2023 FIFA WWC: Round of Sixteen!

After an amazing couple of weeks the 2023 FIFA Women’s World (soccer) Championship has been an incredible experience, with a lot of great and shocking moments. Not only did Brazilian superstar Marta daSilva (aka MARTA) not score a goal during the tournament, but Sarina Bolden scored The Philippines’ first ever World Cup goal!! A wonderful little header off of a corner kick, New Zealand’s goaltender could not control it as it practically bounced off and back away from her face after it had flown through a gap in her arms. The Philippines held on, and in a stunning 1- 0 upset achieved their first ever World Cup win. Pagbati !!!

And not only did Panama’s Marta Cox score her country’s first ever World Cup goal with a gorgeous bender, Colombia’s Linda Caicedo – a survivor of ovarian cancer she was diagnosed with at age 15 (!!) – has become the first person to play in the U-17, U-20, and FIFA World Cups within a single year (!!) (and scored a goal in Colombia’s 2 – 0 victory over South Korea).

Most unbelievable though is not only did Sinclair or Marta not score the record-breaking goal… but Canada, superteam Brazil, and world number two GERMANY are out of the competition (!!!), with Brazil being taken out by Jamaica, the first Caribbean team to ever go beyond group play. Meanwhile, thanks to the stats, MOROCCO (No. 77 in the world) are through to the Round of Sixteen in their first World Cup ever. The women are putting on an incredible show, and who knows what magic is going to occur in the upcoming Round of Sixteen.

As it stands the following games are set:

A Side: Switzerland vs. Spain, The Netherlands vs. South Africa, Japan vs. Norway, and Sweden vs. the USA in what could be an epic game.

B Side: England vs. Nigeria, Columbia vs. Jamaica (aka The Reggae Girls), host Australia vs. Denmark, and France vs. history making Morocco.

I predict Spain with a big victory over the Swiss and The Netherlands going past South Africa to meet each other in the Quarter Final, with The Netherlands going past everyone else in their on the way to the Final. This means that Japan goes past Norway while Sweden somehow beats the USA (who themselves are looking for their third Championship in a row). It seems unlikely, but I have a feeling the USA will be so busy attacking they may leave some defensive gaps that Sweden could exploit. Sweden has beat them in the past, so the USA can’t let a lot of time pass without getting those goals happening. Japan meets Sweden (maybe?), and goes on to meet The Netherlands.

Meanwhile England beats Nigeria (though Nigeria is definitely a contender if they play their own style of game), Jamaica goes past Columbia and eventually England. Australia and France win their games meaning France goes past Australia to meet Jamaica, and eventually on to the Final against The Netherlands. Finally, The Netherlands win the whole thing.

RESULTS:

A-SIDE: Spain, The Netherlands, and Japan win. Spain thus meets The Netherlands in the Quarter Final. Sweden and the USA go to a Penalty Shoot-Out, and after five shots each SWEDEN wins (after the US goalie stopped the ball, but it was over the line when she did). So it’s Japan vs. Sweden in the Quarter Final.

B-SIDE: England stays drawn with Nigeria 0 – 0 with an English player (Lauren James) being red-carded (sent off the field) for stomping on the back of a Nigerian player at the 86th minute. So England then resumes with 10 players against Nigeria’s standard eleven. The game went to a Penalty Shoot-Out, with England going through. It was a great game for Nigeria, as they fought hard to keep the score even for so long. Australia and Denmark were then up right afterward, with Australia winning 2 – 0. A beautiful moment occurred when Australian star Samantha Kerr finally came onto the pitch, and the crowd of more than 75,000 people (!!) stood and roared with approval. Kerr is widely considered to be the reason or motivation for Australia (and New Zealand) getting the chance to host this competition, guaranteeing completely packed stadiums, and the drama surrounding whether she would be able to come back from injury and play.

