Dhamma Wheel Buddhist Forum

This division of the Khuddaka Nikāya consists of two parts: Mahāniddesa, the major exposition which is the commentary on the fourth vagga (Aṭṭhakavagga) of the Suttanipāta, and Cūḷaniddesa, the minor exposition which is the commentary on the fifth vagga (Pārāyanavagga) and on the Khaggavisāṇa Sutta in the first vagga.

Attributed to the Venerable Sāriputta, these exegetical works contain much material on the Abhidhamma and constitute the earliest forms of commentaries, providing evidence of commentarial tradition many centuries before the Venerable Buddhaghosa appeared on the scene.

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:I don't know of any translation. They are Commentaries, which is why the PTS hasn't translated them yet.

This is from U Ko Lay's Guide to Tpitaka:

This division of the Khuddaka Nikāya consists of two parts: Mahāniddesa, the major exposition which is the commentary on the fourth vagga (Aṭṭhakavagga) of the Suttanipāta, and Cūḷaniddesa, the minor exposition which is the commentary on the fifth vagga (Pārāyanavagga) and on the Khaggavisāṇa Sutta in the first vagga.

Attributed to the Venerable Sāriputta, these exegetical works contain much material on the Abhidhamma and constitute the earliest forms of commentaries, providing evidence of commentarial tradition many centuries before the Venerable Buddhaghosa appeared on the scene.

tharpa wrote:Thanks. metta.lk does not make that clear.

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:

tharpa wrote:Thanks. metta.lk does not make that clear.

They deserve some credit for making their translation available online, but they are not the most reliable.

They didn't spell Khuddaka correctly. Probably a transliteration error, unless they use a variant spelling in the Sinhalese texts.

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:They are Commentaries, which is why the PTS hasn't translated them yet.

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:I don't know of any translation. They are Commentaries, which is why the PTS hasn't translated them yet.

This is from U Ko Lay's Guide to Tpitaka:

This division of the Khuddaka Nikāya consists of two parts: Mahāniddesa, the major exposition which is the commentary on the fourth vagga (Aṭṭhakavagga) of the Suttanipāta, and Cūḷaniddesa, the minor exposition which is the commentary on the fifth vagga (Pārāyanavagga) and on the Khaggavisāṇa Sutta in the first vagga.

Attributed to the Venerable Sāriputta, these exegetical works contain much material on the Abhidhamma and constitute the earliest forms of commentaries, providing evidence of commentarial tradition many centuries before the Venerable Buddhaghosa appeared on the scene.

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:

tharpa wrote:Thanks. metta.lk does not make that clear.

They deserve some credit for making their translation available online, but they are not the most reliable.

They didn't spell Khuddaka correctly. Probably a transliteration error, unless they use a variant spelling in the Sinhalese texts.

waterchan wrote:

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:

tharpa wrote:Thanks. metta.lk does not make that clear.

They deserve some credit for making their translation available online, but they are not the most reliable.

They didn't spell Khuddaka correctly. Probably a transliteration error, unless they use a variant spelling in the Sinhalese texts.

They also have some shortcomings in some of their sutta translations. I remember I posted one of them, the one about not recommending existence for so long as a fingersnap, and you corrected it.

Is there a free version of the Khuddaka Atthagata anywhere on the web? Khuddakanikaye Paramatthajotika Khuddakapatha-atthakatha is on Amazon but it's out of stock. (Imagine trying to ask for that book over the counter!)

By the way, it would be nice if someone could draw a tree-like structure depicting the relationship between all the commentaries and sub-commentaries and sub-sub-...-sub-commentaries. The structure of the Sutta Pitaka is much easier to grasp because of accesstoinsight but they don't seem to have much on the commentaries.

waterchan wrote:

Bhikkhu Pesala wrote:They are Commentaries, which is why the PTS hasn't translated them yet.

In the wikipedia article linked in daverupa's post, the PTS is credited with the translation of quite a few commentaries...

mikenz66 wrote:I think that the point is that they concentrated on getting the Vinaya, Sutta, Abdhidhamma translated first.

Bhikkhu Bodhi's translations of the MN (with Ven Nanamoli), SN, and AN often have quite detailed notes about the Commentaries (as do many of the PTS translations and Maurice Walshe's translation of the DN). My recollection is that the PTS translation of the Sutta Nipata makes extensive use of the Maha Niddesa commentary (since translating verse is fraught with difficulty).


Mike

Niddesa,
Set (including Index volume)
ISBN 365 6 £74.00 « Add to Basket »
Mahāniddesa,
ed. L. de La Vallée Poussin and E.J. Thomas, 2 volumes, 1916, 1917, reprinted as one volume 1978
ISBN 136 X £34.00 « Add to Basket »
Cullaniddesa,
ed. W. Stede, 1918, 1988
ISBN 277 3 £22.30 « Add to Basket »
Index to the Mahāniddesa,
L.S. Cousins, 1995. (Computer-generated index to the first part of the Niddesa.)
ISBN 310 9 £26.00 « Add to Basket »
The eleventh book of the Khuddaka-nikāya of the Sutta-piṭaka is divided into two parts, each containing a commentary considered to be canonical.
Both the Mahāniddesa and Cullaniddesa comment on texts from the Suttanipāta. (Not later than the 1st century BCE)

The Group of Discourses,
2nd ed., tr. K.R. Norman (with notes), 2001
ISBN 303 6 £35.75 « Add to Basket »
Fifth text of the Khuddaka-nikāya of the Sutta-piṭaka, consisting mainly of verses, apparently compiled from a number of sources. Two chapters of the Suttanipāta are mentioned by name in other Pāli canonical texts, and the commentary upon them is also included in the canon. It is apparent that this text contains some of the oldest Pāli poetry we possess.
Translation of Suttanipāta.