| Type: | Canonical text |
| Parent: | Tipitaka |
| Children: | Dīgha Nikāya, Majjhima Nikāya, Saṃyutta Nikāya, Aṅguttara Nikāya, Khuddaka Nikāya |
The Sutta Piṭaka (also referred to as Sūtra Piṭaka or Suttanta Piṭaka; English: Basket of Discourse) is the second of the three divisions of the Tripiṭaka, the definitive canonical collection of scripture of Theravada Buddhism. The other two parts of the Tripiṭaka are the Vinaya Piṭaka (Basket of Discipline) and the Abhidhamma Piṭaka (Basket of Higher Doctrine). The Sutta Pitaka contains more than 10,000 suttas (teachings) attributed to the Buddha or his close companions.[1]
What was later to become the written scripture of the Sutta Pitaka was first orally rehearsed by Buddha’s cousin Ānanda at the First Buddhist Council that was held shortly after the Buddha's death. The first council also defined the set of rules (Vinaya) that governed the life of monks and nuns within the monastic community. Tradition holds that little was added to the Canon after this. Scholars are more skeptical, but differ in their degrees of skepticism. Richard Gombrich thinks most of the first four nikayas (see below) go back to the Buddha, in content but not in form.[2] The late Professor Hirakawa Akira says that the First Council collected only short prose passages or verses expressing important doctrines, and that these were expanded into full length suttas over the next century.[3]
See also: List of suttas. There are five nikayas (collections) of suttas:
See main article: Digha Nikāya. This includes The Greater Discourse on the Foundations of Mindfulness, The Fruits of the Contemplative Life, and The Buddha's Last Days. There are 34 long suttas in this nikaya.
See main article: Majjhima Nikāya. This includes Shorter Exposition of Kamma, Mindfulness of Breathing, and Mindfulness of the Body. There are 152 medium-length suttas in this nikaya.
See main article: Saṁyutta Nikāya. There are, according to one reckoning, 2,889, but according to the commentary 7,762, shorter suttas in this Nikaya.
See main article: Anguttara Nikāya. These teachings are arranged numerically. It includes, according to the commentary's reckoning, 9,565 short suttas grouped by number from ones to elevens. According to Keown, "there is considerable disparity between the Pāli and the Sarvāstivādin versions, with more than two-thirds of the sūtras found in one but not the other compilation, which suggests that much of this portion of the Sūtra Piṭaka was not formed until a fairly late date."[4]
See main article: Khuddaka Nikāya. This is a heterogeneous mix of sermons, doctrines, and poetry attributed to the Buddha and his disciples. The contents vary somewhat between editions. The Thai edition includes 1-15 below, the Sinhalese edition 1-17 and the Burmese edition 1-18.
For more on these editions also see Pali Canon
Selections (including material from at least two nikayas):