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Abhidharma (Sanskrit) or Abhidhamma (Pāli) are ancient (3rd century BCE and later) Buddhist works...

Abhidharma (Sanskrit) or Abhidhamma (Pāli) are ancient (3rd century BCE and later) Buddhist works which contain detailed scholastic reworkings of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist Sutras, according to schematic classifications. The Abhidhamma works do not contain systematic philosophical treatises, but summaries or abstract and systematic lists. According to the Macmillan Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Abhidhamma started as an elaboration of the teachings of the suttas, but later developed independent doctrines. According to L. S. Cousins, the suttas deal with sequences and processes, Abhidhamma deals with occasions and events. The literal translation of the term Abhidharma is unclear. Two possibilities are most commonly given: In the West, the Abhidhamma has generally been considered the core of what is referred to as 'Buddhist Psychology'. In the commentaries of Theravada Buddhism it was held that the Abhidhamma was not a later addition to the tradition, but rather represented the first, original understanding of the teachings by the Buddha. According to legend, shortly after his awakening the Buddha spent several days in meditation, during which he formulated the