Nikāyasaṅgraha
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The Nikāyasaṅgraha (Pali/Sanskrit: Nikāya-saṅgraha, lit. “Collection of Nikāyas” or “Summary of Sects”) is a Sinhalese Buddhist chronicle from the late medieval period. It offers a survey of Buddhist sectarian history, tracing the arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, the development of different doctrinal groups (nikāyas), and the role of kings and leading monks in safeguarding orthodoxy.[1][2] The text remains a key source for understanding how later Theravāda communities in Sri Lanka defined themselves in relation to earlier doctrinal debates.[3]
Date and authorship
Most scholars date the Nikāyasaṅgraha to the 14th century.[1] Manuscripts sometimes attribute it to Saṅgharāja Dharmakīrti, a prominent Sinhalese monk who held the office of mahāsāmi (chief of the Saṅgha) in this period.[4] Other accounts suggest it was compiled and edited over time as part of the wider corpus of Sinhalese chronicles.[1] Because of these conflicting traditions, modern scholarship usually identifies the work by title and approximate century rather than a single, uncontested author.[3]
Content and structure
Written in the style of a historical chronicle, the Nikāyasaṅgraha recounts the rise and spread of different sects in India and Sri Lanka. It describes moments when heterodox or “Vaitulya” (Mahāyāna) doctrines entered the island, and the measures taken to suppress them.[1] The narrative highlights the role of kings and senior monks in consolidating what later writers identified as “Theravāda orthodoxy.”[3] At the same time, it combines historical record with sectarian polemic, serving not only to document events but also to legitimize the authority of the Mahāvihāra-based tradition.[2]
Historical importance
The chronicle provides insight into how medieval Sinhalese Buddhists understood sectarian history.[1] It has been used by modern scholars to trace the way Sri Lankan authors interpreted earlier doctrinal controversies and described the transmission of scriptures between India, Southeast Asia, and Sri Lanka.[1] In particular, it is a key reference for the study of how Theravāda identity was shaped in relation to royal reforms and patronage.[2]
Later chroniclers and colonial editors relied on the Nikāyasaṅgraha to reconstruct the history of early Buddhist schools and to explain the appearance of Mahāyāna and tantric texts in Sri Lanka, since it records both their introduction and suppression.[3] The text also provides a comparative window into the wider Sinhalese chronicle tradition—alongside works like the Mahāvaṃsa, Rājāvaṃsa, and Pujavaliya—helping scholars evaluate claims about the ebb and flow of non-Theravāda currents on the island.[3]
Editions and translations
An English translation, titled The Theravāda Lineage (Nikāya Saṅgrahaya), has been published online by Ānandajoti Bhikkhu, with an introduction and notes.[5] Modern encyclopedias and reference works on Buddhism continue to cite the Nikāyasaṅgraha when discussing Sinhalese historiography and sectarian developments.[4]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f Wilhelm Geiger. Culture of Ceylon in Mediaeval Times. Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1960, pp. 37–39.
- ^ a b c Ananda W. P. Guruge. The Mahavamsa: The Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka. Colombo: Associated Newspapers of Ceylon, 1989, pp. 55–56.
- ^ a b c d e Kithsiri Malalgoda. Buddhism in Sinhalese Society, 1750–1900. University of California Press, 1976, p. 27.
- ^ a b G. P. Malalasekera. Encyclopaedia of Buddhism. Vol. 4. Government of Ceylon, 1937, p. 233.
- ^ Ānandajoti Bhikkhu (ed. and trans.). The Theravāda Lineage (Nikāya Saṅgrahaya). Online edition, 2011. Ancient Buddhist Texts.