Hīnayāna (as a polemical term in Mahāyāna texts)
E282918
Hīnayāna, as used polemically in Mahāyāna Buddhist texts, is a disparaging label for earlier or non-Mahāyāna Buddhist paths that are portrayed as pursuing a more limited, individual liberation rather than the universal ideal of Buddhahood for all beings.
All labels observed (2)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Hinayana (pejorative term) | 1 |
| Hīnayāna (as a polemical term in Mahāyāna texts) canonical | 1 |
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Buddhist doctrinal category
ⓘ
pejorative label ⓘ polemical religious term ⓘ |
| associatedConcept |
pratyekabuddhayāna
ⓘ
śrāvakayāna ⓘ |
| classificationRole |
grouping of earlier Buddhist schools in Mahāyāna doxographies
ⓘ
one of the yānas in multi-vehicle schemes ⓘ |
| conceptualOpposite | great vehicle (Mahāyāna) ⓘ |
| contrastedWith |
Mahayana
ⓘ
surface form:
Mahāyāna
|
| critiquedFor |
oversimplifying doctrinal diversity of early Buddhist schools
ⓘ
projecting Mahāyāna value judgments onto other traditions ⓘ |
| doctrinalContext |
used in Mahāyāna critiques of arhatship
ⓘ
used in discussions of the three vehicles ⓘ |
| doctrinalFunction |
to classify non-Mahāyāna paths as lower vehicles
ⓘ
to elevate Mahāyāna as superior ⓘ |
| ethicalStatusToday |
often avoided in academic discourse
ⓘ
often replaced by terms like early Buddhism or non-Mahāyāna schools ⓘ widely regarded as derogatory ⓘ |
| goalAscribedByMahāyānaAuthors |
nirvāṇa of an arhat
ⓘ
personal emancipation from saṃsāra ⓘ |
| historicalUsage |
appears in Indian Mahāyāna sūtras and śāstras
ⓘ
used in East Asian Mahāyāna scholastic literature ⓘ used in Tibetan Buddhist doxographical works ⓘ |
| languageOfOrigin | Sanskrit ⓘ |
| literalMeaning |
inferior vehicle
ⓘ
lesser vehicle ⓘ |
| modernScholarlyView |
considered a misleading generalization about non-Mahāyāna Buddhism
ⓘ
recognized as a rhetorical construct of Mahāyāna authors ⓘ |
| normativeContrast |
altruistic bodhisattva ideal
ⓘ
aspiration to omniscient Buddhahood ⓘ |
| notIdenticalTo | self-designation of any historical Buddhist school ⓘ |
| oftenMappedOnto | Theravāda in later polemics ⓘ |
| opposedIdeal |
bodhisattva path
ⓘ
universal Buddhahood for all beings ⓘ |
| portrayedAs |
aiming at arhatship
ⓘ
lacking the bodhisattva ideal ⓘ limited in scope of compassion ⓘ seeking individual liberation ⓘ |
| relatedTerm |
Mahayana
ⓘ
surface form:
Mahāyāna
bodhisattvayāna ⓘ ekayāna ⓘ |
| religiousTradition | Buddhism ⓘ |
| textualFunction |
to frame narrative and doctrinal superiority of Mahāyāna sūtras
ⓘ
to organize stages of practice in graded path schemes ⓘ |
| usedIn | Mahāyāna Buddhist texts ⓘ |
| valueJudgment |
disparaged as inferior in Mahāyāna polemics
ⓘ
presented as spiritually narrow ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Hinayana (pejorative term)