<p>All these are collectively referred as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharma" rel="nofollow">Dhamma</a>.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-13T09:06:44.210Z
And [this page](http://www.insightmeditationcenter.org/books-articles/dhamma-lists) is titled "Dhamma Lists".
ChrisW
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-13T02:50:24.770Z
2016-04-13T02:50:24.770Z
Suminda Sirinath S. Dharmasena
<p>They might be called <em>mātikā</em> (Pali) or <em>mātṛkā</em> (Sanskrit), as defined e.g. <a href="https://books.google.fr/books?id=U4NF8pYxdvIC&amp;lpg=PA124&amp;ots=fcaYf3huAP&amp;dq=buddhism%20matrika%20list&amp;pg=PA124#v=onepage&amp;q=buddhism%20matrika%20list&amp;f=false" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a> or <a href="http://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/matika/index.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a>.</p>

<p>Or this article on <a href="http://imsb.org/prev/buddhalists/index.php" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Buddhist Lists</a> says,</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Towards the close of the Nikaya period, Buddhist literature begins to employ the term matika to signify composite matrices for lists. The careful analysis of these complex lists and their sub-categories becomes the basis and literary characteristic of the third basket of the Pali Canon, the Abhidhamma-pitaka, and of the particular system of thought set out in those texts and their commentaries, i.e., the Abhidhamma.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Andrei has <a href="https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/search?q=matrika">used the word occasionally in his answers</a>.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-14T20:59:27.520Z
2016-04-14T21:08:24.430Z
2017-04-13T12:51:06.307Z
ChrisW
<p>These are mnemonic lists to assist in the bulk memorization of huge dialogs without the help of writing.</p>

<p>Manjushri's mantra (Om A Ra Pa Ca Na Dhih), is suspected of being a mneumonic for a list of items, but the original details are lost to history.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-16T16:14:14.580Z
2016-04-16T16:14:14.580Z
MatthewMartin
<p>I don't know that the term, "instructual term" is the best way to describe what I'm trying to say, but basically, I'm curious as to what things such as "the four noble truths", "the ten factors", "the eightfold path", "the ten worlds", or "the five desires" are called. All that they have in common is that they have a number of parts -as indicated in their title- and then some sort of philosophical name for an abstract idea. Basically, I am justwondering if there is a term that broadly referes to things like what I listed above.</p>

<terminology>
Term for instructual terms
# Term for instructual terms

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-04-13)

I don't know that the term, "instructual term" is the best way to describe what I'm trying to say, but basically, I'm curious as to what things such as "the four noble truths", "the ten factors", "the eightfold path", "the ten worlds", or "the five desires" are called. All that they have in common is that they have a number of parts -as indicated in their title- and then some sort of philosophical name for an abstract idea. Basically, I am justwondering if there is a term that broadly referes to things like what I listed above.

**Tags:** terminology


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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2016-04-13. Score: 1

All these are collectively referred as the [Dhamma](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharma).

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: And [this page](http://www.insightmeditationcenter.org/books-articles/dhamma-lists) is titled "Dhamma Lists".  

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### Answer by username_2 on 2016-04-14. Score: 1

They might be called *mātikā* (Pali) or *mātṛkā* (Sanskrit), as defined e.g. [here](https://books.google.fr/books?id=U4NF8pYxdvIC&lpg=PA124&ots=fcaYf3huAP&dq=buddhism%20matrika%20list&pg=PA124#v=onepage&q=buddhism%20matrika%20list&f=false) or [here](http://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/matika/index.html).

Or this article on [Buddhist Lists](http://imsb.org/prev/buddhalists/index.php) says,

> Towards the close of the Nikaya period, Buddhist literature begins to employ the term matika to signify composite matrices for lists. The careful analysis of these complex lists and their sub-categories becomes the basis and literary characteristic of the third basket of the Pali Canon, the Abhidhamma-pitaka, and of the particular system of thought set out in those texts and their commentaries, i.e., the Abhidhamma.

Andrei has [used the word occasionally in his answers](https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/search?q=matrika).


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### Answer by username_3 on 2016-04-16. Score: 0

These are mnemonic lists to assist in the bulk memorization of huge dialogs without the help of writing.

Manjushri's mantra (Om A Ra Pa Ca Na Dhih), is suspected of being a mneumonic for a list of items, but the original details are lost to history.


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