporated into Buddhist practice. The Young Men's Bud-
dhist Association (YMBA) was started in 1898, in the footsteps of the
Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA).
Following this example, other Theravada countries started to
form similar organizations. The arrival of these new organizations
added a feature to traditional Theravada Buddhism that had not
existed before. Up to this point the only place for Buddhists to gather
had been the monastery, and those gatherings were usually presided
over by a monk. Now for the first time there were venues where Bud-
dhists could gather, discuss, and do their work without the monk
taking the lead. Many lay Buddhist organizations have a monk as
"adviser." But the position is without executive or voting powers; the
monk's role is limited to giving nominal religious advice.
With the expansion of education, today there are many lay Bud-
dhist scholars, authors of academic books, teachers of Buddhism to
students including monks, at centers of higher education such as uni-
versities, as well as public lecturers on Buddhism. A prime example of
this genre from Sri Lanka is Gunapala Malalasekera (1899-1973), who
was the first professor of Pali and Buddhist studies at the Univer-
sity of Ceylon. In the early 1950s he took the lead in establishing the
All Ceylon Buddhist Congress (ACBC) and the World Fellowship of
Buddhists (WFB). The former has evolved into the leading lay Bud-
dhist organization in Sri Lanka with a large network of social welfare
centers spread around the country, whereas the latter has established
its headquarters in Bangkok. Both are basically lay Buddhist orga-
nizations. A.T. Ariyaratne, founder-leader of the Sarvodaya Srama-
dana movement, is one of the most well-known social workers and
peace activists in Sri Lanka who has been inspired by Buddhism. He
has used Buddhist conceptual schemes such as the four noble truths
to explain his development activism, which aims at bringing total
development to the whole world. Although the Sarvodaya move-

ment does not identify itself as Buddhist, the widespread perception
to that effect has earned Ariyaratne a name among the leading fig-
ures in Engaged Buddhism. The Dharmavijaya Foundation is a lead-
ing lay Buddhist organization that has been active in social and relief
services for over two decades. The Damrivi Foundation, which has
been active since 2002 in the fields of spiritual, social, and economic
development, is a relatively new organization run by a group of intel-
lectuals and professionals who believe that the Dhamma holds many
answers to the world's problems. Running programs to effect atti-
tudinal changes and training professional counselors fortified with
Buddhist insights has been its special forte.
In Thailand, Sulak Sivaraksa has served as a spokesman of Thai
lay Buddhist activism in the world. A member of many national and
international organizations, he started the Santi Pracha Dhamma
Institute with the aim of promoting dialogue among different
nationalities and religions, promoting development, and protecting
the environment. More than for his actual social work he is known
among the Thais for his outright criticism of growing consumerist
trends in societies, both lay and monastic. Sivaraksa is also consid-
ered a prominent figure in Engaged Buddhism. Though not equally
known to the world, there are many lay Buddhist organizations func-
tioning in Thailand that support the Sangha and help the cause of
Buddhism both at home and abroad. Among such organizations the
Young Buddhist Association of Thailand (YBAT), started by Sathien
Bodhinanda, Boonyong Wongwanich, and Supot Sangsomboon, has
been functioning for the last sixty years. It is mainly responsible for
popularizing meditation among the young in order to assist them to
solve their problems through the Dhamma. Initially having started
its work at the Wat Kanmatuyaram, as a result of the the growing
number of its members and activities, the organization presently has
its headquarters in Bhasi Charoen District in Bangkok.
Although the examples I have described here are categorized as
lay Buddhist activism, this does not mean that they are anti-monk
or have nothing to do with monks. On the contrary, they involve
monks in their work, receive guidance from them, and in turn pro-
vide guidance to the monks themselves. This mutually supportive
.I 2 Tll B RAVAOA BUDDHISM
rel ationship does not exist in every lay Buddhist organization how-
ever. The Vinaya-vardhana (discipline improvement) Society, started
in 1932 in Sri Lanka, is a case in point. The movement was basically
a reaction to an alleged misbehavior of monks characterized by the
breaking of, and disregard for, vinaya rules. It advocates complete
and unconditional observance of all vinaya rules as promulgated by
the Buddha. The society itself is not interested in reforming monks.
Instead, what it does is to replace monks with laypeople who assume
their role. In this capacity they attend to functions such as funerals
and alms giving that are otherwise the monks' domain. According
to Steven Kemper (1978), by late 1950s, in its heyday, the society had
168 branches, whereas by 1978 the number was down to 143. At this
moment Vinaya-vardhana groups are almost invisible in society. It is
possible that Vinaya-vardhana itself has become a casualty of grow-
ing consumerist trends that tend to nullify anything that is not con-
ducive to consumption.
An interest and active participation in meditation has been a
prominent characteristic of more recent lay Buddhist activities in the
Theravada societies. In discussing this phenomenon Donald Swearer
says that "some lay persons are becoming more like monks"'(Swearer
1995, p. 141). In fact, Swearer's remark must be understood in the con-
text of the popular perception that meditation is practiced only by
monks whose sole aim is nirvana. This popular perception is cer-
tainly true for the classical ideal of Buddhism, but not for the Ther-
avada. In the Theravada tradition, meditation has been the regular
practice only of forest-dwelling monks. Meditation started to become
a household affair in the first half of the last century with innovative
monks such as Ledi Sayadaw and Mahasi Sayadaw in Myanmar, the
Venerable Matara Sri Nanarama (1901-1992) and Kadawedduva Jina-
vamsa (1907-2003) in Sri Lanka (the pioneers ofKalyani Yogashrama
Sanstha tradition mentioned earlier), and Achan Chaa in Thailand.
Some of those lay meditators who practiced under these teachers
subsequently became meditation teachers. U Ba Khin in Myanmar,
a student of Mahasi Sayadaw, and Goenkaji, a student of U Ba Khin,
are well-known examples of this genre (which I shall discuss again in
the next chapter). Jack Kornfield (1977) mentions, in addition to U Ba
Khin, a lay female meditation teacher, Achan Naeb, who is now dead.
Dr. Khunmae Siri Krinchai is a female meditation teacher currently

teaching in Thailand.
Today meditation has become a significant characteristic of lay
Buddhist practice in Theravada societies. In these societies the
majority of people who find meditation attractive are urban and
educated. Some of them obviously have been drawn to the practice
because of their heavy professional duties, which place a great deal of
pressure on them. But for many meditation is not perceived as just
a means to temporary relaxation; they are motivated by long-term
aspirations-namely, the attainment of nirvana in this life. Behind
this long-term aspiration lie some very interesting cognitive assump-
tions-for example, that meditation is not merely for those who have
renounced household life but can be practiced while living one, and
that nirvana can be attained while still in this life. These assump-
tions are somewhat at odds with the popular Theravada concept that
attainment of the paths and the fruits is presently impossible. Con-
sequently, both lay teachers and their followers are viewed with a
degree of cynicism cum suspicion, and society is quick to point a fin-
ger at them.
In Sri Lanka, Godwin Samararatne (1932-2000) was the lead-
ing lay meditation teacher with an international reputation. A large
number of people, both local and foreign, practiced with him. He
was known for his remarkable simplicity, kindness, and deep under-
standing. Mitra Wettimuni (1951-), a lay teacher who had received
training under Matara Sri Nanarama Thera (already mentioned},
was a pioneer in the introduction of insight meditation to groups in
Colombo. Although he does not teach any more, younger teachers
such as Gamini Priyantha (1966-), who have received training under
the same meditation master, continue the tradition of lay medita-
tion teachers. Thus, the practice of meditation is fast becoming a part
of lay Buddhist practice in traditional Theravada societies. Never-
theless, compared with "merit-making" activities of the lay society,
meditation remains still a minor affair.
Gods in Theravada
A practice that has existed alongside lay Theravada observance in
particular is seeking help from gods. In a large pantheon of gods,
Buddhists believe, there are both good and bad ones, and there are
gods who will protect the Sasana and those who will not. It is cus-
tomary for Buddhists, both monks and laypeople, at the end of any
meritorious deed, to transfer merit to those good gods that pro-
tect the Sasana. Having received merit, the givers expect the gods
to protect the Sasana, and also those who transfer this merit. Also,
the belief that there are guardian deities, which was popular in the
pre-Buddhist Brahmanic tradition, seems to have been a part of the
Buddhist belief system from a very early period. The "Discourse on
the Great Parinirvana," which may have been compiled during the
first hundred years after the parinirvana of the Buddha, refers to the
building of a city by some ministers of King Ajatasattu and describes
how gods of varying stature occupied newly built houses in corre-
spondence to the differing statuses of the future owners of those
houses. The account concludes with the assertion that the person
who receives the kindness of gods always prospers.
Popular practice, however, goes much further. In addition to giv-
ing merit to good gods, all Theravada countries, in general, have a set
of gods, both of local origin and imported, to whom merit is trans-
ferred in exchange for protection. What is of interest here is that
in addition to transferring merit, these gods are also courted with
many kinds of offerings, such as flowers, fruits, incense, and, above
all, money. Most of these gods have early, or more recent, Indian ori-
gins and have been assimilated into the local pantheon. The shrines
for these gods (devaalaya = house for gods) are usually located in
monasteries separate from the shrine for the Buddha (vihara). It is
also interesting to note that people, including even the most uned-
ucated, would never go to the Buddha to ask for worldly favors or
for any other favor whatsoever. The understanding that the Buddha
is not a god and that he is no more is universal among Theravada
Buddhists. Here they make a clear distinction between their longer
samsaric aspirations and the needs of daily life, such as protection for
the newly bought car, good grades for one's son or daughter in exam-
inations, success at a job interview, prosperity in business, promotion
in a job, and the like. For these everyday needs they seek help from
many diverse divine beings. A priest, usually a layman or -woman,
acts as an intermediary and officiates at the ritual offering (puja) to
the god. This practice is not new; it has existed in the Theravada cul-
tures for a long time. But more orthodox Theravada, in particular
some monks, have been extremely critical of these behaviors. Any-
thing beyond the simple transferring of merit is not approved of by
those who are more faithful to the tradition. Nonetheless, the custom
persists and is very widespread, not only among laypeople, but even
among monks. In addition to pujas to gods, there are many associ-
ated rites and rituals for securing health, protection, prosperity, and
in particular the warding off of misfortune and the dreadful effects
caused by malicious elements. The belief in charismatic monks and
gurus also can be included in this type of behavior. Wearing amulets
with a picture of such a monk, either living or dead, is quite prevalent
in Southeast Asian Buddhist societies. In Sri Lanka for the last two
to three decades some Buddhists have started making offerings to,
and singing the praises of, Sai Baba, a guru of south India [who died
April 24, 2011], in the hope that his alleged mystical powers will bring
about prosperity and cures for incurable diseases. All these practices
seem to be ways and means evolved by people in order to meet their
commonplace daily needs without compromising too much of the
basic nontheistic character of the Theravada tradition.
Conclusion
Finally, to complete the picture, I must add a few words about the
dynamics of mutual behavior between monks and laypeople, on the
one hand, and between men and women among the lay Buddhists,
on the other. In religious activities in general, perhaps as everywhere
else, women predominate, outnumbering men to a great degree.
In fact, there is no visible asymmetry between the two groups; but
usually in religious ceremonies where laypersons sit, it is the men
who occupy the front seats. Again, this is not a hard-and-fast rule
because it depends on who really spent the money for the meritorious
deed. However, holding the casket of the Buddha's relics has always
been the male preserve; usually women are not allowed to carry it on
their heads. (On this point some women might remind men that the
Tooth Relic, the single most precious religious object for Theravada
Buddhism, housed in Kandy, Sri Lanka, was smuggled from India by
Princess Hemamala keeping it hidden in her hair!) Very often men
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
do willingly cede prominence to women, not necessarily because

they are that enlightened, but because they would rather keep a low
profile when it comes to what they see as rather "unmanly" matters
of religion.
The layperson's behavior toward a monk is characterized by the
utmost respect. Every time he visits one he will enact this respect
by lowering his body to the ground before the monk and joining his
palms together. While there are no fixed rules about this practice,
how one performs it depends on how much respect one wishes to
display. The most appropriate salutation, as mentioned earlier, is to
touch the ground, on one's knees, with the two elbows and forehead.
A monk will either accept this homage tacitly or murmur a word
of blessing upon receiving it. Only when foreigners are involved do
Theravada monks shake hands or respond with a verbal greeting.
In Theravada societies the monk is considered the highest person,
even higher than the king. From ancient times, in Theravada coun-
tries monks have never stood up to greet the king. On the contrary,
the king would approach the monks and salute them, upon which
monks would behave as just described. In countries such as Thai-
land and Cambodia, where there still are kings, one can witness this
phenomenon.
A modern problem faced by monks is deciding whether or not
they should rise when the national anthem is played. In compliance
with the traditional behavior, they need not stand up on such an
occasion. However, modern belief is that all citizens are under the
state, and laws govern the state; thus all citizens living in that state
should pay respect to the symbols that represent it and the law. On
the issue of the national anthem, monks in many Theravada coun-
tries remain undecided. Usually, traditional monks would not stand
up for it, because technically they are above the state. However, more
recently monks who have been more exposed to modern practices
have risen to their feet when the national anthem was being played,
despite the awkward situation created when some continue to sit
while others stand. Every now and then the issue crops up, and no
consensus has yet been reached. In 2008 in Sri Lanka, chief monks
of the three major nikayas decided that monks need not rise for
the national anthem but should pay their respects while remaining
seated. Nevertheless, there are still a considerable number of monks

who think that this solution is inadequate. Obviously, such a solu-
tion could be valid only within each particular context: for instance,
not rising for the national anthem when visiting in a foreign country
would be seen as very discourteous. This is just another example that
highlights the need for the Theravada Sangha at least to reassess, if
not necessarily change, their traditional forms of behavior in the face
of modernity.
CHAPTER 8
Theravada in Wider Perspective
Theravada Buddhism today is no longer confined to its traditional

habitats. For the past one hundred years, it has been reaching out
to the world beyond South and Southeast Asian borders. This is not
unusual for Theravada in particular or Buddhism in general. In its
history of more than twenty-five centuries Buddhism has mixed with
and been assimilated into different cultures, undergoing changes in
itself and causing changes in the host cultures in the process. The
difference today is that, for understandable reasons, this process is
taking place much more rapidly and extensively. What is happening
to Theravada in the globalized world is only a portion of what is hap-
pening to Buddhism generally in this broader context. So the story
presented here must be viewed essentially as part of a larger whole.
The outreaching character of Buddhism from its very beginnings
has been noted. An essential feature of the compassionate Buddha
was his wish that the message of" deathlessness" reach as many peo-
ple as possible. The way in which he asked the first sixty arahants
to go in sixty directions "beating the drum of the Dhamma" is well
known. He himself spent his life traveling and teaching until his
parinirvana. With the Emperor Asoka's efforts in the third century
BCE, Buddhism moved outside India to become the first pan-Asian
religion. Asoka was clearly a ruler who thought in global terms. To
conform to his ideology, he had chosen Buddhism, which had a global
appeal, to share with the world. It was through his efforts that Sri
Lanka and Southeast Asia, among other places, received Buddhism.
Toward the end of the fifteenth century, Christianity came to
Theravada in Wider Perspective 139
countries like Sri Lanka as a result of globalizing efforts from the

