Which is the Buddhist holy book? Where can it be read?
score:16
There isn't exactly one short Buddhist bible (see Why isn't there a Buddhist Bible?).
The Tripitaka is the Pali canon, possibly the earliest (or at least, among the earliest) of the surviving Buddhist literature. It has three parts, and of these three the Sutta Pitaka is the most relevant (to us).
You can read it (or at least begin to read it) online. Web sites with the Pali suttas translated include:
- http://www.accesstoinsight.org/ -- popular, accessible, maybe a minimum of commentary
- http://dharmafarer.org/ -- suttas are introduced with a lot of commentary by the translator
- http://www.buddha-vacana.org/ -- not so many of the suttas are translated, but those which are here are given with word-by-word Pali-to-English translations
- https://suttacentral.net/ (click on "Sutta" in the heading of the page) -- perhaps the most extensive collection (for example if eventually you're looking for a specific sutta, and find that it's not one of the suttas translated on Access to Insight, then look for it here)
See also the answers to these topics:
- English (or other European) translations of Pali Canon
- Chronological or other sequence for beginners
Note that although the Pali canon (which is the associated with the Theravada tradition) is among the oldest literature, there are also newer (or later) Buddhist schools with their own canonical literature -- so if you want to find "all the teachings of Buddhism" you might also investigate Mahayana literature (including Chinese, Japanese, and Tibetan) as well as modern/contemporary literature.
The simplest answer to "how to behave, rules" might be to say "the five precepts".
I also liked, The Buddha's Teachings on Prosperity: At Home, At Work, in the World because it selects from the Pali canon the suttas which contain behaviour recommendations for lay-people. For example this answer is my summary of one its chapters (the book references specific suttas, which my summary doesn't).
Buddhism seems to me to be rather a large topic, so almost any introduction to it will give a somewhat distorted or one-sided view of it. In my answer to the topic New to Buddhism I tried to give an overview, and also said that people recommend In the Buddha’s Words by Bhikkhu Bodhi.
Another answer wrote that "Buddhism is not a religion based on a Holy Book" which is more or less true:
- If you are one of the so-called People of the Book, perhaps you could over-estimate the importance of a "book" or Bible.
- Even so, some words that I guess may be equally important in Buddhism include Buddhavacana, Sangha, Dhamma, (not to mention "lineage"), and various (practical) practices.
So instead of or as well as a Bible, people might recommend you look for (one or more) Buddhist teachers and/or communities.
Upvote:0
For beginners and enthusiasts, "Budhha and His Dhamma", by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar is a highly recommended book.
It contains English translations of some very important sermons delivered by Budhha and also has content of Tipitika. It gives a complete overview of the Buddha's life, right from His birth to His journey from a layman to The Enlightened One.
Upvote:2
Any Buddhist canon is huge. If you want to get a taste of it, I would suggest the following:
- the Dhammapada for Theravada Buddhism
- the Diamond Sutra for Mahayana Buddhism
Upvote:2
Actually Buddha didn't wrote any holly Books. All of the books written by Buddhist monks wrote after many years later of Buddha's Nirvana. Buddhism is not religion Based on a Holy book. It's a practical religion. It's basic Followings are:
- Do not take life.
- Do not take what is not given.
- Do not distort facts.
- Refrain from misuse of the senses.
- Refrain from self-intoxication through alcohol or drugs.
Learn about them first and after go for the Higher things. Search on the Internet. You will find so many books about Buddhism.
Upvote:3
The word for the Buddhist Pali (i.e,. Theravada) canon (and it is huge, too big to be put in one book) is the Tripitaka, the three baskets.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, it has three sections:
- Vinaya, rules for monks
- Abhidhamma, 7 sorts of commentary by monks on the suttas.
- Sutta, a record of the sermons the Buddha gave.
These three complete the Triptaka and can't be added to. However, there are important books which don't belong to Tripitaka but are assumed to be authentic. E.g. Buddhaghosa's Visuddhimagga, which is similar to the Abhidhamma.
Other early Buddhist schools had their own Tripitaka, similar to Theravada but with different abhidhamma authors, a different vinaya, and with a slightly altered set of suttas.
The Mahayana accepts the Tripitaka (I believe that in the Taisho, the 20th century record of every canonical text in Chinese Buddhism, they use the Sarvastavadin Tripitaka, not the Theravadin) but adds:
- Sutras (the sanskrit word for sutta), sermons of the Buddha for Bodhisattvas
- Sastras, which are commentaries on the sutras.
While the sutras are, like the Tripitaka, complete (despite having slowly been recovered after the Buddha's death), anyone can write a sastra, though that wouldn't make it canonical.
Upvote:3
There are at least three Tripitakas: the Pali Canon is the oldest and the only surviving complete canon of a somewhat early school. In addition, there are the Tibetan Kanjur and the Chinese canon, Tantric and Mahayana respectively. Finally, the Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism has the inspired terma texts of Dzogchen. I think the consensus is that the Four Great Nikayas of the Pali Canon represent the closest thing to a common ground accepted by all schools, and in fact if one studies the nikayas closely one can see the seeds and even the roots of the tree that became Buddhism there. The Four Great Nikayas, in rough chronological order, are the Digha, Majjhima, Samyutta, and Anguttara, and have all been translated into modern English. In some ways they correspond to the gospels of the Christian New Testament (so-called).
Upvote:8
The main Buddhist holy book - The Sutta Pitaka - is many times larger than the Bible, consisting of more than 10,000 discourses.