Now England will play Colombia, who went past Jamaica (and become the second South American team to ever make it to the Quarter Finals… and Australia will play France. Meanwhile, Spain went past The Netherlands 2 – 1, and Sweden went past Japan with a 2 – 1 score as well… so as always my predictions are fairly incorrect.

2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup

Well folks it is finally off and running… the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Championship (soccer), being held this year in both Australia and New Zealand. Though the men’s championship is the largest and arguably the most prestigious sporting event in the world, the women’s championship series is equally as important and exciting, if one comes to understand the key players and how the game is developing globally.

For example, both Brazil’s legendary Marta and Canada’s Christine Sinclair are looking to become the the first person ever (male or female) to score a goal in six World Cups. Sinclair failed to do so in Canada’s opening game against Nigeria, so Marta has a golden chance today in her game against Panama in a few hours. And before that game happens Germany will be playing Morocco, the first North African team to appear in the WWC (which will feature defender Nouhaila Benzina, the first woman ever to wear a hijab at the tournament). All teams will be competing to take the winner’s trophy from the USA, who themselves are looking to win an incredible three World Championships in a row!

The competition also includes newcomers Viet Nam, who put on a great defensive performance against world champions USA… including a great stop by their goaltender Trần Thị Kim Thanh against American and international superstar Alex Morgan. Viet Nam lost the game 3 – 0, which is still a respectable score considering their lack of international experience. People were expecting a rout much like the USA’s 13 – 0 defeat of Thailand a few years back, but Viet Nam held the USA to 3, which took an incredible and valiant effort on their part. That is the beauty of soccer; even a losing match can be an epic display of greatness.

So if you are not a soccer fan, tune in to the 2023 Women’s World Cup anyways, and get to know the players and what is at stake for each team. It is a great game played by great people, and worth every second of your time.

Me? I’m cheering for Marta, Germany, Christine Sinclair, Japan, and Canada.

R.I.P. Wayne Shorter (1933 – 2023)

It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that one of my jazz saxophone heroes Wayne Shorter has passed away at the age of 89.

What can be said about about this towering genius that hasn’t already been said a million times before? His modern, plaintive saxophone tone was completely original, many of his compositions are not only standard jazz songs, but the cream of the crop amongst the most legendary standards themselves, e.g. the wistful minor-key waltz “Footprints.”

I had the chance to sit down one-on-one with Wayne for a couple of hours many years ago, and our conversation was so incredibly uplifting to me as fellow saxophonist, gleaning treasures from the mind of a transcendental jazz master. His improvising, composing, all that he did, was like no other, and his passing marks the end of a significant era of jazz saxophone playing.

Now that both front men from the iconic late 1960s Miles Davis jazz quintet are gone we can be extra-thankful that we were around to see or hear that music in the first place, with our beloved Wayne Shorter recordings at our side to carry us through this sad moment.

R.I.P. Wayne… and thank you from the deepest part my soul for all the beauty you brought…

JEFF BECK (1944 – 2023)

It is with great sadness that I announce to you all the passing of iconic rock guitarist Jeff Beck. Though he was famous enough in his own right as a member of The Yardbirds, it was his work as a solo artist that cemented his status as a highly inventive, completely inimitable master of rock guitar playing.

This talent of his for playing music in surprising ways earned him millions of fans amongst musicians of all kinds; anyone who took any kind of music seriously enough to study and perform it as a living. The way he would make his Fender Stratocaster warble and cry was miraculous, and could break your heart or make you fall in love from moment to moment.

I can’t count the number of times I sat on the night train home from Kyoto to Osaka, Japan watching the moon shine down on the rice paddies and huge neon signs as Jeff Beck’s wordless guitar “poetry” played in my Sony Discman. Or lying in the darkness having my heart broken by his plaintive tone on “The Ballad of Bill Hubbard” off of Roger Waters’ album Amused To Death.

Well, here I am again with my heart broken, mourning the loss of one of the world’s greatest musicians ever… may he truly and completely Rest In Peace.

FIFA World Cup Predictions: Part IV

Well, here we are. The Big Day we have all been waiting for.

