Sutta Interpretations > Nikāya in the Sutta Piṭaka

January 7, 2016

1. The Tipiṭaka or the Pāli Canon of Buddha Dhamma (Buddhism) consists of three major sections or “baskets” called “piṭaka” (Tipiṭaka is three piṭaka). They are Sutta piṭaka, Vinaya piṭaka, and the Abhidhamma piṭaka.

▪The Sutta piṭaka consists of five sections called “nikāya.” The Wikipedia is wrong to say that nikāya means “volume” in Pāli (and also what is meant by the five types of nikāya); see, WebLink: Wiki: Nikāya

▪Nikāya comes from “ni” + “kāya” where kāya means our volitions and actions initiated via the six sense inputs, like in “kāyānupassanā” where one is mindful of how to respond to those sense inputs. Here, “ni” means to cease (nikmeema in Sinhala means to be freed) and thus nikāya means “path to Nibbāna”. At Nibbāna, one has stopped all kāya.

2. All suttā (note that plural of sutta is suttā) are in those five nikāyas (Dīgha, Majjhima, Saṁyutta, Aṅguttara, and Kuddaka), based on the five types of people. All humans are in five general types based on their sansāric habits and capabilities. They are also called “indriya types”: saddha, viriya, sati, samādhi, paññā. (Note that “indriya” here is different from the sense types such as cakkhu indriya, etc., as discussed in #6 and #7 below).

▪Dīgha Nikāya is mainly for those with predominant saddha indriya who need detailed explanations. These are long (dīgha, pronounced “dheega,” which means long in Pāli and Sinhala). For example, the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta in the Dīgha Nikāya provides detailed instructions on how to be mindful and practice ānāpāna.

▪Suttā in the Kuddaka Nikāya (“ku” + “uddaka” where “ku” is keles or defilements and “udda” means to remove) are short and concise. They provide brief instructions for those with high wisdom (paññā indriya).

▪Majjhima Nikāya has “middle length” suttā that provide instructions at a level in between those in the Dīgha Nikāya and the Kuddaka Nikāya. It is more suitable for those with dominant viriya indriya. Note here that Majjhima means “middle,” but Majjhimā — as in Majjhimā patipadā — has a deeper meaning of “abstaining from getting intoxicated”; see, “Majjhima Patipada – Way to Relinquish Attachments to this World.”

3. The suttā in the Saṁyutta Nikāya are focused on explaining “saŋ”, which is a critical word in the foundation of Buddha Dhamma; see, “What is “Saŋ”? Meaning of Sansāra (or Saṁsāra).”

▪Here Saṁyutta comes from “saŋ” + “yutta” where yutta (pronounced “yuththa”) menas “consists of.” It natural to pronounce as “Saṁyutta” than “sanyutta.” This is true of many combined words with “saŋ” (like saṁsāra, Sammā = “saŋ” + “mā”).

▪Suttā in the Saṁyutta Nikāya are said to be more suitable for those with dominant sati indriya.

4. Suttā in the Aṅguttara Nikāya are said to be more suitable for those with dominant samādhi indriya.

▪Aṅguttara comes from “anga” + “uttara” where “anga” means parts or components and “uttara” means “predominant or principle.” Therefore, the suttā in the Aṅguttara Nikāya are focused on fundamental principles and are also relatively short. These suttā are more suitable for people who can quickly get to samādhi.

▪These categories help explain why Dīgha and Majjhima Nikāya suttā are the ones that are mostly in use today. Most people today fall into the categories of those with the saddha and viriya indriya dominant.

5. It is also important to point out a different usage of the term “nikāya.” Among the Theravāda nations of Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka, bhikkhus (and the temples they reside in) belong to several different groups or nikāya.

▪For example, in Sri Lanka different temples belong to three types of nikāyas: Siam, Ramanya, and Amarapura.

▪They are all Theravāda and there is no real difference among them as far as the doctrine is concerned. When one visits a temple, it is not possible to say to which nikāya it belongs.

6. The word indriya comes in two contexts. “Indriya” means “dominant” in some contexts. Here, the six types of dominant sense faculties are indriya: cakkhu, sota, jivhā, ghāṇa, kāya, and mano.

▪Modern science deals with only five physical senses of eyes, ears, tongue, nose, and body.

▪Scientists believe that our brains randomly produces our thought. That will be proven to be incorrect in the future.

▪Mana indriya — located in the brain — is the sixth and most important one according to Buddha Dhamma. It detects dhammā from the “nāma loka”; see, “Our Two Worlds: Material and Immaterial” and “What are Dhamma? – A Deeper Analysis.”

▪Rūpa are eleven types, but are split into two main categories (oḷārika or dense and sukhuma or fine). Those above the suddhaṭṭhaka level belong to the material world or “bhauthika loka.” Those below the suddhaṭṭhaka level (dhammā) belong to the mental world or “nāma loka.” The five physical senses detect those rūpa above the suddhaṭṭhaka level. The mana indriya detects those below the suddhaṭṭhaka level (dhammā). see, “Our Two Worlds: Material and Immaterial.”

7. The other use of indriya is with categorizing people by their dominant characteristics and capabilities (gati). For some people, it is easy to grasp Dhamma concepts. That is because they have cultivated the Path in their previous lives, and thus have higher wisdom (paññā).

▪Some others have also cultivated the Path mainly via just following precepts, but have high confidence in Buddha Dhamma. They are said to have their saddha indriya dominant.

▪Some have the sati indriya dominant; they can focus on a given concept better than others.

▪We all are familiar with some people who have the viriya indriya dominant; they are the “never give up” type, who seem to have inexhaustible energy levels.

▪Some others have meditated and possibly got into jhānā in previous lives and have the samādhi indriya dominant.

8. Finally, there is an excellent website that has the full and complete Sutta Piṭaka with all Pāli suttā: WebLink: Sutta Central

▪That site also has the complete Vinaya and Abhidhamma Piṭaka as well (in Pāli).

▪Sutta Central also has Sanskrit sutras, which are, of course, Mahāyāna.

▪The Chinese Agama suttā are also at this site (in Chinese). As I understand, they are very close to Theravāda suttā. Those translations to Chinese from Theravāda happened before the appearance of Mahāyāna sutras. I would appreciate feedback from persons who are proficient in both Chinese and English, as to whether my understanding is correct.

Next, “Sutta Learning Sequence for the Present Day”,..