The Visuddhimagga / The Path of Purification
Buddhaghosa - Translated by Bhikkhu Ñanamoli

The Visuddhimagga or The Path of Purification, is a Theravada Buddhist commentary written by Buddhaghosa approximately in 430 CE in Sri Lanka. It is considered the most important Theravada text outside of the Tipitaka canon of scriptures. The Visuddhimagga is a systematic examination and condensation of Buddhist doctrine and meditation technique. The various teachings of the Buddha found throughout the Pali canon are organized in a clear, comprehensive path leading to the final goal of nibbana, the state of complete purification. Originally composed in the fifth century, this new translation provides English speakers insights into this foundational text. In the course of this treatise full and detailed instructions are given on 40 subjects of meditation aimed at concentration, an elaborate account of Buddhist Abhidhamma philosophy, and explicit descriptions of the stages of insight culminating in final liberation.

The Path of Freedom / Vimuttimagga
Arahant Upatissa

The Vimuttimagga - Probably written in Pali in Sri Lanka during the first century AD, the Vimuttimagga survived only in Chinese translation, from which the present rendering has been made. Ascribed to the Arahant Upatissa, the work is a meditation manual similar to the Visuddhimagga, but less analytical and more practical in its treatment of meditation. The work is compiled in accordance with classical Buddhist division of the path into the three stages of virtue, concentration, and wisdom, culminating in the goal of liberation. It is widely believed that the Vimuttimagga may have been the model used by Buddhaghosha to compose his magnum opus, the Visuddhimagga (Path of Purification), several centuries later. The older work is marked by a leaner style and a more lively sense of urgency stemming from its primarily practical orientation.

Mindfulness of Breathing
...Bhikkhu Nanamoli...

This is a useful anthology of important and pragmatic source material from the Pali Canon and Commentaries on the technique of Anapana, or breath-awareness meditation. It includes the Discourse on Respiration-Mindfulness from the Majjhima Nikaya, commentary from the Vishuddhimagga (Path of Purification), and analyses of other passages and suttas.

The Buddha and His Teachings
...Narada Mahathera...

This is one of the clearest and most detailed introductions to the fundamental teachings of Buddhism available in English. In simple and lucid language the author explains the doctrines and concepts which form the common bedrock of Buddhism as they have been preserved by the Theravada school. The first part of the work is devoted to the life of the Buddha. The remainder of the book explains in detail the Buddha's teachings, the final chapter showing the relevance of Buddhism to the problems of modern life.

Life of the Buddha
...Narada Mahathera...

As a royal child Prince Siddhattha no doubt received a good education, although the books give no details about his schooling. Being a scion of the warrior race, he must have been specially trained in the art of warfare. At the early age of sixteen, he married his beautiful cousin Princess Yasoodharaa,[9] who was of equal years. After his happy marriage, he led a luxurious life, blissfully unaware of the vicissitudes of life, outside the palace gates.

A Introductory Course in Early Buddhism
...Bro. Chan Khoon San...

This new book entitled “Buddhism Course” is a carefully researched and upgraded version. It contains 17 chapters dealing with most of the relevant topics on Buddhism, such as: Life of the Buddha, Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Noble Path, Dependent Origin, Law of Kamma, Death and Rebirth, Five Destinations, World Cycles when Buddhas Appear, Ten Bases of Meritorious Action, Buddhist Vipassana Meditation, Recollection of the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha and the Three Baskets (Tipitaka) in Buddhism.

The Five Precepts
... Dr. Sunthorn Plamintr...

There are three fundamental modes of training in Buddhist practice: morality, mental culture, and wisdom. The English word morality is used to translate the Pali term sila, although the Buddhist term contains its own particular connotations. The word sila denotes a state of normalcy, a condition which is basically unqualified and unadulterated. When one practices sila, one returns to one's own basic goodness, the original state of normalcy, unperturbed and unmodified.

Chanting in Buddhism
... Bhikkhu Dhammasami...

Chanting is very common to any religion. Buddhism is no exception in this regard. However, the aim and purpose of chanting is different from one religion to another. Buddhism is unique in that it does not consider chanting to be prayer.

The Buddhist Holidays
...BuddhaNet.net...

There are many special or holy days held throughout the year by the Buddhist community. Many of these days celebrate the birthdays of Bodhisattvas in the Mahayana tradition or other significant dates in the Buddhist calendar. The most significant celebration happens every May on the night of the full moon, when Buddhist all over the world celebrate the birth, enlightenment and death of the Buddha over 2,500 years ago. It has become to be known as Buddha Day.

