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School of the Three Stages

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions | 1997 | | Copyright

School of the Three Stages. A Chinese Buddhist school founded by Hsin-hsing (540–94 CE) during the Sui dynasty (581–618). The three stages were based on the idea that the teachings of the Buddha may be divided into three periods; pure dharma, duration 500 years; counterfeit dharma, duration 1,000 years; decay of the dharma, said to last 10,000 years. Hsin-hsing taught that his age was already the third stage. The school advocated the performance of altruistic deeds and almsgiving. To carry out these deeds, the school relied mainly on the income of the Inexhaustible Treasury established in the Hua-tu Monastery in Ch'ang-an. The income of the Treasury was divided into three portions, one for the repair of the temples and monasteries, one for social welfare, and one for ceremonies to the Buddha. Because the school insisted that it taught the sole formula for salvation during the age of decay, it met with opposition from other schools of Buddhism.

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JOHN BOWKER. "School of the Three Stages." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN BOWKER. "School of the Three Stages." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-SchooloftheThreeStages.html

JOHN BOWKER. "School of the Three Stages." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-SchooloftheThreeStages.html

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