West. First, it was the Portuguese with Roman Catholicism, followed
by the Dutch and the British with varieties of Protestantism. Rhys
Davids, who studied Pali and Buddhism in Sri Lanka and subse-
quently founded the Pali Text Society (PTS) in England in 1881, was
a member of the British civil administration. Although this was not
the first encounter of the West with Buddhism, the establishment of
the PTS marked the first organized effort to introduce Buddhist Pali
texts to the West. It is interesting to note how the same globalizing
trends that brought the European religions to Asia took Buddhism
back to the West.
In addition to the PTS in England, another early example of Ther-
avada being presented to the world was Anagarika Dharmapala's
presence in the Parliament of°World Religions held in Chicago in
1893. Over thirty years later, in 1926, Dharmapala was instrumen-
tal in establishing the Buddhist Vihara in London, the first Thera-
vada center in Europe. Theravada reached the United States later. Its
beginning was marked by the Washington Buddhist Vihara, estab-
lished by the Sri Lankan monk Madihe Pannasiha Mahanayaka
Thera in 1965. For the last half-century Theravada Buddhism, as a
living religious practice, has been spreading fast in the West. As it
did in the past, this translocation has changed both the religion itself
and the cultures in which it has found new homes. This concluding
chapter will study some of these new developments.
Diaspora Theravada
In recent years, for sociopolitical reasons, people from developing
countries have been moving to developed countries in large num-
bers. These have included Buddhists from South and Southeast Asia.
The mass migration of Vietnamese people during and after the Viet-
nam War brought many Mahayana Buddhists to the United States
and Europe. For the last five decades Tibetan Buddhists have been
resettling in India, North America, and Europe in great numbers.
During the destructive Pol Pot regime (1975-1979) whoever was able
fled Cambodia. Many of these refugees were relocated in the United
States and Europe, thus bringing a large number of ethnic Khmer
Theravada Buddhists to the West. A relatively small number from
military-governed Myanmar have settled in the United States and

European countries; and in addition, a sizable number from Thai-
land, Sri Lanka, and Laos have also settled in these areas, not to
escape any particular political situations, but motivated by the pos-
sibility of improving their socioeconomic prospects.
It is natural that these people would bring their religion with
them. Buddhism transported in this manner is described as "bag-
gage Buddhism" by some commentators, for these immigrants car-
ried their religion along with them as if it were part of their luggage.
Once settled, they would invite monks from their native lands to join
them. Consequently, there are large numbers of monks from Thera-
vada countries living in the West, primarily to tend to the religious
needs of their own people. Although no precise numbers are avail-
able, it has been estimated that by the end of the i99os there were
about one hundred and fifty Theravada monasteries in the United
States. In addition to fulfilling the religious needs of their peoples,
these monasteries also engaged in activities intended to assist in the
perpetuation of the native cultures of these particular ethnic groups.
Such work involves teaching children their native language, cus-
toms, and history; arranging facilities within which they can become
acquainted with aspects of their own cultures, such as traditional
dancing and singing; and holding celebrations of traditional reli-
gious and cultural practices. The participation of indigenous peo-
ple in these activities has been found to be almost negligible. Where
monks speak the language of the host country, some monasteries are
in a position to offer services to the local people; but the needs of the
local indigenes being different in nature, the interaction between the
two groups has remained minimal.
It is interesting to note that, by the very fact of their being in dif-
ferent cultural and geographical settings, some of the traditional cus-
toms and ways of doing things have undergone changes. For exam-
ple, it is not unusual in the United States for monks to drive their own
vehicles when invited for a dana. The usual Asian practice of trans-
porting monks in a vehicle driven by someone else has been found to
be impractical. Similarly, it is not unusual for people to deliver dana
to the monastery on a previous evening and store it in the refrigera-
tor so that monks can warm it up and eat it on the next day as their
midday meal. Although people do this to avoid taking time off from
work, monks are not permitted by vinaya to store cooked food over-
night. The effort to continue to live according to the mores of one's
culture in a foreign setting is certainly an arduous task. The nature of
"diaspora Buddhism" will ultimately have to change with the second
and third generations of migrated people assimilating further into
the host country's culture and lifestyle. On the other hand, the phe-
nomenon of people moving from one country to another will pre-
sumably continue, hence so too will diaspora Buddhism.
Vipassana! Insight Meditation

If one were pressed to name the most outstanding contribution of
Theravada to the contemporary world, the most likely candidate
would be Vipassana, or insight meditation. Once the almost exclusive
province of forest monks in South and Southeast Asian countries,
Vipassana meditation today has almost become a cottage industry
for a large majority of spiritually minded people around the world.
This is basically a twentieth-century development. In earlier consid-
erations we noted how meditation had grown popular in Theravada
societies owing to the guidance provided by some eminent monks.
The specifically noteworthy characteristic of this new interest in
meditation was that it became increasingly popular in lay societies.
Behind this change one can discern two aspects that have become
quite prominent: one, that the attainment of higher spiritual levels
is not impossible as the traditional Theravada would have us believe;
the other, that laypeople can practice meditation while still living
lay lives. Both these beliefs were, in fact, part of the original atti-
tude toward the practice of the path. In the course of the evolution
of Theravada practice emerged the belief that higher spiritual states
were very difficult to achieve, especially by laypeople, and there-
fore that the practice of meditation was not for them. The creation
of a vibrant lay Buddhism, described by some scholars as "protestant
Buddhism," which started toward the end of the nineteenth century,
seems to have ushered in this current change in attitudes.
When we speak of the resurgence of meditation and its current
worldwide popularity we have to begin with Myanmar. One of the
early meditation teachers of that country, who popularized Vipas-
142 T ll ll llA V A O /\ I) I 1) 111 $ /vl
sana meditation particularly among laypeople, is Ledi Sayadaw

(1846-1923), a meditator and erudite monk. Among many of his well-
known lay students was Saya Thetgyi (1873-1945), whose student in
turn, U Ba Khin (1899-1971), was perhaps the most influential lay
meditation teacher in contemporary Myanmar. His own life as a
family man and high-ranking government officer, which he was able
to combine successfully with the practice and teaching of medita-
tion, provided living proof of the possibility that meditation could
be combined with a busy lay life. S. N. Goenka (1924-), an Indian-
Burmese businessman turned meditator, was U Ba Khin's student.
He has rendered tremendous service in the propagation of medi-
tation through his innumerable courses and retreats on Vipassana
meditation. Thousands of people all over the world have practiced
under his guidance and have started teaching meditation worldwide.
In 1985 he established the Vipassana Research Institute at Igatpuri in
the state of Maharashtra, India, to undertake research, disseminate
knowledge, and promote the practice ofVipassana meditation.
Foremost among contemporary meditation-teacher monks in
Myanmar was Mahasi Sayadaw (1904-1982). His influence on con-
temporary Vipassana meditation the world over is significant. He
was an accomplished scholar who functioned as the chief resource
person at the sixth council convened in Myanmar during 1954-1956.
Combining his erudition with practice, Mahasi Sayadaw was known
for his innovative methods in teaching. He almost created a storm in
the world of meditation when he started teaching that, in the practice
of mindfulness in breathing, one should concentrate on the move-
ment of one's belly rather than on the tip of one's nose, as tradition
had maintained. Another more innovative aspect of his teaching
was to skip the high states of concentration of the mind, the second
phase of the path as traditionally taught, and move directly to Vipas-
sana, the insight aspect. Although the path has been described as
comprising three stages-morality, concentration, and understand-
ing-there is no hard-and-fast rule about the sequence of the sec-
ond and third stages. According to tradition, one can follow one of
the three sequences: calmness meditation followed by insight medi-
tation, insight followed by calmness, or both simultaneously. Of the
three, however, the method characterized by calmness followed by
n ight meditation is the most preferred. A determining factor for

th is preference may have been that this sequence is the one estab-
11 hed by Buddhaghosa, the great commentator (5th century CE) in
hi monumental work Visuddhi-magga (Path of Purification). In his
lea hing, Mahasi Sayadaw advised plunging into Vipassana directly
without going through the more formal stages of concentration of
the mind, which are called the jhana (absorption) stages. Thousands
have studied under Mahasi Sayadaw, and there are hundreds of med-
itation teachers all over the world teaching Vipassana in accordance
with his method.'
Ajaan Chaa (Phra Bodhinyano, 1917-1992) of Thailand is an
equally well-known meditation-teacher monk who has had a far-
reaching influence on popularizing Theravada meditation prac-
tices well beyond Southeast Asian borders. He comes from the Lao-
Thai meditation tradition. According to Jack Kornfield, Ajaan Chaa
does not emphasize any special meditation techniques, nor does he
encourage crash courses to attain quick insights and enlightenment.
In a formal sitting one is encouraged to watch the breath until the
mind is still, and then to continue the practice by observing the flow
of the mind-body process (Kornfield 1977> p. 35). This method con-
trasts with that of Mahasi Sayadaw, whose sitting meditation in an
intensive course can run into a formidable sixteen hours per day.
Ajaan Chaa's writings in English are very popular, and many indi-
viduals have entered the path by reading them. Often in the West-
ern world these teachers are depicted as having developed their
own teachings. But traditional Theravada meditation teachers do
not see themselves as teaching their own personal methods. They
always believe that what they teach is what the Buddha taught. In
Theravada self-perception there is, and always has been, only one
teacher-namely the Buddha-and what others do is follow what he
taught. Where they do differ from one another is in their individ-
1. In Myanmar sayadaw is used to refer to a revered teacher-monk. In

Ledi Sayadaw's case, he was named after the monastery in which he lived-
Leditavya. An equivalent term in the Thai language is achaan, meaning
teacher. It is used to refer to both lay and monastic meditation teachers.
144 THERAVADA BUDDHIS M
ual ways of teaching, the techniques they use, and the points they
emphasize.
The influence of the teachers described here has been tremendous
in spreading Vipassana meditation throughout the world. Starting
from late 1950s, many westerners have studied meditation under one
or the other of these teachers as well as many others not mentioned
here. In England, Europe, and Australia meditation has developed
mainly under the guidance of Theravada monastic teachers. Ajaan
Sumedho (1934-), who joined the Thai forest Sangha tradition in
1967 and spent ten years studying under Ajaan Chaa, is a good exam-
ple of one such teacher. Moving from Thailand, he established the
Amaravati Monastery and several others in England. Since then he
has established monasteries in Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand,
and Italy. He and his fellow monks, nuns, and laypeople follow the
Thai Theravada tradition of meditation. Thus the lifestyle and med-
itation followed by his students have remained basically traditional.
In a similar manner, Ajaan Brahmavamso (1951-), another student
of Ajaan Chaa, has established the Theravada monastic tradition in
Australia. There he practices and teaches meditation to both monas-
tic and lay practitioners. He is the head of the Bodhinyana Mon-
astery in Serpentine, Western Australia, and the spiritual director
of many other Buddhist centers and societies countrywide. In these
centers, the religious setting, the environment, and the lifestyle all
remain basically traditional Theravada. Ajaan Brahmavamso is
known for his innovative and creative presentation of Theravada
meditation.
Insight meditation was introduced to the United States with the
start of Theravada monasteries in the 1960s. This meditation, more
or less in its traditional form, is taught in numerous Theravada
monasteries across North America by monks who follow the tradi-
tional ways of monastic life. Among such monks are Bhante Hene-
pola Gunaratana (1927-), a senior Sri Lankan monk who heads the
Bhavana Society in West Virginia and teaches meditation; Ajaan
Amaro (1956-), an English monk following the Thai tradition, is
based in the Abhayagiri Monastery, Redwood Valley, California; and
Ajaan Thanissaro (1949-), an American monk also belonging to the
Thai tradition, is based in the Metta Forest Monastery in San Diego.
These and many other Theravada monks provide Vipassana medita-