Early Buddhist Ceremonies
...Bhaddanta Silanandabhivamsa...

Buddhism is unique among religions in that it knows no ceremonies comparable to those in other religions. Ceremonies and rituals, elaborate and tiresome in performance, have no room in Buddhism. We do not find any instance in the Pali Canon where the Buddha lays down the rules and methods for the performance of ceremonies for the laity. It is left to the individual whether or not to perform them. He has only one thing which he must take into consideration, that is his performing of ceremonies does not clash with the teachings of the Buddha.

Buddhism and Vegetarianism
...Compiled by Binh Anson...

There are differences of opinion between Buddhists on this issue so we will attempt to present the arguments of those who believe that vegetarianism is necessary for Buddhists and those who do not.

Do Buddhists believe in God?
...Kusala Bhikshu...

Why is it... The Buddha never talked about the One God of the desert, the Judeo-Christian God? Does this mean that all Buddhists are atheists and don’t believe in God? Did the Buddha believe in God?

Do Buddhists go to Heaven?
...Kusala Bhikshu...

But, do Buddhists even go to Christian heaven or hell in the first place? Or do Buddhists have their own afterlife, complete with heaven and hell?

The Problem With Sex in Buddhism
...Kusala Bhikshu...

It seems these days in Los Angeles, it's OK to do or be anything you want sexually... And if you're lucky enough to find your true sexual identity, you will be happy and fulfilled the rest of your life.

A Buddhist Approach to Health Care
...Kusala Bhikshu...

Over the years many commentaries have been written to add clarity and understanding to his teachings. Buddhist monks and nuns have taught and still teach his Dharma (Truth). New schools of Buddhism based on culture and meaning arose in every part of the world spreading his message, “Suffering is Optional.”

The Buddhist Concept of Impermanence
...hinduwebsite.com...

Early Buddhism dealt with the problem of impermanence in a very rationale manner. This concept is known as anicca in Buddhism, according to which, impermanence is an undeniable and inescapable fact of human existence from which nothing that belongs to this earth is ever free.

...Buddhist Suttas and Sutras...

A Map of the Pali Canon

A Map Showing the Major Divisions of the Tipitaka.

The Heart Sutra

Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, when practicing deeply the Perfect Wisdom clearly saw that all five Skandhas are empty and passed beyond all suffering... Sariputra, form does not differ from emptiness: Emptiness does not differ from form. Form then is emptiness. Emptiness then is form. Sensation, perception, volition, and consciousness, are also like this.

The Metta Sutta

Metta is the highest need of the world today, indeed it is more needed than ever before. Because in this new world, there are sufficient materials, money and brilliant wise men and scientists. In spite of these, there is no peace and happiness. It shows that something is lacking, That is Metta.

The Kalama Sutta

I heard thus. Once the Blessed One, while wandering in the Kosala country with a large community of bhikkhus, entered a town of the Kalama people called Kesaputta. The Kalamas who were inhabitants of Kesaputta: "Reverend Gotama, the monk, the son of the Sakyans, has, while wandering in the Kosala country, entered Kesaputta.

The Ullambana Sutra

Thus, using his way eye, he regarded the world and saw that his deceased mother had been born among the hungry ghosts, having neither food nor drink, she was but skin and bones. Mahaudgalayana felt deep pity and sadness, filled a bowl with food and went to provide for his mother. She got the bowl, screened it with her left hand, and with her right hand made a fist of food. But, before it entered her mouth, it turned into burning coals which could not be eaten.

The Book of Protection

The Book of Protection which is an anthology of selected discourses of the Buddha compiled by the teachers of old, was originally meant as a handbook for the newly ordained novice. The idea was that those novices who are not capable of studying large portions of the "Discourse Collection" (sutta pitaka) should at least be conversant with the Book of Protection. Even today it is so.

Discourses of the Ancient Nuns

The growing interest in women's spirituality has led to a renewed focus upon the Therigatha, the Verses of the Elder Nuns, as the oldest existing testament to the feminine experience of Buddhism. Despite this recent attention to the Therigatha, however, it seems that all but a few scholarly commentators have overlooked a short chapter in the Samyutta Nikaya that serves as an important supplement to the larger work.

