Short answer
No list is agreed. Buddhism's two great branches count different texts as the Buddha's word. Theravada keeps the Pali texts, and Mahayana adds sutras such as the Lotus Sutra. These texts disagree on what the Buddha taught. In the Pali texts he wins awakening at Uruvela, in this life. The Lotus Sutra says that "the truth is" he awoke countless ages ago. In the Pali texts he says of each part of a person, "this is not my self". A Mahayana sutra calls the Buddha-nature in every being the Self. So a reader must choose which "word of the Buddha" to trust. Muslims have one Qur'an. Every Muslim holds the same book of 114 suras. No Muslim group has a rival Qur'an, and Muslims hold no later book that corrects it. The Qur'an asks you to test it.
Full explanation
Two branches, and more than one canon
Buddhism has two great branches. Theravada (the way of the elders) is followed in Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar, and keeps the Pali texts. Mahayana (the great vehicle) is followed in China, Japan, Korea and Tibet, and adds further sutras. Zen and Pure Land are Mahayana schools. The Pali canon has three "baskets": the rules for monks and nuns (Vinaya), the discourses (suttas) and the Abhidhamma, a systematic analysis of the teaching. Near the end of his life the Buddha said that the teaching and training would be the Teacher after him. So the question matters to every Buddhist: which collection holds that teaching? Each school answers with its own canon.
“The teaching and training that I have taught and pointed out for you shall be your Teacher after my passing.”
The Pali texts: awakened at Uruvela
In the Pali Majjhima Nikaya (the Middle Discourses), the Buddha tells his own story. He went forth as a young man and left two teachers. Then he came to Uruvela, sat down to strive, and found what he sought. He says that this was his last rebirth. In the Digha Nikaya (the Long Discourses), he gives a test for any teaching said to come from him. It must fit the discourses and appear in the training. If it does not, "Clearly this is not the word of the Buddha".
“I set out to discover what is skillful, seeking the supreme state of sublime peace. Traveling stage by stage in the Magadhan lands, I arrived at the town of Senā in Uruvelā.”
“Knowledge and vision arose in me: ‘My freedom is unshakable; this is my last rebirth; now there’ll be no more future lives.’”
“You should neither approve nor reject that mendicant’s statement. Instead, having carefully memorized those words and phrases, you should make sure they fit in the discourse and are exhibited in the training. If they do not fit in the discourse and are not exhibited in the training, you should draw the conclusion: ‘Clearly this is not the word of the Buddha. It has been incorrectly memorized by that mendicant.’ And so you should discard it.”
The Lotus Sutra: skilful means, and awakening ages ago
The Lotus Sutra is among the most honoured Mahayana sutras in China and Japan. In it the Buddha says he teaches by "hundred thousands of various skilful means": ways of teaching suited to each hearer. He says there is only one vehicle (a vehicle is a path to awakening), the Buddha-vehicle, and "no second vehicle, nor a third". In the parable of the burning house, he says he told no falsehood when "by an able device" he first held out three vehicles. In chapter XV he says the world believes he reached awakening at the town of Gaya, near which Uruvela lies. But "the truth is", he says, that he reached it countless ages ago. The Lotus Sutra is a Mahayana text; the Pali canon does not contain it.
“It is difficult to understand the exposition of the mystery of the Tathagata, Sariputra; for in elucidating the law, Sariputra, I use hundred thousands of various skilful means, such as different interpretations, indications, explanations, illustrations.”
“By means of one sole vehicle, to wit, the Buddha-vehicle, Sariputra, do I teach creatures the law; there is no second vehicle, nor a third.”
“so, too, Sariputra, the Tathagata, the Arhat, &c., tells no falsehood when by an able device he first holds forth three vehicles and afterwards leads all to complete Nirvana by the one great vehicle.”
“Now has the Lord Sakyamuni, after going out from the home of the Sakyas, arrived at supreme, perfect enlightenment, on the summit of the terrace of enlightenment at the town of Gaya. But, young men of good family, the truth is that many hundred thousand myriads of kotis of Æons ago I have arrived at supreme, perfect enlightenment.”
