Saturday, May 14, 2011

Types of Buddhism-ugc


Types of Buddhism-ugc
 1-Hinayana
 (a) Its followers believed in the original teachings of Buddha, (b) They sought individual salvation through self-discipline and meditation. (c) They did not believe in idol-worship, (d) Hinayana, like Jainism, is a religion without God, Karma taking the place of God. (e) Nirvana is regarded as the extinction of all. (f) The oldest school of Hinayana Buddhism is the Sthaviravada (Theravada in Pali) or the ‘Doctrine of the Elders’, (f) Its Sanskrit counterpart, which is more philosophical is known as Sarvastivada or the doctrine which maintains the existence of all things, physical as well as mental, (g) Gradually, from Sarvastivada or Vaibhasika branched oft another school called Sautantrika, which was more critical in outlook.

2-Mahayana
(a) Its followers believed in the heavenliness of Buddha and sought the salvation of all through the grace and help of Buddha and Bodhisatvas. (b) Believes in idolworship,
(c) Believes that Nirvana is not a negative cessation of misery but a positive state of bliss, (d) Mahayana had two chief philosophical schools: the Madhyamika and the Yogachara. (e) The former took a line midway between the uncompromising realism of Hinayanism and the idealism of Yogachara. (f) The Yogachara school founded by Maitreyanatha completely rejected the realism of Hinayana and maintained absolute idealism.
3-Vajrayana
(a) Its followers believed that salvation could be best attained by acquiring the magical power, which they called Vajra. (b) The chief divinities of this new sect were the Taras.
© It became popular in Eastern India, particularly Bengal and Bihar.

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