The pali word “Theravada” is very similar to the word “sthaviravada” in Sanskrit bhuddhism which has been spread in countries like sri lanka Thailand, laos, Cambodia and buruma is identified as “Theravada” the word “Theravada “ came into existence after the second buddhist council. The buddha’s disciples who tried to protect and nourish the buddha’s own words as it is,are called theravadians by them selves
The word “Theravada” cannot be found in the entire pali cannon, but in some discourses, it has been used to indicate a different meaning than the above mentioned meaning so, it is good to examine in what context and for what purpose this word was used
The word theravqda is found in three discourses. First it is found in Ariyapariyesana sutta of MN to indicate some incident and the Mahasacchaka sutta in MN showes a similar statement as above. These discourses inform that how the prince Siddhartha met two teachers called Alarakalama and Uddakaramaputta and understood their doctrines very easily. Commentaries interpret this “thera” as Stable So here the meaning could be identified as stable knowledge. Ven. Hegoda khemananda says here Theravada is one of the section of the Brahmanic education which means what is learnt is stored in the mind stably, what is learnt could be memorized without any hesitation in accordance with the commentarial interpretation. So in the discourses above mentioned, indicats the stable knowlage that the peince Siddhartha attained from alarakalama Uddakaramaputta. Sangarava sutta of MN indicates this similar word on Theravada in these three discourses has nothing to do with the present sense of Theravada. So the present sense of the term Theravada may not be known during the time of the Buddha
In Buddhist order, the words “thera” and “their” could be found in a normal sense.
But in vinaya pitaka the word “sthavira” is used in a specific sense to introduce a
Disciple who comoleted 10 years after his higer ordination. But the word sthavira was not used in sense to introduce a specific group of monks in this time.
According to the commentary of Vinaya pitaka, the commentaries scrutinized four sources,
1. Sutta- (Discourses)
2. Suttanuloma- (what confirms to the discourses)
3. Achiriyavada- (theories of the elders)
4. Attanomati- (personal views of the elders)
(MN-Magghima Nikaya)
thera Buddhagosa equates Attanomati with Theravada. He says that the out of four sources of commentaries, the weakest part is Attanomati. According to his opinion, attanomati is nothing but the Theravada.
Our attention sould bepaid to identify during what period this word came into existence in the present sense. Theravada is the tradition that the elders who participated in the first council maintained. The chronicles are very convinced and say even the first council was conducted by the elders (Theras). Mahavansa explains this well. To our way of understanding, the present sense of the word Theravada has been emerged as the result of the second Buddhist council. During the second council which was held after one hundred years of the Buddha’s demise, the unity of the sanga order collapsed. According to the cullavagga pali of the Vinaya pitaka, during the cecond Buddhist council , the elders condemned the vajji monks for fracticing ten points of the unlawful vinaya rules. There, the ten thousand monks who didn’t their decision,broke away from the traditional Bhikkhu order and set up a new sanga group called “Mahasangika” to distinguish the elders frome this group, the remained order was named as “Theravada” in the sense of the elders (Theras) who came frome the time of the Buddha and protect the purity of the Buddha’s own word it is
Some scholars are on the opinion that Theravadians are so called because they have the characteristics like unchanging, unshakable in position, stable, permanent, than Mahasanghikas. These Theravadians have been called as “Vibajjavadins” in post canonical text commentaries and sub-commentaries.
The word “Theravada” cannot be found in the entire pali cannon, but in some discourses, it has been used to indicate a different meaning than the above mentioned meaning so, it is good to examine in what context and for what purpose this word was used
The word theravqda is found in three discourses. First it is found in Ariyapariyesana sutta of MN to indicate some incident and the Mahasacchaka sutta in MN showes a similar statement as above. These discourses inform that how the prince Siddhartha met two teachers called Alarakalama and Uddakaramaputta and understood their doctrines very easily. Commentaries interpret this “thera” as Stable So here the meaning could be identified as stable knowledge. Ven. Hegoda khemananda says here Theravada is one of the section of the Brahmanic education which means what is learnt is stored in the mind stably, what is learnt could be memorized without any hesitation in accordance with the commentarial interpretation. So in the discourses above mentioned, indicats the stable knowlage that the peince Siddhartha attained from alarakalama Uddakaramaputta. Sangarava sutta of MN indicates this similar word on Theravada in these three discourses has nothing to do with the present sense of Theravada. So the present sense of the term Theravada may not be known during the time of the Buddha
In Buddhist order, the words “thera” and “their” could be found in a normal sense.
But in vinaya pitaka the word “sthavira” is used in a specific sense to introduce a
Disciple who comoleted 10 years after his higer ordination. But the word sthavira was not used in sense to introduce a specific group of monks in this time.
According to the commentary of Vinaya pitaka, the commentaries scrutinized four sources,
1. Sutta- (Discourses)
2. Suttanuloma- (what confirms to the discourses)
3. Achiriyavada- (theories of the elders)
4. Attanomati- (personal views of the elders)
(MN-Magghima Nikaya)
thera Buddhagosa equates Attanomati with Theravada. He says that the out of four sources of commentaries, the weakest part is Attanomati. According to his opinion, attanomati is nothing but the Theravada.
Our attention sould bepaid to identify during what period this word came into existence in the present sense. Theravada is the tradition that the elders who participated in the first council maintained. The chronicles are very convinced and say even the first council was conducted by the elders (Theras). Mahavansa explains this well. To our way of understanding, the present sense of the word Theravada has been emerged as the result of the second Buddhist council. During the second council which was held after one hundred years of the Buddha’s demise, the unity of the sanga order collapsed. According to the cullavagga pali of the Vinaya pitaka, during the cecond Buddhist council , the elders condemned the vajji monks for fracticing ten points of the unlawful vinaya rules. There, the ten thousand monks who didn’t their decision,broke away from the traditional Bhikkhu order and set up a new sanga group called “Mahasangika” to distinguish the elders frome this group, the remained order was named as “Theravada” in the sense of the elders (Theras) who came frome the time of the Buddha and protect the purity of the Buddha’s own word it is
Some scholars are on the opinion that Theravadians are so called because they have the characteristics like unchanging, unshakable in position, stable, permanent, than Mahasanghikas. These Theravadians have been called as “Vibajjavadins” in post canonical text commentaries and sub-commentaries.
