Tipitaka Atthakathas

and Tikas inscribed

on Stone Slabs in

Myanmar REPORT BY U AUNg ThU,

TRANSlATEd BY

ThE hiSTORiAN U hlA ThEiN

in the Mahaparanibbana Sutta Ananda was reminded by

the Buddha shortly before he entered parinibbana that his

followers should afterwards take refuge in the dhamma.

The Tipitaka, made up of the monastic discipline

(Vinaya), the discourses (Suttas) and the further teaching

(Abhidhamma), would now take his place.

Since the time of Mahakassapa, these ‘baskets’ of the

teaching have been followed, remembered and handed

down the ages by the Sangha. Meanwhile, Buddhist

Synods have from time to time re-examined the Pali

Canon. At the Fifth, a cross-checked, corrected version

was inscribed on seven hundred and twenty-nine stone

slabs in Mandalay.

Since then the Mandalay pattern had been followed

and many other towns in Myanmar have erected stone

slabs of the Tipitaka. To size up their whereabouts and

contents, U Aung Thu, a former official of the Telecom-

munications department, spent two years travelling on

this religious quest and in September 1998 produced the

following list of Pitaka treasures from the 18 sites he had

visited.

Suggestions for the improvements were made for the

eight of these sites as follows:

Minkin - 1) To remove banyans and other types of tree

which have grown in the vicinity of the stone slabs. 2)

The lettering there has become blurred and needs sharp-

ening. 3) Numbering of the stone slabs should be made

and the contents of the five Vinayas should be listed.

Mandalay - 1) At Sandamuni the lettering has become

worn due to exposure over the last eighty years. 2) iron

railings are needed to guard the slabs. These railings

should be run as close to the ground as possible so that

men and beasts cannot enter the enclosure and soil it.

Meiktila - Atthakathas in Myanmar exist only in Man-

dalay and Meiktila. Some of the texts in Meiktila were

lacking and work on them is needed.

Thedaw - When dealing with Thedaw previously, it had

been noted that the Second World War had disrupted the

erection of certain textual stone slabs. Efforts should be

made to achieve this now.

Nyaungyan - Not all stone slabs are under cover there.

The libraries originally built have also deteriorated.

Attempts should therefore be made to remedy this situ-

ation.

Yangon - 1) The stone slabs in the Pancanikaya monas-

tary in Kambe are those of the Sixth Buddhist Synod

version. The 130 Vinaya stone slabs, though inscribed,

have not been erected and lie unattended in the open.

Their assembling and erection should be continued. 2)

Only three texts of the Suttas are found here. Many texts

remain to be completed. These versions from the Sixth

Buddhist Synod should be treated in the same way as

those of the Fifth Buddhist Synod. 3) The leaking roofs

need to be replaced.

Thaton - 1) Many Tipitaka stone slabs are incomplete.

For instance, in the seven Abidhamma texts, the Pathan

and Yamaik sections are missing. The stone slabs were

found in the precints of Mandalay’s Kyauktawgyi

Pagoda, neglected and unattended. They should be

brought to Thaton to be erected. 2) Out of the five hun-

dred and eighty-five slabs at Thaton, only one hundred

and twenty-six seemed to be kept well under cover. The

remaining four hundred and fifty-nine are exposed and

in danger of deterioration. Arrangements should be

made to protect them too.

Mingun - The Pitaka stone slabs at Mingun are the

verbatim dialogue records of Ven. Mahasi and Ven. Vicit-

tasara, conducted during the Sixth Buddhist Synod. But

they are only on the Vinaya and Suttas and none on the

Abhidamma. To make it a complete set, those on Abhi-

damma should also be carried out.

May 2014 LOTUS 9