Early Buddhist Schools
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Early Buddhist Schools
The early Buddhist schools refers to the History of Buddhism in India, Indian Buddhist "doctrinal schools" or "schools of thought" (Sanskrit: ''vāda'') which arose out of the early unified Buddhist monasticism, Buddhist monastic community (Sangha (Buddhism), saṅgha) due to various schisms in the history of Buddhism, history of Indian Buddhism. The various splits and divisions were caused by differences in interpretations of the Monasticism, monastic rule (Vinaya), doctrinal differences and also due to simple geographical separation as Buddhism spread throughout the Indian subcontinent. The early Buddhist community initially split into two main Nikāyas (monastic groups, divisions), the Sthavira nikāya, Sthavira ("Elders"), and the Mahāsāṃghika ("Great Community"). This initial split occurred either during the reign of Ashoka, Aśoka (c. 268-232 BCE) or shortly after (historians disagree on the matter). Later, these groups became further divided on doctrinal grounds int ...
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Dharmaguptaka
The Dharmaguptaka (Sanskrit: धर्मगुप्तक; ; ) are one of the eighteen or twenty early Buddhist schools from the ancient region of Gandhara, now Pakistan. They are said to have originated from another sect, the Mahīśāsakas from the Oddiyana, Oddiyana kingdom in northwestern Pakistan. The Dharmaguptakas had a prominent role in early Central Asian and Chinese Buddhism, and their Prātimokṣa (monastic rules for bhikkhu, bhikṣus and bhikkhuni, bhikṣuṇīs) are still in effect in East Asian countries to this day, including China, Vietnam, Korea, and Japan as well as the Philippines. They are one of three surviving Vinaya lineages, along with that of the Theravada, Theravāda and the Mulasarvastivada, Mūlasarvāstivāda. Etymology ''Guptaka'' means "preserver" and ''dharma'' "law, justice, morality", and, most likely, the set of laws of Northern Buddhism. Doctrinal development Overview The Dharmaguptakas regarded the path of a śrāvaka (''śrāvakayāna' ...
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Ajatashatru
Ajatasattu (Pāli: ) or Ajatashatru (Sanskrit: ) in the Buddhist tradition, or Kunika () and Kuniya () in the Jain tradition (reigned c. 492 to 460 BCE, or c. 405 to 373 BCE), was one of the most important kings of the Haryanka dynasty of Magadha in East India. He was the son of King Bimbisara and was a contemporary of both Mahavira and Gautama Buddha. He forcefully took over the kingdom of Magadha from his father and imprisoned him. He fought a war against the Vajjika League, led by the Licchavis, and conquered the republic of Vaishali. The city of Pataliputra was formed by fortification of a village by Ajatashatru. Ajatashatru followed policies of conquest and expansion. He defeated his neighbouring rivals including the king of Kosala; his brothers, at odds with him, went to Kashi, which had been given to Bimbisara as dowry and led to a war between Magadha and Kosala. Ajatashatru occupied Kashi and captured the smaller kingdoms. Magadha under Ajatashatru became the mos ...
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Mahākāśyapa
Mahākāśyapa () was one of The ten principal disciples, the principal disciples of Gautama Buddha. He is regarded in Buddhism as an arhat, enlightened disciple, being Śrāvaka#Foremost disciples, foremost in dhutanga, ascetic practice. Mahākāśyapa assumed leadership of the Sangha, monastic community following the ''Parinirvana, parinirvāṇa'' (death) of the Buddha, presiding over the First Buddhist council, First Buddhist Council. He was considered to be the first Zen lineage charts#The Indian Lineage From Shakyamuni to Bodhidharma, patriarch in a number of Early Buddhist schools and continued to have an important role as patriarch in the Chan Buddhism, Chan/Zen tradition. In Buddhist texts, he assumed many identities, that of a renunciant saint, a lawgiver, an anti-establishment figure, but also a "guarantor of future justice" in the time of Maitreya, the future Buddhahe has been described as "both the anchorite and the friend of mankind, even of the outcast". In canon ...
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Arhat
In Buddhism, an ''Arhat'' () or ''Arahant'' (, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana (Buddhism), Nirvana'' and has been liberated from the Rebirth (Buddhism), endless cycle of rebirth. The understanding of the concept has changed over the centuries, and varies between different schools of Buddhism and different regions. A range of views on the attainment of arhats existed in the early Buddhist schools. The Sarvastivada, Sarvāstivāda, Kāśyapīya, Mahāsāṃghika, Ekavyāvahārika, Lokottaravāda, Bahuśrutīya, Prajñaptivāda, and Caitika schools all regarded arhats as imperfect in their attainments compared to buddhahood, buddhas.Sree Padma. Barber, Anthony W. ''Buddhism in the Krishna River Valley of Andhra''. 2008. p. 44Warder, A.K. ''Indian Buddhism''. 2000. p. 277 Mahayana Buddhist teachings urge followers to take up the path of a bodhisattva, and to not fall back to the level of ...
