Question: I asked this question earlier: [What "religions" did previous Buddhas practice?](https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/11241/what-religions-did-previous-buddhas-practice/11244)

Now I'm wondering if any teachings from earlier (or later) Buddhas have been passed down to our time. And if not, why?

Answer: 
Yes, the historical Buddha is said to have related teachings of other Buddhas; one that stands out is the [Amagandha Sutta](http://www.softerviews.org/AIM/amagandha.html), which relates the teaching of Kassapa Buddha. Another is MN 81, which relates some aspects of Kassapa Buddha's life, and some words of Kassapa Buddha:

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> “The king thought: ‘The Blessed One Kassapa, [51] accomplished and fully enlightened, does not accept from me a residence for the Rains in Benares,’ and he was very disappointed and sad.
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> “Then he said: ‘Venerable sir, have you a better supporter than I am?’—‘I have, great king. There is a market town called Vebhalinga where a potter named Ghaṭīkāra lives. He is my supporter, my chief supporter. Now you, great king, thought: “The Blessed One Kassapa, accomplished and fully enlightened, does not accept from me a residence for the Rains in Benares,” and you were very disappointed and sad; but the potter Ghaṭīkāra is not and will not be so. The potter Ghaṭīkāra has gone for refuge to the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha. He abstains from killing living beings, from taking what is not given, from misconduct in sensual pleasures, from false speech, and from wine, liquor, and intoxicants, which are the basis of negligence. He has unwavering confidence in the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha, and he possesses the virtues loved by noble ones. He is free from doubt about suffering, about the origin of suffering, about the cessation of suffering, and about the way leading to the cessation of suffering. He eats only one meal a day, he observes celibacy, he is virtuous, of good character. He has laid aside gems and gold, he has given up gold and silver. He does not dig the ground for clay with a pick or with his own hands; what has broken off riverbanks or is thrown up by rats, he brings home in a carrier; when he has made a pot he says: “Let anyone who likes set down some selected rice or selected beans or selected lentils, and let him take away whatever he likes. He supports his blind and aged parents. Having destroyed the five lower fetters, he is one who will reappear spontaneously [in the Pure Abodes] and there attain final Nibbāna without ever returning from that world.
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> (*from Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, Bodhi, trans*)
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There are probably others I can't think of off-hand, but they all would have to have come from the current Buddha, since the interval between Buddhas is invariably so vast as to not allow for any trace of the previous Buddha's teachings to remain.

(*This all from a Theravada Buddhist POV*)
The Buddhavamsa (a very late addition to the Pali canon) gives accounts of the 24 previous Buddhas. For each of the past 24 Buddhas, it describes the "three occasions of the Buddha's teaching".

They all started by teaching the same sutta (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta) this is always the first occasion of a Buddha's teaching.

The second and third occasions of a Buddha's teachings vary according to the Buddha involved. For nine of the 24 previous Buddhas, the second occasion was going to Tāvatiṃsa heaven to teach the Abhidhamma.

Some of the previous Buddhas also taught suttas such as the Mangala Sutta.