Theravàda means `the teachings of the elder monks' and is the name of a school of Buddhism that originated in Sri Lanka and now predominates there as well as in Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and other parts of Southeast Asia. The term `theravàda' first occurs in the Majjhima Nikàya where it is used to describe the teachings of âëara Kàlàma, one of the teachers the Buddha studied under before his enlightenment (M.I,164). Theravàda Buddhism is a particular interpretation of the Pàëi Tipiñaka which developed at the Mahàvihàra, the premier monastery in Anuràdhapura, the ancient capital of Sri Lanka, and was finally systemized by Buddhaghosa in the 5th century. Theravàda is generally thought of as a more conservative and monastic-centred approach to the Buddha's teachings.