What is "sutra"

Sutra \Su"tra\, n.; pl. Sutras. [Skr. s?tra a thread, a string of rules; an aphorism; fr. siv to sew.]

1. 1. A precept; an aphorism; a brief rule.

   2. A collection of such aphorisms.

2. pl. A body of Hindoo literature containing aphorisms on grammar, meter, law, and philosophy, and forming a connecting link between the Vedic and later Sanscrit literature.
   --Balfour (Cyc. of India).

in Buddhism, "series of aphorisms" concerning ceremonies, rites, and conduct, 1801, from Sanskrit sutram "rule," literally "string, thread" (as a measure of straightness), from sivyati "sew;" cognate with Latin suere "to sew" (see sew). Applied also to rules of grammar, law, philosophy, etc., along with their commentaries.

n. 1 A rule or thesis in Sanskrit grammar or Hindu law or philosophy. 2 (context Buddhism Hinduism English) A scriptural narrative, especially a discourse of the Buddha.

n. a rule or aphorism in Sanskrit literature or a group of aphoristic doctrinal summaries prepared for memorization

A sutra ( IAST: sūtra ) is a Sanskrit word that means "string, thread". In Indian literary traditions, it also refers to an aphorism or a collection of aphorisms in the form of a manual or, more broadly, a condensed manual or text. sutras are a genre of ancient and medieval Indian texts found in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

In Hinduism, sutra denotes a distinct type of literary composition, a compilation of short aphoristic statements. Each sutra is any short rule, like a theorem distilled into few words or syllables, around which "teachings of ritual, philosophy, grammar or any field of knowledge" can be woven. The oldest sutras of Hinduism are found in the Brahmana and Aranyaka layers of the Vedas. Every school of Hindu philosophy, Vedic guides for rites of passage, various fields of arts, law and social ethics developed respective sutras, which helped teach and transmit ideas from one generation to the next.

In Buddhism, sutra or sutta refers mostly to canonical scriptures, many of which are regarded as records of the oral teachings of Gautama Buddha. The Pali form of the word, sutta, is used exclusively to refer to the scriptures of the early Pali Canon, the only texts recognized by Theravada Buddhism as canonical.

In Jainism, sutra or suya refers to canonical sermons of Mahavira contained in the Jain Agamas and to some later (post-canonical) normative texts.

Sutra was a Serbian daily tabloid. During its short two-month run it was published in Belgrade.

Started on November 27, 2007, Sutra attempted to establish itself on the Serbian saturated daily tabloid market. Around the time of its launch, three more daily tabloids were started in Serbia as well ( Gazeta, Alo!, and Pravda).

With a staff of about 50 permantent employees and contractors, Sutra sold at RSD15 (~ €0.18 at the time) a piece.

Edited and part-owned by Željko Cvijanović, like many other Serbian daily papers, Sutra also had a non-transparent ownership structure. When asked about it on Upitnik programme on RTS in December 2007, Cvijanovic said the newspaper is partly owned by him and partly by an Austrian investment fund. He went on to say that "serious businessmen interested in profit" are behind the fund but didn't want to disclose their names.

The newspaper folded in early February 2008. The February 1st issue was its last.

A Sutra is a kind of text in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Sutra or Sutras may also refer to:

• Scomi SUTRA, the Mumbai monorail system
• Sutra (newspaper), a Serbian newspaper published for two months in 2007
• Sutras (album), a 1996 album by Scottish singer/songwriter Donovan