The Pāli canon
Canonical collection
Explore the five Nikāyas of the Sutta Piṭaka.
Khuddaka Nikāya
- KhuddakapāṭhaShort readingsComplete translation
- DhammapadaVerses of the teachingComplete translation
- UdānaInspired utterancesComplete translation
- ItivuttakaSo it was saidComplete translation
- Sutta NipātaA collection of discoursesComplete translation
- VimānavatthuStories of heavenly mansionsComplete translation at Sutta Friends ↗
Edition notes
85 stories. Read at the publisher; the complete collection is not reproduced here.
- PetavatthuStories of ghostsComplete translation at Sutta Friends ↗
Edition notes
51 stories. Read at the publisher; the complete collection is not reproduced here.
- TheragāthāVerses of the elder monksComplete translation
- TherīgāthāVerses of the elder nunsComplete translation
- JātakaBirth stories547 stories · verses and commentary
Edition notes
This historical English edition combines canonical verses with later commentarial narratives.
- NiddesaExposition of the Sutta NipātaSelected passages ↗
Edition notes
Mahāniddesa and Cūḷaniddesa. A complete English translation has not been verified in the sources checked. Source
- PaṭisambhidāmaggaThe path of discriminationFull source edition
- ApadānaLegends of the Buddhist saintsComplete translation
- BuddhavaṃsaChronicle of BuddhasEnglish print edition ↗
Edition notes
I. B. Horner’s complete translation is available from the Pali Text Society. A reusable complete English edition has not been verified.
- CariyāpiṭakaThe Buddha’s past conductComplete translation
Additional books in the Burmese edition
- NettippakaraṇaThe guideFull source edition · proofreading pending
Edition notes
The publisher marks this electronic edition as not yet proofread.
- PeṭakopadesaThe Piṭaka disclosureFull source edition · proofreading pending
Edition notes
The publisher marks this electronic edition as not yet proofread.
- MilindapañhaThe questions of King MilindaFull source edition
SN and AN retain grouped repetitions from the source edition.
Translations & sourcesEditions & translators
Explore source texts, translations and parallels. The Pāli collection belongs within a wider landscape of early Buddhist textual witnesses.
About this directory
Complete translations, source editions and selections are identified beside each book. Individual reading pages retain their translators, publication credits and reuse terms. The Jātaka edition includes later commentarial stories alongside the canonical verses.
The complete Vimānavatthu and Petavatthu translations are linked at Sutta Friends. Buddhavaṃsa links to its English print edition; Niddesa links to selected passages.
www.accesstoinsight.org · suttafriends.org · suttafriends.org · suttafriends.org · palitextsociety.org · palitextsociety.org · palitextsociety.org · apadanatranslation.org
Connections
Guru Viking8
- Ep378: Entering the Brahma Viharas - Leigh Brasington
Named in the official description.
Source
- Steve James Interviewed on the Clear Mountain Monastery Podcast
Reference checked in captions.
Source
- Ep366: Questioning the Buddha - Leigh Brasington
Reference in the official chapter notes.
Source
- Ep280: I Renounce My Attainments - Delson Armstrong
Reference checked in a machine transcript of the official podcast audio.
Source
- Ep201: Revealing Nirodha Samāpatti - Delson Armstrong, Shinzen Young, Chelsey Fasano, & Dr Laukkonen
Reference checked in captions.
Source
- Ep121: Leaving Monasticism – Thupten Phuntsok
Reference checked in captions.
Source
- Ep108: From Tolkien to Tibet - Erik Jampa Andersson
Reference checked in a machine transcript of the official podcast audio.
Source
- Ep73: Dangerous and Delusional? - Daniel Ingram
Reference checked in captions.
Source
People & teachers17
- Siddhārtha Gautama · the Buddha
Central teacher whose teachings this canonical collection transmits.
Source
- Buddhaghosa
Later commentator who organized a path drawing on the Pāli inheritance.
Source
- James Baraz
Teaches on this text:
- Teachings from the DhammapadaNames this text
- Victor von der Heyde
Teaches on this text:
- Imaginal Practice 1Names this text
- Tempel Smith
Teaches on this text:
- Three kinds of Nibbana in our western Insight traditionsNames this text
- DPP7: Four Stages of AwakeningNames this text
- Kevin Griffin
Teaches on this text:
- The Five Aggregates of ClingingNames this text
- Ajahn Amaro
Teaches on this text:
- Q&ANames this text
- Kim Allen
Teaches on this text:
- Chariot Halfday - Part 2 - Not selfNames this text
- Chariot Halfday - Part 1 - Spontaneous speechNames this text
1 more connected teachings
- Overview of the Pali CanonNames this text
- Yuka Nakamura
Teaches on this text:
- Satipatthāna - The Discourse of Establishing MindfulnessNames this text
- Mindfulness - A Precious JewelNames this text
- Shaila Catherine
Teaches on this text:
- Mahakaccana: Clarifying the Most Cryptic TeachingsNames this text
- Thanissaro Bhikkhu
Teaches on this text:
- Ananda:The Man with the QuestionsNames this text
- Ajahn Karunadhammo
Teaches on this text:
- Gloria Taraniya Ambrosia
Teaches on this text:
- Refuge in DhammaNames this text
- The Asavas: Avoiding and RemovingNames this text
3 more connected teachings
- The Asavas: Enduring (brief reflection and reading)Names this text
- The Asavas: Restraining and UsingNames this text
- The Asavas: Seeing and DevelopingNames this text
- Stephen Batchelor
Teaches on this text:
- Clearly Visible but Hard to SeeNames this text
- The Phenomenology of Meditation (Part Two)Names this text
14 more connected teachings
- 02 The Four Noble TasksNames this text
- SelfNames this text
- Namarupa and ConsciousnessNames this text
- How to Hold a SnakeNames this text
- Deconstructing BuddhismNames this text
- The Great PassingNames this text
- Self and SocietyNames this text
- The Tyrant and the MonkNames this text
- The Four TruthsNames this text
- The Middle WayNames this text
- The AwakeningNames this text
- Siddhattha GotamaNames this text
- #7 Self & SocietyNames this text
- #6 God & BuddhanatureNames this text
- Andrea Fella
Teaches on this text:
- Crossing the FloodNames this text
- Pamela Weiss
Teaches on this text:
- The Human Journey: The Great AwakeningNames this text
- Lama Surya Das
Teaches on this text:
- Ten ParamisNames this text
Traditions & history4
- Pāli texts written down
The Pāli collection’s transition from oral to written transmission.
Source
- Theravāda
Study context: this text is included in the Atlas guide to Theravāda.
- Early schools & ordination
Study context: this text is included in the Atlas guide to Early schools & ordination.
- Sarvāstivāda
Study context: this text is included in the Atlas guide to Sarvāstivāda.
Books2
- In the Buddha’s Words
A thematic selection of Pāli discourses with introductions.
Source
- The Buddhist Literature of Ancient Gandhāra
Comparative reading: early manuscripts from another Buddhist transmission.
Source
Make yourself comfortable
About this textContext & reading guide
A canon is a community’s authoritative textual collection. The Pāli canon is the canonical foundation of Theravāda. It is a large library rather than a single book.
Its three baskets are Vinaya (monastic discipline and its narrative setting), Sutta (discourses and other teaching literature), and Abhidhamma (systematic analysis).
The Sutta Piṭaka contains five Nikāyas: long, middle-length, connected, numerical and minor/miscellaneous collections. MN 118 means discourse 118 of the middle-length collection.
A commentary or manual can be deeply influential without being part of the canon. Buddhaghosa’s Visuddhimagga is an example.