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15-523: The Majjhima Nikāya ("Collection of Middle-length Discourses") is a Buddhist scripture collection , the second of the five Nikāyas , or collections, in the Sutta Piṭaka , which is one of the "three baskets" that compose the Pali Tipitaka (lit. "Three Baskets") of Theravada Buddhism . It was composed between 3rd century BCE and 2nd century CE. This nikaya consists of 152 discourses attributed to

30-710: A result of royal or government patronage (such as the Dhammayuttika Nikāya of Thailand), due to the national origin of their ordination lineage (the Siam Nikāya of Sri Lanka ), because of differences in the interpretation of the monastic code, or due to other factors (such as the Amarapura Nikāya in Sri Lanka, which emerged as a reaction to caste restrictions within the Siam Nikāya). These divisions do not rise to

45-612: A total of nine legally recognized monastic orders in Burma today under the 1990 Law Concerning Sangha Organizations. The largest of these is the Thudhamma Nikaya , which was founded in the 1800s during the Konbaung dynasty . The term Nikāya Buddhism was coined by Masatoshi Nagatomifake as a non-derogatory substitute for Hinayana , meaning the early Buddhist schools . Examples of these groups are pre-sectarian Buddhism and

60-631: Is most commonly used in reference to the Pali Buddhist texts of the Tripitaka namely those found in the Sutta Piṭaka . It is also used to refer to monastic lineages, where it is sometimes translated as a 'monastic fraternity'. The term Nikāya Buddhism is sometimes used in contemporary scholarship to refer to the Buddhism of the early Buddhist schools . In the Pāli Canon , particularly,

75-660: The Shwegyin Nikaya , with looser rules regarding Vinaya regulations and is less hierarchical than the former. Like all the major orders in Burma, Thudhamma Nikaya prohibits monks from engaging in political activity. Ordained Buddhist monks by monastic order in Myanmar (2016). According to 2016 statistics published by the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee , 467,025 monks belonged to this monastic order, representing 87% of all monks in

90-464: The "Discourse Basket" or Sutta Piṭaka , the meaning of nikāya is roughly equivalent to the English collection and is used to describe groupings of discourses according to theme, length, or other categories. For example, the Sutta Piṭaka is broken up into five nikāyas: In the other early Buddhist schools the alternate term āgama was used instead of nikāya to describe their Sutra Piṭaka s. Thus

105-865: The Buddha and his chief disciples. The Majjhima Nikaya corresponds to the Madhyama Āgama found in the Sutra Piṭakas of various Sanskritic early Buddhist schools, fragments of which survive in Sanskrit and in Tibetan translation. A complete Chinese translation from the Sarvāstivādin recension appears in the Chinese Buddhist canon , where it is known as the Zhōng Ahánjīng (中阿含經). The Madhyama Āgama of

120-679: The Sarvāstivāda school contains 222 sūtras, in contrast to the 152 suttas in the Pāli Majjhima Nikāya. Bhikkhu Bodhi in the introduction to his translation describes the collection as follows: If the Majjhima Nikāya were to be characterised by a single phrase to distinguish it from among the other books of the Pali Canon, this might be done by describing it as the collection that combines the richest variety of contextual settings with

135-788: The Thudhamma Council (an ecclesiastical organization founded by Bodawpaya), which in turn is named after Mandalay's Thudhamma Zayats , the meeting grounds for the Council. The office of the Supreme Patriarch ( သာသနာပိုင် or Thathanabaing ), similar to the position of Sangharaja in Thailand and Cambodia, dates back to the 13th century, started by the monk Shin Arahan in the Pagan Kingdom . The Thathanabaing

150-537: The country. With respect to geographic representation, the plurality of Thudhamma monks live in Mandalay Region (19.76%), followed by Shan State (16.09%), Yangon Region (15.39%), and Sagaing Region (9.88%). Thudhamma Nikaya was founded in the late 18th century by King Bodawpaya , after a series of Sangha reforms by prior Konbaung kings to purify and unite the Sangha. The name 'Thudhamma' comes from

165-411: The deepest and most comprehensive assortment of teachings. The 152 discourses come in three parts each with five divisions. All divisions save the penultimate contain 10 discourses. Nik%C4%81ya Nikāya ( निकाय ) is a Pāli word meaning "volume". It is often used like the Sanskrit word āgama ( आगम ) to mean "collection", "assemblage", "class" or "group" in both Pāḷi and Sanskrit. It

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180-419: The early Buddhist schools. Some scholars exclude pre-sectarian Buddhism when using the term. The term Theravada refers to Buddhist practices based on these early teachings, as preserved in the Pāli Canon . Thudhamma Nikaya It is one of 9 legally sanctioned monastic orders ( nikāya ) in the country, under the 1990 Law Concerning Sangha Organizations. Thudhamma is considered a more pragmatic order than

195-540: The level of forming separate sects within the Theravāda tradition, because they do not typically follow different doctrines or monastic codes, nor do these divisions extend to the laity. In Burma , nikaya monastic orders have emerged in response to the relative conservativeness with which the Vinayas are interpreted, and the hierarchical structure within the nikaya. Since 1980, no new nikayas have been allowed, and there are

210-710: The non- Mahāyāna portion of the Sanskrit-language Sutra Piṭaka is referred to as "the Āgamas" by Mahāyāna Buddhists. The Āgamas survive for the most part only in Classical Tibetan and Chinese translation. They correspond closely with the Pāḷi nikāyas. Among the Theravāda nations of Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka, nikāya is also used as the term for a monastic division or lineage; these groupings are also sometimes called "monastic fraternities" or "frateries". Nikāyas may emerge among monastic groupings as

225-475: Was responsible for managing the monastic hierarchy and education at monasteries. In 1784, King Bodawpaya assembled the Thudhamma Council, led by the Thathanapaing and four elders ( ထေရ် or thera ) to resolve a longstanding issue on the proper wearing of monk's robes (whether one or both shoulders should be exposed). Toward the end of the Konbaung dynasty , the council, which oversaw religious affairs in

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