What were the wedge issues that caused the splits that created the early Buddhist sects?

[prajnadeva]

First you should read Sect and Sectarianism by bhikkhu Sujato
(Google it!)

Next this essay

Bechert on the So-called “Schism Edict”

Note: Accompanying my book Sects & Sectarianism I wrote a series of short articles on related matters. I recently came across these, tidied them up, and present them here for your enjoyment. When writing Sects & Sectarianism, I tried to account for the modern critical assessments of the evidence as best I could. However, since this is a part-time project done amid a busy schedule, it’s difficult to keep up with everything. Just recently I came across an article by Heinz Bechert dealing with A…

Sects & Sectarianism & the Kalyani Sima

A number of years ago I wrote up some research on the history of Buddhist sectarianism. The gist of it was that the various schools of Buddhism extant today all stem from the unified Sangha that spread out originally in the time of Ashoka. Contrary to the popular view that the schools arose from schism, the three monastic lineages of the main schools of Buddhism all stem from this missionary activity: Theravada (= Mahavihara), Mahinda Dharmaguptaka (= East Asian), Yonaka Dharmarakkhita. Mulasa…

Is the Sangha currently divided?

This is a complex and interesting question, about which there is much misunderstanding even among scholars and Sangha. I researched this at length while writing Sects & Sectarianism. Among my conclusions: There is a formal definition of “schism” in the Vinaya. To fulfill this legal definition, one must hold a separate recitation of Patimokkha with the intention of creating a schism and harming Buddhism. To my knowledge, this has never happened. I believe the reason is that when Devadatta did …