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Hīnayāna
Hīnayāna (Skt., ‘small vehicle’). A name used by Mahāyāna Buddhists for forms of early Buddhism, which they characterize as defective or preparatory in contrast to themselves, the ‘Great Vehicle’—in particular because they regard adherents of Hīnayāna as being preoccupied, selfishly, with the advancement of their own aggregation of appearance towards the goal of arhat, as opposed to that of bodhisattva. A less aggressive name for the earlier forms of Buddhism is Theravāda, ‘teaching of the elders’, but this strictly is inaccurate, since Theravāda is the name of one particular school belonging to the Sthavira group, itself one of the two parties into which early Buddhism split at the 3rd Council (see COUNCILS (BUDDHIST)) of Pātaliputra. An alternative name is ‘Pāli school’, because early Buddhism rested on the Pāli canon. More accurate, but unlikely to displace Theravāda, is Śrāvakayāna, the vehicle of the disciple (i.e. who seeks to become arhat, not buddha, or who ‘hears’, śrāvaka, in the mode of personal disciple).
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JOHN BOWKER. "Hīnayāna." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN BOWKER. "Hīnayāna." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Hnayna.html JOHN BOWKER. "Hīnayāna." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Hnayna.html |
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Hīnayāna
Hīnayāna (Skt., lesser vehicle). A collective name used disparagingly by Mahāyāna Buddhists for the schools of early Buddhism which preceded the Mahāyāna or ‘great vehicle’. In the eyes of the Mahāyāna, these schools were inferior because their followers were preoccupied selfishly with their own salvation and the advancement towards the goal of becoming an Arhat, as opposed to that of Bodhisattva who strives for the salvation of all beings. A more accurate but less familiar name for forms of early Buddhism is Śrāvakayāna, or the ‘Vehicle of the Hearers’.
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Cite this article
DAMIEN KEOWN. "Hīnayāna." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DAMIEN KEOWN. "Hīnayāna." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-Hnayna.html DAMIEN KEOWN. "Hīnayāna." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-Hnayna.html |
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Hinayana
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Cite this article
ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Hinayana." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Hinayana." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Hinayana.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Hinayana." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Hinayana.html |
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