Digha Nikaya
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The Digha Nikaya ("Collection of Long Discourses") is the first of the five nikayas, or collections, in the Sutta Pitaka, which is one of the "three baskets" that compose the Pali Tipitaka. Some of the most commonly referenced suttas from the Digha Nikaya include the Maha-parinibbana Sutta (DN 16), which described the final days and death of the Buddha, the Sigalovada Sutta (DN 31) in which the Buddha discusses ethics and practices for lay followers, and the Samaññaphala (DN 2), Brahmajala Sutta (DN 1) which describes and compares the point-of-view of Buddha and other ascetics in India about the universe and time (past, present, and future); and Potthapada (DN 9) Suttas, which describe the benefits and practice of samatha meditation.
A similar collection, apparently translated from an earlier Sanskrit version, appears in the Chinese Buddhist canon. This is known as the Dīrghāgama or Cháng Ahánjīng (長阿含經), names which mean "the long agama".
Divisions
The Digha Nikaya consists of 34 discourses, broken into three groups:- Silakkhandha-vagga -- The Division Concerning Morality (13 suttas)
- Maha-vagga -- The Large Division (10 suttas)
- Patika-vagga -- The Patika Division (11 suttas)
See also
- Anguttara Nikaya
- Buddhist texts
- Khuddaka Nikaya
- List of Digha Nikaya suttas
- Majjhima Nikaya
- Samyutta Nikaya
External links
References
- Walshe, Maurice (trans.), The Long Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Digha Nikaya, Somerville: Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0861711033.
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