Pitakas

Pitakas are the main canonical collections of Buddhist scriptures, a term used across traditions to denote the core scriptures grouped into baskets. The most well-known formulation is the Theravada’s Tipiṭaka, literally “Three Baskets.”

The three baskets are Vinaya Pitaka (monastic rules and code of conduct), Sutta Pitaka (discourses of the Buddha and his early disciples), and Abhidhamma Pitaka (scholastic analysis of phenomena and mental states). The Vinaya outlines monastic discipline, including procedures for ordination and communal governance. The Sutta Pitaka preserves a wide range of sermons and dialogues, and in Theravada it is commonly divided into five collections known as the nikāyas: Digha Nikāya, Majjhima Nikāya, Samyutta Nikāya, Anguttāra Nikāya, and Khuddaka Nikāya, the latter containing diverse works such as the Dhammapada, Udana, and Jataka tales. The Abhidhamma Pitaka offers detailed, systematic analyses of dhammas (phenomena) and mental factors through several treatises.

In other Buddhist traditions, the concept of a tripartite canon persists in various forms. The Chinese Buddhist canon includes the Agamas and numerous sūtras, while the Tibetan tradition preserves the Kangyur and Tengyur, organized in a similar tripartite fashion. The term Tripiṭaka is often used to describe the broader canon, with the Taishō Tripiṭaka serving as a major standard edition for Chinese texts.

The Pitakas provide the doctrinal foundation, monastic discipline, and scholarly framework that guide practice and interpretation. They are studied by both monastics and lay Buddhists and remain central across East and South Asian Buddhist communities.