Excerpt from preface to the World Tipiṭaka Edition in Roman script
by
Venerable Phra Dhammapiṭaka
(P. A. Payutto)
(Original Language Version)
The term Buddhasāsana or Buddhism is generally used to convey a wide variety of meanings ranging from the Dhamma, the Saṅgha, their organizations and activities, to all religious sites and objects. However, if we examine the term to penetrate to its core, the meaning of Buddhasāsana is straightforward —its literal reading, “the Teachings of the Buddha,” which is the essence of Buddhasāsana; everything else is an extension or out growth of His teachings.
Once we have grasped the true meaning of the term, we will realize that the continuation of Buddhasāsana means the existence of the Buddha's Teachings. Were they to become vague or disappear, no matter how numerous are devotees and activities or how imposing religious institutions and objects are, it could not be said that Buddhasāsana exists. On the contrary, should those extraneous tangibles disintegrate while the Teachings of the Buddha remain, people can still have an opportunity to know Buddhasāsana. Consequently, Buddhasāsana can truly be upheld through the preservation of the Buddha's Teachings.
Dhamma and Vinaya : Embodiment and Abode of the Buddha
Buddhasāsana or the Teachings of the Buddha refer to the words of the Buddha, or His speech. Therefore, the preservation of Buddhasāsana is essentially the preservation of the words that the Buddha uttered in His sermons and the Discipline He laid down.
All Buddhists are well aware that the Dhamma and the Vinaya represent the Buddha, for the Buddha Himself said:
Ānanda, the Dhamma (Teachings) which I have expounded and the Vinaya (Discipline) which I have established for you all, the Dhamma and the Vinaya will be your Teacher after I am gone...
(M 7D.216)
Buddha's words are, therefore, both the embodiment and abode of the Teacher as they uphold and proclaim the Dhamma and the Vinaya for Him.
Thus, it is most vital to preserve the Buddha's words, the key to the continuation of Buddhasāsana. Attempts to preserve them have been made since the Buddha's lifetime, while the Teacher was still alive.
The procedure is to collect all the words that the Buddha had uttered in the course of His teaching and divide them into sections for easy recollection. Those who took part would go over them thoroughly with questions and answers for the purpose of clarification until they reached full agreement. Participants would then chant the words together to vouchsafe their acknowledgement and establish the words thus gathered as the standard of reference to be committed to memory and handed down to future generations. This method is called Saṅgīti, which literally means “chanting together”.
This manner of Saṅgīti, or chanting together, was set as a precedent in the Buddha's lifetime by Venerable Sariputta, the chief disciple of the Buddha. Before the Buddha and the gathering of monks, Venerable Sāriputta collected the words of the Teacher together and arranged them on the basis of the number of items in their composition into groups of one to groups of ten as they now appear in the Saṅgītisutta. When the disciple finished his recitation, the Buddha gave an exclamation of approval.
Later, almost immediately after the Buddha passed into Parinibbāna, the greatest and most important Saṅgīti took place. Seven days after the death of the Teacher, the Venerable Mahākassapa asked the monks to assemble for a Saṅgīti. When they all agreed, preparations were made and the First Saṅgīti was held at Rājagaha only three months after the Passing Away of the Teacher.
The gathering of the Buddha's words at this great assembly was done in this manner. The five hundred Arahants who had come in time to attend the last sermon of the Buddha met together and chose those who could recall accurately the Buddha's words in each area. The Venerable Upāli was chosen for the Disciplineṇ the Venerable Ānanda, for the Teachings. Then those who were well versed in the area would recite the words of the Teacher to the assembly. The Venerable Mahākassapa, who presided over the meeting, laid down the rules for presentation by grouping and sequencing questions to be askedṇ that is, it was done systematically.
Had the recitation of the Buddha's words, together with their context, taken place in the Buddha's lifetime, He would have endorsed them Himself. However, since the First Saṅgīti took place after the Teacher had passed away, the burden fell on the Arahants who had arrived in time to see the Teacher and listen to His final sermon to ensure their accuracy by means of catechism. When consensus was reached, the assembly chanted the words together and committed them to memory to be passed on. Thus the tradition was established.
The First Saṅgīti is the most important as the Teacher's words that were compiled and memorized then were to be the standard. What remains to be done is to keep the collection of the Buddha's words, the results of the First Saṅgīti, intact in its entirety. Consequently, since then emphasis has been put on recitation as a means of preserving the Buddha's words and the monks who were entrusted with their preservation were allotted sections to memorize.
This implies that the First Saṅgīti is the only one true to the meaning of Saṅgīti -- the sense of compiling and chanting together the words of the Buddha. Subsequent Saṅgītis were only meetings where monks who had committed the Buddha's words to memory convened to cross-examine one another to ensure that the collection of the Teacher's words from the First Saṅgīti was still intact and free from any interpolation.
Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti : The Great International Council, B.E. 2500
When Buddhasāsana reached the twenty-fifth century of the Buddhist Era, Theravāda Buddhist countries all prepared grand celebrations. The First International Saṅgīti was convened in Myanmar from B.E. 2496 to 2500 (C.E. 1952 -1956). Buddhist monks and scholars from every country that embraces the Theravāda tradition of Buddhasāsana and countries where Buddhasāsana is taught assembled in Myanmar to go over the text of the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka prepared by the Burmese together with versions in different scripts from other countries. This convocation is referred to as Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti, the Sixth Saṅgīti, and recognized by all Buddhist countries.
However, soon after the Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti was over, there occurred turmoil and political changes in Myanmar. This may have been the reason why the preservation and printing of the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka of the Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti had not proceeded smoothly, causing confusion between the Burmese version that had been used as a draft and the resolution version that was the outcome of the Saṅgīti.
Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka : International Pāḷi Tipiṭaka, B.E. 2545
Now, the M.L. Maniratana Bunnag Dhamma Society Fund under the patronage of His Holiness Somdet Phra Ñāṇasaṃvara the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand is about to publish in Roman script the Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti Pāḷi Tipiṭaka, the version that has been revised and edited by international monks of the Theravāda Buddhist tradition. The Pāḷi Tipiṭaka is thus made accessible to the international community.
With patience, determination and carefully laid-out procedures, the working committee has discovered the Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti Pāḷi Tipiṭaka that was printed at different times and has distinguished between the first edition and an edited version that was printed. Moreover, portions of later printed versions have been noted for what they truly are. The committee has worked hard to get the version that is most accurate. This has then been rechecked against the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka written in various scripts from several countries. It seems that the goal of the Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti has finally been realized.
Tipiṭaka as Dāna : a Gift of Dhamma from Thailand
It is hoped that the Romanised Pāḷi Tipiṭaka Edition, the Buddhist Era 2500 Great International Council Pāḷi Tipiṭaka, published by the M.L. Maniratana Bunnag Dhamma Society Fund under the patronage of His Holiness Somdet Phra Ñāṇasaṃvara the Supreme Patriarch, in honour of Their Majesties the King and Queen of Thailand, to be presented as a Gift of Dhamma worldwide, will serve as a bearer of the Buddha's teachings that travels great distances. This messenger has the mission to deliver the Teacher's words, which are beautiful at the beginning, beautiful in the middle and beautiful at the end, as uttered by the Buddha when He directed the first group of disciples to proclaim His message for the benefit of all mankind.
Venerable Phra Dhammapiṭaka
(P. A. Payutto)
October 9, B.E. 2545 (C.E. 2002)
