The role of
Greek Buddhist monks in the development of the
Buddhist faith under the patronage of emperor
Ashoka around 260 BCE, and then during the reign of
Menander is described in the
Mahavamsa, an important non-canonical Theravada Buddhist historical text compiled in
Sri Lanka in the 6th century CE, in the
Pali language.
The Mahavamsa (Pali: "Great Chronicle") covers the history of Buddhism from the 6th century BCE to the 4th century CE. It was written in the 6th century CE by the monk Mahanama, brother of the Sri Lankan King Dhatusena, and heavily relied on the
Dipavamsa, written five centuries earlier.
Background
Emperor
Ashoka convened the
third Buddhist council around 250 BCE at Pataliputra (today's
Patna). It was held by the monk Moggaliputta.
The Pali canon (
Tipitaka, or
Tripitaka in Sanskrit, lit. the "Three Baskets"), which are the texts of reference of traditional Buddhism and considered to be directly transmitted from the Buddha, was formalized at that time. They consist of the doctrine (the
Sutra Pitaka), the monastic discipline (
Vinaya Pitaka) and an additional new body of subtle philosophy (the
Abhidharma Pitaka).
Another objective of the council was to reconcile the different schools of Buddhism, and to purify the Buddhist movement, particularly from opportunistic factions which had been attracted by the royal patronage.
Finally, the council also reported on the proselytizing efforts of Emperor
Ashoka, who sought to expand the Buddhist...
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