Mahayana

Buddhism
(THE GREAT VEHICLE)
Who is the founder of Buddhism?
The Buddhist tradition is founded on
and inspired by the teachings of
Siddhartha Gautama. He was called
the Buddha and lived in the 4th or 5th
century B.C. in India.
Formed 100 CE
Origin India
Followers 185,000,000
Deity None / pantheon of deities
Sacred Texts Pali, Mahayana Canon
Headquarters None
 Mahayana
One of the two major traditions of
Buddhism, now practiced in a variety of
forms especially in China, Tibet, Japan,
and Korea. The tradition emerged
around the 1st century AD and is
typically concerned with altruistically
oriented spiritual practice as embodied
in the ideal of the BODHISATTVA.
Mahayana Buddhism
(Sanskrit for "Great Vehicle")
Mahayana Buddhism is the primary
form of Buddhism in North Asia and
the Far East, including China, Japan,
Korea, Tibet and Mongolia, and is
thus sometimes known as Northern
Buddhism
Mahayana Buddhism
According to the teachings of
Mahāyāna traditions, "Mahāyāna" also
refers to the path of the
Bodhisattva -seeking complete
enlightenment for the benefit of all
sentient beings, also called
"Bodhisattvayāna", or the
"Bodhisattva Vehicle"
Six Perfections of Mahayana
Buddhism:
Perfection of Giving
Perfection on Behaviour and Discipline
Perfection of Forbearance
Perfection of Vigour and Diligence
Perfection of Meditation
Perfect of Transcendent Wisdom
Avalokiteśvara, the
bodhisattva of
compassion. Ajaṇṭā
Caves, Mahārāṣtra,
India.
Mahayana Buddhism
Samyaksaṃbuddha- "fully
enlightened Buddha". A
bodhisattva who has
accomplished this goal.
A samyaksaṃbuddha can
establish the Dharma and lead
disciples to enlightenment.
Mahayana Buddhism
Mahayana Buddhists teach that
enlightenment can be attained in
a single lifetime, and this can be
accomplished even by a
layperson
Early statue of
the Buddha from
Gandhāra, 1st–
2nd century CE.
Mahayana Buddhism
The most distinctive teaching of the
Mahayana is that the great compassion
that is an inherent component of
enlightenment is manifest in bodhisattvas
(enlightenment beings); these beings
postpone nirvana (final enlightenment) in
order to assist and guide those beings still
suffering in the cycle of rebirths.
Mahayana Buddhism
They employ what the Mahayana calls
"skillful means," which is the ability to
know the particular mental and emotional
capacity of each individual, and to deliver
guidance appropriate to those capacities.
The Mahayana developed a vast pantheon
of bodhisattvas, Buddhas, and other
powerful beings, and an complex array of
devotional and meditational practices
directed toward them.
Origin
of
Mahayana
Buddhism
Origin of M.B.
The origins of Mahayana Buddhism remain
obscure; the date and location of the tradition’s
emergence are unknown, and the movement most
likely took shape over time and in multiple places.
The proper appraisal of the early Mahayana is
even further complicated by the fact that most
reconstructions have been heavily influenced by
the agendas of modern sectarian movements and
that the scriptures most valued by later groups are
not necessarily the texts that best represent the
movement in its formative period.
Origin of M.B.
The earliest sources for the tradition are
the Mahayana sutras, scriptures that were
first compiled some four centuries after the
Buddha’s death. As in earlier canonical
Buddhist literature, these scriptures, almost
certainly written by monks, present the
movement’s innovative ideas in the form of
sermons said to have been delivered by
the Buddha Shakyamuni, as Siddhartha
Gautama is known.
Origin of M.B.
The earliest Western views of Mahāyāna
assumed that it existed as a separate
school in competition with the so-called
"Hīnayāna" schools. The earliest
Mahāyāna texts often depict strict
adherence to the path of a bodhisattva,
and engagement in the ascetic ideal of a
monastic life in the wilderness, akin to the
ideas expressed in the Rhinoceros Sūtra.
Origin of M.B.
The earliest textual evidence of "Mahāyāna"
comes from sūtras originating around the
beginning of the common era. Jan Nattier has
noted that in some of the earliest Mahāyāna texts
such as the Ugraparipṛccha Sūtra use the term
"Mahāyāna", yet there is no doctrinal difference
between Mahāyāna in this context and the early
schools, and that "Mahāyāna" referred rather to
the rigorous emulation of Gautama Buddha in the
path of a bodhisattva seeking to become a fully
enlightened buddha.
Doctrines
Turnings of the Dharma Wheel
Mahayana Buddhists speak of
the Three Turnings of the Dharma
Wheel. The first turning was the
teaching of the Four Noble
Truths by Shakyamuni Buddha, which
was the beginning of Buddhism.
The Second Turning was the doctrine
of sunyata, or emptiness, which is a
cornerstone of Mahayana. This
doctrine was expounded in
the Prajnaparamita sutras, the earliest
of which may date to the 1st century
BCE. Nagarjuna (ca. 2nd century CE)
fully developed this doctrine in his
philosophy of Madhyamika.
The Third Turning was was
the Tathagatagarbha doctrine
of Buddha Nature, which emerged in
