This section is an overview of the Buddhist Scriptures by Ven. Sayadaw U Sobhana, with an article on "Collecting the Tipitaka" which is the history of the first rehearsal of the Tipitaka. Included is an explanation of the Tibetan Canon and the Chinese Tripitaka which is composed mainly of Mahayana scriptures of the second 500 years, yet translations were not restricted to scriptures of this middle period. The Chinese Tripitaka also possesses a wealth of works of early Buddhism as a good portion of the later productions.

An outline of the Pali Buddhist Canonical Scriptures of the Theravada School. The is a unique work as it is probably the only material that deals in outline with the whole of the Pali Buddhist Tipitaka. Available as a BuddhaNet eBook:

(Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta). The First Discourse of the Buddha, namely the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta commonly known as the Great Discourse on the Wheel of Dhamma. This is a series of  discourses on the Dhammacakka Sutta by the late Venerable Mahasi Sayadaw, a Questioner at the Sixth Buddhist Council in Myanmar, (Burma) 1954. 

Translated from the Pali by Ven. Soma Thera. The instruction of the Kalamas (Kalama Sutta) is justly famous for its encouragement of free inquiry; the spirit of the sutta signifies a teaching that is exempt from fanaticism, bigotry, dogmatism, and intolerance. Also included is a Commentary on the Kalama Sutta "A Look at the Kalama Sutta" by Bhikkhu Bodhi.

The Dhammapada, or the Treasury of Truth, consist of 423 verses spoken by the Buddha on about 300 occasions in the course of his teaching ministry of forty-five years. The gems of truth embodied in these texts aptly illustrate the moral and philosophical Teachings of the Buddha.+eBook

Practise in accordance with this Mahasatipatthana Sutta (Four Foundations of Mindfulness) so that you can see why it is acknowledged as the most important Sutta that the Buddha taught. The message here in this Sutta is that you should be mindful of whatever is occurring in the body and mind, whether it be good or bad, and thus you will become aware that all conditioned phenomena are impermanent, unsatisfactory and not-self. +eBook

This is an anthology of selected discourses (24 Suttas) of the Buddha compiled by teachers of old. It is an anthology that has been translated from the original Pali by Ven. Piyadassi Thera. These discourses have a special appeal not only to the Theravada Buddhists but also to the Mahayana Buddhists. It is interesting to find in this anthology the simpler side as well as the deeper side of Buddha's teaching. Apart from their doctrinal value, the selected discourses, when recited, afford a protection against fear and misfortune. +eBook

Four Discourses on moral instructions for householders. These translations are adapted from the translations and notes in "The Light of the Dhamma" by the late Venerable Narada Thera. Sigalovada Sutta: The Layman's Code of Discipline (Digha Nikaya, No. 31); Maha Mangala Sutta: Blessings (Sutta Nipata vv. 258-269); Parabhava Sutta: Downfall (Sutta Nipata, vv. 91-115); Vyagghapajja Sutta: Conditions of Welfare (Anguttara Nikaya, Atthaka-nipata, No. 54).

An Anthology from the Pali Canon. [The Buddha] So this is what you think of me: "The Blessed One, sympathetic, seeking our well-being, teaches the Dhamma out of sympathy." Then you should train yourselves - harmoniously, cordially, and without dispute - in the qualities I have pointed out, having known them directly: the four frames of reference, the four right exertions, the four bases of power, the five faculties, the five strengths, the seven factors of Awakening, the Noble Eightfold Path. M.103

Commentary by Grand Master T'an Hsu. Translated into English by Venerable Dharma Master Lok To. The Prajna Paramita Hrydaya Sutra is the core of the Maha Prajna Paramita in six hundred scrolls, Its teachings of supramundane Void as the only true existence, the true Void being mysteriously concealed in the existing. Therefore one might say that the substance of this sutra is the characteristic of Void in all Dharmas; non-obtaining is the purpose. There is nothing to be obtained from the manifestation of Dharmas, all Dharmas being void, or empty. All Dharmas, as well as the five Skandhas are empty of self, completely free from thought.+eBook

Venerable Yin Shun’s expertise and writings in Buddhism have been widely acknowledged by the Chinese Buddhists this century. The "Miao Yun Collection" or "Teachings in Chinese Buddhism" written by the Venerable Yin Shun provides us with important information and a systematic approach to Buddhism, and giving us a better insight and understanding of Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. +eBook

This is one of the most popular Chinese Mahayana Sutras. In it the Buddha Speaks about the Deep Kindness of Parents and the Difficulty in Repaying it. The Buddha is said to have told Ananda "Use this name when you accord with it and uphold it."

Its estimation in the past and its value for the present - from the book Abhidhamma Studies: Researches in Buddhist Psychology, by Ven. Nyanaponika, Thera.