Sources

Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification)

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification)." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/visuddhimagga-the-path-of-purification.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification). Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/visuddhimagga-the-path-of-purification

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-visuddhimagga-the-path-of-purification,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification)},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/visuddhimagga-the-path-of-purification},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

The Visuddhimagga is Buddhaghosa's own primary Theravada Buddhist text on meditation and doctrine, and this record states honestly that no publication year is given here because the conventional fifth century dating commonly cited for its composition is itself approximate rather than a documented precise date. As a primary text it is authoritative for what this specific commentarial treatise itself teaches on Theravada meditation practice and doctrine, checkable against the translation, not for how a specific modern meditation teacher or lineage currently applies or departs from it. Use it to establish the content of Buddhaghosa's own systematic teaching; a claim about a contemporary teacher's specific method needs a source addressing that teacher directly.

Facts

Assessment

Reliability Tier

Buddhaghosa's Visuddhimagga, the fifth century Theravada Buddhist primary treatise on the path of purification.

Notes

No year given: the conventional fifth-century dating is approximate.

Citation

Author

Buddhaghosa

Source Type

primary-text

Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Theravada

This source names Theravada directly: "is Buddhaghosa's own primary Theravada Buddhist text on meditation and doctrine, and this record states honestly that no publication year is given here because the conventional fifth century dating..."

Source Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification)Buddhaghosa

Claims Backed By This Source (122 claims)

This source backs 122 claims across the atlas. As facts: 66 well-attested, 5 scholarly debate. As cited relationships: 18 holds, 7 connected. Plus 26 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.

Disposition By Topic

Virtues, 49 claims: 22 well-attested, 4 scholarly debate, 10 holds, 7 connected, 6 general references.
Articles, 12 claims: 10 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.
Doctrines, 11 claims: 5 well-attested, 1 holds, 5 general references.
Realms, 11 claims: 7 well-attested, 2 holds, 2 general references.
Ages, 8 claims: 5 well-attested, 1 scholarly debate, 1 holds, 1 general references.
Disciplines, 7 claims: 5 well-attested, 2 general references.
Sources, 6 claims: 5 well-attested, 1 holds.
Practices, 5 claims: 3 well-attested, 2 general references.
Yugas (World Ages), 3 claims: 2 well-attested, 1 general references.
Denominations, 2 claims: 1 holds, 1 general references.
Figures, 2 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 general references.
Other Writings, 2 claims: 1 holds, 1 general references.
Rituals, 2 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 general references.
Vices, 2 claims: 2 general references.