Antecedents of double-entry bookkeeping and Buddhist Temple Accounting

Abstract

This article extends Liyanarachchi (2009) by tracing evidence of Littleton's (1927) seven antecedents of bookkeeping that may have supported the development of Buddhist Temple Accounting (BTA) in ancient Sri Lanka. The article contextualizes the seven antecedents within the socio-economic activities of the time, including the economic significance of Indian Ocean trade. This shows that although Littleton's (1927) antecedents and a vibrant socio-economic setting were present in Sri Lanka, these supported the development of a simple accounting method which did not use double-entry bookkeeping. To explain this anomaly, the article discusses BTA vis-à-vis three other medieval developments of accounting: English manorial accounting, and early partnership and agency accounting in Italy. This shows that when societies experienced a need for accountability they successfully harnessed various capabilities of accounting to meet that need. However, the resulting accounting methods were as divergent as the socio-economic needs that motivated them. The findings support claims that accounting has "a basic core that is timeless" (Mattessich, 1998a: 200) and its development is socio-environment-specific (Perera, 1986(Perera, , 1989, but challenge the view that certain preconditions would lead to double-entry bookkeeping (Littleton, 1927).

A review of accounting research in Australasia

“…Studies included in this category covers a wide range of aspects on accounting history. For instance, a historical perspective on medieval accounting (Liyanarachchi, ), pink accounting (Baldarelli and Del Baldo, ), and accounting change (Black and Edwards, ). Furthermore, there are articles that discusses the future of accounting history research (Fowler and Keeper, ).…”

Accounting and power in the society of Buddhism: An analysis of the income and expenditure reports of Toji Temple, 1427–1532

“…Liyanarachchi (2009) studied the role of accounting and auditing in Sri Lankan Buddhist monasteries from 815 to 1017 AD. Liyanarachchi (2015) developed Liyanarachchi (2009) by tracing evidence of Littleton's (1927) seven antecedents of bookkeeping, which supported the development of Buddhist temple accounting in ancient Sri Lanka.…”

“…1 More specifically, this study considers whether accounting was used to exert power that reinforced religious institutional relationships in the organization. Relatively few studies have explored accounting and religion in non-Christian religious settings (Bisman, 2012;Carmona and Ezzamel, 2006), with exceptions being Liyanarachchi (2009Liyanarachchi ( , 2015. Liyanarachchi (2009) studied the role of accounting and auditing in Sri Lankan Buddhist monasteries from 815 to 1017 AD.…”

Impression management and ancient Ceylonese rulers

“…The country’s strategic geographic location meant that for centuries, ancient Ceylon was an important trading post. Liyanarachchi (2015) argues that the foreign coins found in archaeological digs, coupled with references made to the country by ancient writers including Pliny the Elder, Strabo and Fâ-Hien, provide evidence that traders from the Middle East, Rome and China frequently visited the island (Liyanarachchi, 2015; Willis, 1907).…”

“…In the first study, Liyanarachchi (2009) uses stone inscriptions to provide evidence of the accounting and auditing practices that prevailed in ancient Sri Lanka Buddhist monasteries, and examines the motives for using such practices by a religious institution. A more recent study by Liyanarachchi (2015) traces evidence of Littleton's (1927) seven antecedents of bookkeeping that supported the development of Buddhist temple accounting in ancient Ceylon. Liyanarachchi (2015) provides evidence of how Littleton's (1927) antecedents, coupled with a vibrant socio-economic setting, supported the development of a simple form of accounting.…”