Buddhist councils
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Since the death of the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, Buddhist monastic communities, the "sangha", have periodically convened for doctrinal and disciplinary reasons and to revise and correct t
A mural depicting the first Buddhist Council near Rajagaha, Nava. Jetavana temple, Nava Jetavana Park, Shravasti, Uttar Pradesh.
Emperor Asoka and Moggaliputta-Tissa at the Third Buddhist Council, at the Nava Jetavana, Shravasti
The minor pillar edict of Sarnath discusses divisions in the sangha and how the sangha was unified through the aid of the emperor Ashoka. Three 'Minor Pillar Edicts' (at Sarnath, Sāñchī, and Kosambi) discuss the divisions and unification.
Aluvihara Temple in Matale, where the Fourth Theravāda Buddhist Council was held (1896)
Abhidharma
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The Abhidharma refers to a class of Buddhist texts, the first of which date from the 3rd century BCE. Abhidharma texts contain detailed scholastic presentations of Buddhist doctrine, including doctrin
Seated Buddha from the Sarvāstivādin monastery of Tapa Shotor, 2nd century CE
Vasubandhu's Abhidharmakośabhāsya is a major source in Tibetan and East Asian Buddhism.
Statue of Xuanzang, the Chinese monk who brought and translated many Yogācāra Abhidharma texts to China.