The Dãgha Nikàya is the first book in the Sutta Piñaka, the second division of the Tipiñaka, the sacred scriptures of Buddhism. Dãgha means `long' and nikàya means `book' or `collection' and this name is used because the 34 discourses or suttas in this book are lengthy Ý the longest being 46 pages in the English translation. Nearly half the discourses in the Dãgha Nikàya take the form of debates or dialogues between the Buddha and others. Some of these debates are very lively and give a fascinating glimpse of how the Buddha used logic, dialectic, reason and gentle persuasion to win people to his point of view. As in most of the other divisions in the Tipiñaka, the discourses in the Dãgha Nikàya do not seem to be arranged in any particular order.
The Long Discourses of the Buddha, trans. by M.Walshe, 1987.