tion in traditional monastic settings.
A substantial part of the growing influence of insight medita-
tion on American society, however, can be observed in its practice
as taught mainly by lay teachers. Many of them have first studied
with and learned from as many teachers as possible and then evolved
their own methods, borrowing from traditions, not only from Ther-
avada, but also from Mahayana and Vajrayana, and even from non-
Buddhist traditions. The Insight Meditation Society started in 1974
in Barr, Massachusetts, by Sharon Salsberg (1952-), Joseph Goldstein
(1944-), and Jack Kornfield (1945-) provides insight into how contem-
porary American society has characterized Vipassana meditation.
Salsberg and Goldstein studied meditation under Goenka in 1971 and
subsequently under several other teachers. Jack Kornfield has been
ordained twice under Ajaan Chaa in Thailand, and has also studied
under several other teachers. According to the Web site of the society,
both Mahasi Sayadaw and Ajaan Chaa visited its center and taught
meditation in 1979. Among subsequent visitors has been the Dalai
Lama. Sayadaw U Pandita, a follower of Mahasi Sayadaw, has taught
at this center several times. All these examples serve to demonstrate
the predominantly Theravada and generally Buddhist character of
meditation taught and practiced in the United States.
Some recent writers, however, have highlighted the eclectic char-
acter of the methods adopted by American meditation teachers and
the close identification they make between meditation and psycho-
therapy. A result of this emphasis in particular has been to shear
insight meditation of its specific Theravada characteristics and to
teach it as a secular way to the general psychological well-being of
a layperson. This adaptation of Theravada Vipassana meditation to
suit the needs of American society has been described as "Ameri-
can Buddhism" or, following the ancient vehicle image, as a "North
American vehicle." One could well question, indeed, whether this
adaptation even qualifies to be called Theravada Vipassana medita-
tion. However, features such as lay orientation and the use of medi-
tation for the purposes of daily life, in themselves, do not appear to
be problematic. Nor can such an adaptation be called a misuse, for
meditation has always been understood as having a bearing on one's
THERAVAD A BUDDHISM
practical life. What really seems to matter is whether this form of

meditation is practiced in a right frame of mind or not. Use of insight
meditation purely as a worldly pursuit without the necessary moral
foundation would hardly qualify to be called by that name. Whether
insight meditation, as practiced in America in particular or in the
West in general, uses that particular name, or whether it follows the
Theravada rites and rituals, is not so important. What is important is
the fact that people in large numbers are using this method of medi-
tation developed in Theravada Buddhism. To this extent, so long as
people practice in the the right frame of mind, we can be justified in
discussing insight meditation movements in the West as having been
influenced by Theravada Buddhism.
The Bhikkhuni Order

As we discovered in our considerations of the ongm of Thera-
vada, the elder bhikkhus seem to have been less enthusiastic about
the Bhikkhuni Sangha from very early days. Once the bhikkhunis
arrived in Sri Lanka and were established as Sangha-in fact, for
several centuries-they were not merely existing but thriving. The
Dipavamsa, the earliest historical chronicle of Sri Lanka, mentions a
number of bhikkhunis who were very prominent. Bhikkhuni Sangha-
mitta, who arrived with the sapling of the Bodhi Tree, was Emperor
Asoka's daughter and Arahant Mahinda's sister. Among the first
recruits to the Bhikkhuni Sasana in Sri Lanka was Queen Anula,
who was the chief consort of King Devanampiya Tissa. There were
many reasons for this strong beginning. Furthermore, we possess no
evidence that the relationship between bhikkhunis and their male
counterparts was antagonistic. Records of bhikkhunis in Sri Lanka
exist up to the end of the Anuradhapura period (1017 CE). But with
the instability of the country caused by internal struggles and foreign
invasions, and the resultant transferal of the capital from Anuradha-
pura to Polonnaruwa, the Bhikkhuni Sangha seems to have weak-
ened. The last records of the Sri Lankan Bhikkhuni Sangha come
to us from the period of Magha. There bhikkhunis are mentioned
among those who were tormented by this invader. In fact, not only
the Bhikkhuni Sangha but also the entire Sinhala Buddhist culture
never fully recovered from this deadly attack. This meant that by the
end of the thirteenth century the Bhikkhuni Sangha in Sri Lanka

may have disappeared. It does not seem that the order was ever taken
to other Theravada countries from Sri Lanka, although China pre-
serves records of bhikkhunis from Sri Lanka traveling to and estab-
lishing the order there. But there is no evidence that any other Ther-
avada country harbored bhikkhunis in those ancient times.
As already noted, currently the order of nuns does not formally
exist in Theravada Buddhism. The existence of women renunciants,
called dasa sil maataa (mothers with ten precepts) in Sri Lanka, mai-
thila-shin in Myanmar, and mae ji in Thailand, is a recent phenome-
non. They observe ten precepts but are not considered to be bhikkhu-
nis. The rationale behind such a compromise was that full admission
is not possible without an already existing order of nuns, as Bud-
dhist nuns are required to receive full admission from both monks
and nuns. When the order of nuns gradually died out, it was believed
that there was no way to reestablish it for this obvious reason. Until
the next Buddha appears, it is claimed, there is no hope for the rein-
statement of the Bhikkhuni Sangha. This still remains the orthodox
Theravada position.
We know of the opinion held by the elders at the first council.
It may be assumed that from the very beginning the Theravadins
exhibited a critical tolerance of the Bhikkhuni Order. Judging by the
official position of Theravada so strongly influenced by the vinaya
and by the orthodox character of the Theravada community, one
would expect nothing different: indeed, one could plausibly say that,
in maintaining this position, they are simply remaining true to their
tradition. Nevertheless, the question arises as to whether or not such
an attitude is in harmony with the spirit of the Dhamma. The answer
is clearly "no." The community of monks must be able to exam-
ine this problem more sympathetically. In the absence of any one
leader comparable to the Buddha, the decision is not the responsibil-
ity of any one particular monk, however important he may be. But
the Sangha, as a group, is vested with the power to make such deci-
sions. At the First Council, monks decided to refrain from accept-
ing the liberty granted by the Buddha, but this is no valid reason not
to revise the old decision. This unyielding Buddhist position has an
interesting analogy in the Roman Catholic Church with regard to the
THERAVADA BUDDHISM
issue of priests not being allowed to marry. Although the orthodox

stance remains unpopular among most practicing Catholics, lay and
clergy alike, the Catholic hierarchy seems adamant about continuing
the tradition. In a similar manner, the Theravada hierarchy seems
fixed on the view that the tradition needs to be preserved at any cost.
This debate on the possibility of reestablishing the Theravada
Bhikkhuni Order has been around for several decades. More recent
discussions have been based on such concepts as human rights, gen-
der equality, justice, and the like. When Hawenpola Ratanasara
Thera and Walpola Piyananda Thera, two Sri Lankan expatriate
monks in Los Angeles, granted initial admission to a Thai woman
in i988, they justified their action on the ground that gender dis-
crimination was illegal in the United States and that attitudes toward
women in that country were not the same as those in Asia. More
recently, Bhikkhu Bodhi, an American monk who is an authority on
Theravada, supported the reestablishment of the Bhikkhuni Order
on a somewhat similar ground. In a paper presented to a conference
in Germany organized by Sakyadhita, the International Association
for Buddhist Women, he justified his position with two reasons:
One is based on past precedent, namely, the authorization
given by the Buddha himself in the canonical texts for the creation
of an order of bhikkhunis. The other is based on contemporary
conditions, especially the ideals of gender equality and nondis-
crimination that became intrinsic to the present-day world view
following the European Enlightenment of the late eighteenth cen-
tury. When such ideals have become so widespread in the outlook
of educated people in the secular world, I will hold, to insist on
exclusionary policies based on gender discrimination in religious
life is likely to have the effect of discouraging the confidence of
people who might otherwise be attracted to Theravada Buddhism.
(Quoted from the abstract published at the Sakyadhita Web site)
The Sakyadhita organization was established in i987 at Bodhgaya

by a group of international Buddhist women. Since its inception it
has been working on the reestablishment of the Bhikkhuni Order.
Meanwhile, in Sri Lanka monks are divided on this issue. While the
leadership is against any idea of reestablishment, some monks are
in favor of the move. With the support of Sakyadhita, in i996 ten

women from Sri Lanka received full admission at Sarnath, India,
from a group of Korean nuns. Following the accepted vinaya tradi-
tion, the newly admitted nuns were given full admission for the sec-
ond time by the monks. This is considered to have been a definitive
first step toward bhikkhuni full admission in a Theravada country
after a lapse of about one thousand years. In 1998 a group of twenty-
one Sri Lankan novices received full admission from Chinese nuns at
Bodhgaya, upon which they received full admission from the monks
for the second time. By the end of 2001, some three hundred and
fifty nuns had received full admission. Since then, the full admission
ceremony has been practiced in Sri Lanka annually, so that an esti-
mated five hundred fully admitted nuns are currently in the country.
Although the monastic hierarchy has not approved this move, their
objections to it have not been that wholehearted either. Following the
wishes of the Sangha leadership, the government does not officially
recognize the newly established nun's order. But there is no official
banning of the organization. This means that the Bhikkhuni Order
in Sri Lanka has begun and continues. Support from the general pub-
lic seems to be encouraging.
Similar efforts to introduce the order into Myanmar have met
with failure. The military government of Myanmar has taken a very
strong position against the reestablishment of a nuns' order. A nun
who received higher ordination in Sri Lanka was not allowed to
remain in the country; she was sent back to Sri Lanka after being
imprisoned for several months. Dr. Chatsumarn Kabilsingh, a Thai
national and university professor who was a cofounder of the Saky-
adhita organization, received higher ordination in Sri Lanka in 2003
and since then has gone back to her country and lives there. She is the
head of the Songdhammakalyani Monastery in Bangkok, and so goes
down in history as the first Thai national to receive full admission
in a Theravada country. Although the monastic hierarchy in Thai-
land has not approved of this move, neither has it taken any dras-
tic measures against it. However, the same cannot be said about the
charismatic monk Ajahn Bramvamso (mentioned earlier). In 2009 he
was removed from his Thai fraternity for initiating full admission for
women in his native land, Australia. All in all, it looks as if the future
150 T HERAVADA BUDDHI S M
of the Bhikkhuni Order in traditional Theravada countries remains