In the Semi-Final between Argentina vs. Croatia it was Lionel Messi scoring on a penalty and Alvarez scoring on a fantastic half-field run to make it 2 – 0 for Argentina by Half Time. At 70 mins. Messi went through the Croatian defense like a hot knife through butter, passes, and Alvarez scored again to win the game 3 – 0. In the other Semi-Final it was France keeping the ball away from Morocco for most of the game, and easily winning the game 2 – 0 in regulation time. This meant that Morocco would play Croatia for 3rd place yesterday, with Croatia winning 2 – 1 in Regulation time.

So France will meet Argentina in 5 hours time in what will most likely be Lionel Messi’s last World Cup game. This is a big moment for many reasons, the least of which is that he has never won a World Cup with/for Argentina, the final jewel in his crown. Standing in his way though is a French team filled with superstars like Oliver Giroud and Kylian Mbappe, his rival for both the tournament’s Top Player and Top Scorer awards.

I predicted that France would be in the Final, but not Argentina. But still, as much as I love Lionel Messi and would love to see him win, the French have too much firepower to be stopped, unless Argentina plays superb soccer as a unified team and does not rely on Messi (or Julian Alvarez) alone to save the day.

Thus I predict Messi and/or Alvarez will get two goals, but France will get 3 or more and win their second World Championship in a row.

RESULT: After goals by both Messi, Mbappe, and others the game goes into the 2nd Half of Extra Time with the score tied at 2 each. Incredible suspense… what will happen next. A World Cup FInal with Messi’s legacy in play… what will happen next? Messi gets the go ahead goal, then Mbappe scores on a penalty to tie it 3 – 3 with 3 minutes left in stoppage time. The game goes to penalties and… ARGENTINA WINS!! Lionel Messi is SAINT LIONEL now for sure in Argentina…. even though Mbappe scored a hat trick that should have ended Argentina’s hopes.

This is clearly the greatest World Cup Final ever, and I’ll say the greatest of all time. Incredible game… Congratulations, Argentina!!

FIFA World Cup Predictions: Part III

Well, what a round of Quarter Finals we had!

1). After Extra Time a Brazilian player hits the post on the goal needed to stay in the shoot-out (i.e. tournament), and Croatia wins the game.

2). With seconds left in regulation time, the Netherlands pull off a stunning, rolling free kick to tie the score 2 – 2, and we go to a shoot-out. Argentina wins with a beautiful little tip-in…

3). Morocco scores on a redirected header in the 1st Half and, down to 10 men in the remaining few minutes of the game, holds on to beat Ronaldo and Portuguese in what is a beyond-stunning upset. This is the first time an African nation and/or Arabic-speaking nation has gone that far in the World Cup, and if you had told the experts at the beginning of the tournament that this would be the case they would have laughed and thought you were insane, considering the talent of Ronaldo, Messi, and others. A great moment for North Africa and the western part of the Middle-East.

4). Predictably, France wins over England with a score of 2 – 1.

This means that Argentina will face Croatia, while Morocco (!!) goes on to face France. Thus I predict as I always have that it is once again France and Croatia meeting in the Final (as they did in 2018), and France repeats as World Champions. But still… Morocco may play spoiler and deliver another game of the Millennium. Whatever Morocco is doing to keep up this unbelievable run should be bottled and sold for a million dollars each.

The Semi-Finals start Tuesday, December 13th with Argentina facing Croatia, and France meeting Morocco on the 14th.

2022 FIFA World Cup Predictions II

Well, my Round of 16 Predictions turned out to be fairly solid, with one shocking upset that no one in the world could have predicted. So let’s look forward to the Quarter Finals and see what will happen there:

1). Croatia vs. Brazil: I was really rooting for my beloved Japan to get to the next phase, but at least they took Croatia to a shoot-out before being sent off. I have Croatia going all the way to the Final in my Bracket, so it was as expected. I predicted a once-in-a-lifetime, stunning upset by South Korea over Brazil… but had not counted on Neymar being back on the pitch. His presence and play super-charged the team and Brazil dominated the game, winning 4 – 1 in the process. So now Brazil plays Croatia, and though I have Croatia locked into my bracket, I have a sinking feeling this reinvigorated Brazilian team will spoil my plans.

