The Theravada tradition records that its canon, carried orally for centuries, is written down in Sri Lanka under King Vattagamani Abhaya, lest the teaching be lost in war and famine; the palm-leaf books at Aluvihara become the source of the Pali Canon the Theravada world reads today.
The Event
- Date
- 1st century CE (approximate)
- Also called
- Aluvihara writing of the Tipitaka
- Era
- Early Buddhism; Standard periodization of Buddhist history
- Location
- Aluvihara; today Matale, Sri Lanka
- Traditions
- Buddhism
- Streams
- Theravada
- Key figures
- Vattagamani Abhaya
- Key texts
- Tipitaka
Connections
- First Council at Rajagaha; descends from
Primary Sources
- Mahavamsa, chapter 33
Secondary Sources
- Gombrich, Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo (Routledge, 2nd ed. 2006)
- Harvey, An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices (Cambridge, 2nd ed. 2013)
Provenance: HIST-0407; confidence 0.85; accessed 2026-10-27.
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- Second Council at Vaishali History Event
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