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Mahāyāna ((サンスクリット:महायान) ''mahāyāna'', literally the "Great Vehicle") is one of two (or three, under some classifications) main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice. The Buddhist tradition of Vajrayana is sometimes classified as a part of Mahayana Buddhism, but some scholars may consider it as a different branch altogether. 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".〔Damien Keown (2003), ''(A Dictionary of Buddhism )'', Oxford University Press, p. 38〕 A bodhisattva who has accomplished this goal is called a samyaksaṃbuddha, or "fully enlightened Buddha". A samyaksaṃbuddha can establish the Dharma and lead disciples to enlightenment. Mahayana Buddhists teach that enlightenment can be attained in a single lifetime, and this can be accomplished even by a layperson. The Mahāyāna tradition is the largest major tradition of Buddhism existing today, with 53.2% of practitioners, compared to 35.8% for Theravāda and 5.7% for Vajrayāna in 2010. In the course of its history, Mahāyāna Buddhism spread from India to various other Asian countries such as Bangladesh, China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Tibet, Bhutan, Malaysia, and Mongolia. Major traditions of Mahāyāna Buddhism today include Zen, Chinese Chán, Pure Land, Tiantai, and Nichiren. It may also include the Vajrayāna Buddhist traditions of Shingon, Tendai and Tibetan Buddhism, which add esoteric teachings to the Mahāyāna tradition. ==Etymology== According to Jan Nattier, the term ''Mahāyāna'' ("Great Vehicle") was originally an honorary synonym for ''Bodhisattvayāna'' ("Bodhisattva Vehicle")〔Nattier, Jan (2003), ''A few good men: the Bodhisattva path according to the Inquiry of Ugra'': p. 174〕 — the vehicle of a bodhisattva seeking buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings.〔 The term ''Mahāyāna'' was therefore formed independently at an early date as a synonym for the path and the teachings of the bodhisattvas. Since it was simply an honorary term for ''Bodhisattvayāna'', the creation of the term ''Mahāyāna'' and its application to Bodhisattvayāna did not represent a significant turning point in the development of a Mahāyāna tradition.〔 The earliest Mahāyāna texts often use the term ''Mahāyāna'' as a synonym for ''Bodhisattvayāna'', but the term ''Hīnayāna'' is comparatively rare in the earliest sources. The presumed dichotomy between ''Mahāyāna'' and ''Hīnayāna'' can be deceptive, as the two terms were not actually formed in relation to one another in the same era.〔Nattier, Jan (2003), ''A few good men: the Bodhisattva path according to the Inquiry of Ugra'': p. 172〕 Among the earliest and most important references to the term ''Mahāyāna'' are those that occur in the ''Lotus Sūtra'' (Skt. ''Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra'') dating between the 1st century BCE and the 1st century CE.〔W. Rahula, (1996). (''Theravada - Mahayana Buddhism'' ); in: "Gems of Buddhist Wisdom", Buddhist Missionary Society, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia〕 Seishi Karashima has suggested that the term first used in an earlier Gandhāri Prakrit version of the ''Lotus Sūtra'' was not the term ''mahāyāna'' but the Prakrit word ''mahājāna'' in the sense of ''mahājñāna'' (great knowing).〔Williams, Paul. ''Buddhism. Vol. 3. The origins and nature of Mahāyāna Buddhism.'' Routledge. 2004. p. 50.〕〔Karashima, Seishi (2000), (Who composed the Lotus Sutra? ), Annual Report of The International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University 4, p. 170 (note 115)〕 At a later stage when the early Prakrit word was converted into Sanskrit, this ''mahājāna'', being phonetically ambivalent, was mistakenly converted into ''mahāyāna'', possibly because of what may have been a double meaning in the famous Parable of the Burning House, which talks of three vehicles or carts (Skt: ''yāna'').〔〔Karashima, Seishi (2015), (Vehicle (yāna) and Wisdom (jñāna) in the Lotus Sutra - the Origin of the Notion of yāna in Mahayāna Buddhism ), Annual Report of The International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University 18, 163-196〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mahayana」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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