However, the essential teachings the Buddha compared to a 'handful of leaves'.
The following teachings from the holy book cover the essentials:
On Higher Truth
Three Cardinal Discourses of the Buddha
For laypeople
Sigalovada Sutta: The Layperson's Code of Discipline
Note: In the link Three Cardinal Discourses of the Buddha, the following teachings are translated incorrectly:
"in short, suffering is the five categories of clinging objects", which should be translated as "in summary, [all] suffering is clinging to the five aggregates (body, feelings, perception, mental formations & consciousness)", as explained in SN 22.1 .
"It is the craving that produces renewal of being", which should be translated as: "It is the craving that produces new becoming" (since the word "being" may give the impression of a new life where as "becoming" is the process of the mental development of egoism).
“Now is what is impermanent painful or pleasant?”, which should be translated as: “Now is what is impermanent unsatisfactory or satisfactory?”
The word 'unsatisfactory' means 'incapable of bringing true lasting happiness' (as found here in an alternate translation and in Dhammapada verse 278).
More post
- 📝 Did the Buddha state that there is only one way, and state/imply that any other path (such as those practiced by yogis) was futile?
- 📝 Are the formless jhanas without any consciouness of form at all?
- 📝 How to make sense of the Heart Sutra
- 📝 Intent and Karmic benefit
- 📝 Nine different ways the word ‘Mind’ is used?
- 📝 How to determine whether a 10 days S.N. Goenka Vipassana course is safe for my friend or relative?
- 📝 Specific sutta in the Tipitaka: Where did the Buddha compare leaves in the forest to his knowledge?
- 📝 Is the Alayavijnana momentary?And is it shared in Yogacara?
- 📝 Is there a source for the story about the sun being covered by the cloud?
- 📝 Can one reach enlightenment if they need to care about the wellbeing of another?
- 📝 Were all of the historical Buddhas born on today's planet earth?
- 📝 Woman touch Buddha
- 📝 Is it possible to see the counterpart sign (nimitta) with eyes open?
- 📝 Why Mind is Fickle?
- 📝 To become a Buddha must a person be born in a highest caste in their society?
- 📝 Tips for negotiation from Buddhism
- 📝 Metta meditation ever taught to householders?
- 📝 What are the "seven stations of consciousness" supposed to mean?
- 📝 What is difference between Nibbana and asaṅkhataṃ (unconditioned)?
- 📝 Why aren't more people interested in Dhamma?
- 📝 Ego death and stream entry is it the same thing?
- 📝 What is "Patigha", and how does it differ from "Dosa"?
- 📝 How to understand "Four great elements" in real life objects?
- 📝 What did the Buddha mean in MN 140 about what happened to clansman Pukkusāti after a cow killed him?
- 📝 What is the consequence to living life with self realism behavior?
- 📝 What would a Buddhist country's law be?
- 📝 In what Sutta(s) is there a References to Imagine the Body Inside Out and What is Below the Skin
- 📝 Finding the balance of thinking and working
- 📝 Did the Buddha discover jhana by himself?
- 📝 Why is meat prohibited in Buddhism?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Which is the Buddhist holy book? Where can it be read?
- 📝 Where can I read the oldest and purest texts of Buddhism?
- 📝 Where can we find (Lost) ancient Indian text by Buddhist scholars which was Translated in other languages?
- 📝 Is there anything I can read about the Buddhist tradition today?
- 📝 Where can I find sources for historical data on Buddhist populations in various regions around the world?
- 📝 Where can I read more about the rare special supernatural creatures mentioned in Buddhism?
- 📝 Where is the Buddha quoted as saying do not believe anything I say until you can prove it by yourself?
- 📝 How can I assess the quality of a local Buddhist group?
- 📝 What are the texts that contain words which can be attributed directly to the Buddha?
- 📝 Where can I find the Chinese Canon Agama in English translation?
- 📝 What are the resources a Buddhist can use during very hard times?
- 📝 Which is the most read journal on Buddhism?
- 📝 Can the substantiality of phenomena ever be conclusively ruled out through Buddhist practice?
- 📝 Can a buddhist enjoy life - what are the limitations and restrictions
- 📝 There is a text where Buddha says that the Dharma he teaches is not a secret doctrine so why are there sects which maintain secrecy?
- 📝 How can we make sense of the Universe from the Buddhist perspective?
- 📝 In what order should I read the various Buddhist scriptures?
- 📝 Which buddhist traditions use silent visual applause, instead of clapping, to show appreciation and what is the origin of this practice?
- 📝 Where can i find buddhist chanting and music?
- 📝 Can the elements of Buddhist Cosmology be confirmed?
- 📝 Which are the Buddhist vows?
- 📝 Where can I get Buddha's teachings of the Dharma practice?
- 📝 Which is a good book to read about history of Buddhism?
- 📝 Where can i find the original text of learning the jhanas
- 📝 Where is the Tibetan Book of the Dead online in Tibetan script?
- 📝 Which texts are the most important to read in the Khuddaka Nikaya and why?
- 📝 Can an art career distract from the Buddhist path?
- 📝 In the top left corner there is a Tibetan Buddhist praying. Can you translate this prayer?
- 📝 Why a Buddhist prays at Hindu temple which is situated in another country and prays for the betterment of his own country?
- 📝 Is there any Buddhist society / group / organisation in Mumbai, India? Where we can meet similar like minded people, attend cultural events