Saṃyutta Nikāya

The Saṃyutta Nikāya ("Connected Discourses" or "Kindred Sayings") is a Buddhist scriptures collection, the third of the five Nikāyas, or collections, in the Sutta Piṭaka, which is one of the "three baskets" that compose the Pāli Tipiṭaka of Theravāda Buddhism. Because of the abbreviated way parts of the text are written, the total number of suttas/sūtras is unclear. The editor of the Pali Text Society edition of the text made it 2889, Bodhi in his translation has 2904, while the commentaries give 7762. A study by Rupert Gethin gives the totals for the Burmese and Sinhalese editions as 2854 and 7656, respectively, and his own calculation as 6696; he also says the total in the Thai edition is unclear. The suttas/sūtras are grouped into five vaggas/vargas, or sections. Each vagga/varga is further divided into saṃyuttas/saṃyuktas, or chapters, each of which in turn contains a group of suttas/sūtras on a related topic.

History

Dating Bhante Sujato argues that the remarkable congruence of the various recensions suggests that the Saṃyutta Nikāya/Saṃyukta Āgama was the only collection to be finalized in terms of both structure and content in the pre-sectarian period. Yet, whereas the Aṅguttara Nikāya and the Ekottarika Āgama share the same structure of proceeding from Ones to Elevens, the Saṃyutta Nikāya and the Saṃyukta Āgama exhibit considerable structural differences, not only in the form of different sequences of saṃyuttas but also in the form of some saṃyuttas being found only in one of the two collections. Comparative study also brings to light significant differences in content between the Saṃyutta Nikāya and the Saṃyukta Āgama. In fact, the proposed earliness of the relies on the three-aṅga theory, which has met with substantial criticism. Different canonical accounts of the first saṅgīti indeed agree on reporting that the Saṃyutta Nikāya or Saṃyukta Āgama came into existence at the same time as the other Nikāyas or Āgamas, namely as part of a division of the orally transmitted teachings undertaken soon after the Buddha's funeral.

Correspondence with the Saṃyukta Āgama The Saṃyutta Nikāya corresponds to the Saṃyukta Āgama found in the Sutra Piṭakas of various early Buddhists schools, fragments of which survive in Sanskrit and in Tibetan translation. A complete Chinese translation from the Mūlasarvāstivādin recension appears in the Chinese Buddhist canon, where it is known as the Zá Āhánjīng (雜阿含經); meaning "the mixed āgama". A comparison of the Mūlasarvāstivādin, alledgedly Kāśyapīya, and Theravādin texts reveals a considerable consistency of content, although each recension contains suttas/sutras not found in the others.A Dictionary of Buddhism, by Damien Keown, Oxford University Press: 2004 The Collation and Annotation of SaṃyuktāgamaThe Collation and Annotation of Saṃyuktāgama, by Wang Jianwei and Jin Hui, East China Normal University Press: 2014 (《<雜阿含經>校釋, Chinese version) makes further comparison.

Divisions

The vaggas contained in this nikāya are (the numbering of chapters [saṃyutta] here refers to the PTS and Burmese editions; the SinhaleseWhile the PTS Saṃyutta Nikāya has 56 saṃyuttas (connected collections), the Sinhala Buddha Jayanti Tripitaka Series (BJT) print edition has 54 saṃyuttas and, based on the BJT edition, the softcopy Sri Lanka Tripitaka Project (SLTP) edition has 55 saṃyuttas. The reason for these differences are that: the BJT and SLTP Saṃyutta 12 (Abhisamaya-Saṃyutta) combines the PTS Saṃyuttas 12 (Nidana-Saṃyutta) and 13 (Abhisamaya-Saṃyutta), representing the latter Saṃyutta as a final vaggo (chapter) in the former Saṃyutta. the BJT Saṃyutta 34 (Vedanā-Saṃyutta) combines the PTS Saṃyuttas 35 (Salāyatana-Saṃyutta) and 36 (Vedanā-Saṃyutta). and Thai editions divide the text up somewhat differently):

Vagga Name Description Samyutta NumberSamyutta Names Part I. Sagatha-vagga a collection of suttas containing verses (Pāli, sagatha), many shared by other parts of the Pāli canon such as the Theragatha, Therīgatha, Suttanipāta, Dhammapada and the Jātakas.Bodhi (2000), p. 69. SN 1-111.devatāsaṃyuttaṃ