an open question.
Conclusion
Each of the three subjects discussed in this chapter represents a situ-
ation in which tradition is challenged by modernity. Consequently,
Theravada emerges as a religious example of attempts to keep change
at bay. However, according to the teaching of the Buddha himself,
change is one of the three characteristics of reality. All constructed
phenomena are subject to it. It is very unlikely that the leaders of
Theravada are unaware of this truth. Therefore, their insistence on
perpetuating tradition has to be seen as resulting from other con-
siderations. As revealed from the accounts of the First Council, it is
dear that the great elders who engaged in the historical exercise of
organizing and arranging the words of the Buddha did so with the
compassionate intention of preserving for posterity the path to free-
dom taught by the Buddha. The Dhamma was understood as a com-
prehensive whole, the hallmark of which was the internal coherence
and nature ofleading its practitioners to the goal. Both the Dhamma
and the vinaya were perceived as supportive of one another, with the
justification for the latter being found ultimately in the former. As
we have already seen, the elders made a historical decision when they
agreed not to change any vinaya rule established by the Buddha or
introduce any new rules not set up by him. The vicissitudes of Ther-
avada for the last twenty-five centuries make it amply dear that this
stance has not been without its difficulties. Nevertheless, the sig-
nificance of the decision is that it allows those who are really intent
on following the vinaya with maximum purity to do so without any
institutional prohibition. As I have argued earlier, the ideal monk
does not strive to reach a make-or-break point, but one of approxi-
mation. In other words, in Theravada there may be individuals who
are more perfect or less perfect, but there are no dissidents.
The path has been taught by the Buddha, who did not simply adopt
it unthinkingly but, in Theravada belief, strove through long sam-
sara, perfecting virtues, to realize it. The problem this addresses-
the human predicament and its constant unsatisfactoriness-is not a
phenomenon of sixth-century BCE India alone; it is a universal state
that transcends time and space. If this is correct, then the path taught
to remedy it cannot be changed from time to time: the fundamentals
have to remain firm. On his deathbed the Buddha granted monks the
choice to change minor rules of the vinaya if they so wished. But he
gave no such concession for the Dhamma. It is reported that the Bud-
dha held that any disagreement among his followers with regard to
the Dhamma taught by him was a much more serious issue than any
disagreement about the vinaya. In such a context, it is quite under-
standable why the Theravadins have tried their best to preserve their
tradition as intact as possible.
It is also exactly why, in the Theravada tradition, there are no
teachers with their own teachings aside from the Buddha. True, it
is known that many discourses preached by disciples-both monks
and nuns-are included in the canon. But none of these are regarded
as containing their own teachings; all are contained within the "word
of the Buddha." On the other hand, the tradition has been flexible
enough to admit that "everything that is well-said is the word of the
Buddha" (Gradual Discourses 8:8). This allows a degree of openness
and flexibility only to the extent that it is assumed that anything
newly introduced is not going to contradict the Dhamma and the
vinaya but will support it. It is this very criterion that the Buddha
asked his disciples to apply when determining whether or not any
statement belonged to him. In other words, the Dhamma has to be
consistent with the ultimate goal of ending suffering, and the vinaya
mode of living is intended to promote that goal.
The historical course of Theravada shows that, within the con-
fines of its characteristic traditionality, there has been a reasonable
amount of room for flexibility. What is required of any innovation,
however, is to demonstrate that it is really not innovative but accords
with what the Buddha taught. In addition to what is appropriate and
not appropriate as determined by the master, the tradition also per-
mits accepting what agrees with that which is appropriate and reject-
ing that which does not. This is where the judgments of the commu-
nity of followers have weight. However, in the history of Theravada
this appears always to have been a fluid matter. Our consideration
of the Bhikkhuni Order has shown that there is no unanimity about
the order within the tradition or outside of its traditional boundar-
15 2 T ll (lf\ A V A OA 11 OD lll S M
ies. Even in Sri Lanka, where it has been accepted, the acceptance is
not universal. In particular, some members of the Sangha hierarchy
have not approved this measure. Nevertheless, the Bhikkhuni Order
functions despite this organizational halfheartedness. In contrast,
in Southeast Asian Theravada, where the Sangha is governed by a
central body under a "Sangha king," there is an official view that is
expected to be obeyed by all members.
What this whole issue, and many others, demonstrate, is the
uncertainty of the institutional response to the Buddha's reluctance
to name a particular person to the leadership of the Sasana, and to
his historic admonition to treat the Dhamma and the vinaya as the
fundamental guides once he was no more. At least in Sri Lanka, that
admonition has been understood as allowing a measure of individual
liberty for interpretation. The problem, however, is that at times this
latitude has proved to be too open-ended, leading almost to anar-
chy. While this outcome is obviously not acceptable, neither would
any too rigid structuring conform to the liberal spirit of the mas-
ter's words. The tradition clearly needs to be reflected upon and
rethought. What is both necessary and lacking is any open admis-
sion of this need and the will to act according to it by following the
tradition as a whole.
The history of Theravada clearly shows that it has had a tradi-
tion of meeting at crucial moments and coming to decisions as a
group. In the very first council, for instance, in addition to arrang-
ing the words of the Buddha in a methodical order, the group dis-
cussed matters important to the tradition and made decisions some
of which are still in effect even today. The last of these meetings was
held in Myanmar in 1954-1956, the sole aim of which was to assem-
ble a corrected version of the canon. Although the textual matter
was important, what the Theravada community should have done
in addition was to address the issues arising from the challenges of
modernity. For instance, it is not very encouraging to observe that at
this moment there is no unanimity in the Theravada as a whole on
matters related to the application of the teaching of the Buddha in
modern contexts. In particular, Theravadins will have to work hard
to develop their responses to questions involving ethical and social
issues. To do so is crucial for this age-old tradition if it is to continue
be an effective and viable institution in the contemporary world.

The currently prevalent attitude of just letting things happen and not
fa cing the contemporary challenges directly does not seem to be the
best way to move forward .
In one memorable discussion (The Connected Discourses of the
Buddha, trans. Bodhi, 2000, pp. 601-604) the Buddha compared
himself to a pioneer who finds an ancient path overgrown by wil-
derness and left unattended for a long time. The ancient path that he
discovered was none other than the Dhamma he went on to teach.
The mission of Theravada has been to keep this ancient path cleared
for those who wish to follow it and discover for themselves "the
ancient city" uncovered by the Buddha. It is possible that someday
people may no longer have any interest in this enterprise. On that
day, the tradition holds, the path will "disappear" until the next Bud-
dha comes along to discover it. Nevertheless, it will not have changed
into something different, for if it did, it would no longer be the path.
Ap p e n dix l
A Sample of Basic Theravada Liturgy

(Vandana and Puja)
[Paying homage]
Homage to Him, the Blessed One, the Exalted One, the Fully
Enlightened One [uttered three times].
[Taking refuge]
I go to the Buddha as my refuge.
I go to the Dhamma as my refuge.
I go to the Sangha as my refuge.
For the second time, I go to the Buddha as my refuge ... .

Dhamma . .. Sangha . . .
For the third time, I go to the Buddha as my refuge .. ..
Dhamma ... Sangha ...
[Observing the Five Precepts]

I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from destroying life.
I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from taking what is
not given.
I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from sexual
misconduct.
I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from false speech.
I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from spirituous drinks,
malt liquors, and wines, foundation for heedlessness.
[Salutation to the Buddha]

Such, indeed, is that Blessed One, Exalted, Fully Enlightened,
Endowed with knowledge and virtue, Auspicious, Knower of
worlds, Guide incomparable for the training of individuals,
Teacher of gods and men, Enlightened, and Blessed.
Appendix i
[Salutation to the Dhamma]

Well-expounded is the Dhamma by the Blessed One, to be self-
realized, with immediate fruit, to be but approached to be seen,
capable of being entered upon, to be attained by the wise, each for
oneself.
[Salutation to the Sangha]

Of good conduct is the Order of the Disciples of the Blessed One, of
upright conduct is ... , of wise conduct is . . . , of dutiful conduct
is the Order of the Disciples of the Blessed One. This Order of the
Disciples of the Blessed One-namely, these four pairs of persons,
the eight kinds of individuals-is worthy of offerings, is worthy of
hospitality, is worthy of gifts, is worthy of reverential salutation, is
an incomparable field of merit of the world.
[Salutation to the three sacred objects]

I salute every Cetiya that may stand in any place, the bodily relic,
the Great Bodhi (Tree), and all images of the Buddha.
[Salutation to the Bodhi (Tree)]

Seated at whose base, the Teacher overcame all foes, attaining
omniscience, even that Bodhi Tree do I adore.
Those great trees of Enlightenment, reverenced by the Lord of the

world-I too shall salute you! May there be homage to you,
0, majestic Bodhi!
[Offering offlowers to the Buddha]

This arrangement of flowers, fresh -hued, odorous, and choice,
I offer to the sacred lotus-like feet of the Noble Sage.
With diverse flowers, I adore the Buddha; and through this merit
may there be release. Even as these flowers must fade, so does
my body march to a state of destruction.
[Offering of lamps (light)]

With light burning brightly destroying darkness, I adore the
Appendix i 157
Enlightened One, the light of the three worlds, who dispels

darkness.
[Offering of perfume]
The Well-gone One, with splendid face, with the good perfume
of infinite virtues, I adore with fragrant perfume.
[Offering of water, medicine, and food]

Let the Venerable Sir accept this water humbly offered by us.
Out of compassion for us let the Great One accept (this).
Let the Venerable Sir accept this medicine humbly offered by us.
Let the Venerable Sir accept this food humbly offered by us.
[Transference of merits to the departed]

Let this merit accrue to our relatives, and may they be happy
[usually uttered three times].
[Transference of merits to divine beings]

May all divine beings share this fortune of merit, which we have
thus accumulated, for the acquisition of all good fortunes
[usually uttered three times].
[Wish]
On account of this meritorious deed may I never have association
with the unwise; may I always have the association of the wise
until I attain nirvana!
Let this meritorious deed bring about the exhaustion of influxes

[uttered three times]! Let (myself) be free from all suffering!
[Forgiveness]
Ifby deed, speech, or thought, heedlessly I have done anything
wrong, forgive me, 0 Venerable Sir, Greatly Wise, Thus-gone
One [uttered three times]!
Appendix I
[Listed here are the most basic forms of paying homage to the
Triple Gem and making offerings to the Buddha used daily by
Theravada Buddhists. But very often the liturgy is elaborated
with many additions.]
Ap p end.ix 2
Canonical Texts and Related Readings
Although it is not n~~essary to read all the original texts at an

introductory level, to acquire any solid acquaintance with the Thera-
vada tradition one must have some familiarity with these texts. There-
fore, the following account of primary sources, although an essential
aspect of deep understanding of Theravada, may here be considered
as optional reading.
The primary sources for the study of Theravada are the three col-
lections traditionally called "three baskets" (ti-pitaka) and the com-
mentaries upon them. The Basket of Discourses (Sutta-pitaka) con-
tains the discourses delivered by the Buddha to various people on
various occasions. The Basket of Discipline (Vinaya-pitaka) is the
explanation of the disciplinary rules prescribed by the Buddha to his
male and female monastic disciples and the procedures to be followed
in conducting their monastic activities. The Basket of Higher Doc-
trines (Abhidhamma-pitaka) contains the analysis of the Dhamma in
minute and scholarly detail.
The Basket of Discourses has been organized into five groups
called nikaya according to the structural characteristics of the dis-
courses. The Digha-nikaya contains 32 long discourses of the Bud-
dha. The Majjhima-nikaya contains a group of 152 middle-length
discourses. The Samyutta-nikaya, a group of connected discourses,
contains 2,889 of varying lengths on various topics. The Anguttara-
nikaya, the gradual discourses, contains 2,308 of varying lengths,
organized in a numerically ascending order from matters contain-
ing a single aspect up to matters having eleven aspects. All these texts
have been published in the Roman alphabet by the Pali Text Society
(PTS), United Kingdom.
For the first three nikayas, in addition to the older PTS transla-
tions, the following more recent translations are available: Maurice
160 Appendix 2
Walshe, Long Discourses of the Buddha (Boston: Wisdom Publica-

tions, 1995; originally published under the title Thus Have I Heard,
1987); Bhikkhu Nanamoli and Bhikkhu Bodhi, The Middle Length
Discourses of the Buddha (Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications,
1995; 2nd ed. 2001); and Bhikkhu Bodhi, The Connected Discourses of
the Buddha (Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications, 2000). For the
Anguttara-nikaya, the full-length translation is by F. L. Woodward
and E. M. Hare, The Book of Gradual Sayings, 5 vols. (London: PTS
1932-1936).
The Khuddaka-nikaya, collection of "short discourses," is in fact
not a collection of short discourses but fifteen or seventeen books of
varying length, all published by the PTS. For the sake of complete-
ness of the account, I will list all these texts. But Khuddaka-patha,
Dhammapada, Udana, Sutta-nipata, Theragatha, Therigatha, and
Jataka are more useful as primary sources for this book.
(1) Khuddaka-patha, the text of small passages (Eng. trans.:

Bhikkhu Nanamoli, The Minor Readings and the Illustrator
of Ultimate Meaning, 1960/1991);
(2) Dhammapada, a well-known collection of sayings by the
Buddha in verse form (K. R. Norman, The Word of the
Doctrine, 1997);
(3) Udana, a collection of joyous utterances by the Buddha
(Verses of Uplift, in Minor Anthologies, vol. 2, 1935/1985);
(4) Itivuttaka, a collection of 112 short discourses starting with
"Thus it is said" instead of the usual "Thus have I heard"
(F. L. Woodward, As It Was Said, in Minor Anthologies,
vol. 2, 1935/i985);
(5) Sutta-nipata (Collection of Discourses) contains 71
discourses mostly in verse form (K. R. Norman, The Group
of Discourses, 2nd ed., 2001);
(6) Vimana vatthu (Stories of Celestial Mansions) 85 stories
of people born into the divine world as a result of their
meritorious deeds (I. B. Horner and H. S. Gehman,
Stories of the Mansions, in Minor Anthologies, vol. 4,
1974/1993);
(7) Peta-vatthu (Stories of Departed Ones) contains stories
Appendix 2 161
of 51 people born into sorrowful existences as a result of

their unmeritorious deeds (I. B. Horner and H. S. Gehman,
Stories of the Departed, in Minor Anthologies, vol. 4,
1974/1993);
(8) Theragatha (Verses of Elders) contains utterances attributed
to 107 monastic elders during the time of the Buddha;
(9) Therigatha (Verses of Female Elders) contains utterances
attributed to 73 nuns who lived during the time of the
Buddha (K. R. Norman, Elders' Verses, in two volumes
(for both Thera and Theri-gathas), 1969 and 1971, with
subsequent reprints);
(10) Jataka (Birth Stories) contains 547 stories of the Buddha's
past births (Jataka or Stories of the Buddha's Former Births,
in three volumes by various authors, reprinted in 1990);
(u) Niddesa (Demonstration) contains a commentary on major
parts of the Sutta-nipata (no English translation available);
(12) Patisambhida-magga (Path of Comprehensive Understand-
ing) is a detailed analysis of the key concepts available in the
word of the Buddha (Ven. Nanamoli, The Path of Discrimi-
nation, 1982/1991; new ed. 1997);
(13) Apadana (Life Stories) contains stories of 550 monks and
40 nuns (no English translation available);
(14) Buddha-vamsa (Tradition of the Buddhas) tells the story of
the Buddha and 24 others who preceded him (I. B. Horner,
Chronicles of the Buddhas, in Minor Anthologies, vol. 3,
1975);
(15) Cariya-pitaka (Basket of Conduct) contains selected 35 sto-
ries from the Jataka (I. B. Horner, Basket of Conduct, in
Minor Anthologies, vol. 3, 1975).
The Myanmar tradition adds to this collection Petakopadesa,

