Śāstra

śāstra (T. bstan bcos བསྟན་བཅོས་; C. lun; J. ron; K. non 論). A treatise or commentary. This term refers to works with various Buddhist Canons that are attributed to Indian masters, and which offer commentary on the "words of the Buddha" (buddhavacana).

This term is contrasted with the sutras within the canons, which are considered to be the actual "words of the buddha."

In the Tibetan canon, the sutras and shastras are divided into two separate collections, known as the Kangyur and Tengyur, respectively. In the Tibetan tradition, the greatest Indian commentators are referred to as the Six Ornaments and Two Supreme Ones.

The Princeton Dictionary states:

A Buddhist śāstra can be in verse or prose, and of any length, and it includes the different Sanskrit compositional genres (vṛtti, vārttika, bhāṣya, ṭīkā, vyākhyā, pañjikā, and so on) often rendered by the single English word “commentary.”

Sources

• Buswell, Robert E.; Lopez, Donald S. (2014), The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton University 

External links

• shastra, Rigpa Shedra Wiki