Hinayana
Proper noun 1. A historical term for a major school of Buddhism: Hinayana is a term used to refer to early schools of Buddhism, particularly the Theravada tradition, which emphasizes personal spiritual liberation through one's own disciplined effort and adherence to the original teachings of the Buddha. The term itself is considered polemical and is often avoided in modern academic and inter-Buddhist dialogue due to its pejorative connotations.
The term is primarily used in historical and comparative religious studies to discuss the development of Buddhist schools. It is crucial to use it with awareness of its contentious nature. * Scholars often note that Hinayana doctrines focus on the path of the arhat, an individual who achieves nirvana. * The Hinayana tradition preserved the Pali Canon as its authoritative scripture.
- In Scholarly Context: When used academically, the term is typically placed in quotation marks or accompanied by a disclaimer explaining its problematic history, as it literally means "the Lesser Vehicle," a label applied by later Mahayana ("Great Vehicle") Buddhists.
- The so-called 'Hinayana' schools maintained a strict monastic discipline.
- Theravada (n): The school of Buddhism surviving in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, which is the tradition most commonly, though inaccurately, identified with the term Hinayana in modern times. Theravada means "the Teaching of the Elders."
- Mahayana (n): The later Buddhist tradition that developed the term Hinayana to contrast its own broader soteriological aims.
- Arhat (n): In Theravada and related early schools, an arhat is a "worthy one" who has attained nirvana.
- Early Buddhism (neutral, descriptive)
- Theravada Buddhism (specific, contemporary term for the surviving school)
- Nikaya Buddhism (academic term for the early, non-Mahayana schools)
The term carries two primary layers of meaning: 1. Historical/Doctrinal Meaning: Refers to the early Buddhist schools that emphasized individual liberation, monastic rigor, and the original teachings as preserved in the Pali Canon. 2. Polemical Meaning: As used within certain Mahayana texts, it is a derogatory label implying a "lesser" or "inferior" spiritual path compared to the Mahayana ideal of the bodhisattva, who seeks enlightenment for all beings. For this reason, it is considered offensive and is generally not used by adherents of Theravada Buddhism.
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an offensive name for the early conservative Theravada Buddhism; it died out in India but survived in Sri Lanka and was taken from there to other regions of southwestern Asia
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a major school of Buddhism teaching personal salvation through one's own efforts
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