"Pitaka Instruction" (Ven. Nanamoli, Pitaka Disclosure, 1964/1979),
andNetti-pakarana, "Treatise on Guide" (Ven. Nanamoli, The Guide,
1962/1977); the two works deal with exegesis of the word of the Bud-
dha, which Sri Lankan tradition includes among the post-canonical
works with the status of commentaries.
The Basket of Discipline has been organized into five books: Para-
Appendix 2
jika-pali and Pacittiya-pali providing detailed analysis of the 220

vinaya rules for monks and 304 rules for nuns; Mahavagga-pali and
Cullavagga-pali detailing behaviors and traditions appropriate for
the monastic life and "legal" procedures to be followed in disciplin-
ary matters; and Parivara-pali containing summaries and classifica-
tions of rules and an account of procedural matters related to monas-
tic discipline. The entire pitaka has been translated into English by
I. B. Horner and published by PTS as The Book of Discipline (in six
volumes, reprinted in 1992-1993). The vinaya rules for monks and
nuns have been collected in the book called Patimokkha; it has been
translated into English by K. R. Norman (PTS 2001).
The Basket of Higher Doctrines contains seven books. Dhamma-
sangani-pakarana is an enumeration of the aspects of the Dhamma
contained in the collection of discourses (Pe Muang, The Exposi-
tor, 2 vols., 1920 and 1921/1976); Vibhanga-pakarana, an analysis of
the aspects of the Dhamma as in the Dhammasangani (U. Titthila,
The Book of Analysis); Kathavatthu-pakarana contains the Thera-
vada response to a series of issues disputed among Buddhist groups
(S. Z. Aung and Mrs. C. A. F. Rhys Davids, Points of Controversy,
1915/1993); Puggala-pannatti-pakarana deals with the explanation
of various types of individuals (B. C. Law, A Designation of Human
Types, 1922/1992); Dhatukatha-pakarana, a detailed analysis of aggre-
gates (khandha), sense bases (ayatana), and elements (dhatu) (Ven.
U. Narada, Discourse on Elements, 1962/1995); Yamaka-pakarana,
"Pairs," contains an analysis of basic categories of the Dhamma
with a view to highlighting their interconnectedness (no English
translation available); Patthana-pakarana deals with causation and
the mutual relationship of matters of the Dhamma (Eng. trans. of
the main section by Ven. U Narada, Conditional Relations, vol. 1,
1969/1992; vol. 2, 1981/1993).
The most important source after the canonical texts are the com-
mentaries written for them. In fact, it is in these commentaries that
one finds the real "view of the elders," for they contain the manner in
which the Theravada tradition understood and interpreted the word
of the Buddha. This rich and vast literature will not be listed here
because it lies beyond the requirements for readers seeking an intro-
duction to the subject. I shall mention, however, the Visuddhimagga,
Appendix 2
the most important among the commentaries, which was written

by Buddhaghosa, the most prolific commentator on the Pali canon.
Although the Visuddhimagga is not a commentary on any particular
text in the canon, it is considered to be a general commentary on the
entire three pitakas. Tradition says that Buddhaghosa was asked by
the monks of the Mahavihara to compile an exegesis to the word of
the Buddha so that they might assess his knowledge, and perhaps his
allegiance to the tradition of Theravada. The result was the Visud-
dhimagga, a voluminous work containing a detailed analysis of the
entire Buddhist path. (The author himself states that it is a commen-
tary on the entire word of the Buddha.) It was translated into English
by Ven. Nanamoli as The Path of Purification (Colombo: R. Semage,
1956). In addition to this work, the majority of the other commentar-
ies were also written by Buddhaghosa.
For those who are not so ambitious as to seek out these primary
sources, luckily there are several useful introductions to the three
baskets. Russell Webb, An Analysis of the Pali Canon (Kandy: BPS,
2001), is a good short one. A more detailed analysis, not only of the
three baskets, commentaries, and subcommentaries, but also of Pali
literature in general, is Oskar Von Hinuber, A Handbook of Pali Liter-
ature, ist Indian ed. (New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers,
1997; originally published Berlin: Walter de Gruiter and Company,
1996); K. R. Norman's Pali Literature (Weisbaden, 1983) also covers
Pali literature as a whole. With regard to commentaries, in addi-
tion to the two works mentioned here, although quite old but not yet
outdated, an account of commentaries is found in E.W. Adikaram,
Early History of Buddhism in Ceylon, 2nd printing (Nedimala: Bud-
dhist Cultural Centre, 1994; originally published Colombo, 1946};
G. P. Malalasekera's The Pali Literature of Ceylon (Kandy: BPS 1994;
originally published Colombo: Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain
and Ireland, 1928} is a useful guide to commentaries, subcommentar-
ies, and the related literature composed in Sri Lanka.
On the content of The Basket of Discourses, the introductory
essays found in the texts and translations mentioned above are very
useful. For the content of The Basket of Discipline, Mohan Wijayarat-
na's Buddhist Monastic Life according to the texts of the Theravada
tradition (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994) and Bud-
Appendix 2
dhist Nuns: The Birth and Development of a Women 's Monastic Order
(Colombo: Wisdom, 2001) are good introductions. Jotiya Dhirase-
kera, The Buddhist Monastic Discipline (Colombo 1981; 2nd ed. Ned-
imala: Buddhist Cultural Centre, 2008), is a deep analysis better
suited for students of higher studies.
For The Basket of Higher Doctrines, the traditional handbook
used by all Theravada Buddhist countries for centuries has been
the Abhidhammattha-sangaha written by Anuruddha Thera in Sri
Lanka in the tenth/eleventh century. Bhikkhu Bodhi has revised
and expanded Ven. U Narada's English translation, The Manual
of Abhidhamma, and published it under the title A Comprehensive
Manual ofAbhidhamma (Kandy: BPS, 1993); it proves a reliable guide
to this important work. In addition to this handbook, several other
works provide overall introductions to the basket. Ven. Nanatiloka,
A Guide through the Abhidhamma Pitaka (Kandy: BPS, 1971), is reli-
able and useful. It may be supplemented by Ven. Nanaponika, Abhid-
hamma Studies: Essays Based on Dhammasangani and Its Commen -
tary Atthasalini (Dodanduva, 1949; Kandy: BPS, 1965).
Glossary of Pali Terms
In the pronunciations within square brackets, double vowels indicate

the long sound. Italicized letters indicate d as in dog; t as in tough;
c as in chunk; and n as in lasagna.
abhidamma (Skt. abhidharma): refers to the third "basket" (pitaka)

of the Pali canon; it means splendid or higher (abhi) doctrine
(dhamma)
anatta (Skt. anatma): no-soulness or nonsubstantiality; the view that
there is nothing permanent or substantial in reality; the third of
the three characteristics of reality
arahant/arhat (The English adaptation of Pali araha): "worthy
one": one who has attained the fourth and final stage of the path.
Usually it refers to a disciple who has achieved the highest fruit
by following the path taught by the Buddha. The term in its Pali
form, araha, is used to describe the Buddha's virtue of being
worthy of respect from others
askusala: morally unwholesome acts or thoughts; acts or thoughts
characterized by attachment (lobha), hatred (dosa), and delusion
(moha)
avijja [avijjaa] (Skt. avidyaa): ignorance; the lack of understanding
of the four noble truths; the first of the links of the cycle of
dependent origination
bhavana [bhaavanaa]: development/culture; it means meditation,
which is of two types, namely, samatha (serenity) and vipassana
(insight)
bhikkhu: almsman; one who begs for his food; male monastic
disciple of the Buddha; Buddhist monk
bhikkhuni [bhikkhunii]: almswoman; one who begs for her food;
female monastic disciple of the Buddha; Buddhist nun
bodhi: knowledge/realization; knowledge of the four noble truths.
Now mainly used to refer to the tree under which the Buddha
attained awakening, the Bodhi Tree; sacred Buddhist tree
166 Glossary
dagoba/cetiya [daagoba]: A solid brick structure in which the

relics of the Buddha are enshrined; an object of worship among
Buddhists. Dagoba (da + goba, "repository of bodily relics") is the
Sinhala term for Pali cetiya. Both terms are used equally in the
literature
dayaka [daayaka]: giver or donor; usually refers to a lay Buddhist
supporter of a monastery or monk. Dayika is its female form
devalaya [devaalaya]: "house of gods"; a shrine dedicated to a
deity
Dhamma (Skt. Dharma): Basically this refers to the teaching of the
Buddha; the second of the Triple Gem. The Dhamma in this
sense is distinguished from the vinaya (discipline)
dukkha: The first of the four noble truths; pain, suffering, affliction,
unsatisfactoriness, discontent, anguish, the fundamental sense
of incompleteness caused by endless thirst for pleasurable
experiences. The ordinary painful experience or sensation
denoted by the term "suffering" (or by any other similar term)
does not exhaust the meaning of this crucial Buddhist term. It
covers all forms of unpleasantness in human existence, starting
from ordinary mental and physical pain and extending to subtle
forms of deep unrest and anguish
kamma (Skt. karma): action preceded by volition/intention; morally
significant action-physical, verbal, or mental
kusala: morally wholesome acts or thoughts; acts or thoughts
characterized by lack of attachment (alobha), hatred (adosa), and
delusion (amoha)
lobha: attachment, craving, desire; the first of the three roots of
akusala
magga: the path; the eightfold path; the four noble truths-namely,
the path leading to the cessation of suffering
maha-thera [mahaa-thera]: a monk who has completed twenty
years or more after his full admission ("higher ordination";
upasampada)
moha: delusion; the third of the roots of akusala; lack of
understanding of the four noble truths
nibbana [nibbaana] (Skt. nirvaana; Eng. nirvana): The ultimate
goal of Buddhism; etymologically it means "extinguishment" or
Glossary
"blowing out (defilements)" or "covering from (defilements)"; it is

traditionally defined as the state without thirst (desire)
nikaya [nikaaya]: group, chapter, collection; a collection of the
discourses of the Buddha, as in the Long Discourses (Digha-
nikaya ), etc.; a group or a division of the Sangha, as in Maha-
nikaya and Dhammayuttika-nikaya in Southeast Asia or Siyam-
nikaya, Amarapura-nikaya, and Ramanna-nikaya in Sri Lanka
pabbajja [pabbajjaa]: "going forth"; literally, self-banishment;
initial admission to the Sangha (erroneously rendered as
"ordination")
panna [pannaa]: understanding (often translated as "wisdom");
the third of the three forms of training
papa [paapa): unmeritorious deed, evil or harmful action; namely,
killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, telling lies, malicious gossip,
harsh and empty words, severe craving, severe hatred, and hold-
ing wrong views; the demerit accumulated by committing papa
parinibbana [parinibbaana) (Skt. parinirvana): "comprehensive
extinguishment"; the passing away of the Buddha (which is
usually called "maha parinirvana") or an arahant; twofold, as the
extinguishing of defilements and the extinguishing of life
pindapata [pindapaata): "food dropped (into the bowl)"; alms food;
what monks receive in their morning walks in search of food
pitaka (pitaka] : "basket" or collection; the word of the Buddha has
been organized into three baskets. See ti-pitaka
puja [puujaa]: offering; act of offering flowers, food, etc., to the
Buddha or Sangha, or what is so offered
punna [punna] (Skt. punya): merit accumulated by performing
meritorious deeds; good or meritorious deeds themselves
samadhi [samaadhi]: the concentration or one-pointedness of mind;
the second of the threefold training
samatha: serenity, calmness; meditation that produces serenity;
the first of the two forms of meditation
samsara [samsaara]: the phenomenon of wandering around; the
cycle of repeated births and deaths
Sangha: Community, the community of the monks and nuns; the
third of the Triple Gem; used currently to refer to monks as a
whole
168 Glossary
Sasana [saasana]: the message or teaching (of the Buddha);

teaching of the Buddha as involving scripture (pariyatti), practice
(patipatti), and realization (pativedha); Buddhism as a religious
organization. It is mainly in this third sense that the word has
been used in this book
sila [siila]: morality or moral behavior; ethics in a broad sense;
virtue with reference to its cumulative effect on one who practices
it; the first aspect of the threefold training
sutta (Skt. sutra): "what is well-said or what is woven together";
discourses of the Buddha; the first of the three baskets containing
the words of the Buddha
tanha [tanhaa]: etymologically "thirst"; craving or desire; the cause
of suffering that is the second noble truth
thera: "elder"; a monk who has completed ten years from his full
admission (upasampada}; currently used in English to refer to
any Theravada monk
ti-pitaka [ti-pitaka] (Skt. tri-pitaka): the three baskets in which the
words of the Buddha are contained
upasaka [upaasaka]: "male who stays close by"; a lay male follower
of the Buddha; the third of the four groups that make up the
followers of the Buddha
upasampada [upasampadaa]: full admission to the Sangha as a
member (erroneously rendered as "higher ordination'')
upasika [upaasikaa]: "female who stays close by"; a lay female
follower of the Buddha; the fourth of the four groups that make
up the followers of the Buddha
uposatha: day of religious observance; usually the fourteenth or
fifteenth day of the lunar month when monks and nuns assemble
and recite the vinaya rules
vandana [vandanaa]: act of worship; act of paying homage,
including offering flowers, etc. (puja)
Vesak (Sinhala; Pali Visaakha; Skt. Vaishaakha, similarly used in
Southeast Asian Buddhist countries). The internationally used
Sinhala term refers to the full-moon day of the month of May on
which Theravada Buddhists celebrate the birth, awakening, and
passing away (parinibbana/parinirvana) of the Buddha
vinaya: discipline. The Basket of Discipline is the second of the three
Glossary 169
baskets, the code of discipline promulgated by the Buddha

for monks and nuns
vipassana [vipassanaa] : "seeing in a special manner"; insight
meditation; a form of meditation characterized by perceiving
reality as impermanent, unsatisfactory, and devoid of soul
(anicca, dukkha, anatta)
Guide to Further Reading
CHAPTER 1: BEGINNING OF BUDDHISM

