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Theravada Buddhism
Sri Lanka from c. 250 BC; now Southeast Asia· Religion or tradition· Hindu, Buddhist, Jain & Sikh
Mostly agreed by scholarsMost historians agree; some details uncertain.
The 'Teaching of the Elders', the oldest surviving Buddhist school, dominant in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia.
See it on the World Religions map →What it is
Theravada traces itself to the Buddha's original community and keeps its scripture in Pali. Its ideal is the arhat, a person who reaches nirvana through their own practice, guided by the Buddha's teaching. Monks in saffron robes keep 227 rules and collect alms each morning; in Thailand and Myanmar many young men ordain for a short time. Laypeople earn merit by giving to monks. It reached Sri Lanka around 250 BC.
Why it matters
Roughly 100–150 million followers, over a third of the world's Buddhists (estimates vary). It is woven into national identity in Thailand, Myanmar and Sri Lanka.
Sources and history
The Sri Lankan chronicles (Dipavamsa, Mahavamsa); the Pali Canon, written down in Sri Lanka about 29 BC; and Buddhaghosa's commentaries from the 5th century AD.
Questions and debates
'Theravada' as a name for the whole tradition became common only in the 1900s, and how close it is to the earliest Buddhism is debated.
Inside this (1)
Connections (4)
▸Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya dynasty sent the mission that seeded Theravada BuddhismMostly agreed by scholars
The connection
Sri Lankan chronicles say Ashoka's son Mahinda, a monk, led a mission to Sri Lanka and converted King Devanampiya Tissa. Ashoka's daughter Sanghamitta followed with nuns and a cutting of the Bodhi tree. The Mahavihara monastery founded at Anuradhapura preserved the Pali tradition that became Theravada, later carried to Myanmar and Thailand.
When and where
Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, around 250 BC, during Ashoka's reign.
How do we know?
The mission is told in the Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa chronicles (4th–5th centuries AD). Ashoka's own edicts mention envoys sent to Tamraparni, usually identified as Sri Lanka.
Questions and debates
Ashoka's edicts never mention Mahinda; the chronicles may have dramatized the story to give Sri Lankan Buddhism a royal Indian origin.
▸Noble Eightfold Path guides daily practice in Theravada BuddhismHistorical record
The connection
In Theravada countries the path is lived through concrete practices. Laypeople recite the Five Precepts, which put right speech and right action into practice, and give alms; monks keep the full discipline and meditate. Vipassana (insight) meditation, revived in Myanmar in the 1900s, trains right mindfulness and concentration, and has spread worldwide.
When and where
Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia; the modern meditation revival was led by Burmese teachers such as Ledi Sayadaw and Mahasi Sayadaw.
Historical evidence
Daily chanting of the precepts, monastic routine, and Buddhaghosa's Path of Purification (about AD 430), organized around the path's three groups: ethics, concentration, wisdom.
Questions and debates
How far ordinary laypeople focus on the path, as opposed to earning merit for a better rebirth, is a long-running question for anthropologists.
▸Angkor Wat later became a temple of Theravada BuddhismHistorical record
The connection
As the Khmer Empire weakened and Theravada Buddhism spread from Sri Lanka and Burma across mainland Southeast Asia in the 1200s–1400s, Angkor Wat was turned into a Buddhist temple. Buddha images were added to its galleries, and monks stayed on, so it was never fully abandoned. Cambodia today is about 97% Theravada Buddhist.
When and where
Angkor, Cambodia, from the late 1200s; Khmer kings and Theravada monks. A Japanese visitor's 1632 inscription records it as a Buddhist pilgrimage site.
Historical evidence
Zhou Daguan's 1296 account of Theravada monks at Angkor; later Khmer Buddhist inscriptions in the temple; added Buddha statues; and the 1632 Japanese inscription.
Questions and debates
Exactly when and why the Khmer shifted to Theravada Buddhism, and whether it was a royal decision or a popular change, is still debated.
▸Pali Canon (Tipitaka) is the scripture of Theravada BuddhismHistorical record
The connection
Theravada treats the Pali Canon, the Tipitaka or 'Three Baskets', as the Buddha's word: monastic rules (Vinaya), discourses (Sutta) and systematic teaching (Abhidhamma). Monks memorize and chant it, and Pali serves as Theravada's sacred language across Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, much as Latin long served Catholics.
When and where
Recited orally for centuries, then written on palm leaves at Aluvihara, Sri Lanka, about 29 BC; in the 1860s Myanmar carved it on 729 marble slabs, reviewed at the Fifth Council (1871).
Historical evidence
Sri Lankan chronicles record the writing down; the Canon overlaps closely with early texts surviving in Sanskrit and Chinese, indicating early roots.
Questions and debates
How much of the Canon goes back to the Buddha himself, and how much was added later, especially the Abhidhamma, is debated.