Hīnayāna

From Buddha-Nature
Sanskrit Noun

Hīnayāna

Lesser Vehicle
हीनयान
ཐེག་དམན།
小乘

Basic Meaning

The mainstream teachings and the early schools of Buddhism which primarily taught individual liberation through practice-focused renunciation and monasticism, considered lesser than the later movement of the Greater Vehicle (Mahāyāna), which professed enlightenment for all sentient beings and promoted compassion.

Term Variations
Key Term Hīnayāna
Topic Variation Hīnayāna
Tibetan ཐེག་དམན།  ( thekmen)
Wylie Tibetan Transliteration theg dman  ( thekmen)
Devanagari Sanskrit हीनयान
Romanized Sanskrit hīnayāna
Chinese 小乘
Chinese Pinyin xiǎo chéng
Buddha-nature Site Standard English Lesser Vehicle
Jeffrey Hopkin's English Term Lesser Vehicle
Ives Waldo's English Term lesser/individual vehicle
Term Information
Source Language Sanskrit
Basic Meaning The mainstream teachings and the early schools of Buddhism which primarily taught individual liberation through practice-focused renunciation and monasticism, considered lesser than the later movement of the Greater Vehicle (Mahāyāna), which professed enlightenment for all sentient beings and promoted compassion.
Related Terms nikāya, śravakayāna
Term Type Noun
Definitions
Wikipedia wikipedia:Hinayana