The Turning of the Wheel Sutta

Thus have I heard. On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Baranasi in the Deer Park at Isipatana. There the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus of the group of five thus:

The Eightfold Path: Pali & English

A Factorial Analysis of the Noble Eightfold Path

The Shorter Exposition of Kamma

You want: long life, health, beauty, power, riches, high birth, wisdom? Or even some of these things? They do not appear by chance. It is not someone's luck that they are healthy, or another's lack of it that he is stupid. Though it may not be clear to us now, all such inequalities among human beings (and all sorts of beings) come about because of the kamma they have made individually.

The Smokey the Bear Sutra

Once in the Jurassic about 150 million years ago, the Great Sun Buddha in this corner of the Infinite Void gave a discourse to all the assembled elements and energies: to the standing beings, the walking beings, the flying beings, and the sitting beings--even the grasses, to the number of thirteen billion, each one born from a seed, assembled there: a Discourse concerning Enlightenment on the planet Earth.

...Buddhist History...

Generally three main schools of Buddhism have been identified. These are Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana. While this threefold classification is useful it does not encompass the totality of schools and approaches that one encounters in Buddhism, both in the historical past as well as today.

The Buddhist Councils
...Ven. Dr. Rewata Dhamma...

King Ajatasattu sponsored the First Council. It was convened in 544 B.C. in the Satiapanni Cave situated outside Rajagaha three months after the Buddha had passed away. A detailed account of this historic meeting can be found in the Cullavagga of the Vinaya Pitaka.

The Edicts of King Asoka
...Ven. S. Dhammika...

Asoka's edicts are mainly concerned with the reforms he instituted and the moral principles he recommended in his attempt to create a just and humane society.

How Buddhism Was Reincarnated
...Leslie Schivener...

By rights, Tibetan Buddhism should have faded like the dying light in a thousand butter lamps before a thousand knowing Buddhas. But something extraordinary happened after the Dalai Lama rode a mountain pony into exile in 1959, disguised as a soldier, his glasses in his pocket: Tibetan Buddhism found a new incarnation.

Learn Pali
The Language of Early Buddhism
...Five e-Books in PDF...

From the introduction: This book is chiefly intended for those who study the Buddhist teachings through the medium of the English language, but wish to familiarize themselves with some of the original Pali terms of doctrinal import. They are in the same position as a student of philosophy or science who has to know the terminology of his field, which for common parlance is mostly not less 'unfamiliar' than are the words of the Pali language found in the Dictionary.

The Eightfold Path
...Bhikku Bodhi...

One of the best explanations of the Eightfold path in print today... The present book aims at contributing towards a proper understanding of the Noble Eightfold Path by investigating its eight factors and their components to determine exactly what they involve. Bhikkhu Bodhi is concise, using as the framework for his exposition the Buddha's own words in explanation of the path factors, as found in the Sutta Pitaka of the Pali Canon.

Eightfold Path for the Lay Person
...Jack Kornfield...

"A series of ten talks, transcribed from audio tape, on the practice of the Eightfold Path, particularly geared to householders. There is a talk on each of the eight path factors, plus two concerning the five mental hindrances."

A Buddhist Approach to Dreams
...Rev. Heng Sure...

We know how the Buddha and certain Indian Buddhists in the past dealt with their dreams because detailed writings still exist in the scriptures and commentaries. This article will present a section from a particular Buddhist scripture, The Sutra on the Junti Bodhisattva Dharani, Spoken by the Mother of Seven Kotis of Buddhas (T.1077), which lists specific dream images.

Bowing as Contemplation
...Rev. Heng Sure...

Contemplating the nature of mind is a hallmark Buddhist occupation. The Buddha called the mind “a monkey," and "a wild horse." The monkey mind calculates and schemes, chases thoughts of self and others, clings to rights and wrongs, and quarrels over me and mine.

Death, Dying, and Health in Buddhism
...Articles, Books, and eBooks...

Good health is simply the slowest way a human being can die.

Good and Evil in Buddhism
...Bhikkhu P.A. Payutto...

Because kamma is directly concerned with good and evil, any discussion of kamma must also include a discussion of good and evil. Standards for defining good and evil are, however, not without their problems. What is "good," and how is it so? What is it that we call "evil," and how is that so?

The Five Spiritual Powers
...Sarah Doering...

The assumption underlying all his teaching is that we don’t have to be the way we are—that all the sorrow and pain and grief and fear that we all know is not necessary. It can be eliminated.

