Chapter 2d - The Third Buddhist Council

The Third Council of one thousand monks was held at Pāṭaliputra under the patronage of Aśoka in the Aśokārāma at about 236 A.N. Dīpavaṃsa and Mahāvaṃsa give a detail description of the Third Council.

Cause:

From the Dīpavaṃsa and other chronicles of Sri Lankā it appears that the great King Aśoka built a number of the Buddhist monasteries and he had implemented large gifts upon them. The activities of the king to spread the Buddha’s noble tenets include great donations to the Saṃgha. The king made the monks’ lives comfortable and encouraged the religious persons to enter into the Sangha. Taking the advantage of the greatness of Aśoka many non-religious people entered into the Sangha. The heretics introduced themselves as Buddhist monks and managed to stay at the royal monastery with honour.

The fake monks did not want to perform the Buddhist rituals. Furthermore they practiced and preached their own doctrines as the teachings of the Buddha. In a certain time majority of the monks became false in the Saṅgha. Dīpavaṃsa mentions that the heretics, the schismatics, Ājivvikas, Paṇḍaraṅgas, Jaṭilas, Nirgaṇthas, Acelekas ascetics continued to stay in the Buddhist Vihāras. After 236 years of the Mahaparinibbāna of the Buddha the number of monks dwelling in the Asokārāma was sixty thousand.

Moggaliputta Tissa who is reputed to have converted the Emperor Asoka to the Buddhist Faith was pained to observe dishonest practices that had entered into the Saṅgha. He convened the Third Council consisting of one thousand monks who were gifted with highest intellectual qualities and were well versed in the true doctrine.

He succeeded in subduing different heretical doctrines, expelled many shameless sectarians from the Saṅgha and restored the Sthaviravāda firmly. Wise Moggaliputta-Tissa then became renowned as the destroyer of the schismatic doctrine. He propounded the Abhidhamma treatise and the Kathāvatthu during the session of the council.

There is an account of the miraculous birth of Moggāliputta Tissaand his conversion to Buddhism. The cardinal points in the life of Tissa are that he was born in a Brahmin family and learnt the three Vedas before he was sixteen years old. He was however won over to the new faith by the Thera Siggava and very soon attained Arahatship with all its attendant supernatural powers. It was under his influence that the Empereror Aśoka made over to the Buddhist Order his son Mahinda and daughter Saṅghamittā. These two crossed to Sri-Lankā and converted the whole island to the Buddhist faith.

When thera Moggāliputta-Tissa saw such extreme distress in the Saṃgha; he went to a isolated place on the Ahogaṅgā Mountain up the Ganges and stayed there for seven yearsleaving his one thousand disciples under the care of Mahinda, son of the King Aśoka. As a result the purity of the Saṃgha suffered much and consequently the Uposatha ceremonies were interrupted in all the monasteries of Jambudvīpa. The schism grew wider and wider and the community of the orthodox monks refused to observe the Uposatha and Pavāraṅā ceremony with the heretics. This was probably the main cause for holding the Third Great Council by Emperor Aśoka.

Emperor Aśoka when saw such painful situation came to deep sorrow and sent one of his ministers to the Aśokārāma giving him the command to remove the differences and let the Uposatha ceremonies be held by the community in his monastery. In spite of the announcement of the king’s order by the minister, the pure Saṅgha refused to hold the ceremony with the rest who misinterpreted the Buddha’s teachings. The primary condition of the Uposatha ceremony was that, the members present must declare their purity in front of all.

The minister in charge was misguided. He started beheading several Theras one by one who disobeyed the instruction of the king. Finally the minister came to the venarable Tissa, the younger brother of the king to slay him also. Seeing the crime Tissa came speedily and sat on the seat nearest to the minister to stop further massacre.

When the minister returned to the palace and reported the matter to the king, he became extremely sad, upset and terribly traumatized. Being disturbed by the disaster that was caused by the wrong interpretation of his order, the king asked the Saṅgha whether they held him responsible. Some thought him guilty some not. They all suggested that only Moggaliputta-Tissa Thera could answer his question. The king sent a massenger to Moggaliputta-Tissa Thera to bring him from the Ahogaṅgā Mountain to Pāṭaliputra for removing his doubt and unrest. After several unsuccessful attempts Moggaliputta-Tissa Thera agreed to come by boat. On the arrival of this great monk the king himself came forward to receive him. He went knee deep into the water and extended his right hand to the great Thera as a token of great reverence.

