Hinayana
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
hinayana (xiao-sheng, tek pa chung wa): Literally the lesser path or lower path, so called because it holds as its goal the lesser goal of becoming an arhat and not a buddha. It is based on the literal words spoken openly while the Buddha lived in India. This approach emphasizes the first teachings of the Buddha which emphasized the careful examination of the mind and its confusion. This was the first wave of Dharma exported from India that became the dominant form in most of South-east Asia. Only the Theravada School survived which is often known in the West as vipashyana or Insight Meditation.
See; "Theravada Lineage" and "Three Turnings of the Wheel of Dharma."
See; Hinayana Buddhism
