Buddhaghosa
5th-century Indian Theravada Buddhist commentator, translator and philosopher / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Buddhaghosa was a 5th-century Indian Theravada Buddhist commentator, translator and philosopher.[1][2] He worked in the Great Monastery (Mahāvihāra) at Anurādhapura, Sri Lanka and saw himself as being part of the Vibhajjavāda school and in the lineage of the Sinhalese Mahāvihāra.[3]
His best-known work is the Visuddhimagga ("Path of Purification"), a comprehensive summary of older Sinhala commentaries on Theravada teachings and practices. According to Sarah Shaw, in Theravada this systematic work is "the principal text on the subject of meditation."[4] The interpretations provided by Buddhaghosa have generally constituted the orthodox understanding of Theravada scriptures since at least the 12th century CE.[5][6]
He is generally recognized by both Western scholars and Theravadins as the most important philosopher and commentator of the Theravada,[2][7] but is also criticised for his departures from the canonical texts[citation needed].