Abhidharma

thumb|260px|An illustration in a manuscript of the Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra from [[Nalanda, depicting the bodhisattva Maitreya, an important figure in Mahāyāna]]

The Abhidharma (lit. "about the dharma") refers to a class of Buddhist texts, the first of which date from the 3rd century BCE. Abhidharma texts contain detailed scholastic presentations of Buddhist doctrine, including doctrines that appear in canonical Buddhist scriptures and commentaries. "Abhidharma" also refers to the scholastic method itself, and the knowledge (prajña) that this method is said to study and cultivate.

buddhist psychological construct

The Abhidharmakośabhāṣya (, lit. Commentary on the Treasury of Abhidharma), Abhidharmakośa () for short (or just Kośa or AKB), is a key text on the Abhidharma written in Sanskrit by the Indian Buddhist scholar Vasubandhu in the 4th or 5th century CE. The Kośa summarizes the Sarvāstivādin Abhidharma in eight chapters with a total of around 600 verses and then comments on (and often criticizes) it. This text was widely respected and used by schools of Buddhism in India, Tibet and East Asia. Over time, the Abhidharmakośa became the main source of Abhidharma and Sravakayana Buddhism for later Mahā

Sarvāstivāda-Vaibhāṣika () or simply Vaibhāṣika () was an ancient Buddhist tradition of Abhidharma (scholastic Buddhist philosophy), which was very influential in North India, especially Kashmir. In various texts, they referred to their tradition as Yuktavāda (the doctrine of logic), and another name for them was Hetuvāda (the doctrine of causes). The Vaibhāṣika school was an influential subgroup of the larger Sarvāstivāda school. They were distinguished from other Sarvāstivāda sub-schools like the Sautrāntika and the "Western Masters" of Gandhara and Bactria by their orthodox adherence to the

encyclopedic work on Abhidharma

The Abhidharma-samuccaya (Sanskrit; ; English: "Compendium of Abhidharma") is a Buddhist text composed by Asaṅga. The Abhidharma-samuccaya is a systematic account of Abhidharma. According to J. W. de Jong it is also "one of the most important texts of the Yogācāra school." According to Frauwallner, this text is based on the Abhidharma of the Mahīśāsaka tradition.

encyclopedic Mahayana Buddhist treatise and commentary on the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra

Indian Abhidharma Buddhist text by Harivarman

Dharmaskandha (; ) or Dharma-skandha-sastra () is one of the seven Sarvastivada Abhidharma Buddhist scriptures. Dharmaskandha means "collection of dharmas". It was composed by Sariputra (according to the Sanskrit and Tibetan sources) or Maudgalyayana (according to Chinese sources). The Chinese edition was translated by Xuanzang and appears as: T26, No. 1537, 阿毘達磨法蘊足論, 尊者大目乾連造, 三藏法師玄奘奉　詔譯, in 12 fascicles.

The Jñānaprasthāna () or Jñānaprasthāna-śāstra (), composed originally in Sanskrit by Kātyāyanīputra, is one of the seven Sarvastivada Abhidharma Buddhist scriptures; the title means "establishment of knowledge".

discourse on Yogacara by the early Tang dynasty monk Xuanzang; framed around Vasubandhu's work Triṃśikā-vijñaptimātratā

Prakaranapada (, IAST: Prakaraṇapāda-śāstra), composed by Vasumitra, is one of the seven Sarvastivada Abhidharma Buddhist scriptures. The Chinese was translated by Xuanzang as: T26, No. 1542, 阿毘達磨品類足論, 尊者世友造, 三藏法師玄奘奉　詔譯, in 18 fascicles; with another partial translation by Gunabhadra and Bodhiyasa: T26, No. 1541, 眾事分阿毘曇論, 尊者世友造, 宋天竺三藏求那跋陀羅, 共菩提耶舍譯, in 12 fascicles. Its commentary the Panca-vastu-vibhasa (五事毘婆沙論 T 1555) by Dharmatrata, was also translated by Xuanzang.

The Abhidhammattha-saṅgaha (English: The Compendium of Things contained in the Abhidhamma; ) is a Pali Buddhist instructional manual or compendium of the Abhidhamma of the Theravāda tradition. It was written by the Sri Lankan monk Ācariya Anuruddha some time between the 8th century and the 12th century.

Vijñānakāya () or Vijñānakāya-śāstra (विज्ञानकायशास्त्र) is one of the seven Sarvāstivāda Abhidharma Buddhist scriptures. "Vijñānakāya" means "group or substance of consciousness". It was composed by Devasarman (according to both Sanskrit and Chinese sources), with the Chinese translated by Xuanzang: T26, No. 1539, 阿毘達磨識身足論, 提婆設摩阿羅漢造, 三藏法師玄奘奉　詔譯, in 16 fascicles.

Prajnaptisastra (, IAST: Prajñāptiśāstra) or Prajnapti-sastra is one of the seven Sarvastivada Abhidharma Buddhist scriptures. The word Prajnaptisastra means "designation" (of dharmas). It was composed by Maudgalyayana (according to the Sanskrit, Tibetan and MPPU) or Mahakatyayana. The Chinese translation is by : T26, No. 1538, 施設論, 西天譯經三藏朝散大夫, 試光祿卿傳梵大師賜紫, 沙門臣法護等奉　詔譯, in a somewhat shorter 7 fascicles.