🧘 Meditation
Buddhists may read or recite a verse or passage and then reflect on it quietly. Some texts also give instructions for how to meditate.
Buddhism: Origins and Their Impact on the Community » The Tripitaka and the Dhammapada
What you'll learn this session
Study time: 30 minutes
Edexcel spec: Paper 2 Buddhism (4RS1/2A), 1.2
- What the Tripitaka is and why it matters as the teachings of the Buddha
- Its three parts: the Sutta Pitaka (with the Dhammapada), the Vinaya Pitaka and the Abhidhamma Pitaka
- How Buddhists use the texts, and why they do not all see their authority in the same way
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Unlock This CourseWhat is the Tripitaka?
The Tripitaka means "three baskets". It is the main collection of Buddhist scripture. In Pali, the old language of the texts, it is called the Tipitaka, and it is also known as the Pali Canon. The name "baskets" is thought to come from the way the texts were stored and handed on.
Buddhists value the Tripitaka as the teachings of the Buddha. You met his life and his 45 years of teaching in The Buddha's Teaching, Death and Parinirvana. The Buddha did not write anything down. Buddhist tradition says his followers learned his teachings by heart and recited them together, passing them on by word of mouth. The texts were later written down, around the first century BCE in Sri Lanka, so that they would not be lost.
Key terms:
- Tripitaka: "three baskets", the main collection of Buddhist scripture.
- Pali Canon: another name for the Tipitaka, the Tripitaka in the Pali language.
The three baskets
🗣️ Sutta Pitaka
The "basket of discourses": the talks and teachings of the Buddha, often with a story of where and why he gave them.
📜 Vinaya Pitaka
The "basket of discipline": the rules for the lives of monks (bhikkhus) and nuns (bhikkhunis) in the Sangha.
🔍 Abhidhamma Pitaka
The "basket of deeper teaching": a detailed, careful analysis of the Dhamma, including the mind and how it works.
Key terms:
- Sutta Pitaka: the part of the Tripitaka that holds the Buddha's discourses.
- Vinaya Pitaka: the part that holds the rules for monks and nuns.
- Abhidhamma Pitaka: the part that analyses the teaching in greater depth.
The Dhammapada
The best-known and most loved book in the Sutta Pitaka is the Dhammapada. It is a collection of 423 short verses, arranged in chapters by theme. Its verses are short and easy to remember, so many Buddhists read them often and some learn them by heart.
The Dhammapada puts the Buddha's teaching into practical advice about the mind, speech and actions. For example, verse 5 says, in a common paraphrase, that hatred is never ended by hatred, but only by non-hatred. Buddhists link this idea to metta (loving-kindness) and to the way they try to treat others.
Key term: Dhammapada: a much-loved collection of short verses in the Sutta Pitaka.
How Buddhists use the texts
🧭 Guidance
The texts guide daily life. A Buddhist who is unsure how to act can look to the teaching, for example the Dhammapada's advice on speech and kindness.
🌟 The search for enlightenment
The texts set out the path to nibbana (see Nibbana and the Noble Eightfold Path). Buddhists study them to understand the path and to follow it. Monks and nuns also follow the Vinaya rules to support that search.
⚖️ Personal and ethical decisions
Buddhists use the texts as a source for choices about right and wrong. A Buddhist deciding how to treat someone who has hurt them might think of the Dhammapada's teaching on hatred.
Different understandings of authority
Buddhists agree that the Tripitaka is important, but they do not all give it the same authority, which means the power to guide belief and behaviour.
- Theravada Buddhists give the Pali Canon full authority. They see it as the closest record of what the Buddha taught, and they treat it as the main source for what to believe and do.
- Mahayana Buddhists also respect the Tripitaka, but they use later sutras as well, such as the Lotus Sutra. Many believe these also carry the Buddha's teaching, so for them the Tripitaka is not the only authority.
- The Buddha's own advice: in the Kalama Sutta, the Buddha tells the Kalamas not to believe something just because it is written, traditional or taught by a respected teacher, but to test it for themselves and see whether it leads to good and to less suffering. Some Buddhists use this to say that every text, including the Tripitaka, should be tested by experience (see Why People Follow the Buddha's Path, or Do Not).
Common mistakes
- Saying the Buddha wrote the Tripitaka. Buddhists say his teachings were passed on by word of mouth and written down later.
- Mixing up the baskets: Sutta is the Buddha's talks, Vinaya is the rules, Abhidhamma is the deeper analysis.
- Saying all Buddhists treat the Tripitaka in the same way. Theravada gives it full authority; Mahayana also uses later sutras.
- Calling the Tripitaka "the Buddhist Bible" and stopping there. Describe its parts and how Buddhists use it.
Exam-style question
Paper 2 (a) [AO1] Outline two parts of the Tripitaka. [4 marks]
Paper 2 (b) [AO1, AO2] Explain why the Tripitaka is important for Buddhists. [6 marks]
Paper 2 (c) [AO1, AO2] "The Tripitaka is the only teaching a Buddhist needs."
Discuss this statement, considering the arguments for and against. In your answer you should include reference to teachings, other (divergent) points of view, and your own opinion using reasoned arguments. [10 marks]
Model answer
(a) The Sutta Pitaka is the part that holds the Buddha's discourses (1), and it includes the Dhammapada, a collection of short verses (1). The Vinaya Pitaka holds the rules for monks and nuns (1), which guide how they live in the Sangha (1).
(b) The Tripitaka is important because Buddhists value it as the teachings of the Buddha (1), passed on by word of mouth and later written down so they were not lost (1). It guides how Buddhists live, for example the Dhammapada gives short, practical advice on the mind and actions (1). Buddhists use it in meditation, by reflecting on a text (1), and in the search for enlightenment, because it sets out the path to nibbana (1). It also helps them make ethical decisions, such as how to respond to hatred (1).
(c) Plan. For: Theravada Buddhists give the Pali Canon full authority as the nearest record of the Buddha's words; it covers teaching (Sutta), discipline (Vinaya) and deeper analysis (Abhidhamma), so it seems complete; it guides meditation, daily life and the search for enlightenment. Against: Mahayana Buddhists also use later sutras such as the Lotus Sutra; in the Kalama Sutta the Buddha advises people to test teachings for themselves, so experience and practice matter as well as texts; many Buddhists also learn from teachers and the example of the Sangha. Possible conclusion: the Tripitaka is the central source for all Buddhists and the whole of the authority for many Theravada Buddhists, but it is not the only teaching a Buddhist needs, because Mahayana Buddhists add other sutras and the Buddha himself told people to test teachings by their own experience.
Exam tip
In a 4-mark "Outline two" question, give a point and then one developing sentence for each, for example the name of the basket and what it holds.