| Pāli Canon |
|---|
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| Theravāda Buddhism |
| 1. Vinaya Piṭaka |
| 2. Sutta Piṭaka 5. Khuddaka Nikāya |
| 3. Abhidhamma Piṭaka |
| Dhammasaṅgaṇī | |
|---|---|
| Type | Canonical text |
| Parent Collection | Abhidhamma Pitaka |
| Commentary | Atthasālinī |
| Abbreviation | Dsp |
| Pāli literature | |
The Dhammasaṅgaṇī (Pāli; lit. 'Collection of Dhammas'), also known as the Dhammasaṅgaha, is a Buddhist scripture, part of the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism. It is the first of the seven texts of the Abhidhamma Pitaka.
The book begins with a matika (Pali for "matrix"), which is a list of classifications of dhammas, variously translated as ideas, phenomena, states, patterns etc. The text lacks a nidana, though the commentaries record that attempts were made at creating one that depicted the Buddha preaching the Abhidhamma in one of the heavenly realms. Theravada tradition attributes the Dhammasaṅgaṇī to Sariputra, who is held to have recited the Abhidhamma as part of the sutta texts at the First Buddhist Council, and regards it as one of the canonical teachings that Mahinda brought to Sri Lanka from the empire of Asoka. Its title is abbreviated 'Dhs' in Pāli scholarship.
Format
Following the matika, the main body of the book is in four parts, as follows.
- The first part deals with states of mind, listing and defining factors present in them.
- The second deals with material phenomena, classifying them numerically, by ones, twos etc.
- The third part applies the material in the first two to explaining the classifications in the matika.
- The fourth does likewise, but in a different and sometimes more detailed way, and omitting the sutta method 2-fold classifications. This fourth part is mostly omitted from the old translation, only a few extracts being included. The new translation is complete.
Rhys Davids (1900) divisions of the text are as follows:
| Book I. The Genesis of Thoughts (cittuppaada- ka.n.da.m) |
Part I. Good States of Consciousness |
Ch. I. The Eight Main Types of Thought relating to the Sensuous Universe |
| Part II. Bad States of Consciousness |
Ch. VI. The Twelve Bad Thoughts (dvaadasa akusalacittaani) | |
| Part III. Indeterminate States of Consciousness |
Ch. I. On Effect, or Result (vipaako): A. Good Karma. B. Bad Karma | |
| Book II. Form (ruupa- ka.n.da.m) |
Ch. I. Exposition of Form under Single Concepts (ekaka-niddeso) | |
| Book III. The Division Entitled 'Elimination' (nikkhepa- ka.n.da.m) |
Part I. |
Ch. I. The Group of Triplets (tika.m) |
| Part II. The Suttanta Pairs of Terms (suttantika-duka.m) |
Translations
Several English translations are available, including:
- The Dhammasangani, edited by Edward Müller, 1885, published for the Pali Text Society, by H. Frowde in London
- A Buddhist Manual of Psychological Ethics, tr C. A. F. Rhys Davids, Royal Asiatic Society, 1900; reprinted with corrections, Pali Text Society, Bristol
- Dhammasaṅgaṇī: Enumeration of the Ultimate Realities, tr U Kyaw Khine, Department for the Promotion and Propagation of the Sasana, Rangoon, ?1996; reprinted by Sri Satguru Pubns, Delhi, 2 volumes
See also
References
- ^ Von Hinüber, Oskar (1997). A Handbook of Pali Literature (1st Indian ed.). New Delhi: Munishiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. pp. 65=68. ISBN 81-215-0778-2.
- "Pali Text Society". palitext.com. Archived from the original on 2004-06-20. Retrieved 2021-10-22.
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