Both cannot be the Buddha's last word
Set the two side by side. In the Pali texts the Buddha sought awakening at Uruvela and found it there, and that life was his last rebirth. The Lotus Sutra says the world believes he awoke at Gaya, but "the truth is" he awoke countless ages ago. By the Pali test, a teaching that does not fit the discourses is "not the word of the Buddha". So each text rules out the other's account of when he awoke. The self is a second case. In the Pali texts the Buddha says of each part of a person, "this is not my self". The Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra calls the Buddha-nature (what makes every being able to become a Buddha) the Self. It counts it an error to see not-Self where there is Self. Both cannot be the Buddha's last word on the self. So a reader must choose which "word of the Buddha" to trust.
“I set out to discover what is skillful, seeking the supreme state of sublime peace. Traveling stage by stage in the Magadhan lands, I arrived at the town of Senā in Uruvelā.”
“Knowledge and vision arose in me: ‘My freedom is unshakable; this is my last rebirth; now there’ll be no more future lives.’”
“Now has the Lord Sakyamuni, after going out from the home of the Sakyas, arrived at supreme, perfect enlightenment, on the summit of the terrace of enlightenment at the town of Gaya. But, young men of good family, the truth is that many hundred thousand myriads of kotis of Æons ago I have arrived at supreme, perfect enlightenment.”
“You should neither approve nor reject that mendicant’s statement. Instead, having carefully memorized those words and phrases, you should make sure they fit in the discourse and are exhibited in the training. If they do not fit in the discourse and are not exhibited in the training, you should draw the conclusion: ‘Clearly this is not the word of the Buddha. It has been incorrectly memorized by that mendicant.’ And so you should discard it.”
“This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.”
Williams writes that the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra (not the Pali sutta of the same name) says directly that the Buddha-nature in every being is the Self. It teaches a really existing, permanent element in beings, and it self-consciously modifies or criticises the not-Self traditions of Buddhism, at least in how they put it. It counts it an error to see not-Self where there is Self. Elsewhere in the same long sutra, he notes, the Self is presented as skilful means, a way of speaking used to win over others.
One Qur'an for every Muslim
Islam's claim here is narrow, and anyone can check it. Every Muslim holds the same Qur'an, a book of 114 suras (chapters). No Muslim group has a rival Qur'an. Muslims hold no later book that claims to correct it or to replace it. The Qur'an also says plainly what it is. It is "sent down by One Full of Wisdom, Worthy of all Praise", and the Prophet (ﷺ) did not speak it from his own desire. God (﷾) promised to guard it. How it was kept from the first day is set out on the page "How was the Qur'an preserved?".
“No falsehood can approach it from before or behind it: It is sent down by One Full of Wisdom, Worthy of all Praise.”
“Nor does he say (aught) of (his own) Desire. It is no less than inspiration sent down to him:”
“We have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption).”
A book that asks to be tested
The Qur'an does not ask to be taken on trust. It says that a book from anyone but God (﷾) would hold "Much discrepancy", and it asks readers to look. It challenges anyone in doubt to produce one sura like it. The Buddhist schools leave a reader to choose between texts that disagree. The Qur'an is one book for every Muslim, and it stakes itself on this test. Muhammad (ﷺ) was sent to all people, and he is the last of the prophets. Read the Qur'an, test it, and ask whether it is the word of God (﷾).
“Do they not consider the Qur'an (with care)? Had it been from other Than Allah, they would surely have found therein Much discrepancy.”
“And if ye are in doubt as to what We have revealed from time to time to Our servant, then produce a Sura like thereunto; and call your witnesses or helpers (If there are any) besides Allah, if your (doubts) are true.”
“Say: "O men! I am sent unto you all, as the Messenger of Allah, to Whom belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth: there is no god but He: it is He That giveth both life and death. So believe in Allah and His Messenger, the Unlettered Prophet, who believeth in Allah and His words: follow him that (so) ye may be guided."”
“Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Messenger of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets: and Allah has full knowledge of all things.”
Seven replies answered
Saddharma-pundarika (Lotus Sutra) 3 — chapter III (A Parable), p. 82
“so, too, Sariputra, the Tathagata, the Arhat, &c., tells no falsehood when by an able device he first holds forth three vehicles and afterwards leads all to complete Nirvana by the one great vehicle.”
Cited for
The Buddha taught by skilful means. He gave each hearer what he could bear, so the Pali texts and the Lotus Sutra do not really disagree.