2). The Netherlands vs. Argentina: these two powerhouse teams were destined to meet, thought both the USA and the Aussies did their best to stop that from happening. Once again, Argentina’s Lionel Messi will step up to the plate and continue being the soccer icon that he is with Argentina winning in regulation time. But this has been a highly unpredictable World Cup at times, so The Netherlands may come out of nowhere and spoil my Bracket…

3). Portugal vs. Morocco: In a stunning upset as shocking as Saudi Arabia’s early tournament win over Argentina, Morocco held Spain scoreless through both regulation and extra time, and their goalkeeper Yassine Bounou (born in Canada) made both some incredible saves and got lucky breaks, resulting in Morocco winning the game! So its Christiano Ronaldo and his squad versus a super-charged Moroccan team. Portugal is one of the tournament favorites to win the championship… but can lightning strike twice and Morocco goes past them as well? I predict a Portuguese win… but am secretly hoping for a repeat of Morocco/Spain. It would arguable be the greatest game in the history of the sport.

4) England vs. France: it was no surprise France went past Poland in style, and now will face England rather than my pick Senegal (whose notorious counterattack was nowhere to be seen). France is stacked with players like Giroud and Mbappe, both record-breakers and master of the sport. So England will have no answer – even with striker Harry Kane in the mix – and France wins this one in regulation time.

This then means that Argentina faces Croatia while Portugal goes on to face France. In the Final it is once again France and Croatia meeting just like they did in 2018, and France repeats as World Champions… but still, Morocco may play spoiler and deliver another game of a lifetime. Whatever Morocco is doing to keep up this unbelievable run should be bottled and sold for a million dollars each!

The Semi-Finals start Tuesday, December 13th.

2022 FIFA World Cup Predictions…

Well, the 2022 FIFA (soccer) World Cup is on, and after some incredible matches we are at the best part now: the instant elimination games where a loss sends the losing team home.

My favorite team (Germany) is out, but my other favorite team (Japan) is in to the Round of Sixteen. There are the usual favorites plus a couple of surprises, so here are my picks for this year.

A – SIDE:

1). The Netherlands vs. the United States: God bless them, but the Americans will not survive this game without their absolute best play. As a Canadian though (i.e. fellow North American) I will be cheering the USA on heartily. Let’s win one for the continent!

2). Argentina vs. Australia: the Aussies are always fun to watch, but are facing off against Argentina’s Lionel Messi, easily one of the greatest strikers (goal-scoring guys) to ever play the game. No doubt they will fight hard, but will just not be able stop Messi & Los Ponderosos Argentinos.

3). England vs. Senegal: this year Senegal was the top team in Africa, and though former world champions England would seem like the likely winner I am going to predict a stunning Senegalese upset. They will be missing their star player due to a red card (one game suspension)… but Senegal’s counter-attack, power, and confidence from their recent wins will give them a real chance. On the other side England is under national pressure to return to being a championship winning team, so nerves and expectations might get to them if they go down a goal or two. Senegal has a chance if their counter-attacks and defense are spot on.

4). France vs. Poland: the French are the current world champions and for a good reason. They score whenever they feel like it, which is often. This won’t be a guaranteed win, but Poland will have to play the best game of their careers to move on.

This means that Argentina will go on to beat The Netherlands, France will beat Senegal (England beat Senegal, so now France will beat England instead), and thus France goes on to beat Argentina to make it into the Final.

B – SIDE:

5). Japan vs. Croatia: I love Japan with all my heart, but you can’t always get what you want. Croatia will just be too much, and dash any hope of Japan moving on to the Quarter Finals.

