Sources

The Foundations of Buddhism

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "The Foundations of Buddhism." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-foundations-of-buddhism.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). The Foundations of Buddhism. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-foundations-of-buddhism

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-the-foundations-of-buddhism,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {The Foundations of Buddhism},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://www.divinityatlas.com/sources/the-foundations-of-buddhism},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Rupert Gethin's introduction surveys Buddhist doctrine across its major schools from the shared early textual record forward, tracing how different schools developed the same foundational teachings differently rather than presenting one school's reading as Buddhism in general. This atlas has not verified the book's publisher against the physical edition used, which is recorded honestly here rather than guessed at. This record has also not independently traced a documented history of scholarly disagreement with Gethin's specific readings. Use it for established facts about Buddhist doctrine across schools; a claim specific to one school's own internal teaching may need a source dedicated to that school.

Facts

Citation

Author

Rupert Gethin

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Publication Year

1998

URL

https://archive.org/details/foundationsofbud00rupe

Source Type

academic monograph

Assessment

Reliability Tier

A standard introductory survey of Buddhist doctrine across its major schools, tracing how different schools developed the same foundational teachings differently rather than presenting one school's reading as Buddhism in general.

Notes

Publisher left NULL: not verified. A standard introductory account of doctrine across the schools.

Claims Backed By This Source (438 claims)

This source backs 438 claims across the atlas. As facts: 279 well-attested, 3 scholarly debate, 1 open question. As cited relationships: 57 holds, 1 connected. Plus 97 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.

Disposition By Topic

Doctrines, 164 claims: 94 well-attested, 42 holds, 28 general references.
Deities, 78 claims: 48 well-attested, 30 general references.
Articles, 41 claims: 41 well-attested.
Mantras, 25 claims: 20 well-attested, 2 holds, 3 general references.
Hymns & Liturgical Texts, 22 claims: 20 well-attested, 2 general references.
Beliefs & Restrictions, 18 claims: 14 well-attested, 4 general references.
Rituals, 16 claims: 6 well-attested, 1 scholarly debate, 3 holds, 6 general references.
Vices, 10 claims: 4 well-attested, 2 scholarly debate, 4 general references.
Sources, 8 claims: 8 well-attested.
Open Questions, 7 claims: 5 well-attested, 1 connected, 1 general references.
Denominations, 6 claims: 5 holds, 1 general references.
Holidays & Festivals, 6 claims: 3 holds, 3 general references.
Religious Organization & Structure, 5 claims: 4 well-attested, 1 general references.
Religious Symbols, 5 claims: 3 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.
Sacred Sites, 4 claims: 2 well-attested, 2 general references.
Subcategories, 4 claims: 3 well-attested, 1 general references.
Virtues, 4 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 holds, 2 general references.
Creeds & Confessions, 3 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 open question, 1 general references.
Practices, 3 claims: 1 well-attested, 2 general references.
Religions, 3 claims: 2 well-attested, 1 general references.
Animals & Totems, 2 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 general references.
Plants, 2 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 general references.
Figures, 1 claims: 1 general references.
Religious Roles & Titles, 1 claims: 1 general references.