Tripitaka

Collective term for the three major divisions of the Pali canon, the canon of Theravada Buddhism. (The term means “Triple Basket.”) It consists of the Abhidhamma Pitaka, the Sutta Pitaka, and the Vinaya Pitaka, which were transmitted orally by the sangha until they were committed to writing about 500 years after the Buddha's death. The texts appeared in two languages, Sanskrit and Pali, the Pali version being the better preserved. Sanskrit versions were translated into Tibetan, Chinese, and other languages.