Note on texts and translations

All references and readings from the discourses of the Buddha are derived from the main collections of the Suttapiṭaka, abbreviated as follows:

DN = Dīgha Nikāya (Collection of Long Discourses)

MN = Majjhima Nikāya (Collection of Middle-Length Discourses)

SN = Saṃyutta Nikāya (Collection of Connected Discourses)

AN = Aṇguttara Nikāya (Collection of Numerical Discourses)

The Khuddaka Nikāya (Minor Collection) includes several smaller sets, which are referred to in their own right, among which:

Sn = Suttanipāta (Anthology of Discourses)

Ud = Udāna (Inspired Utterances)

Iti = Itivuttaka (Sayings)

Discourses in DN and MN are identified by their individual number only (counting from the beginning). For instance, DN 2 should be read as ‘Dīgha Nikāya, discourse number 2.’ Discourses included in the other collections are identified by providing, first, a reference to the number of the ‘chapter’ in which the discourse appears, and then to the number of the discourse itself in that chapter. For instance, SN 56.11 should be read as ‘Saṃyutta Nikāya, chapter 56, discourse number 11.’

Pāli texts are consulted in the Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka Buddhavasse 2500: World Tipiṭaka Edition in Roman Script, edited and published by The M.L. Maniratana Bunnag Dhamma Society Fund, 2005. This edition can be consulted online (together with several alternative translations and parallel versions) at https://suttacentral.net/