2. devaputtasaṃyuttaṃ

3. kosalasaṃyuttaṃ

4. mārasaṃyuttaṃ

5. bhikkhunīsaṃyuttaṃ

6. brahmasaṃyuttaṃ

7. brāhmaṇasaṃyuttaṃ

8. vaṅgīsasaṃyuttaṃ

9. vanasaṃyuttaṃ

10. yakkhasaṃyuttaṃ

11. sakkasaṃyuttaṃ Part II. Nidana-vagga a collection of suttas primarily pertaining to causation (Pali, nidana) SN 12-2112. nidānasaṃyuttaṃ 13. abhisamayasaṃyuttaṃ

14. dhātusaṃyuttaṃ

15. anamataggasaṃyuttaṃ

16. kassapasaṃyuttaṃ

17. lābhasakkārasaṃyuttaṃ

18. rāhulasaṃyuttaṃ

19. lakkhaṇasaṃyuttaṃ

20. opammasaṃyuttaṃ

21. bhikkhusaṃyuttaṃ Part III. Khandha-vagga a collection of suttas primarily pertaining to the five aggregates (Pali, khandha) SN 22-3422. khandhasaṃyuttaṃ 23. rādhasaṃyuttaṃ

24. diṭṭhisaṃyuttaṃ

25. okkantasaṃyuttaṃ

26. uppādasaṃyuttaṃ

27. kilesasaṃyuttaṃ

28. sāriputtasaṃyuttaṃ

29. nāgasaṃyuttaṃ

30. supaṇṇasaṃyuttaṃ

31. gandhabbakāyasaṃyuttaṃ

32. valāhakasaṃyuttaṃ

33. vacchagottasaṃyuttaṃ

34. jhānasaṃyuttaṃ Part IV. Salayatana-vagga a collection of suttas primarily pertaining to the six sense bases (Pali, salayatana), including the "Fire Sermon" (Adittapariyaya Sutta) SN 35-4435. saḷāyatanasaṃyuttaṃ 36. vedanāsaṃyuttaṃ

37. mātugāmasaṃyuttaṃ

38. jambukhādakasaṃyuttaṃ

39. sāmaṇḍakasaṃyuttaṃ

40. moggallānasaṃyuttaṃ

41. cittasaṃyuttaṃ

42. gāmaṇisaṃyuttaṃ

43. asaṅkhatasaṃyuttaṃ

44. abyākatasaṃyuttaṃPart V. Maha-vagga the largest – that is, great (Pali, maha) – collection SN 45. the Noble Eightfold Path45. maggasaṃyuttaṃ SN 46. the Seven Factors of Enlightenment46. bojjhaṅgasaṃyuttaṃ SN 47. the Four Establishment of Mindfulness47. satipaṭṭhānasaṃyuttaṃ SN 48. the Faculties48. indriyasaṃyuttaṃ SN 49. the Four Right Striving49. sammappadhānasaṃyuttaṃ SN 50. the Five Powers 50. balasaṃyuttaṃ SN 51. the Four Bases for Spiritual PowerBodhi (2000), pp. 1485-6, points out that the first seven chapters of the Maggavagga-samyutta pertain to the seven sets of qualities conducive to Enlightenment.51. iddhipādasaṃyuttaṃ SN 52. Anuruddha discourses52. anuruddhasaṃyuttaṃ SN 53. the Jhanas53. jhānasaṃyuttaṃ SN 54. Mindfulness of Breathing54. ānāpānasaṃyuttaṃ SN 55. Factors of Stream-entry55. sotāpattisaṃyuttaṃ SN 56. the Truths56. saccasaṃyuttaṃ

Translations

Full translations

The Book of the Kindred Sayings, tr C. A. F. Rhys Davids & F. L. Woodward, 1917–30, 5 volumes, Bristol: Pali Text Society The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, tr Bhikkhu Bodhi, 2000, Wisdom Publications, Somerville, MA, ; the Pali Text Society also issues a private edition of this for members only, which is its preferred translation Bhikkhu Sujato (trans.), The “Linked” or “Connected” Discourses, 2018, published online at SuttaCentral and released into the public domain.

Selections

anthology published by Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, Sri LankaThe BPS anthology was published in three parts, edited by John D. Ireland (1981), Bhikkhu Ñanananda (1983) and Maurice O'C. Walshe (1985). Nidana Samyutta, published in Burma; reprinted Sri Satguru, Delhi

Saṃyutta Nikāya

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