twelve divisions of the scriptures ［十二部経］ ( jūnibu-kyō): Also, twelve divisions of the teachings. A classification of Shakyamuni Buddha’s teachings according to their content and style of presentation. The term “twelve divisions of the scriptures” is often used in the same sense as “the eighty thousand teachings,” indicating the entire body of the Buddha’s teachings. The twelve divisions of the scriptures are as follows: (1) sūtra, teachings in prose; (2) geya, restatements of sūtra in verse; (3) vyākarana, the Buddha’s predictions of the enlightenment of disciples; (4) gāthā, teachings set forth by the Buddha in verse; (5) udāna, teachings preached by the Buddha spontaneously without request or query from his disciples; (6) nidāna, descriptions of the purpose, cause, and occasion of propounding teachings and rules of monastic discipline; (7) avadāna, tales of previous lives of persons other than the Buddha; (8) itivrittaka, discourses beginning with the words “Thus the World-Honored One said” (according to another definition, stories that describe previous lives of the Buddha’s disciples and bodhisattvas); (9) jātaka, stories of the Buddha’s previous lives; (10) vaipulya, expansion of doctrine; (11) adbhutadharma, descriptions of marvelous events that concern the Buddha or his disciples (also applied to descriptions that praise the great merit and power of the Buddha and his disciples); and (12) upadesha, discourses on the Buddha’s teachings. There are also various lists of nine divisions from among these twelve.