Mahayana Buddhism

Mahayana (Sanskrit: mahāyāna "Great Vehicle", Chinese: 大乘, Dàshèng; Japanese: 大乗, Daijō; Korean: 대승, Dae-seung; Vietnamese: Đại Thừa; Tibetan: theg-pa chen-po; Mongolian: yeke kölgen) is one of two major branches of Buddhism existing today, the other being Theravada (上座部).

The origin of the name Mahayana is polemical, and had its origin in a debate about what the real teachings of the Buddha were[1]. The earliest Mahayana scriptures probably originated during the first century CE in the Indian subcontinent, and spread to China during the second century CE[2]. Only in the 5th century CE did Mahayana become an influential school in India[3]. In the course of its history, Mahayana spread throughout East Asia. The main countries in which it is practiced today are China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.

Mahayana is an exoteric Buddhism. From Mahayana developed the esoteric Vajrayana found mainly in Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan and Mongolia but also in adjacent areas of China, India and Russia. The Vajrayana school claims to encompass all previous schools.

The most complete Mahayana Canon today exists in the Chinese language, mostly in translation from Sanskrit originals. In East Asia, Mahayana scriptures and terminology are traditionally written in classical Chinese. Two mainstream subsets of Mahayana Buddhism today are Amidism or Pure Land (淨土宗) and Zen Buddhism (禪/禅宗).