From the time of early Buddhism to the present, biographies of famous Buddhist monks have been written, and some of these monks have been acclaimed as arahants. In general, three features have distinguished this genre of Buddhist literature. Firstly, they have followed a certain stereotype and are more noted for imitative repetition than creative innovation. Secondly, the biography served a moral, didactic purpose – the story of a saint was told not for its own sake but to edify and chasten the reader and listener. Thirdly, the expectations of a saint consist not only in his living in the most exemplary and pious fashion, but also in his performing miraculous feats, in his blessing the unfortunate and making them prosper, in his healing the sick in mind and body, in his astrological foretelling of the future, and in his giving varied signs and expressions of his holiness and compassion (mettā). Considered as a literary device and work of art, a hagiographical work is not complete without anecdotes of supramundane and transcendental powers, for without such signs of achievement a saint is not a saint, merely a virtuous man.

Now we should not credit these features only to Buddhist hagiography. Much the same could be said with few modifications of medieval Christian biographies (and perhaps analogies can be found in other religious traditions as well). For instance, biography formed an important part of the literature of medieval England, and the biographies of the Latin saints achieved maturity in form and expression.