Understanding Dhammakāya in Early Buddhist Thought : หน้า 34/141

II. The Different Approach A fairly established academic understanding has settled regarding the term dhammakāya in the Pali canon, that it was used merely in the sense of the ‘Buddha’s teachings.’ In concluding so, most studies refer to a few canonical passages where the Buddha appears to equate himself with dhamma. The first passage frequently mentioned is located in the Aggāṇa-sutta where the term dhammakāya, along with three other terms, are said to designate the Tathāgata. The second is a passage in the Mahāparinibbāna-sutta where the Buddha is said to say that the teaching taught and the discipline laid down by him (dhamma-vinaya) would be the future teacher after his passing. The third is the Buddha’s discourse delivered to the elder Vakkali which states that it is useless to long for seeing the Buddha’s corruptible physical body, for he who sees the dhamma sees the Buddha and he who sees the Buddha sees the dhamma. 8 It is usually debatable to determine the position of the Pali canonical context at all. To rely on it as purely early Buddhist thought requires caution, for there are at least some signs of later re-arrangement. But to view it as only Theravāda could mean to deprecate the effort of the old Buddhist community who sought to preserve the Buddhist teachings intact at best of their ability, as may be observed by its separation of Theravaḍa traditional writing in commentarial and postcanonical accounts rather than adding them to the canon. The well-preservation of the Pali suttas can be witnessed also by its close correspondence with the content of ancient Gandhāri Buddhist manuscripts, dated 1st-5th century CE, known to be the earliest Buddhist manuscripts ever found. To stratify the older and later layers of parts of the canon is also not an easy task and not always perfectly correct. 9 For example, see Dutt, op. cit., p. 142; Reed, op. cit., pp. 28-29; Xing, op. cit., p. 74; Williams, op. cit., p. 352, n.10; Harrison, op. cit., p.50. For example of different voices that are the minority of academic interpretations, see Harvey, The Selfless Mind, op. cit., p. 234; Frank E Reynolds, “The Several Bodies of the Buddha: Reflections on a Neglected Aspect of Theravāda Tradition,” History of Religion 16(1976), p. 376, n.6; David Norton Need, “Rendering the Body: Etherealization and Sense in Vedic and Early Buddhist in Religiosity” (University of Virginia, 2004), pp. 383-387. It is interesting to note that the minority of academic interpretations of the term dhammakāya accord with the majority of Theravaḍin interpretations, as detailed in the Appendix. But very few instances of traditional understandings on the term agree with the interpretation of the academic mainstream. 10 The three terms are dhammabhūta, brahmakāya, and brahmaphūta. 11 D.III.84. 12 D.II.154. 13 S.III.120.