Summary: The Khuddaka Nikāya ("Minor Collection" or "Collection of Minor Texts") is the fifth and final division of the Sutta Piṭaka. Despite its name, it is the largest of the five nikāyas in content and includes some of the most widely read Buddhist works, among them the dhammapada, sutta nipata, and the jataka.
Overview
The Khuddaka Nikāya is distinctive among the nikāyas for its mixed character: it collects texts that did not fit the organisational principles of the four great nikāyas (long, middle, connected, numerical), and includes both very early material (e.g. parts of sutta nipata) and later compositions (e.g. the buddhavamsa, cariyapitaka).
The number of books in the Khuddaka Nikāya varies by tradition: the Sri Lankan Theravāda recension canonises 15 books, while the Burmese recension includes 18 (adding the Nettippakaraṇa, Peṭakopadesa, and Milindapañha).
Contents (Sri Lankan canon, 15 books)
- khuddakapatha — Khuddakapāṭha — "Minor Readings" — a brief handbook of core liturgical texts (raw reader)
- dhammapada — Dhammapada — 423 verses of ethical and contemplative sayings
- udana sutta — Udāna — inspired utterances with prose settings (raw reader)
- itivuttaka — Itivuttaka — short discourses introduced by "thus it was said" (raw reader)
- sutta nipata — Sutta Nipāta — a collection of verse suttas (raw reader)
- vimanavatthu — Vimānavatthu — "Stories of Heavenly Mansions" (raw reader)
- petavatthu — Petavatthu — "Stories of Departed Spirits" (raw reader)
- theragatha — Theragāthā — "Verses of the Elder Monks" (raw reader)
- therigatha — Therīgāthā — "Verses of the Elder Nuns" (raw reader)
- jataka — Jātaka — birth stories of the Buddha-to-be (raw reader)
- mahaniddesa — Mahāniddesa — "Greater Exposition" (raw reader)
- culaniddesa — Cūḷaniddesa — "Lesser Exposition" (raw reader)
- patisambhidamagga — Paṭisambhidāmagga — "Path of Discrimination" (raw reader)
- apadana — Apadāna — legendary accounts of arahants (raw reader)
- buddhavamsa — Buddhavaṃsa — "Chronicle of the Buddhas" (raw reader)
- cariyapitaka — Cariyāpiṭaka — "Basket of Conduct" (raw reader)
Contents (Burmese additions)
- nettippakarana — Nettippakaraṇa — "The Guide" (raw reader)
- petakopadesa — Peṭakopadesa — "Instruction on the Basket" (raw reader)
- milindapanha — Milindapañha — "Questions of King Milinda"
(The dhammapada has full vagga text pages. khuddakapatha, udana sutta, itivuttaka, sutta nipata, vimanavatthu, petavatthu, theragatha, therigatha, jataka, apadana, buddhavamsa, cariyapitaka, nettippakarana, petakopadesa, and patisambhidamagga are available as raw-backed overview pages and source readers. Other entries are placeholders to be populated as sources are added.)
Character
Where the Dīgha, Majjhima, Saṃyutta, and Aṅguttara nikāyas are predominantly prose discourses organised by length or theme, the Khuddaka is varied: heavy in verse, narrative, and scholastic analysis. Many of its books had independent recitation traditions before being gathered into a single nikāya.