For the study of society during the time of the Buddha, see A. L.
Basham, The Wonder That Was India (New York: Grove Press, 1959;
repr. London: Sidgwick and Jackson, 1985), is still good. A. K.Warder,
Indian Buddhism (New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1980), is a reli-
able and comprehensive account of the beginning of Buddhism and
the evolution of schools in India. For the life of the Buddha, in addi-
tion to the books providing general introductions to Buddhism, Ven.
Nanamoli's The Life of the Buddha: As It Appears in the Pali Canon
(Kandy: BPS, 1972) is a valuable source. The Ariyapariyesana-sutta
of the Majjhima-nikaya (26) ("The Noble Search," pp. 253-268 in
Bhikkhu Bodhi 1995/2001) and the Mahaparinibbana-sutta of the
Digha-nikaya (16; Walshe 1995) provide information, respectively,
about the early and later days in the life of the Buddha. A detailed
study of Theravada from the historical and social points of view is
Richard Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from
Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo (London and New York: Rout-
ledge Kegan Paul, 1988). Peter Harvey, An Introduction to Buddhism:
Teachings, History and Practice (Cambridge: Cambridge Univer-
sity Press, 2004/2005; lSt Indian ed. New Delhi: Foundation Books
Pvt., 1985), covers in sufficient detail most of the subject matter of
this chapter. Among useful works that include discussions on Ther-
avada are Donald Lopez, Jr., ed., Buddhism in Practice (Princeton,
NJ: Princeton University Press, 1995); Charles S. Prebish and Damien
Keown, Introducing Buddhism (New York and London: Routledge,
2006); and Cathy Cantwell, Buddhism: The Basics (New York and
London: Routledge, 2010).
CHAPTER 2: THE TRIPLE GEM

For an account of the Triple Gem from a traditional religious point of
view, Narada Maha Thera, The Buddha and His Teachings (Colombo,
1964; repr. Kandy: BPS, 1980), and Peter Harvey 2004/2005, who pro-
Guide to Further Reading
vides an objective account, are useful. While Harvey 2004/2005,

chap. 8, is good for a general discussion of faith (saddha), K. N. Jaya-
tilleke's Early Buddhist Theory of Knowledge (George Allen and
Unwin, London, 1963; subsequently published by New Delhi: Motilal
Banarsidass, 1980) contains a more philosophically oriented discus-
sion on the place and role of faith in Buddhism.
CHAPTER 3: THE TEACHING OF THE BUDDHA, AND

CHAPTER 4: KARMA AND ITS RESULT
Walpola Rahula, What the Buddha Taught (London: Gordon Fraser,
1959; 2nd enlarged ed., 1967), still remains the most reliable intro-
duction to the early teachings of the Buddha. Rupert Gethin, The
Foundations of Buddhism (Oxford and New York: Oxford Univer-
sity Press, 1998), although broader in scope, contains a very reli-
able account of the early and Theravada phases of the basic teach-
ings. Peter Della Santina, The Tree of Enlightenment: An Introduction
to the Major Traditions of Buddhism (Taiwan: Chico Dharma Study
Foundation, 1997; repr. Taipei: Corporate Body of the Buddha Edu-
cational Foundation, 1998), also covers a wider range, beginning
with the early teachings. A more philosophical approach is found
in David J. Kalupahana, A History of Buddhist Philosophy: Conti-
nuities and Discontinuities (Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press,
1992). A useful exploration of the themes discussed in these chapters
is available in AlfHiltebeitel's Dharma (2010) and, on karma specifi-
cally, in Johannes Bronkhost's Karma (2011), both of which are in the
Dimensions of Asian Spirituality series published by the University
of Hawai'i Press.
CHAPTER 5: THE SOCIAL TEACHINGS OF THE BUDDHA

The following discourses in The Long Discourses of the Buddha
(Dighanikaya) serve as primary sources: "A Bloodless Sacrifice"
(Kutadanta-sutta, 5), "The Lion's Roar on the Turning of the Wheel"
(Cakkavatti-sihanada-sutta, 26), "On Knowledge of Beginnings"
(Agganna-sutta, 27), and "Advice to Lay People" (Sigalovada-sutta,
31). The last chapter of Walpola Rahula's What the Buddha Taught
contains a good summary of what is covered in this chapter. Ken
Jones, Buddhism and Social Action (Kandy: BPS The Wheel Publi-
cation, no. 285/6, 1981), is a good overall introduction to the social

teachings of the Buddha. Nalin Swaris, Buddhism, Human Rights
and Social Renewal (Hong Kong: Asian Human Rights Commis-
sion, 2000), contains an innovative appraisal of Buddhist social
philosophy.
CHAPTER 6: THE TRADITIONAL THERAVADA WORLD, AND

CHAPTER 7: THE TRADITIONAL THERAVADA PRACTICE
Heinz Bechert and Richard Gombrich, eds., The World of Buddhism:
Buddhist Monks and Nuns in Society and Culture (London: Thames
and Hudson, 1984), is still a very useful overall survey of the spread
and practice of Buddhism in the world. Another good general read-
ing for Buddhism including Theravada is Peter Harvey 2004/2005,
already mentioned. An overall historical survey of the Theravada
tradition is found in Richard F. Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism:
A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo (London
and New York: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1988).
On Southeast Asia in particular, the following works are useful:
Roger Bischoff, Buddhism in Myanmar: A Short History (Kandy: BPS
The Wheel Publication, nos. 399-401, 1995); Karuna Kusalasaya, Bud-
dhism in Thailand: Its Past and Its Present (Kandy: BPS The Wheel
Publication, nos. 85-86, 1965/I983); Ian Harris, Cambodian Bud-
dhism: History and Practice (Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press,
2005); and Donald K. Swearer, The Buddhist World of Southeast Asia
(Albany: State University of New York Press, 1995). For the early his-
tory and practice of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, E. W. Adikaram, Early
History of Buddhism in Ceylon (Nedimala: Buddhist Cultural Centre,
1994; originally published Colombo, 1946), and Walpola Rahula, His-
tory of Buddhism in Ceylon (originally published Colombo, 1956; 3rd
ed. Nedimala: The Buddhist Cultural Centre, 1993), are very useful.
For Sri Lankan Buddhism in the colonial period, Kitsiri Malalgoda,
Buddhism in Sinhalese Society 1750-1900 (Berkeley and Los Angeles:
University of California Press, 1976), and Elizabeth J. Harris, Ther-
avada Buddhism and the British Encounter: Religious, Missionary
and Colonial Experience in Nineteenth Century Sri Lanka (London
and New York: Routledge, 2006), are both good sources. For more
recent developments, George D. Bond, The Buddhist Revival of Sri
174 Guide to Further Reading
Lanka (originally published Columbia: University of South Caro-

lina Press, 1988; Indian ed. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers,
1992), and Richard Gombrich and Gananath Obeyesekere, Buddhism
Transformed: Religious Change in Sri Lanka (Princeton, NJ: Prince-
ton University Press, 1988), are valuable.
For the information on the recital of the "Vessantara-jataka," I am
indebted to my student Sengpan Pannyavamsa Bhikkhu, whose doc-
toral dissertation discusses this practice comprehensively; see his A
Critical Study of the Vessantara fataka and Its Influence on Kengtung
Buddhism, Eastern Shan State, Burma (Postgraduate Institute of Pali
and Buddhist Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2007). Jack
Cornfield, Living Buddhist Masters (Santa Cruz, CA: Unity Press,
1977; lSt BPS ed. 1988; repr. 1993), contains valuable information
about the meditation practice in Southeast Asia during the last cen-
tury. Sally King, Socially Engaged Buddhism (2009), in the University
of Hawai'i Press' Dimensions of Asian Spirituality series, is a good
read to learn about contemporary Buddhist activism.
CHAPTER 8: THERAVADA IN WIDER PERSPECTIVE

There are still no works that deal systematically with the phenome-
non of diaspora Theravada. Details have to be gleaned from Web sites
of particular communities, societies, monasteries, and the like, and
from printed documents of such organizations meant for publicity
purposes. Some accounts are available in the following works: Rich-
ard Hughes Seager, Buddhism in America, The Columbia Contem-
porary American Religions series (New York: University of Colum-
bia Press, 1999); Charles S. Prebish and Kenneth K. Tanaka, eds., The
Faces of Buddhism in America (Berkeley: University of California
Press, 1998); Charles S. Prebish, Luminous Passage: The Practice and
Study of Buddhism in America (Berkeley: University of California
Press, 1999); and James William Coleman, The New Buddhism: The
Western Transformation of an Ancient Tradition (Oxford and New
York: Oxford University Press, 2001). These books have chapters on
Vipassana meditation (centers, organizations, and persons), particu-
larly in the United States and Canada. Sayagyi U Ba Khin Journal: A
Collection Commemorating the Teaching of Sayagyi U Ba Khin, 3rd
ed. (Igatpuri: Vipassana Research Institute, Dhammagiri, Igatpuri,
India, 1988) contains valuable information on the meditation lineage

and practice of Goenkaji. Jack Cornfield's work on living medita-
tion masters {referred to above) is a valuable source of information
in tracing the origins of most of the meditation teachers in the con-
temporary West. On-line information about almost all of the medita-
tion teachers and the centers listed, and not listed, here may easily be
obtained by searching under their individual names.
On Buddhist women's activities worldwide and on the new begin-
ning of the Bhikkhuni Order, Karma Lekshe Tsomo, ed., Buddhist
Women and Social Justice: Ideals, Challenges and Achievements
(Albany: State University of New York Press, 2004), contains a great
deal of valuable information. Specifically, on the new beginning of
the order in Sri Lanka (and Thailand), the chapter by Ranjani de
Silva, "Reclaiming the Robe: Reviving the Bhikkhuni Order in Sri
Lanka" (in Tsomo 2004) is quite valuable. The Web site and news-
letter of the Sakyadhita organization are useful for general informa-
tion on Buddhist women's activities the world over. On recent devel-
opments of and debates on the Bhikkhuni Order in Sri Lanka, see H.
L. Seneviratne, The Work of Kings: The New Buddhism in Sri Lanka
(Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1999). On doctrinal debates in
Theravada about the full admission of bhikkhunis and specifically
Dasa Sil Mata in Sri Lanka, Tessa Bartholomeusz, Women under the
Bo Tree: Buddhist Nuns in Sri Lanka (Cambridge: Cambridge Uni-
versity Press, 1994), may be profitably consulted.
Index
Abhidhamma, 124; basket of, 17; Basket of Discipline, The (Vinaya -

learning, 110 pitaka), 159
action, 55; ethical dimension of, 65; Basket of Discourses, The (Sutta-
good and bad, 93; human, 64; pitaka), 159
identity dimension of, 62 Basket of Higher Doctrines, The
affirmative systems (of Indian (Abhidhamma-pitaka), 159
philosophy), 43 baskets (pitaka), 13, 159
afterlife, 61, 68 beggars, 95, 116
Ajivakas, 4 Benares, 8, 14, 19
alms round (pinda-pata), 97 bhavana, 51. See also meditation
amulets, 119, 135 bhikkhuni order, 81, 146, 147, 148,
"ancient city;' 153 149, 151, 152
Angkor, 89; conversion to Thera- Bhikkuni Sangha, 146, 147
vada, 90 bhikkhunis (nuns), 10, 13, 146, 147.
Anguttara-nikaya (gradual dis- See also nuns
courses), 159 bhikkhus (monks), 10, 13, 39
animistic beliefs, 89 biased behavior, 72
annihilationism, 38, 42, 54 Bihar, 13
annihilationists, 4 black karma, 66
Anuradhapura, 81, 109; period, 146 black-magic, 118
arahant, 9, 44, 65; -hood, 9, 12 black result, 66
asceticism, 7, 61 blessed water, 119
Asoka, Emperor, 16, 17, 79, 80, 83, 86, blessings, 119, 120
89, 138, 146 Bodhgaya, 14, 148, 149
astrologer, 112, 115, 125 Bodhi tree, 7, 81, 111, 112, 113, 146
atman (soul), 2, 54, 62 Bodhisatva, 6, 16, 90, 96; concept of,
austerity, 6, 77 89,90
authority, central individual, 118, 127 Book of Gradual Sayings, The, 44,
Awakening, 1, 19, 29, 83, 105, 112 63, 66, 68
Ayudhya (period), 86 Brahma, 8, 59; Brahman, 2, 62;
Brahmanic (beliefs), 25; Brah-
bad (papa), 61, 64 manism, 4, 54; as a religion, 4
Bangkok, 86, 87, 123, 130, 131, 149 Brahmins,2,54,75,78
banishment (voluntary), 49, 114 Buddha, 6, 13, 19, 25, 26, 29, 39,
Ind ·x.
44, 69, 72, n 74, 75, i50; birth, circum ambul at:e (padakkhina), n1,
5; Compassionate Buddha, 112
138; at deathbed, 151; and the clinging (upadana), 34
Dhamma, 30; as embodiment of Colombo, 97, no, u8, 122, 123
the Dhamma, 31; next, 147, 153; commentaries, 163
as a pioneer, 153; statuary of, 29; communal chanting (sangayana),
time of, 4; visits to Sri Lanka, So; 13
worldview of, 38 community: of bhikkhunis, 10, 11;
Buddhaghosa, 23, 35, 45, 53, 67, 81, development of, 122; of monks,
108, 143 10
Buddha-hood,25,96 compassion, 21, 120
Buddhas, past, u3 Compassionate Buddha, 138
Buddhism: basic teachings of, 31-60; concentration, 7, 47, 48, 51-53, 56;
conversion to, 20; disappearance skipping of, 142
of Buddhism, 79, 153; as State conditionality (idappaccayata), 37
religion, 92 Connected Discourses of the Buddha,
Buddhist: belief system, 134; classical The, 6, 35, 38, 39, 40, 55, 56, 93,
literature, 95, 96; early Bud- 153
dhist sources, 4; flag, 83; monks, consciousness ( vinnana), 33, 36, 41,
93; monuments, 81, 88; public 55
schools, 83; social philosophy, consumption, of wealth, 71, 72
78; traditional societies, 28, 92; contact (phassa), 33
world, 81 contemplation, 57, 58
contemporary challenges, 153
calmness (samadhi) , 51; meditation, conversion, to Buddhism, 20
142 craving, 36, 42, 96, 97
Cambodia, 17, 18, 79, 87, 88, 89-91, Creator, 2, 62; God, 36
no, 124, 125, 136, 139; empire of,
86 dagoba (pagoda), 86, 111, u9
canon: beginning of, 13; Buddhist, Dalai Lama, 80, 145
11; corrected version, 152 dana, n6, 140; to lay people,
canonical texts, 159-162; vinaya, 104-105; purposes of, 97-98;
50 significance of, 96
causation (karma), 67 dan-sela (dana hall), 105
Chakri dynasty, 87 dasa sil mata, 147, 175
chanting: lasting all-night, 119; deathlessness, 9, 138
of paritta, n8 debate, learning the practice of,
children, 73, 75; education for, 122; 108
homes of, 105, and relationship "defeat" (parajika) , 50
with parents, 73 definition, nonsubstantialist way,
Christianity, 82, 85, 138; elements 62, 63
of, 130 "definitive pronouncement;' 21
Index 179
dependent co-origination/origina- "Discourse to Kutadanta;' 76

