“Avoid all unwholesome deeds; cultivate goodness; purify one’s own mind
– this is the teaching of all Buddhas.”– The Buddha –
Note : All the information about the article below has been published by Nalanda Institute Malaysia in 2011. I am just re-writing to my blog for the spirit to give the right information about Buddhism based on strong references. There is no commercial purpose to re-write this. The original text is written in 2011 by H S Tan, a Buddhist Scholar & The Founder of Nalanda Institute Malaysia ( https://www.nalanda.org.my/institute/ )
Nowadays, Buddhism is one of believes on this planet which has many followers and sympathizing. As an Indonesian citizen, personally I have great respect about it. Why? It was because long time ago Buddhism became great believe in Sumatera Island, Malay Peninsula, Java Island, and Bali Island. There must be a reason why people in the islands were accepted Buddhism as the way of life.
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There are many ancient Buddhist temples in Indonesia especially in Java (for the greatest one) as super big prove for us, the modern society. One of the temples is the magnificent Borobudur which was built by Syailendra Dynasty in around 8th to the beginning of 9th Century with the amazing detailed of 3D carved technique on the around 2 million blocks of lava stones. So, for me Borobudur is a pride!
As a guide from Yogyakarta (Java Island), I was lucky because I met the special group from Nalanda Institute Malaysia 2 times. The founder is Dr. Tan Ho Soon (Bro Tan). I got a leaflet about the chronology of the rehearsals and it was enlightened me. With the spirit of knowledge, I have to share about this to all my next guests, my colleagues, my friends, and also here on my blog www.yojalan-jalandab.blogspot.co.id .
Communal Chanting at Mahabodi Temple, India
· Rehearsing the Dhamma – vinaya
The Pali term ‘Sangayana’ can be translated as rehearsal or communal chanting. The purpose of Sangaayana is to accurately preserve the original teachings of the Buddha. The reciters’ duty is to rehearse, examine, and review the Canon so that no parts of which are added, omitted or altered, and any such deviations were to be rectified. Throughout history, there had been six such formal occasions where the entire Pali Canon was rehearsed and authenticated.
1. The First Rehearsal (Sattapanni Caves, Rajagaha, India in 543 BCE. Two months after the Buddha\s passing.)
Before passing away, the Buddha reminded His disciples that, “the Dhamma and Vinaya (Doctrine and Discipline) I have set forth and laid down for you shall be your teacher after I am gone…” Thus the Buddha did not appoint a personal successor in His place, but endhrined the Dhamma-vinaya as the guiding principle in one’s conduct, practice and quest for liberation.
The most senior disciple at the time of Buddha’s passing was the Elder Maha Kassapa, who presided over Buddha’s cremation ceremony. The Elder was fully aware of the importance of preserving the purity and authenticity of the Dhamma-vinaya. He proposed to the senior erudite monks gathered for the funeral that a Sangayana be held for the collection and preservation of the Buddha’s pristine teachings.
Five hundred monks, all Arahants well-versed in the Dhamma-vinaya and skillful in linguistics, were selected to take part in the first Sangayana. It took place at Sattapanni Caves just outside the Indian city of Rajagaha, two months after the passing of the Buddha.
Elder Maha Kassapa presided over the meeting as the “chief interrogator”. Two other Arahants personally praised by the Buddha as foremost amongst His followers – the Elders Upali and Ananda – rehearsed the Vinaya and Dhamma respectively before the august assembly.
Their recitations were reviewed, approved, and then chanted in unison by the congregation; and thus was the inception of the Tipitaka as we know it today. It took the enlightened assembly several months to conclude that historical rehearsal.
2. The Second Rehearsal (Vesali, India in 5th Century BCE. A century after Buddha’s passing.)
A century after the First Rehearsal, the Buddhist fraternity split into two branches – the orthodox and the liberal schools – mainly due to different interpretations of monastic rules.