The response
Teaching each hearer at his own level is not the problem. The problem is that the two texts give two accounts of the same event. In the Pali texts the Buddha sought awakening at Uruvela and found it, and that life was his last rebirth. The Lotus Sutra says the world believes he awoke at Gaya, but "the truth is" he awoke countless ages ago. That is a different account of who the Buddha is, not a different level of the same account. The Qur'an asks to be searched for discrepancy (4:82).
Where it lands — Skilful means can explain a change of method. It cannot make two accounts of when the Buddha awoke both true.
Mahayana Buddhism (2nd ed., 2009)
Williams writes that the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra (not the Pali sutta of the same name) says directly that the Buddha-nature in every being is the Self. It teaches a really existing, permanent element in beings, and it self-consciously modifies or criticises the not-Self traditions of Buddhism, at least in how they put it. It counts it an error to see not-Self where there is Self. Elsewhere in the same long sutra, he notes, the Self is presented as skilful means, a way of speaking used to win over others.
Cited for
Not-self and the Buddha-nature as Self are both true, at different levels. The Pali texts give the lower level, and the Mahayana gives the higher.
The response
The Mahaparinirvana Sutra does not only add a higher level. Williams writes that it self-consciously modifies or criticises the not-Self teaching, and that it counts it an error to see not-Self where there is Self. The Pali Buddha tells his first disciples to see each part of a person as "not my self". One calls the other's view an error. They cannot both be the Buddha's last word on the self.
Where it lands — One counts the other's teaching on the self an error, so a reader still has to choose which is the Buddha's.
"Japanese Zen Buddhist Philosophy", Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (rev. 2024)
Nagatomo writes that the Rinzai Zen school sums up its training in four mottoes. They are: a special transmission outside the scriptures; no dependence on words and letters; pointing directly at the human mind; and seeing into one's nature to become a Buddha. He reads the first two as pointing to a reality beyond words that opens up in meditation.
Cited for
Zen is a special transmission outside the scriptures. The Buddha's mind passes from master to student, so the question of texts does not matter.
The response
By its own description, what Zen passes on lies outside the scriptures and does not depend on words. So it cannot be checked against what the Buddha said. In the Pali texts the Buddha left the teaching and training as the Teacher after him. The Qur'an is words, written and recited, which anyone can open and search for discrepancy (4:82).
Where it lands — What cannot be checked against the Buddha's words cannot show that it is his teaching.
Digha Nikaya 16 — Long Discourses, discourse 16 (The Great Discourse on the Final Extinguishment), segments 4.8.4-4.8.9
“You should neither approve nor reject that mendicant’s statement. Instead, having carefully memorized those words and phrases, you should make sure they fit in the discourse and are exhibited in the training. If they do not fit in the discourse and are not exhibited in the training, you should draw the conclusion: ‘Clearly this is not the word of the Buddha. It has been incorrectly memorized by that mendicant.’ And so you should discard it.”
Cited for
The Pali canon is the real Buddha. His four great references test every other teaching against it, and the Mahayana sutras fail.
The response
The test does rule out the Lotus Sutra's account of an awakening countless ages ago. But the Mahayana schools still count the Lotus Sutra and the Mahaparinirvana Sutra as the Buddha's word. So Buddhists do not share one answer. A Theravada reader trusts one canon and a Mahayana reader another. The two disagree on when the Buddha awoke and on the self. The Qur'an is the same book for every Muslim, and it asks to be tested (4:82).
Where it lands — The Pali answer is one school's answer, so a reader still has to choose which "word of the Buddha" to trust.
Samyutta Nikaya 22.59 — Linked Discourses, discourse 59 (The Characteristic of Not-Self)
“This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.”
Cited for
The early schools share the discourses. Those are the core, so the core of the Buddha's word is known.
The response
This page does not argue from differences between the schools' discourse collections. It argues from what the Mahayana schools also count as the Buddha's word: the Lotus Sutra and the Mahaparinirvana Sutra. They disagree with the discourses on who the Buddha is and on the self. Neither is a side issue.
Where it lands — Whatever the schools share, they still disagree on who the Buddha is and on the self, so a reader has to choose.
Qur'an 2:106 — Surat al-Baqara (The Cow), verse 106
“None of Our revelations do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, but We substitute something better or similar: Knowest thou not that Allah Hath power over all things?”
Cited for
Islam also has later verses that replace earlier ones (2:106). That is skilful means too.