6). South Korea vs. Brazil: the Republic of South Korea (who made it to the Round of 16 thanks to their statistics (and a stunning win over Portugal!!) will face off against tournament favorites Brazil, who though will most likely be without their injured star Neymar Santos Jr. Historically and on paper it would seem Brazil should handily beat Korea… but I am going to predict Korea pulls off a stunning upset, most likely with a shoot-out at the end. A crazy bet indeed, but no World Cup would be complete without some statistical chaos.

7). Spain vs. Morocco: this one will be straightforward, and most likely uneventful, a two or three goal victory by Spain.

8). Portugal vs. Switzerland: this too should be a straightforward victory by Portugal, considering they have Cristiano Ronaldo, the greatest soccer player to ever play the game, hands down. BUT… considering what happened an hour earlier with Morocco vs. Spain, could we have another miracle in Doha?

This all means that Croatia then goes on to beat Korea, Portugal beats Spain, but then Croatia pulls off a stunning upset over Portugal (highly unlikely but I have a gut feeling…).

In the end it is Croatia and France meeting in the Final, and France becomes the World Champion for the second time in a row. If I had my way it would be Germany winning it all, but goalie Neuer aside, the team is just not up to par these days. Thanks to some unforgettable games though, it is us spectators who have been winning in this year’s Cup.

I would also like to send out a special Thank You to Canada’s team this year. We didn’t do as well as we had hoped, but the guys put in a huge effort, and we finally got our first goal in a World Cup ever. Congratulations, and keep up the hard work!

Classic Religious Texts (Pt. 6): The Bhagavata Purana and Uddhava Gita.

Getting to the the sixth and final part of our series on Indian religious texts, we arrive at a kind of (partial) prequel to works such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata, a narrative history (purana) of the life of Lord Krishna. This is known as the Bhagavata Purana.  

Though it contains many sections, it is Book Ten of this particular purana (compiled by 600 AD) that contains an account of Krishna’s life from childhood to adulthood. The Bhagavata Purana is also (arguably) the most significant source of material for depictions of Krishna in the fine arts, other than the Ramayana. It contains two distinct parts: Krishna’s boyhood antics in Vrndavana (aka Vraj Forest): stealing butter to feed monkeys, frolicking with young maidens, and his eventual activities as an adult fighting demons, courting his many wives, engaging in statesmanship, and so on. 

A key concept in Hinduism, as demonstrated by Krishna in Book Ten, is “lila”, what one might describe as a spontaneous type of “divine frolicking” of the Lord. Vishnu is the maintainer of all that is created, and since he is its master he spends his time joyously playing amongst his creations; the Ultimate Reality becoming the Universe to experience Himself (Vishnu) through Himself (Krishna). Lila has several meanings and thus there are many different interpretations of the word, depending on which school of Hindu philosophy you adhere to. 

Lila is also the joyous interplay between a devotee and what they worship, as symbolized by young Krishna prancing in the woods with a group of young cow-herding maidens (gopis). The gopis love Krishna and swoon for him, demonstrating how the soul should swoon for God. This soul-swooning is the core of Bhakti Yoga, “the path of devotion” (yoga is a term meaning “path”, not solely the physical activity of stretching in a physiospiritual manner). This misuse of such a word is similar to how the word gong-fu (“skill”) got mixed up with wu-shu (martial arts) and thus in the West we call wu-shu “kung fu”. One can have gong-fu in anything; famous Chinese painters are considered to have great gong-fu when it comes to brush control. 

Another key concept is prakrti, the primordial material from which everything is created or evolves; physical matter. It has three qualities (gunas): goodness (sattva), energy (rajas), and inertia (tamas). These gunas are oft-discussed in Hinduism and Indian culture in general. All human positives and negatives are considered to be some mixture of the gunas. One can act with good intention (sattva) and yet their passions make them disorganized (rajas). Or one can be in error (tamas) and yet try not to repeat their mistake (sattva). Better yet, the gunas can be seen as influences: various positive, neutral and negative abstract nouns at play in our psychology. Thus, anyone/everything is ultimately part of the play of gunas on a cosmic level.

