________________
106
THE SYSTEMS OF INDIAN PHILOSOPHY
books of the Northern Buddhists wrote three great commentaries.3 The Lalitavistara, a most important work of the Northern Buddhists, is only a gorgecus poem; it is no more a biography of Gautama than the Paradise Lost a biography of Jesus. It was composed probably in Nepal in the second, third or fourth century after Christ, although it contains passages which are of a very much older date. In China Buddhism was introduced from the first century after Christ but did not become the state religion until the fourth century, and the works on Buddhism which were then carried by Chinese pilgrims from India from century to century and translated into the Chinese language do not illustrate the earliest phase of Buddhism in India. And lastly, Tibet has drifted still further away from primitive Buddhism in India and has adopted forms and ceremonies which were unknown to Gautama and his followers in the sixth century before Christ.
(b) On the other hand, the southern Buddhists furnish us with the most valuable materials. The sacred books of the Southern Buddhists are known by the inclusive name of the three Pitakas and there is evidence to show that these Pitakas now extant in Ceylon are substantially identical with the canon as settled in the council of Patna about 242 B. C.
(c) The three Pitakas are known as the Sutta Pitaka, the Vinaya Pitaka and the Abhidhamma Pitaka. The works comprised in the Sutta Pitaka profess to record the sayings and doings of Gautama Buddha himself. Gautama himself is the actor and the speaker in the earliest works of this Pitaka and his doctrines are conveyed in his own words. Occasionally one of
3. That the Buddhist Council allegedly convened by Kanishka owed allegiance to Northern Buddhism is not a settled point.
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
