"Nikāya (निकाय) is a Pāli word meaning "volume". It is often used like the Sanskrit word āgama (आगम) to mean "collection", "assemblage", "class" or "group" in both Pāḷi and Sanskrit. It is most commonly used in reference to the Pali Buddhist texts of the Tripitaka namely those found in the Sutta Piṭaka. It is also used to refer to monastic lineages, where it is sometimes translated as a 'monastic fraternity'.
The term Nikāya Buddhism is sometimes used in contemporary scholarship to refer to the Buddhism of the early Buddhist schools.
In the Pāli Canon, particularly, the "Discourse Basket" or Sutta Piṭaka, the meaning of nikāya is roughly equivalent to the English collection and is used to describe groupings of discourses according to theme, length, or other categories. For example, the Sutta Piṭaka is broken up into five nikāyas:
- the Dīgha Nikāya, the collection of long (Pāḷi: dīgha) discourses
- the Majjhima Nikāya, the collection of middle-length (majjhima) discourses
- the Samyutta Nikāya, the collection of thematically linked (samyutta) discourses
- the Anguttara Nikāya, the "gradual collection" (discourses grouped by content enumerations)
- the Khuddaka Nikāya, the "minor collection"
In the other early Buddhist schools the alternate term āgama was used instead of nikāya to describe their Sutra Piṭakas. Thus the non-Mahāyāna portion of the Sanskrit-language Sutra Piṭaka is referred to as "the Āgamas" by Mahāyāna Buddhists. The Āgamas survive for the most part only in Classical Tibetan and Chinese translation. They correspond closely with the Pāḷi nikāyas."
(from Wikipedia)
"Nikāyas:
The Pali Discourses are grouped in five main nikāyas or “divisions”. These are not organized by content, but by literary form. The first two—Long and Middle—are organized by length, the Saṁyutta or “Linked” division is organized by topic, and the Aṅguttara or “Numbered” division is organized by numerical sets. These four collections are synoptic; they constitute one largely unified body of text and doctrine, organized mainly for the convenience of the reciters who memorized it.
The fifth nikāya is a rather different kind of collection. The core of it is a set of early texts that are mostly verse. To this was added a series of later texts of very different kinds, showing that this section was considered more open and flexible."
(from SuttaCentral)
"The Digha Nikaya (dīghanikāya; "Collection of Long Discourses") is a Buddhist scripture, the first of the five nikayas, or collections, in the Sutta Pitaka, which is one of the "three baskets" that compose the Pali Tipitaka of (Theravada) Buddhism. Some of the most commonly referenced suttas from the Digha Nikaya include the Maha-parinibbana Sutta (DN 16), which described the final days and death of the Buddha, the Sigalovada Sutta (DN 31) in which the Buddha discusses ethics and practices for lay followers, and the Samaññaphala (DN 2), Brahmajala Sutta (DN 1) which describes and compares the point of view of Buddha and other ascetics in India about the universe and time (past, present, and future); and the Poṭṭhapāda (DN 9) Suttas, which describe the benefits and practice of samatha meditation."
(from Wikipedia)
Digha Nikaya translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
Dihanikaya translated by Bhikkhu Sujato
"The Majjhima Nikāya (-nikāya; "Collection of Middle-length Discourses") is a Buddhist scripture, the second of the five nikayas, or collections, in the Sutta Pitaka, which is one of the "three baskets" that compose the Pali Tipitaka (lit. "Three Baskets") of Theravada Buddhism. Composed between 3rd century BCE and 2nd century CE. This nikaya consists of 152 discourses attributed to the Buddha and his chief disciples.
The Majjhima Nikaya corresponds to the Madhyama Āgama found in the Sutra Pitikas of various Sanskritic early Buddhist schools, fragments of which survive in Sanskrit and in Tibetan translation. A complete Chinese translation from the Sarvāstivādin recension appears in the Chinese Buddhist canon, where it is known as the Zhōng Ahánjīng (中阿含經). The Madhyama Āgama of the Sarvāstivāda school contains 222 sūtras, in contrast to the 152 suttas in the Pāli Majjhima Nikāya."
(from Wikipedia)
Majjhima Nikāya translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
"The Samyutta Nikaya (Saṃyutta Nikāya SN, "Connected Discourses" or "Kindred Sayings") is a Buddhist scripture, the third of the five nikayas, or collections, in the Sutta Pitaka, which is one of the "three baskets" that compose the Pali Tipitaka of Theravada Buddhism. Because of the abbreviated way parts of the text are written, the total number of suttas is unclear. The editor of the Pali Text Society edition of the text made it 2889, Bodhi in his translation has 2904, while the commentaries give 7762. A study by Rupert Gethin gives the totals for the Burmese and Sinhalese editions as 2854 and 7656, respectively, and his own calculation as 6696; he also says the total in the Thai edition is unclear. The suttas are grouped into five vaggas, or sections. Each vagga is further divided into samyuttas, or chapters, each of which in turn contains a group of suttas on a related topic."
(from Wikipedia)
Samyutta Nikaya translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
"The Anguttara Nikaya (aṅguttaranikāya; lit. 'Increased by One Collection', also translated "Gradual Collection" or "Numerical Discourses") is a Buddhist scripture, the fourth of the five nikayas, or collections, in the Sutta Pitaka, which is one of the "three baskets" that comprise the Pali Tipitaka of Theravada Buddhism. This nikaya consists of several thousand discourses ascribed to the Buddha and his chief disciples arranged in eleven "books", according to the number of dhamma items referenced in them.
The Anguttara Nikaya corresponds to the Ekottara Āgama ("Increased by One Discourses") found in the Sutra Pitikas of various Sanskritic early Buddhists schools, fragments of which survive in Sanskrit. A complete version survives in Chinese translation by the name Zēngyī Ahánjīng (增一阿含經); it is thought to be from either the Mahāsāṃghika or Sarvāstivādin recensions. According to Keown, "there is considerable disparity between the Pāli and the Sarvāstivādin versions, with more than two-thirds of the sūtras found in one but not the other compilation, which suggests that much of this portion of the Sūtra Piṭaka was not formed until a fairly late date.""
(from Wikipedia)
Anguttara Nikaya translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
"The Sutta Nipāta (lit. 'Section of the Suttas') is a Buddhist scripture, a sutta collection in the Khuddaka Nikaya, part of the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism.
The Sutta Nipāta is divided into five sections:
Some scholars believe that it describes the oldest of all Buddhist practices. Others such as Bhikkhu Bodhi and K. R. Norman agree that it contains much early material.
In the Chinese Buddhist canon, a version of the Aṭṭhakavagga has survived. Fragmentary materials from a Sanskrit version of the Nipata also survive.
The Niddesa, a commentary in two parts on the contents of the Atthaka Vagga and portions of the Parayana Vagga, is included in the Pali Canon as a book of the Khuddaka Nikāya. This commentary is traditionally attributed to Śāriputra, and its presence in the canon is regarded as evidence of the relatively early composition of the Sutta Nipata."
Sutta Nipāta translated by Laurence Khantipalo Mills