The Word of the Buddha
...Ven. Nyanatiloka...

The Word of the Buddha, published originally in German, was the first strictly systematic exposition of all the main tenets of the Buddha's Teachings presented in the Master's own words as found in the Sutta-Pitaka of the Buddhist Pali Canon.

A Sketch of the Buddha's life
...from The Pali Cannon...

This modest selection of excerpts from the Pali Canon provides a rough sketch of the life of the Buddha. I hope you will find enough in this rather sparse selection to gain at least an inkling both of the range of the Buddha's teachings and of the sweeping trajectory of his extraordinary life.

Non-Violence in Early Buddhism
...from The Pali Cannon...

In this short autobiographical passage, the Buddha describes his sense of dismay at the violence in the world, together with his important discovery: that the only escape from violence is to remove the causes of violence from one's own heart.

Metta- Universal Love in Buddhism
...Acharya Buddharakkhita...

Metta makes one a pure font of well-being and safety for others. Just as a mother gives her own life to protect her child, so metta only gives and never wants anything in return.

Gemstones of the Good Dhamma
...Ven. S. Dammika...

The discourses of the Buddha and his direct disciples have been collected together into a huge body of literature known as the Sutta Pitaka. Made up of both prose and verse, much of this literature is little known to the average Buddhist because of its great size and also because in both style and content it is highly philosophical.

The Discourse on Right View
...Bhikkhu Ñanamoli...

The Sammaditthi Sutta, the Discourse on Right View, is the ninth sutta of the Majjhima Nikaya, the Collection of Middle Length Discourses. Its expositor is the Venerable Sariputta Thera, the Buddha's chief disciple and the foremost of the Master's bhikkhu disciples in the exercise of the faculty of wisdom

The Five Hindrances and their Conquest
...Nyanaponika Thera...

Unshakable deliverance of the mind is the highest goal in the Buddha's doctrine. Here, deliverance means: the freeing of the mind from all limitations, fetters, and bonds that tie it to the Wheel of Suffering, to the Circle of Rebirth.

Meditation Alters Brain Structure
...Sharon Begley...

But although the Buddhists and scientists who met for five days last month in the Dalai Lama's home in Dharamsala, India, had different views on the little matters of reincarnation and the relationship of mind to brain, they set them aside in the interest of a shared goal. They had come together in the shadows of the Himalayas to discuss one of the hottest topics in brain science: neuroplasticity.

The Jhanas in Theravada Buddhism
...Ven. H. Gunaratana...

The Buddha says that just as in the great ocean there is but one taste, the taste of salt, so in his doctrine and discipline there is but one taste, the taste of freedom. The taste of freedom that pervades the Buddha's teaching is the taste of spiritual freedom, which from the Buddhist perspective means freedom from suffering.

A Study Guide: The Four Noble Truths
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

The four noble truths are the most basic expression of the Buddha's teaching. As Ven. Sariputta once said, they encompass the entire teaching, just as the footprint of an elephant can encompass the footprints of all other footed beings on earth.

A Study Guide: The Ten Perfections
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

Thus, historically, there have been two major ways of following the path to full Buddhahood: following guidelines gleaned from the early canons, and following the traditions set in motion by the experiences of visionaries from the beginning of the common era. The materials in this study guide take the first course.

Jhanas, Concentration, and Wisdom
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

The role of jhana as a condition for transcendent discernment is one of the most controversial issues in the Theravada tradition. Three basic positions have been advanced in modern writings.

Going for Refuge
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

The act of going for refuge marks the point where one commits oneself to taking the Dhamma, or the Buddha's teaching, as the primary guide to the conduct of one's life. To understand why this commitment is called a "refuge", it is helpful to look at the history of the custom.

No-Self or Not-Self?
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

One of the first stumbling blocks that Westerners often encounter when they learn about Buddhism is the teaching on anatta, often translated as no-self. This teaching is a stumbling block for two reasons.

Giving Dignity to Life
...Bhikkhu Bodhi...

To ask what it means to live with dignity may sound strange in an age like our own, when our frantic struggle to make ends meet hardly allows us the leisure to ponder such weighty matters.

The Not-Self Strategy
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

Books on Buddhism often state that the Buddha's most basic metaphysical tenet is that there is no soul or self. However, a survey of the discourses in the Pali Canon -- the earliest extant record of the Buddha's teachings -- suggests that the Buddha taught the anatta or not-self doctrine, not as a metaphysical assertion, but as a strategy for gaining release from suffering

Meditating on NO-Self
...Sister Khema...