about the 3rd century CE. This is
another cornerstone of Mahayana.
Yogacara, a philosophy that originally
developed in a Sthavira school called
Sarvastivada, was another milestone
in Mahayana history. The founders of
Yogacara originally were
Sarvastivada scholars who lived in
the 4th century CE and who came to
embrace Mahayana.
Sunyata, Buddha Nature and
Yogacara are the chief doctrines that
set Mahayana apart from Theravada.
Other important milestones in the
development of Mahayana
include Shantideva's "Way of the
Bodhisattva" (ca. 700 CE), which
placed the bodhisattva vow at the
center of Mahayana practice.
Over the years, Mahayana subdivided
into more schools with divergent
practices and doctrines. These
spread from India to China and Tibet,
then to Korea and Japan. Today
Mahayana is the dominant form of
Buddhism in those countries.
Teaching
The Mahayana doctrine of the Trikaya says that
each Buddha has three bodies. These are called
the dharmakaya, sambogakaya and nirmanakaya.
Very simply, dharmakaya is the body of absolute
truth, sambogakaya is the body that experiences
the bliss of enlightenment, and nirmanakaya is the
body that manifests in the world.
Another way to understand the Trikaya is to think of the
dharmakaya as the absolute nature of all beings,
sambogakaya as the blissful experience of enlightenment,
and nirmanakaya as a Buddha in human form.
Teaching
This allows a Buddha to simultaneously be one
with the absolute while appearing in the relative
world for the benefit of suffering beings.
Understanding the Trikaya can clear up a lot of
confusion about the nature of a Buddha.
 In this sense, "absolute" and "relative" touches on
the Two Truths doctrine of Mahayana, and before we
plunge into Trikaya a quick review of the Two Truths
may be helpful. This doctrine tells us that existence
can be understood as both absoute and relative.
Teaching
We normally perceive the world as a place
full of distinctive things and beings.
However, phenomena exist only in a
relative way, taking identity only as they
relate to other phenomena. In an absolute
sense there are no distinctive phenomena
Dharmakaya
Dharmakaya means "truth body." The
dharmakaya is the absolute; the unity of
all things and beings, all phenomena
unmanifested. The dharmakaya is beyond
existence or nonexistence, and beyond
concepts. The late Chogyam Trungpa
called the dharmakaya "the basis of the
original unbornness.
Chögyam
Trungpa
Sambhogakaya
Sambhogakaya means "bliss body" or
"reward body." The "bliss body" is the
body that feels the bliss of enlightenment. It
is also a Buddha as an object of devotion.
A sambhogakaya Buddha is enlightened
and purified of defilements, yet he remains
distinctive.
Nirmanakaya
Nirmanakaya means "emanation body."
This is the physical body that is born,
walks the earth, and dies. An example is
the historical Buddha, Siddhartha
Gautama, who was born and who died.
However, this Buddha also has
sambhogakaya and dharmakaya forms as
well.
Gautama Buddha
Mahayana symbolism
In Mahayana, Buddhist figures and
sacred objects leaned towards
esoteric and symbolic meaning.
The Mudras are a series of symbolic
hand gestures describing the actions
of the characters represented in only
the most interesting Buddhist art.
Many images also function
as mandalas.
A mandala (Sanskrit: मण्डल, lit, circle)
is a spiritual and
ritual symbol in Indian religions,
representing the universe. In common
use, "mandala" has become a generic
term for any diagram, chart or
geometric pattern that represents
thecosmos metaphysically or
symbolically; a microcosm of
the universe.
Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhist
art frequently makes use of a
particular set of eight auspicious
symbols,ASHTAMANGALA, in
domestic and public art. These
symbols have spread with Buddhism
to the art of many cultures, including
Indian, Tibetan, Nepalese, and
Chinese art.
These symbols are:
Lotus flower. Representing purity and
enlightenment.
Endless knot, or, the Mandala.
Representing eternal harmony.
Golden Fish pair. Representing
conjugal happiness and freedom.
Lotus flower

Endless knot

Golden Fish Pair

Victory Banner. Representing a
victorious battle.
Wheel of Dharma or Chamaru in
Nepali Buddhism. Representing
knowledge.
Treasure Vase. Representing
inexhaustible treasure and wealth.
Victory Banner

Wheel of Dharma
Treasure Vase
Parasol. Representing the crown, and
protection from the elements.
Conch shell. Representing the
thoughts of the Buddha.
Parasol Conch shell
In Zen Buddhism, a widely used
symbol is the ensō circle.
Other Vajrayana symbols include
the Vajra, the Ghanta, the Snow lion,
the Wind Horse, the
Bhavacakra, mandalas, the number
108 and the Buddha eyes commonly
seen on Nepalese stupas such as
the Boudhanath stupa.
References:
http://buddhism.about.com/od/mahayanabuddhism
/fl/The-Trikaya.htm
Mahayana - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.html
Mahayana _ Buddhism _ Britannica.com.html
Interesting Facts About Buddhism _ World
Amazing Facts, Online Trivia Free.html