Moggaliputta-Tissa Thera was staying in the Rativardhana garden and was shown high respect and courtesy. The king was overwhelmed seeing the miraculous power of the great sage. The king then asked him how far he is responsible for the crime committed by his minister. Thera answered that there was no guilt without evil intention or defilements and to convince the king again he recited to him the Tittira Jātaka. These dispale the doubts of the king.

Moggaliputta-Tissa instructed the king in the Buddhist faith for a week. The king thereafter convoked an assembly of the whole community of Bhikkhus.

Description of the Council:

According to Kern, the Third Great Council was not a general Council but a party meeting of the Sthaviravādins or the Vibhajjavādins after their separation from the Mahāsaṅghikas.

The king invited the whole community of the monks of several beliefs in a general assembly and asked them to explain the teachings of the Buddha. On an interview, sixty thousand heretical monks of false view were sorted out and were expelled from the Saṅgha by the king. Rest of the monks who were true believers, told about the doctrine of the Buddha, that it was Vibhajjavāda i.e. the religion of analytical reasoning. This answer was supported by Moggaliputta-Tissa who was present there. He told that the Buddha was Vibhajjavādin (analyser). The Thera was made the gurdian of the Order. To purify the Sangha, the king requested to hold the Uposatha ceremony.

Moggaliputta-Tissa thereafter elected a thousand monks of the Saṅgha who were well versed in the three Piṭakas to make a compilation of the true doctrine. For nine months he worked with the monks and the compilation of the true Tipiṭaka was completed.

The council continued for a period of nine months. The process was in favour of the Theravādins. All the view points were discussed. To destroy the false views Moggaliputa Tissa composed and explained the Kathāvatthuprakaraṇa during the midst of the council which belongs to the Abhidhamma Text. This Council of the Thera Tissa was equally important as those of Mahakassapa of the First and the Thera Yasa of the Second Council respectively.

The Dhamma and the rules of the Saṅgha were once more reviewed and settled. The Saddhamma Saṅgha ended under the protection of King Aśoka with a great Pavāraṇā ceremony. After the closing of the council messengers were sent to different countries for the spread of Buddhism. The most important achievment of the Third Council of Dharmāśoka is that the true Dhamma was preserved and the Kathavatthuprakarana was composed.

Historicity of the Council:

The Third Council of Dharmāśoka is not found in the Cullavagga. It is absent in the Northern tradition also which signifies that it was a sectarian issue held for the preservation the Theravāda doctrines for which the Northern schools had no interest. Simillarly the Southern tradition does not mention the council of Kanishka.

The Third Council had not been mentioned by the Chinese travellers-Yuan Chawang and I-tsing though both of them have discussed the name of different schools and the spheres of their influence.

All the necessary informations are indebted to the Si-Lankān records which contain a consistent narrative and many references to the miraculous happenings.

Winternitz believes that the council was actually held to uphold the Theravāda doctrine which was greatly endangered by the mixing up of the heresies.

According to A. Bareau, the Third Council of the Theravāda tradition was a local convocation of the Sthavira who grouped after the second council of Vaiśāli and as a result they were separeted into two: The Vbhajjavādins and the Sthaviravādins. Afterwards the Vibhajjavādins joined together with the Theravādins.

Some scholars express doubt about the occurrence of the Third Council. They show the fact that, the Kausāmbi, Sārnāth and Sāñci edicts which especially mention the great schism in the Saṅgha do not have any reference to the council. But B.M.Barua thinks that the reference of schism in the Pillar Edicts of Aśoka confirms the historicity of the Third Council mentioned in the Pali tradition.

According to Minayeff, it may so happen that, all the announcements of the king have not yet been found, or the reunion of the monks and the dissention in the Saṅgha were a common event. The king did not think it necessary to speak about these in the edicts.

According to Dr. Sumangal Barua, the events of the council have historical bases but the Sinhalese accounts have been much exaggerated.

Important events of the Third Council of Dharmāśoka:

i). Compilation of the Kathāvatthu:

One of the greatest achievmentnof the Third Council of Dharmāśoka is the compilation of Kathāvātthu-ppakaraṇa (points of controversy). It is incorporated in the Abhidhamma Piṭaka and is the work of genius of Moggaliputta-Tissa Thera. This is the only book credited to a definite author. It is composed of two parts: the theory and their explanation. Twenty three chapters are there, each containing 812 questions, safeguarding the Theravāda theory and criticising and rejecting the views of other sects. In this book 252 unorthodox opinions put forward by the leading challengers have been proved false.

