Ananda reciting the Suttapitaka at the First Buddhist Council

Ānanda was one of many principal disciples and a devout attendant of the Buddha. Amongst the Buddha's many disciples Ānanda had the most retentive memory and most of the suttas in the Sutta Pitaka are attributed to his remembering of the Buddha's teachings during the First Buddhist Council. For that, he was known as the Guardian of the Dharma. Standing Buddha sculpture, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ... The Sutta Pitaka (suttapiá¹­aka; or Suttanta Pitaka; Sanskrit सूत्र पिटक Sutra Pitaka) is the second of the three divisions of the Tipitaka or Pali Canon, the great Pali collection of Buddhist writings, the scriptures of Theravada Buddhism. ... Ananda reciting the Sutta Pitaka King Ajatasattu sponsored the First Buddhist council. ...

According to the Buddha every Buddha in the past and to come will have two chief disciples and one attendant during his ministry. In the case of Gotama Buddha the pair of disciples were Sariputta and Mahamoggallana and the attendant Ānanda. Standing Buddha sculpture, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ... Śāriputra (Pali: Sariputta; Chinese: 舍利弗) was the one of the disciples of the Buddha, an arhat who was renowned for his wisdom. ... This article incorporates text from the Dictionary of Pali Proper Names by G. P. Malalasekera, a publication now in the public domain. ...

The word 'Ānanda' means 'bliss' in Pali, Sanskrit as well as other Indian languages. It is a popular Buddhist and Hindu name. Pali may refer to: Pāli, a Middle Indo-Aryan language Pali, Rajasthan, a town and district in Rajasthan, western India Pali, a Hawaiian word, meaning cliffs Nuuanu Pali, a region on the Hawaiian island of Oahu Ballaleshwar Pali, the Ganapati temple of pali and place in Maharastra This is... The Sanskrit language ( , for short ) is a classical language of India, a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Hinduism (known as in modern Indian languages) is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. ...

Ānanda was the first cousin of the Buddha by their fathers, and was devoted to him. In the twentieth year of the Buddha's ministry, he became the Buddha's personal attendant, accompanying him on most of his wanderings and taking the part of interlocutor in many of the recorded dialogues. He is the subject of a special panegyric delivered by the Buddha just before the Budhha's Paranibbaana (the Mahaparinibbana Sutta (Digha Nikaya 16)); it is a panegyric for a man who is kindly, unselfish, popular, and thoughtful toward others. “Nephew” redirects here. ... Standing Buddha sculpture, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet. ... An interlocutor (pronounced in-ter-lock-you-ter) describes someone who informally explains the views of a government and also can relay messages back to a government. ... The term dialogue (or dialog) expresses basically reciprocal conversation between two or more persons. ... A Panegyric is a formal public speech delivered in high praise of a person or thing, a generally high studied and undiscriminating eulogy. ... For the Mahāparinirvāṇa SÅ«tra, a text of East Asian Mahayana Buddhism, see Nirvana Sutra. ... The Digha Nikaya (Collection of Long Discourses) is the first part of the Sutta Pitaka- one of the three baskets that compose the Pali Tipitaka. ...

In view of the abundance of praise, recognition and privileges Ānanda received, mutterings of envy and resentment might have been expected, but this was not the case at all. Ānanda had so occuppied subordinating his entire life to the Dhamma that fame had no influence over him. He knew that all that was good in him was due to the influence of the Teaching, and so avoided pride. One who is never proud has no enemies and is not the subject of envy. If someone turns inward completely and keeps away from any social contact, as Ānanda's brother Anuruddha did, then it is also easy to be without enemies. But Ānanda had daily contact with a large number of people with regard to diverse matters, yet he had no enemies or rivals, and his relationships with others were without conflict or tension. Look up Envy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Resentment is an emotion, from ressentiment, a French word, meaning malice, anger, being rancorous. The English word has the sense of feeling bitter. ... The word dharma (Sanskrit; धर्म in the Devanagari script) or dhamma (Pali) is used in most or all philosophies and religions of Indian origin, Dharmic faiths, namely Hinduism (Sanatana Dharma), Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. ... “Megastar” redirects here. ...