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Rajgir
Rajgir, old name Rajagriha, meaning "The City of Kings," is an ancient city and university town in the Nalanda district of Bihar, India. It was the capital of the Haryanka dynasty, the Pradyota dynasty, the Brihadratha dynasty, the Mauryan Empire, and it was the retreat center for the Buddha and his sangha. Other historical figures such as Mahavira and king Bimbisara lived there, and due to its religious significance, the city holds a place of prominence in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain scriptures. Rajgir was the first capital of the ancient kingdom of Magadha, a state that would eventually evolve into the Mauryan Empire. It finds mention in India's renowned literary epic, the Mahabharata, through its king Jarasandha. The town's date of origin is unknown, although ceramics dating to about 1000 BC have been found in the city. The 2,500-year-old cyclopean wall is also located in the region. The ancient Nalanda university was located in the vicinity of Rajgir, and the c ...
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Gautama Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was born in Lumbini, in what is now Nepal, to royal parents of the Shakya clan, but Great Renunciation, renounced his Householder (Buddhism), home life to live as a wandering ascetic. After leading a life of mendicancy, asceticism, and meditation, he attained Nirvana (Buddhism), nirvana at Bodh Gaya, Bodh Gayā in what is now India. The Buddha then wandered through the lower Indo-Gangetic Plain, teaching and building a Sangha, monastic order. Buddhist tradition holds he died in Kushinagar and reached ''parinirvana'' ("final release from conditioned existence"). According to Buddhist tradition, the Buddha taught a Middle Way between sensual indulgence and severe asceticism, leading to Vimutti, freedom from Avidyā (Buddhism), ignora ...
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Parinirvana
In Buddhism, ''Parinirvana'' (Sanskrit: '; Pali: ') describes the state entered after death by someone who has attained '' nirvana'' during their lifetime. It implies a release from '' '', karma and rebirth as well as the dissolution of the ''skandhas''. In some Mahāyāna scriptures, notably the '' Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra'', ''parinirvāṇa'' is described as the realm of the eternal true Self of the Buddha. In the Buddha in art, the event is represented by a reclining Buddha figure, often surrounded by disciples. Final nirvana at death In the Buddhist view, when ordinary people die, each person's unresolved karma passes on to a new birth; and thus the karmic inheritance is reborn in one of the Six Paths of '' samsara''. However, when a person attains nirvana, they are liberated from karmic rebirth. When such a person dies, it is the end of the cycle of rebirth. Contemporary scholar Rupert Gethin explains: Parinirvana of Buddha Shakyamuni Accounts of t ...
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Khandhaka
Khandhaka is the second book of the Theravadin ''Vinaya Pitaka'' and includes the following two volumes: * Mahāvagga: includes accounts of Gautama Buddha's and the ten principal disciples' awakenings, as well as rules for uposatha days and monastic ordination. * Cullavagga: includes accounts of the First and Second Buddhist councils and the establishment of the community of bhikkhunis, as well as rules for addressing offenses within the sangha (monastic community). Origins According to tradition, the Khandhaka was compiled at the first council, mentioned in the text, with the account of the first council added at the second and that of the second at the third. Scholars do not take this literally, but differ as to how far they disagree with it. Professor Erich Frauwallner argued in 1956 that the original version of this book was compiled at the second council, and this theory is still taken seriously by many scholars. For further scholarly opinions see Vinaya Pitaka and Pāl ...
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Pudgalavāda
The Pudgalavāda (Sanskrit; English: "Personalism"; Pali: Puggalavāda; zh, t=補特伽羅論者, p=Bǔtèjiāluō Lùnzhě; ) was a Buddhist philosophical view and also refers to a group of Nikaya Buddhist schools (mainly known as Vātsīputrīyas) that arose from the Sthavira nikāya.Williams, Paul, Buddhism: The early Buddhist schools and doctrinal history; Theravāda doctrine, Volume 2, Taylor & Francis, 2005, p. 86. The school is believed to have been founded by the elder Vātsīputra in the third century BCE. They were a widely influential school in India and became particularly popular during the reign of emperor Harshavadana (606–647 CE). Harsha's sister Rajyasri was said to have joined the school as a nun. According to Dan Lusthaus, they were "one of the most popular mainstream Buddhist sects in India for more than a thousand years."William Edelglass  (Editor), Jay Garfield (Editor), ''Buddhist Philosophy: Essential Readings 1st Edition.'' Oxford University Press, ...
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Vibhajyavāda
Vibhajyavāda (Sanskrit; Pāli: ''Vibhajjavāda''; ) is a term applied generally to groups of early Buddhists belonging to the Sthavira Nikāya, which split from the Mahāsāṃghika (due either to the former attempting to make the Vinaya stricter, or the latter wishing to reform it; see: Sthavira Nikāya main article) into two main groups: the Sarvāstivāda and the Vibhajyavāda, of which the latter are known to have rejected both Sarvāstivāda doctrines (especially the doctrine of "all exists") and the doctrine of Pudgalavada (personalism).Williams, Tribe, Wynne; ''Buddhist Thought: A Complete Introduction to the Indian Tradition'', p. 91.Cousins, LS (2001)On the Vibhajjavadins. The Mahimsasaka, Dhammaguttaka, Kassapiya and Tambapanniya branches of the ancient Theriyas Buddhist Studies Review 18 (2), 131-182. During the reign of Ashoka, these groups possibly took part in missionary activity in Gandhara, Bactria, Kashmir, South India and Sri Lanka. By the third century C ...
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