The orthodox school upheld the stricter, traditional interpretation of the rules, while the more reformative liberals allowed for regional variations in their practice. After the division, the orthodox school convened the Second Rehearsal to reaffirm and preserve the ‘original’ Pali Dhamma-vinaya.
The orthodox school upheld the stricter, traditional interpretation of the rules, while the more reformative liberals allowed for regional variations in their practice. After the division, the orthodox school convened the Second Rehearsal to reaffirm and preserve the ‘original’ Pali Dhamma-vinaya.
3. The Third Rehearsal (Pataliputta, India in 3rd Century BCE, 250 years after Buddha’s passing.)
The Third Rehearsal was held under the auspices of Asoka the Great, the MAuryan Dynasty’s most famous Buddhist monarch. The purpose of this rehearsal was to reestablish the accurate interpretation of the ‘Buddha-Word’.
This Rehearsal had two great impacts on the subsequent development of Buddhism: Firstly, the Abhidhamma-pitaka was formally recited and incorporated into the Canon. Secondly, at the conclusion of the rehearsal, Emperor Asoka sent several organized missions led by accomplished elders to propagate the ‘Buddha-Word’ beyond India, thus making Buddhism a world religion.
4. The Fourth Rehearsal (Alokalena, Sri Lanka in 1st Century BCE , 454 years after Buddha’s passing.)
It was held outside India for the first time. It was a very significant event as the venerable elders then decided to commit the Pali Canon to writing, or rather, inscribing it onto ola palm leaves. The Buddha-Word hitherto transmitted orally from generation to generation.
5. The Fifth Rehearsal (Mandalay, Burma or Myanmar in 1871 CE, 2,415 years after Buddha’s passing.)
It was convened during the reign of devout King Mindon. It was strictly speaking en entirely Burmese affair participated by more than 2,000 learned monks. In this edition, three highly-venerated ancient Pali texts – Nettippakarana, Petakopadesa and Milindapanha – were added to the Canon.
6. The Sixth Great International Rehearsal (Yangon, Burma or Myanmar in 1954 – 1956 CE, 2,500 years after Buddha’s passing.)
To commemorate the landmark 2,500th year of the Buddhist Era, a great congregation of erudite monks from all Theravada countries, where Paali was the common scriptural language, gathered in then Burma (Myanmar) from 1954 – 1956 for the Chattha – Sangaayana – the Sixth Rehearsal. This rehearsal began on Wesak (Vesak) Day in 1954 and concluded on Wesak Day in 1956, taking two years to complete.
It took place in a specially – constructed hall resembling a large cave. 2,500 erudite Theravaadin monks from eight countries participated in this great gathering, making it by far the most international of all rehearsals.
The Pali Canon was once again thoroughly checked against the various scripts and versions available then, with any discrepancies corrected and the entire collection accurately preserved. Thus we are assured of the continuation of the perfect, unadulterated, and most complete teachings of the Buddha.
Pali Scriptures were first inscribed onto palm leaves in the 1st Century BCE. Today, the tradition continues where devotees often inscribe the scriptures onto metal plates and then encase them in beautiful ornamental caskets.
The Pali Language does not have a script of its own but it can be written phonetically with various alphabets. In Sri Lanka, Paali is written with the Sinhalese script; in Thailand, the Thai script is used. Paali is also written with Burmese, Khmer, Devanagiri and Roman alphabets, depending on the community.
In 2002, the entire Pali Tipitaka rehearsed at the Great International (Sixth) Sangaayana was published by Dhamma Society of Thailand in Roman Script. A complete set of that rare edition was presented to Nalanda Institute in recognition of its educational programs and Dhamma propagation efforts in Malaysia.
Nalanda Institute offers free courses and special seminars on Buddhism at its education center in Sri Serdang, Selangor. For more information on its programs and activities, please contact the Institute at the following address:
3357, Jalan 18/31, Taman Sri Serdang, 43300 Seri Kembangan, Selangor.
Tel.no : +603-8938 1500/8938 1501
Fax no. : +603-8948 8055
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