In the long list of the disciples given in the Anguttara (i. xiv.) where each of them is declared to be the chief in some quality, Ānanda is mentioned five times (more often than any other). He was named chief in conduct, in service to others, and in power of memory. The Buddha sometimes asked him to substitute for him as teacher and then later stated that he himself would not have presented the teachings in any other way. Look up conduct in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Conduct can be: A noun meaning behaviour (as in good conduct) A verb meaning to direct (usually an orchestra; see Category:Conductors) Conduction. ... Wikibooks has more about this subject: Marketing In economics and marketing, a service is the non-material equivalent of a good. ... In psychology, memory is an organisms ability to store, retain, and subsequently recall information. ...

The First Council

Because he attended the Buddha personally and often traveled with him, Ānanda overheard and memorized many of the discourses the Buddha delivered to various audiences. Therefore, he is often called the disciple of the Buddha who "heard much". At the First Buddhist Council, convened shortly after the Buddha died, Ananda was called upon to recite many of the discourses that later became the Sutta Pitaka of the Pāli Canon. // 1st Buddhist council (5th century BC) The first Buddhist council was held soon after the death of the Buddha under the patronage of king Ajatasatru, and presided by a monk named Mahakasyapa, at Rajagaha (todays Rajgir). ... The Sutta Pitaka (suttapiá¹­aka; or Suttanta Pitaka; Sanskrit सूत्र पिटक Sutra Pitaka) is the second of the three divisions of the Tipitaka or Pali Canon, the great Pali collection of Buddhist writings, the scriptures of Theravada Buddhism. ... Standard edition of the Thai Pali Canon The Pali Canon is one the earliest existing scripture collections of the Buddhist tradition. ...

Despite his long association with and close proximity to the Buddha, Ananda was only a stream-winner prior to the Buddha’s death. During the period he was the Buddha's attendant, though he was still a "learner" and "one in the higher training", no thoughts of lust or hate arose in him; this is seen as implying that his close connection with the Buddha and his devotion to him gave no room for these. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Sotapatti. ...

Prior to the First Buddhist Council, it was proposed that Ananda not be permitted to attend on the grounds that he was not yet an arahant. According to legend, this prompted Ananda to focus his efforts on the attainment of nibbana and he was able to reach the specified level of attainment before the calling of the conclave. A garden featuring depictions of various arhats (Hsi Lai Temple, California) An arhat (Sanskrit, also arahat or arahant (Pali); Chinese: 阿羅漢, āluóhàn, luóhàn, lohan; Tibetan: dgra-bcom-pa; Jp. ... The following article is about the term Nirvana in the context of Buddhism. ...

In contrast to most of the figures depicted in the Pāli Canon, Ananda is presented as an imperfect, if sympathetic, figure. He mourns the deaths of both Sariputta, with whom he enjoyed a close friendship, and the Buddha. A verse of the Theragatha [1] reveals his loneliness and isolation following the parinirvana of the Buddha. Standard edition of the Thai Pali Canon The Pali Canon is one the earliest existing scripture collections of the Buddhist tradition. ... Śāriputra (Pali: Sariputta; Chinese: 舍利弗) was the one of the disciples of the Buddha, an arhat who was renowned for his wisdom. ... Media:Example. ... The Theragatha, often translated as Verses of the Elder Monks (Pāli: thera elder (masculine) + gatha verse), is a collection of short poems supposedly recited by early members of the Buddhist sangha. ... In Buddhism, parinirvana (Sanskrit -- Pali: Parinibbana -- Chinese: 般涅槃; Pinyin: bō niè pán) is the final nirvana, traditionally understood to be within reach only upon the death of someone who attained complete enlightenment. ...

In the Zen tradition, Ananda is considered to be the second Indian patriarch. He is often depicted with the Buddha alongside Mahakashyapa, the first Indian patriarch. Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism notable for its emphasis on practice and experiential wisdom—particularly as realized in the form of meditation known as zazen—in the attainment of awakening. ... Mahākāśyapa (摩訶迦葉) or Kāśyapa was a brahman of Magadha, who became one of the principal disciples of Śākyamuni Buddha and who convened and directed the first council. ...

External links

• Entry on Ananda in the Buddhist Dictionary of Pali Proper Names
• Biographical account of Ananda
• Ananda with the Buddha and Subhuti
• Digital Dictionary of Buddhism (log in with userID "guest")
• Ananda: Guardian of the Dhamma by Hellmuth Hecker

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
• Ananda: Guardian of the Dhamma by Hellmuth Hecker