The basic core narrative of the overall Bhagavata Purana is as such: demons rule the Universe, having beaten the good deities in a giant cosmic war. Krishna (Vishnu) returns as Truth, figures out how the demons think, makes a peace deal,  then overcomes them, bringing back positive values such as peace, justice, and joy. It is such a glowing account of how wondrous Krishna is that some some argue the actual work itself is an avatar of Vishnu. This work also contains a list of the Vishnu’s various official avatars to date, which include among others:

1. Varaha: the boar that lifted the Earth out of the cosmic ocean.

2. The Buddha.

3. Narasimha: a half man – half lion who came to end religious persecution and restore justice on Earth during ancient history.

4. Kurma: a turtle god who helped the gods and demons churn a particular Ocean Of Milk to obtain an elixir of immortality.

5. Vamana: a dwarf who fooled the demon king Bali into giving him as much land as he could move across in three strides. Once this boon was granted Vamana stepped across all of Heaven and Earth. He then stepped on Bali’s head, sending him down to rule the Underworld. 

6. Matsya: a fish that warns various people about coming events. 

7. Lord Krishna.

A lesser known section of the Bhagavata Purana, one rarely discussed outside of India due to the rarity of English editions, is Book Eleven, known as the Uddhava Gita (which many consider to be a companion piece to the great Bhagavad Gita itself). 

In fact, one of the reasons I wanted to write this particular series for my blog was to introduce you all to the Uddhava Gita, which will both deepen your appreciation for Indian culture, and give you an advantage if you ever chose to pursue post-secondary anthropological study of Indian culture.

As we have discussed, in the Bhagavad Gita warrior Arjuna discussed the nature of reality with his charioteer (Krishna in disguise) Krishna as a great battle is about to commence. A similar discussion occurs in the Uddhava Gita, as an old man named Uddhava turns to Krishna for practical advice on spiritual matters, as Krishna prepares to return to his divine residence. Uddhava has been the friend and counsellor to a living god, thus he wonders how he should live life in Krishna’s absence.

Though it is explained through multiple forms and concepts, a main theme of the Uddhava Gita is, by fixating on Krishna through devotion (bhakti) one achieves unity with him and thus with the undivided nature of the Universe itself, the Ultimate Reality (brahman). In a sense, by completely devoting oneself to the adoration of Krishna, one does not need to divide their mind this way and that, but drop all questions and answers and becomes completely what they are (brahman), without thought of reward. In that state one becomes deeply and truly divine.

Summary:

1. The Bhagavata Purana is the source of much spirituality-based fine art in India.

2. It is most notable for its depiction of young Krishna prancing through the forest playing his flute for the gopis, who personify loving devotion to God.

3. The Uddhava Gita works as a companion to the Bhagavad Gita in enriching the narratives around the religious teachings of Lord Krishna and the concept of devotion (bhakti).

Classic Religious Texts (Pt. 5): The Dhammapada

I hope you are enjoying this excursion into ancient Hindu and/or Indian literature. They are practically the same thing, considering the Hindu influence on so much art, music, dance, religion, and theology over thousands of years in South Asia, and beyond. 

Since we have been discussing the classic texts of India in general, it is essential to turn now to that other major Indian religion that altered the world, one that began with a young prince set on learning the meaning of Life.

This prince (Siddartha) has been living the good life: non-stop feasts, sports, intoxicating drink, and endless frolicking with young women. But the fun ends permanently when one day when he encounters an old man, a sight his father had kept him from seeing in order to not spoil his idyllic, youthful sense of the world around him. On that same day the prince also sees examples of disease and death, and loses his lust for life. It all seems so meaningless: how can Life have any flavour if we all just get sick, old and then die? 