In Buddhism we use the words "self" and "no-self," and so it is important to understand just what this "no-self," anatta, is all about, even if it is first just an idea, because the essence of the Buddha's teaching hinges on this concept. And in this teaching Buddhism is unique.

Tolerance and Diversity
...Bhikkhu Bodhi...

Today all the major religions of the world must respond to a double challenge. On one side is the challenge of secularism, a trend which has swept across the globe, battering against the most ancient strongholds of the sacred and turning all man's movements towards the Beyond into a forlorn gesture, poignant but devoid of sense.

Association with the Wise
...Bhikkhu Bodhi...

The Maha-Mangala Sutta, the Great Discourse on Blessings, is one of the most popular Buddhist suttas, included in all the standard repertories of Pali devotional chants.

Buddha, Dharma, Sangha
... Ajahn Sumedha...

When people ask 'What do you have to do to become a Buddhist?' we say that we take refuge in Buddha Dhamma Sangha and to take refuge we recite a Pali formula

A Look at the Kalama Sutta
...Bhikkhu Bodhi...

But does the Kalama Sutta really justify such views? Or do we meet in these claims just another set of variations on that egregious old tendency to interpret the Dhamma according to whatever notions are congenial to oneself -- or to those to whom one is preaching?

The Heart of Fundamentalism
...Tenzin Sherab...

Why are people "fundamentalists"? They don't see themselves that way. It's a label we give to others whom we fundamentally disagree with. Fundamentalism is in our hearts--all our hearts. Once we recognize that, we can start to come to terms with it.

The Healing Power of the Precepts
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

The Buddha was like a doctor, treating the spiritual ills of the human race. The path of practice he taught was like a course of
therapy for suffering hearts and minds.

Buddhist Enlightenment vs Nirvana
...Rev. Kusala...

When I first started reading books on Buddhism back in the late 1970’s, I had trouble understanding *Nirvana and Enlightenment. These two words were often used interchangeably by authors writing on the *Theravada and *Mahayana traditions. Sometimes though, the meaning seemed to change depending on who was doing the writing.

Bowing as Contemplation
...Rev. Heng Sure...

Contemplating the nature of mind is a hallmark Buddhist occupation. The Buddha called the mind “a monkey," and "a wild horse." The monkey mind calculates and schemes, chases thoughts of self and others, clings to rights and wrongs, and quarrels over me and mine. The wild horse mind loves to run away into fantasies and false-thoughts, to wander far without warning and to return when it pleases. It is difficult to break the wild horse mind to the saddle of mindfulness and discipline.

An Overview of the Tipitaka Scriptures
...Narada Bhikkhu...

Although the Master has left no written records of His Teachings, His disciples preserved them, by committing to memory and
transmitting them orally from generation to generation.

The Living Message of the Dhammapada
...Bhikkhu Bodhi...

The Dhammapada is a work familiar to every devout Buddhist and to every serious student of Buddhism. This small collection of 423 verses on the Buddha's doctrine is so rich in insights that it might be considered the perfect compendium of the Dhamma in its practical dimensions.

The Five Skandhas and the New Millennium
...Martin Goodson...

It may be because we are coming to the end of one millennium and about to enter another that there is a great interest in news stories that signal the end of the world. In 1998, a new film was released called 'Deep Impact'. It was about a comet colliding with Earth.

An essay on breath meditation
...Bhikkhu Sona...

As the title suggests, there is a significant puzzle to be solved by any meditator or scholar who tries to clearly understand the
qualities of experience which accompany the transition from mere attention to respiration to the full immersion in jhanic consciousness.

Instructions for Entering Jhana
...Leigh Brasington...

These instructions have been taken from a nine-day retreat offered by Leigh Brasington at the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies in April of 2002. The Pali word jhana (Sanskrit dhyana) is sometimes simply translated as “meditation,” but more accurately refers to an “absorption” into a very focused, very stable state of concentration. In the classical tradition there are several stages of jhana, each one more focused than the previous

The Path of Concentration and Mindfulness
...Thanissaro Bhikkhu...

Many people tell us that the Buddha taught two different types of meditation; mindfulness meditation and concentration meditation. Mindfulness meditation, they say, is the direct path, while concentration practice is the scenic route that you take at your own risk because it's very easy to get caught there and you may never get out.

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