The response
Abrogation concerns rulings, never facts. God (﷾) replaced one ruling with another, such as the direction of prayer. The Prophet (ﷺ) made it known while the revelation was still coming down. Nothing the Qur'an says about God (﷾), the prophets or the life to come was ever contradicted. The Qur'an says God (﷾) knows best what He reveals. The Lotus Sutra gives a different account of the Buddha himself, and of when he awoke. The page "When God replaced a ruling in the Qur'an, did He change His mind?" takes this up.
Where it lands — Abrogation changed rulings while the revelation was still coming down. It never changed what the Qur'an says is true.
Qur'an 15:9 — Surat al-Hijr (The Rock), verse 9
“We have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption).”
Cited for
Muslims have more than the Qur'an. Their hadith report what the Prophet (ﷺ) said, much as our suttas report what the Buddha said.
The response
Muslims do not count any hadith as the Qur'an. A hadith is a report about the Prophet (ﷺ), not the word of God (﷾) recited as scripture. The page "How is the Qur'an different from the Prophet's (ﷺ) own words (hadith)?" explains the difference. The Buddhist question is different. The schools' disagreement reaches the heart of the teaching: who the Buddha is, and whether there is a lasting self. The centre of Islam is the Qur'an, and it is the same for every Muslim. That is the book this page asks you to test.
Where it lands — The book Muslims hold to be God's (﷾) word is one and shared by all, and it invites the test (4:82).
Perspectives
Theravada: the Pali canon
Theravada Buddhists hold that the Pali canon keeps the Buddha's word. Any other teaching must be tested against it, as the Buddha taught in the four great references.
The Buddha gave a test for any teaching said to be his: it must fit the discourses and appear in the training (Digha Nikaya 16). The Pali canon passes it.
Rebuttal
The Mahayana schools still count the Lotus Sutra and the Mahaparinirvana Sutra as the Buddha's word. These differ from the Pali texts on when he awoke and on the self. Buddhists share no single answer, so a reader must still choose which "word of the Buddha" to trust.
Mahayana: the Lotus Sutra and the later sutras
Mahayana Buddhists hold that the Buddha taught by skilful means, suited to each hearer. The Lotus Sutra reveals the one vehicle, and the earlier teaching was a true preparation for it.
The Buddha used "hundred thousands of various skilful means" (Lotus Sutra II). He told no falsehood when he first held out three vehicles and then led all by the one (III).
Rebuttal
Skilful means can explain why a teacher speaks to each hearer at his own level. It cannot make two accounts of when the Buddha awoke both true. In the Pali texts he found awakening at Uruvela, in his last rebirth. The Lotus Sutra says "the truth is" he awoke countless ages ago. The Qur'an asks to be searched for discrepancy (4:82).
The Pali teaching and the Mahayana sutras are both true, at different levels.
Rebuttal
The Pali Buddha says of each part of a person, "this is not my self". The Mahaparinirvana Sutra calls the Buddha-nature the Self, and counts not seeing it an error. Both cannot be his last word on the self.
Zen: a transmission outside the scriptures
Zen teachers say the heart of the Buddha's teaching passes from master to student, not through texts.
Rinzai Zen sums up its training as "a special transmission outside of the scriptures". It has "no dependence on words and letters".
Rebuttal
By its own description, what Zen passes on lies outside the scriptures and does not depend on words. So it cannot be checked against what the Buddha said. In the Pali texts he left the teaching and training as the Teacher after him. The Qur'an asks to be checked (4:82).
What the texts record
The Pali texts and the Lotus Sutra record different accounts of when the Buddha reached awakening.
In the Pali texts the Buddha reaches awakening at Uruvela and calls it his last rebirth.
In the Lotus Sutra the Buddha says he reached awakening countless ages ago, not at Gaya as the world believes.
The Islamic perspective
The Buddhist schools count different collections as the Buddha's word, and the collections disagree about who he was and what he taught. Every Muslim holds the same Qur'an, which claims to come from God (﷾) and asks to be tested.
The Pali texts and the Lotus Sutra disagree on when the Buddha reached awakening.
The Pali texts and the Mahaparinirvana Sutra disagree on the self.
The Qur'an says it is sent down by God (﷾), and God (﷾) promised to guard it.
The Qur'an invites any reader to search it for discrepancy and to produce one sura like it.
Muhammad (ﷺ) was sent to all people as the last of the prophets.