tion, 30, 32, 35, 37, 41, 42, 43, 66, disorder, social, 75
67; basic abstract formula of, 33; dogmas, 69
dependently co-arisen phenom- dukkha, 6, 33, 35, 37> 39, 57; central-
ena, 35 ity of the concept, 41; cessation
determinism (karma), 65 of, 39, 56; four types of, 40;
devotion (Bhatti! bhakti), 28 freedom from, 23; how it arises
devotion and love, in Mahayana, 28 and ceases, 34; origin of, 42-43;
Dhamma, 8, 9, 19, 21, 25, 27, 29, process of arising and ceasing of,
45, 58, 59, 78, 150, 151, 152, 153; 35; termination of, 43, 46. See
as abstract concept, 30; as the also suffering
Buddha's teacher, 31; eighty- duties, social, 70, 78
four thousand aggregates of, 22;
practice of, 59; as psycho-ethical early Buddhism, 128
experience, 32; sponsoring East Asian Mahayana tradition, 29
sermons of, 102; two meanings education, 116; children's, 123
of, 31- 32 eight precepts, 49, 106
dhamma, many meanings of, 22 eightfold path, 46-47, 48, 53, 56
dhamma-dana, 101. See also gift of Engaged Buddhism, 125, 131
Dhamma enlightenment, 6
Dhammapada, 24, 63 "essence;' 62
Dhammapada, commentary of, 108 essentialism, 62
dhamma-puja (gift for Dhamma eternalism, 38, 42, 54
preacher), 101 eternalists, 4
Dhammasangani, 113 ethics, for household life, 72
Dhammayuttika-nikaya, 87, 90
Dharmasala, So faith, 25, 28, 29
diaspora Buddhism, 141 family, 72
diaspora Theravada, 139- 141, 174 female renunciants, 4
Digha-nikaya (long discourses), 159 fetters (samyojana), 58
Dipavamsa, 146 "fifth group" (pancama), 3
discipline, 16. See also vinaya fine-material (existence), 42
"Discourse on Inquiry;' 26 five aggregates/aspects, 41, 55
"Discourse on the Fruits of the five ascetics, 8
Monastic Life;' 52 five precepts, 48, 49, 65, 106, 113
"Discourse on the Great Parinir- forest dwellers, 108, 115; monasteries
vana;' 12, 15, 128, 134 of, 98; monks, 109, 141; Sangha
"Discourse on the Lion's Roar of the and, 144; tradition of, 110
Universal Monarch;' 75 four Buddhist groups, 13, 22, 70
"Discourse on the Turning of the four noble truths, 32, 38, 39-47, 130
Wheel of the Dhamma;' 40 freedom, from fear, 101
"Discourse to Brahmayu;' 27 friend-friend relationship, 74
180 Index
fruits (four), 32, 59 Hinduism, 86, 89

full admission (upasampada), 49, 50, historical Buddha, 21, 29
84, 86, 114, 147, 149 historical course of Theravada, 151
full-moon days, 49, 59, 105, 106, 111, history: of Buddhism, 79; of Thera-
112, 113 vada in Sri Lanka, 126
homage to the Buddha (buddha -
gender equality, 148 vandana), 107
generosity, 77, 102 household life, 12, 71, 72, 75
gift of Dhamma, 101; as highest gift, householder/laypeople, n, 70, 71,
102 75
giving (dana), 95. See also dana human: action (karma), 61;
globalized: Buddhism, 17; society, existence, 6; predicament, 150;
29, 125; world, 138 rights, 148
God, 25, 36 hunger strikes, 85
gods: good and bad, 134; of local husband-wife relationship, 73-74
origin and imported, 134;
in Theravada, 133- 135 I Ching, 89
God-centered religions, 25 ignorance (avijja), 33, 35, 43, 59
God-king (deva-raja), 89; ideology illness, 119; causes of, 66
of, 89 impermanence, 125
going forth (pabbajja), 49, 114 "incontrovertible teaching;' 67
good (punya/punna), 61, 64 India, 14, 79, 108, 135, 139, 142, 175;
Gotama (Buddha), 20, 21, 27, 29 independent, 80; in the sixth-
Gradual Discourses, The, 71, 151 century BCE, 50
gradual training/practice, 48 Indian: ocean, 80; philosophy, 43;
guardian deities, 134 religion, 1, 128
guardian deity of family, monk as, Individual Buddhas (pacceka
120 buddha), 21
influxes (asava), 7
hair relics, of the Buddha, 83 insight meditation ( vipassana
happiness (four types), 71, 72 bhavana), 51, 54, 141- 146
hard work, 75 instruction, of meditation, 110
harmlessness, thoughts of, 46, 77 intentionality (cetana) , 63
heaven, as layperson's goal, 93, 94 intermediary, 134
hell,94 invariability (anannathata), 37, 41
Heritage of the Bhikkhu, 121 investigation (on the Buddha),
Himalayan region, 79 26-27
Himalayas, 5, 14 Islamic invasions (India), 79
Hinayana, traditions, 79
hindrances (five), 52 Jambu-dvipa, 1
Hindu empire: in Angkor, 89; rulers Jataka literature, 95
of, 120 jhana, 47, 52, 143
Index 181
Kalamas, 68 Long Discourses of the Buddha, The,

kammatic Buddhism, 93 (Digha-nikaya), 12, 52, 72, 75, 76,
karma, 32, 61, 61-69, 95; Buddhist 160
theory of, 63; causation, 67; lotus flowers, offering one hundred
determinism, 65; moral dimen- thousand, 114
sion of, 61; skeptics of, 67 love (pema/prema), 28
karmic Buddhism, 64, 69 Luang Prabang, 87, 88
Kathavatthuppakarana, 17
kathina robe, 99m, ioo maeji, 147
kathina-dana, 98-101 Magadha, 12, 14
Khmer: royal court, 88; rule, 86; Maha Vihara, 81
Theravada, 90, 139 Maha-nikaya, 87
Khmer Rouge, 90 Maharashtra, 80, 142
Khuddaka-nikaya ("short dis- Mahasanghika, 16
courses"), 160 Mahavamsa,81,83
knowledges (seventy-three), 113 Mahayana (Buddhism in Laos), 87,
Kosala, 12, 14 88; devotion and love in, 28
Kuan Yin, 29 Mahayana,16,79, 86,89,90,145;
Kusinara (Kusinagar), 13, 14 Buddhists, 139; Classical, 129;
influence of, 24; literature of,
Lao: culture, 88; meditation tradi- 21, 45
tion, 125; people, 87; population, mai-thila-shin, 147
89; recent history, 88; Sangha, 125 Maithreya/Metteyya Buddha, 45, 94
Laos, 17, 18, 79, 87-89, 91, 110, 140 Majjhima-nikaya (middle-length
Lao-Thai meditation tradition, 143 discourses), 159
last rites, 116 Manu, 2, 3
lay Buddhists (laymen/laywomen), Mara, 128
48, 93, 99, 103, 113, 120, 128-133, master-worker relationship, 74
136; as meditation teachers, material form, 41
133; organizations of, 106, 130; materialism, 4, 43, 54
practice, 133; as practitioners, meditation (bhavana) , 1, 2, , 57,
144; as preachers, 59, 102, 107; as 95, 107, 131, 132, 1.41; In r1 Lanka,
teachers, 129, 145 m, techniques o f, 57; traditio ns
leaders (of Theravada), 150 of Sri Lanka, u
learning (pariyatti), 108, 115 merit: accumulating, 114 ; gathering
leaving the Sangha, 116 events, l 2; making, 85, 93-111,
liberated person, 16, 44, 45, 65 114, u ' ll7, 120, 128
liberation ( vimutti), 3, 5, 6, 25, 44 meritorious act/action/deed, 45, 94,
life, of the Buddha, 5-9 95, JOO, LOI, J08, 116, 135
literacy rate, in Theravada socie- Middle Length Discourses of the
ties, 117 Buddha, The, (Majjhima-nikaya),
local language, replacing Pali, 113 7, 8, 27, 32, 39, 62, 67
Index
Middle Path, 46 "ninefold world-transcending

mindfulness (satipatthana), 57, 58 Dhamma;' 32, 59
modernity: 137, 150; and change, Nirvana/nibbana, 7, 8, 32, 40, 43, 45,
125- 128 46, 59, 93, 94, 95, 133
Mon, 79, 83, 84 Nirvanic/nibbanic: Buddhism,
monastic: community, 70; followers 64-65, 93; orientation, 108
of the Buddha, 48, 50; life, 95; nondiscrimination, 148
preachers, 59; Sangha, 30; vinaya, nonexistence, desire for, 42, 45
72 nonmaterial existence, 42
money, handling of, 115, 126, 127 non-returner (anagami), 58
monkhood: entering, 115; return no-soul (anatta), 9, 81, 95
from, 116 novice (samanera/samaneri) , 49, 50,
monks, 95, 113, 136; charismatic 114, 115
monks, 135; city-dwelling, 115; nuns (Theravada), 116; order of, 15,
and laypeople, 129; and other 147; in Myanmar, 149. See also
occupations, 188; roles of, 117; bhikkhunis
in Thailand, 123; in Theravada
society, 114-120 objectivity (tathata ), 37, 41
moral sphere, of human life, 36 offerings to the Buddha (buddha-
morality (sila), 47, 48, 52, 75, 76, puja), 107
95, 106-107; pertaining to good oil-lamps (eighty-four thousand),
behavior, 50; pertaining to the 114
noble life, 50 "once-returner;' 58
Myanmar (Burma), 17, 18, 79, 82, "one's own duty" (sva-dharma), 2-3
83-86, 87, 88, 91, 92, 102, 109, 110, orthodox Theravada, 135, 147
116, 118, 120, 121, 124, 132, 140, 141, ownership, happiness of, 71
147, 149, 152, 161; contemporary,
142; ethnic groups of, 83; history Pagan,84
of, 83; independent, 85; medita- Pali: language, 23, 84, 112, 117;
tion masters of, 14; meditation stanzas, 113; texts, 139
system of, 111; monks in, 90; "Panadura Debate;' 82
population of, 85-86; uprising panca-sila (five basic rules), 20
in,122 pan-Indian (belief), 61
parents, 73, 75
national anthem, rising to, 136, 137 parinibbana/parinirvana, 9, 10, 13,
Natural determinism, 65- 66 44, 105, 128, 134, 138
natural world, 36 path, 39, 58, 107: action (karma -
necessity (avitathata), 37, 41 marga), 2; four paths, 32; of
negative systems, Buddhism as, 43 knowledge (jnana-marga), 2; of
"nine transcendental phenomena;' Purification (Visuddhi-magga),
22 143; of Theravada, 109
Index
Path of Purification, The, 23, 163. public schools, in Sri Lanka, 130
See also Visuddhimagga pupil-teacher relationship, 73
patimokkha sila, 50, 51 purification ( visuddhi), 3, 44, of the
perception, 33, 41, 55 Sangha, 126
pinda-pata (alms round), 97 Pyu,83,84
Pol Pot regime, 124, 139
political activism, monastic, 121 rainy season, 98, 99
"political monks;· 121 "rational" trust, 26
polity, 75, 76 reality, 53; three characteristics of,
Polonnaruva, 146; period, 81 150
population: religious, in Sri Lanka, realization: four stages of, 58; of
83; Thai, 87 nirvana, 47
Poson (full-moon day), 106 rebirth, 25, 44
post-Vedic period, 61 reformers, of the Sangha, 87
practice (patipatti), 92, 108, n5; reformist movement, 87
of meditation, 108; of Theravada, refuge, taking, 22, 25, 26, 29, 59, 113
79 religion, of the Vedas, 4
practices, seven social, 77 religious: ceremonies, 135; people
"practicing Buddhist:' 59, 92 and householders, 74; rational-
prayers, 28 ity, 28
pre-Buddhist Brahmanic tradition, renunciation, thoughts of, 46
134 results ( vipaka), 65, 96
pregnancy, n9 resurgence, of meditation, 141
premodern period, 117 revivalist movement, in Sri Lanka,
priest, 134; priests (brahmana), 2 82, 83
principle: of action (kamma - "righteous regime" (dharma-rajya),
niyama), 36; of mind (citta- 121
niyama), 36; of nature righteousness (dhamma), 72, 75, 76
(dhamma-niyama), 36; of rite of passage, n 5
seasons (utu-niyama), 36; robe-month (civara-masa), lOO
of seeds (bija-niyama), 36 "rootless" trust, 26
"professional" conductors, of puja, ruler's virtues (ten), 77
112
protecting, the word of the Buddha, "sabbath" (uposatha) days, 106
109 sacrifice, 76, 77
protection, 71; of Buddhism, 120 Sage of the Sakyans (Buddha Sakya-
"Protestant Buddhism;' 141 muni), 20
Protestantism, 82, 139 Sakya: family, l; state/kingdom, 1, 5
psychophysical entity (nama-rupa), salutation, 136
33 samsara, 21, 25, 64, 93, 107, 150; as a
public criticism, 118 contradiction of nirvana, 45, 94
Ind ex
samsaric: aspirations, 134; dimen- six bases, 36