Probably the book might have been composed in the third century B.C.The text as it exists today may be a modified form bring in by the the new heretics. According to Andre Bareau, the initial part of the Kathāvatthu contains only refusal of the Sarvāstivāda and condemnation of the Pudgalavāda of the Vātsapuriyas.

It refers to the views of some sects prevalent at that time. In fact, Aṭṭhasālini, the commentary on the Dhammasaṅgani, tried to reject the Kathāvatthu as it was not the utterences of the Buddha himself, but by his disciple Moggāliputta Tissa after more than 218 years of the Mahāparinibbāna of the Buddha. In spite of all the controversy, Kathāvatthu is regarded as the best authority as we get the name of various schools of that time. Because the original works of other schools except a few documents in Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese manuscripts have been lost.

ii) Emergence of the term Vibhajjavāda:

According to the Sri-Lankān chronicles, there is a great difference existed between Theravāda with its sub sects and the Mahāsaṅghikas with its sub-divisions.

According to Kern, the term is later invented by the Sinhalese traditions. No sect of Vibhajjavādins is found in the long list of various sub sects. But the Sinhalese monks or the Vibhajjavādins claim that there theories and Canon are same as the original Sthaviras.

Dr. Walleser says that, the Master used to follow two ways in explaining certain terms: the conventional i.e. for the public and the philosophical. Philosophically, the existence of a man or satta has two inner meanings: body and mind. If these two comportments of a man get separeted, it then can be defined as anattā or non-existence of a soul.Those who are capable of differentiating them were known as the dividers or Vibhajjavādins (analyser).This term was first deeply discussed in the Milind-Pañha about 250 years later following the Third Council of Aśoka.

Some scholars are of the view that, Vibhajjavādins were the Theravādins of the Mahāvihāra school of Sri-Lanka.

According to Dr. Sumaṅgal Barua, in order to defeat the unauthorised monks, Moggaliputta Tissa had taken the Vibhajjavāda doctrine. By the use of this very word Vibhajjvāda, the Third Council of Aśoka, the assembly of the Theravādins tried to prove that the teachings of the Buddha were an anattā doctrine. It is not known to us, at that time in which group the Mahāsaṅghikas or the Sarvāstivādins belonged to.

iii) Formation of Abhidhamma Piṭaka:

It is accepted that, in the First and Second Council the Dhamma and the Vinaya were recited. Cullavagga gives a short description of the recitation of the Dhamma and the Vinaya, but there is no mention of Abhidhamma-recitation.

In the Third Council the Buddhist Scriptures were divided into three parts: the Vinaya Piṭaka, the Sutta Piṭaka and the Abhidhamma Piṭaka.

iv) Despatch of missionaries:

One of the vital results of the Third Council was the despatch of missionaries to the different countries of the world for the circulation of the Saddhamma. During the life time of the Buddha his missions were limited to the boundaries within Madhyadeśa and Prāgdeśa. It remained stationary until the conversion of Aśoka. The main success of Aśoka’s contribution to Buddhism was the despatch of missionaries by the advice of the wise thera Moggaliputta Tissa.

The Dīpavaṃsa and the Mahāvaṃsa give the names of the missionaries sent by the Thera Moggaliputta. He sent Majjhantika to Gandhāra there he calmed down an angry Nāga and released many people from the chains of sin. Mahādeva possesing great magical powers went to Mahisa. Rakkhita skilled in magical transformation rising into the air preached the Anamataggiya Sutta. The wise Thera Yonakadhammarakkhita converted the Aparantaka country by preaching Aggikkhandhopama Sutta. Mahādhammarakkhita who possessed the great magical powers converted Mahārattha by preaching the Nārada-kassapa-jātaka. Mahārakkhita converted the Yavana region by preaching the Kālakārāma Suttanta. The Thera who originated from the Kassapa tribe viz Majjhima, Durabhisāra, Sahadeva, and Mulakadeva converted the multitudes of Yakkhas in the Himavata region by preaching the Dhammacakkapavattana Suttanata. Soṇa and Uttara went to Suvaṇṇabhūmi and conquered multitudes of Pisācas and released many people from their fetters. Mahinda with four companions went to the most excellent Lankā and firmly established the Dhamma over there. It is to be seen that, before despatching the religious groups to distant countries, Aśoka sent missionary envoys to the Greek kingdoms of Asia and to Egypt whose rulers were mentioned on sevaral edicts (13th Rock Edict). It is, to a large extent due to these missionary activities Buddhism became a ruling religion of a large part of mankind.