ABSTRACT
The problems about the events of the first three centuries of Buddhism turn upon two chief points: the records of the first three Councils and the lists of seventeen schools or sects which began to arise in the second century after Buddha's death. The records have no claim to be considered historical accounts. They are legends full of astonishing miracles and impossible anachronisms. Even when the miracles are stripped off we find that the different schools disagree about the most important events.