sion of paticca samuppada, 36; sixty arahants (first), i38
journey, 45, 104 skepticism, 4, 69
Samyutta-nikaya (connected skillful (kusala), 64
discourses), 159 slaves (shudra), 2
sangayana: second, 15, 16; third, 17 social: activism, of monks, 120-125;
Sangha, 15, 16, 19, 22, 25, 27, 29, 81, ethic, 72; groups, six, 72, 74;
87, 96, 104, 105, 114; activities, 50; life, 77; relations, 77; service
hierarchy in Sri Lanka, 152 projects, 123; teachings of the
Sanskrit, as Buddhist textual lan- Buddha, 70-78; worker, ideal,
guage, 16 120
Santi Pracha Dhamma Institute, sons of the Buddha (sakya-puttiya),
131 9
Sarnath, 14, 149 "soteriology;' 32
Sarvodaya Sramadana Movement, soul (atman), 4, 25, 54, 55, 61
130, 131 South and Southeast Asia, 79, 83,
sasana, 21, 106, 134 91, 92, 93, 98, 100, 102, 111, 115,
Sayadaws, 85 118, 138, 139; Buddhists, 19, 122;
scheduled classes (untouchables), Buddhist societies, 117, 135; coun-
80 tries, 97, 126, 141; languages, 23;
seeking refuge, 24 regions, Theravada, 152
self-banishment, 11 South Asia, 91
self-mortification/torture, 6, 46 South/Southern India, 81, 120, 135
sense bases (six) (ayatana), 33 Sramana, 5, 6, 8, 78; beliefs, 25;
serenity, stages of (jhana!dhyana), groups, 4, 5, 61
47 Sri Lanka, 17, 18, 79, 80- 83, 84, 90,
serenity meditation, 51 91, 92, 98, 101, 102, 105, 106, 110,
sexual misconduct, 46, 48, 49, 65 116, 118, 120, 127, 128, 132, 135,
Shan, 83 136, 138, 139, 140, 146, 147, 149,
"Shorter Discourse of the Simile 152; Buddhist tradition in, 109;
of the Elephant's Footprint;' 27 expatriate monks in, 148; monks
shrines: for the Buddha (vihara), in, 116, 148; number of monks
134; for gods (devalaya), 134 in, 116; Sangha in, 146; economic
Shwedagon (pagoda), 83 stability of, 76; Theravada
Siddhartha, 5, 6, 7, 54 tradition in, 86; tradition, 161
sila: for monastic community, 49; stability (social), 75
programs, 106 "state of being worthy" (arahatta),
"silent one" (muni), 4 59
Sinhala: Buddhist culture, 146; "stream-entry" (sotapatti), 58
community, 120; language, 112; "stream-winner:· 9
Sangha, 84, 86; society, 82 string (paritta), 119
Sinhala-Buddhist kingdom, 81 "subjects of meditation" (forty), 53
Index
sublime living (four ways of), 120 106, 114, 130, 136, 140; ull.ur s,
suffering, 6, 55, 58. See also dukkha 135; doctrinal point of vi w, 17;
Sukhotai, 86 hierarchy of, 148; history of.
Sunday Dhamma Schools, 59, 118, 78, 84, 86, 115; literature, 2 1, 45;
130 liturgy, 155- 158; meditation,
Suryavarman dynasty, 86 143, 144; meditation tea hers,
Suvanna-bhumi (the golden land), traditional, 143; monasteries
83, 86 in the United Lal.es, 140;
monastic tradition, 115; monks,
"taking refuge;' 19, 22 90, 145; origin of, 146; orthodox,
Tantric (Buddhism), 87; practices 81; popular, 133; post-Asokan,
of, 89; tradition of, 79 17; rites and rituals of, 146;
Tantrism, 89 Sangha, 83, 126, 117, 137; school,
Tapovana (Meditation Forest), 110 89; societies, 28, 29, 77, 99, 125,
tathagata (thus-gone one), 20, 26, 27 129, 132, 141; Sri Lankan roots,
temporary monkhood/ordination, 93; tradition, 1, 10, 20, 31, 41, 45,
100, 116 87, 132, 151, 162; traditional, 141;
ten good deeds, 65 traditionality of, 151; vicissitudes
ten precepts, 49, 50, 106 of, 150; Vipassana meditation,
Thai (Buddhism), 86, 90; Buddhist 145; works, 85; world, 79, 102
culture, 86; kings, 87; lay Bud- Theravada Buddhism, 24, 30, 88,
dhist activism, 131; monastic 139, 146, 147, 148; history of,
social services, 123; society, 123; 13; today, 129; traditional, 130;
tradition, 144 women in, 11
Thailand, 17, 18, 79, 82, 86-87, 90, Theravadins, 24, 30, 151
91, 92, 102, 105, 109, 110, 116, 118, thirst (tanha), 9, 34, 42, 43, 44
120, 131, 132, 133, 136, 140, 143, Thonburi, 87
144, 145, 147 "three baskets" (ti-pitaka), 159
Thai-Lao: teachers, 109; tradition, three trainings, 47- 58
110 Tibetan: Buddhists, 80, 139
Thaton, 83 Tooth Relic, 81, 135
theism, 37 transferring merit, 105, 115, 134; to
theistic: determinism, 65; traditions, gods, 135
28 Triple Gem, 19- 24, 26, 28, 59, 111,
theosophist, 82, 129 113, 114, 118
thera-vada, 13 trust (saddha), 25, 28
Theravada, 15, 16, 89, 90, 92, 145; "turning of the wheel of the
approach to modernity and Dhamma;' 9
change, 128; belief system, 69;
bhikkhuni order, 148; Buddhists, ultimate goal, 11, 28, 94, 151
20, 23, 28, 39, 59, 134; canonical understanding (panna), 47, 51, 53,
sources, 5; countries, 28, 59, 60, 56,58
186 Index
unskillfulness (three roots of), 42, virtues: of the Buddha, 21; of the
64 Dhamma, 22; of the Sangha, 23
untouchables, 80 Visakha (upasika), 12
Upanishads, 2 Visuddhimagga, 45, 53, 55, 67, 143,
upasaka/upasika (householders), 162
12, 13 volitional constructions (sankhara ),
uposatha day, 106 33
Vaibhashika, 15, 16 Wat Kanmatuyaram, 131

Vajji area, 15 Wat Phra Kao, 88
Vaturuvila (meditation tradition), wealth, 70, 72, 75, 78; dissipation
110 of, 72
Vedas, 2, 4 well-being, mental and physical,
Vedic: chanting, 4; literature, 61; 118-119
religion, 2 West, 139, 146
Vesak, 105, 106 Western Buddhists, 92; powers, 87
Vessantara-jataka (recital), 102-104 wheel-jewel, 75, 76
Vietnam, 87, 88 wheel of existence (samsara) , 7, 93
Vietnam War, 139 women, 78, 96, 97, 135; status of, 3
Vietnamese: invasion of Cambodia, word of the Buddha, 15, 151
90; people, 139 world (loka), 57; of Buddhism, 114;
village: dwellers, 115; monks, 98, 109, system, 21
117, u7; tradition, 109, no worship, 21, 111-114; of the Bodhi
Vimalakirti, 129 tree (bodhi-puja), 112
vinaya, 15, 16, 22, 87, 100, 109, 126,
127, 147, 152; literature of, 129; Yangon, 83
rules of, 51, 126, 132, 150; strict yathabhuta-nana (knowledge of
observance of, 90; tradition seeing things as they really are),
(correct of), 84 54
Vipassana meditation, 141, 142, 144, yoke of books (gantha -dhura), 108,
145, 174; contemporary popular- 109
ity of, no; modern resurgence yoke of insight ( vipassana-dhura),
of, 110 108
virtue, 56, 77
About the Author
Asanga Tilakaratne is the professor of Pali and Buddhist Studies at

the University of Colombo, Colombo, Sri Lanka. He studied Bud-
dhist philosophy for his first degree at the University of Peradeniya,
Sri Lanka, and completed his MA and PhD in western and compar-
ative philosophies at the University of Hawai'i. His academic inter-
ests are Pali canonical Buddhism, Buddhist epistemology and logic,
philosophy of language and the social applications of Buddhism.
Tilakaratne has published both in Sinhala and English. Among his
publications Nirvana and Ineffability: A Study of the Buddhist Theory
of Reality and Language (1993) is an outcome of his doctoral research.
In addition to his academic work, he is also the founder-chairman
of the Damrivi Foundation, a Colombo-based Buddhist organiza-
tion working for the spiritual, social and economic development of
people.
Production Notes for Tilakaratne I THERAVADA BUDDHISM
Interior design by Rich Hendel, in 10-point Minion Pro,
with display type in Tarzana Wide.
Composition by Josie Herr

CPSIA information can be obtained at www.ICGtesting.com
Printed in the USA
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Theravada Buddhism

DIMENSIONS OF ASIAN SPIRITUALITY

Shinto: The Way Home

Socially Engaged Buddhism

Theravada Buddhism: The View of the Elders

ASA NGA Tl LAKARATNE

Dimensions of Asian Spirituality

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I PRESS

© 2012 University ofHawai'i Press

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

University of Hawai'i Press books are printed on acid-free

Series interior design by Rich Hendel

1. The Beginning of Buddhism

3. The Basic Teachings of the Buddha 31

4. Karma and Its Results

8. Theravada in Wider Perspective

Appendix 1 A Sample of Basic Theravada Liturgy

Appendix 2 Canonical Texts and Related Readings 159

ABOUT THIS SERIES

do, we must understand the religious beliefs and practices to which

ABOUT THIS BOOK

basic teachings, both among classical south Asian and non-indige-

The regular life of a Buddhist is characterized by merit mak-

The accumulation of merit makes life in the world happier and

To acknowledge gratefully all those who have supported, encour-

Finally, I thank all authors, ancient and modern, mentioned and

May all beings be happy!

Colombo, Sri Lanka

It is hard to write a work on Theravada without using some Pali and

T he Buddha repeatedly stated that his teaching first and foremost

Theravada is considered the oldest of the three main traditions of

t. fl fer to Appendix 2 for details on the works belonging to the three

of understanding what the Buddha had taught, as developed and pre-

THERAVADA AND EARLY BUDDHISM

THE STRUCTURE AND CONTENT OF THE BOOK

· 11 rigins of Buddhism in India and locate the Buddhist "soteriol-

The Beginning of Buddhism

According to a story of somewhat later origin in the Theravada tra-

The Religious and Social Context of the Buddha

inant religious movements, the orthodox, established Vedic reli-

and to the predominantly ritualistic orientation of the religion of the

The Life of the Buddha

Bhikkhus, before my enlightenment, while I was still a bod-

This experience of dukkha, popularly referred to as suffering, is how

I lived on forest roots and fruits; I fed on fallen fruits; I clothed

tion. I was one who used a mattress of spikes; I made a mattress of

Finding that he was no closer to the solution than when he had

Then, Bhikkhus, being myself subject to birth, old-age, sick-

security from bondage, Nibbana. The knowledge and vision arose

What is described here in experiential terms has also been

in the ocean to form one uniform mass. It is important to note, how-

speed. As the "Discourse on the Sage" (Suttanipata 221) says: "Even

him that he will not do so until his disciples-bhikkhus and bhikk-

After the Parinirvana of the Buddha

Map 1. The.regions of India where the Buddha lived and taught.

of which was to cleanse the Sangha of undesirable elements and clar-

Map 2. The traditional world of Theravada.

The Triple Gem

To be a follower of the Buddha is to "take refuge" or "go for refuge"