pitaka

English - English

Definition of pitaka in English English dictionary

Abhidhamma Pitaka Sutta Pitaka Vinaya Pitaka

Related Terms

Abhidhamma Pitaka

Third and latest collection of texts comprising the Pali canon (see Tripitaka) of Theravada Buddhism. The first two collections, Sutta Pitaka and Vinaya Pitaka, are attributed to the Buddha. Abhidhamma Pitaka texts are ascribed to later disciples and scholars; they deal with ethics, psychology, and epistemology

Sutta Pitaka

Major section of the Tripitaka, the canon of Theravada Buddhism, largely attributed to the Buddha himself. It is divided into five collections, or Nikayas: the Digha Nikaya ("Long Collection"), containing 34 lengthy sutras, including some of the most important doctrinal expositions; the Majjhima Nikaya ("Medium Collection"), containing 152 sutras dealing with a variety of subjects; the Samyutta Nikaya ("Cluster Collection"), with more than 7,000 sutras arranged according to subject; the Anguttara Nikaya ("Gradual Collection"), a numerical arrangement, for mnemonic purposes, of 9,557 terse sutras; and the Khuddaka Nikaya ("Short Collection"). See also Abhidhamma Pitaka; Vinaya Pitaka

Vinaya Pitaka

Oldest and smallest division of the Tripitaka. It lays out the 227 rules of monastic life for bhiksus, along with an account of the occasion that led the Buddha to formulate the rule. It varies less from school to school than does the Sutta Pitaka or the Abhidhamma Pitaka. It includes an exposition of the rules, which are divided into classes according to the severity of the punishment for breaking them; texts that deal with such matters as admission to and expulsion from the order; and a classified digest of the rules in the other Vinaya texts

Hyphenation

Pi·ta·ka