Compendium of Philosophy

In so far as a book may be pronounced useful which has ministered to a continual demand, the utility of the Abhidhammattha-sangaha ranks very high among the world’s historical documents. It has been a textbook in philosophy and psychology in Ceylon and Burma for eight centuries. A whole literature of exegesis was created around it. The manual was mentioned in at least three Pali books on history and bibliography. These books are based on lost works but have a uncertain date. Burmese tradition says that Anuruddha, a Ceylonese Thera (elder), wrote the Compendium at Sinhalese Vihara, which was founded by Somadevi (88-76 B.C.). The Minister Mula was at Polonaruwa. The Compendium, wherever it is written, is classified in Burmese bibliography under a group or compendia of classical summaries or compendia, called Let-than, Little-finger Manuals, nine, and having, for most, an exegetical literature that corresponds to each work.