Y. Karunadasa - 27 Aug

Strangely enough, the terms theravda and vibhajjavda occur in the Pli suttas, which were compiled long before there emerged a school of Buddhist thought that came to be known by these two terms. We find the term theravda in the Pli suttas that relate the bodhisattas meeting with lra the Klma and Uddaka the son of Rma. After having learned the teaching imparted by them, the bodhisatta declared his mastery of their teaching by using the two words avda and theravda. In the same way the other word avda, which occurs together with theravda, means profession of knowledge (avdan ti jnm ti vda). Here both terms are used to emphasize the bodhisattas thorough grasp of what was taught by lra the Klma and Uddaka, the son of Rma.

On the other hand, the term vibhajjavda occurs in a more technical sense to mean a qualified answer, an analytical explanation, or a statement of conditional assertion. It is often contrasted with ekasavda, which means an unqualified answer or a categorical statement either in the affirmative or in the negative. But as another name for Theravda, what does Vibhajjavda really mean? Under what historical circumstances, due to what doctrinal reasons, if any, and in which period in the history of Buddhist thought did these two terms become mutually convertible?

Now the identification of Theravda with Vibhajjavda can be traced to the traditional accounts of the Third Buddhist Council as presented in the Mahvasa and the two commentaries to the Vinaya and the Kathvatthu, and not to its earlier version as recorded in the Dpavasa. The accounts given in the three works mentioned first are more or less the same in content and are couched in more or less the same language. They all begin with a continuous narration of a series of episodes culminating in the main event. These involve a detailed account of the life of the Venerable Moggaliputta Tissa Thera, who presided at the Council; the conversion of King Asoka to Buddhism and his many acts of beneficence and lavish gifts to the Sagha; the entry into the Dispensation (ssana) of heretics who masqueraded as Buddhist monks, declaring their own doctrines as the true word of the Buddha; the postponement of the Uposatha ceremony for a period of six years because of the heretics within the Sagha; and the kings abortive attempt at reconciliation through his minister Mahdeva, as well as the remorse felt by the king over this act, his meeting with the Venerable Moggaliputta Tissa Thera, who declares that the king has no moral responsibility over this act, and the Theras instruction to the king on the teaching of the Buddha for seven consecutive days at the Royal Park.