He meets with the sages and they don’t have any answers, so the prince renounces his heritage and sneaks away from the palace on a mission to discover the secret to living with the unpleasant aspects of Life. He speaks and debates with all he meets, and studies with wise men near, finding no satisfactory answer. He even tries extreme fasting bodily austerity, yoga, and meditation,  and still the secret(s) of Life elude him. So one day he sits down under a tree and decided he is not moving until the Universe reveals an answer. The stakes are his very life, in search of the Ultimate Truth.

After some time Siddartha has a sudden flash of insight and discovers the secrets he has been looking for: Suffering is central to being human, craving is what causes that suffering, suffering can thus cease when one lets go of craving, and there are eight proper ways of living that allow a person to let go of various physical and spiritual cravings. These four realizations are known as the Four Noble Truths, and thus Siddartha was now a person of great understanding: a Buddha (“one who is awake”). Since Siddartha was the first one to awake to this knowledge he is the first of the buddhas, “the” Buddha. So having arrived at his objective spiritual goal, he goes back to his kingdom and starts teaching his friends and family what he has learned over the years. 

Soon he is teaching all over India, and establishing forest communities where people can gather and focus their energy on understanding and enacting this new Buddhist way. In fact some Hindus believe that the Buddha was Hindu, i.e. another avatar of Vishnu, such was his impact on humanity and his growing theology of personal experience as grounds for spiritual evolution.

So the Buddha sermonizes and gives talks, and so on, until he gets old and passes away. Now Buddhists are faced with the task of continuing his legacy, but he wrote nothing down. Ancient sages passed down oral traditions, and court scribes kept a written record of things. So eventually Buddhists gathered at four different councils: to sort out, by consensus, what they thought were the Buddha’s authentic dialogues and sayings.If it sounded like something he might have said, it was included the canon, if not, out it went (even if it was something he actually said and no one could fully confirm it). These talks, sermons, and sayings then were gathered into a collection referred to as the Pali Canon (Pali being the language it was eventually written in), passed down orally since the end of the Buddha’s ministry (480 BC), and finally written down in 29 BC. 

The Buddha’s understanding and theology is laid out very much like the Upanishads: organized around themes rather than a strict sequential outline, while adapting stories and language to fit the abilities of the audiences he was addressing. Thus, a sermon to fishermen used fish metaphors, a conversation with a gardener used floral metaphors, and so on. Eventually the Pali Canon was organized into three categories or “baskets” (Tripitaka) of information.

The “Three Baskets” are: the Compilation of Monastic Rules, the Compilation of Discourses, and the Compilation of Philosophy. All of what are considered the Buddha’s teachings are contained in these three baskets. As this is the Tripitaka of the earliest school of Buddhism (Theravada), it is considered the closest thing to an orthodoxy, though later schools developed their own scriptures and such. It has sort of become like the Bible to Catholics, a source document from which something different arose (e.g. Zen Buddhism, in which you hardly ever see reference to the Pali Canon, in favor of later scriptures and commentaries by Zen masters and monks). An example of this is the fact that though the Tripitaka is a huge, multi volume collection, only one small section of it has become a kind of Buddhst “Bible”, a collection of the sayings called the Dhammapada. 

The Dhammapada or “Path of Truth” (disseminated circa 300 BC, transcribed circa 100 BC) is basically an expanded set of useful proverbs for daily life; things you can think about during the day without having to engage in complex philosophy or theology. Because of this, the Dhammapada is considered on the great classics of Indian literature for its ability to summarize the colossal Tripitaka into a form anyone can comprehend and learn from.

Summary:

1. The Pali Canon (Tripitaka) is a huge collection of manuscripts detailing what Buddhist monks decided were the original, authentic saying of Prince Siddartha (the Buddha), who became the great first figure of the Buddhist religion. The Buddha is now considered an iconic teacher, saint, or divine figure, depending on what branch of Buddhism one adheres to. 
2. The Four Noble Truths are the great insights offered to the world by the Buddha, meant to transform or enlighten those who contemplate them. 
3. The Dhammapada is a selection of sayings from the Tripitaka that are hugely popular amongst Buddhists, and general readers alike.