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The Lokottaravāda (Sanskrit, लोकोत्तरवाद; traditional Chinese : 說出世部;; pinyin : Shuō Chūshì Bù) was one of the early Buddhist schools according to Mahayana doxological sources compiled by Bhāviveka, Vinitadeva and others, and was a subgroup which emerged from the Mahāsāṃghika.
The name Lokottaravāda means those who follow the supramundane (Skt. lokottara), or transcendent, teachings. Despite bearing this name, all sub-sects of the Mahāsāṃghikas seem to have accepted forms of supramundane or transcendent teachings. [1]
The Śāriputraparipṛcchā and the Samayabhedoparacanacakra both suggest that the Lokottaravāda had their origins with the Ekavyāvahārikas and the Kukkuṭikas. While the Mahāsāṃghikas initially flourished in the region around Magadha, the Lokottaravādins are known to have flourished in the Northwest. [2]
The 6th century CE Indian monk Paramārtha wrote that 200 years after the parinirvāṇa of the Buddha, much of the Mahāsāṃghika school moved north of Rājagṛha, and were divided over whether the Mahayana teachings should be incorporated formally into their Tripiṭaka. [3] According to this account, they split into three groups based upon the relative manner and degree to which they accepted the authority of these Mahayana texts. [4] According to Paramārtha, the Lokottaravādins accepted the Mahāyāna sūtras as the words of the Buddha ( buddhavacana ). [5]
Lokottaravādin views are known from the Mahāvastu , which is a rare surviving Mahāsāṃghika text in Sanskrit. The Mahāvastu is a biography of the Buddha which attributes itself to the Lokottaravādins, and appears to have been an extended section of their vinaya recension. The Sanskrit text of the Mahāvastu was preserved in the libraries of the Mahayana Buddhists of Nepal. [6]
Some scholars believe that the Mahayana Infinite Life Sutra was compiled in the era of the Kushan Empire, the first and second centuries CE, by an order of Mahīśāsaka monastics that flourished in Gandhara. [7] [8] However, it is likely that the longer Infinite Life Sutra owes greatly to the Lokottaravādins as well for its compilation: in this sūtra, there are many elements in common with the Mahāvastu . [7] The earliest of these translations show traces of having been translated from the Gandhari Prakrit. [9]
The Chinese Buddhist monk Xuanzang visited a Lokottaravāda vihara in the 7th century CE at Bamyan (modern Afghanistan); this monastery site has since been rediscovered by archaeologists. [10] Birch bark and palm-leaf manuscripts of texts in this monastery's collection, including Mahayana sutras, have been discovered at the site, and these are now located in the Schøyen Collection. Some manuscripts are in Gandhari Prakrit and written in Kharosthi, while others are in Sanskrit written in Gupta scripts. Manuscripts and fragments that have survived from this monastery's collection include the following source texts: [10]
It is likely that the Lokottaravādins had no major doctrinal distinctions to distinguish them as different from Mahāsāṃghika, but that the difference was instead a geographic one. [2] Tāranātha viewed the Ekavyāvahārikas, Lokottaravādins, and Gokulikas as being essentially the same. [11] He even viewed Ekavyāvahārika as being a general term for the Mahāsaṃghikas. [12] The earlier Samayabhedoparacanacakra of Vasumitra also regards the Ekavyāvahārikas, Gokulikas, and Lokottaravādins as being doctrinally indistinguishable. [13]
The Lokottaravādins asserted that there are no real things in the world except two kinds of emptiness (Skt. śūnyatā ), that is, the emptiness of a self (Skt. pudgalaśūnyatā) and the emptiness of phenomena (Skt. dharmaśūnyatā). This two-fold view of emptiness is also a distinguishing characteristic of Mahāyāna Buddhism. [14]
According to Vasumitra, 48 theses were held in common by these three Mahāsāṃghika sects. [13] Of the 48 special theses attributed by the Samayabhedoparacanacakra to these sects, 20 points concern the supramundane nature of buddhas and bodhisattvas. [15] According to the Samayabhedoparacanacakra, these four groups held that the Buddha is able to know all dharmas in a single moment of the mind.
In their view, the Buddha is equipped with the following supernatural qualities: transcendence (lokottara), lack of defilements, all of his utterances preaching his teaching, expounding all his teachings in a single utterance, all of his sayings being true, his physical body being limitless, his power (prabhāva) being limitless, the length of his life being limitless, never tiring of enlightening sentient beings and awakening pure faith in them, having no sleep or dreams, no pause in answering a question, and always in meditation ( samādhi ). [16]
The Buddha is viewed as transcendent (Skt. lokottara) and his life and physical manifestation are mere appearance. [17] The Lokottaravāda school upheld the Mahāsāṃghika view of the supramundane nature of the buddhas and bodhisattvas, and the imperfection and fallibility of arhats. [17]
The Lokottaravādin Mahāvastu speaks of Buddhism as consisting of the Three Vehicles, and includes specific instructions regarding the Bodhisattva Path and the practices of bodhisattvas. [18] From the Mahāvastu, we know that the Lokottaravādins had a conception of a bodhisattva's progress toward enlightenment as consisting of ten grounds, or bhūmi s, as required for Mahayana bodhisattvas. [19] These bhūmis described in the Mahāvastu are similar to those in the Mahāyāna Ten Stages Sutra , but the names of these stages seem to differ somewhat. [20] [21]
From the Mahāvastu, it is evident that the Lokottaravādins also held that there were innumerable pure lands (Skt. buddhakṣetra "buddha-fields"), throughout which there are innumerable buddhas and innumerable tenth-ground bodhisattvas who will become buddhas. Each is said to lead limitless sentient beings to liberation, yet the number of sentient beings remains essentially infinite. [22]
In the Mahāvastu, there are some Lokottaravādin accounts of the nature of buddhas which have strong parallels to those in Mahayana sutras. In one section, a multitude of devas are described as putting up sunshades in honor of the Buddha, who in turn shows himself sitting beneath each and every one. Each deva believes himself to be particularly honored, unaware of the fictitious character of his own buddha, who is no different from the others he sees. [23] This has a parallel with an account in the Śūraṅgama Samādhi Sūtra . [23] In this text, the Buddha appears simultaneously on a vast number of lion-thrones prepared by various devas, but each deva sees only the buddha that is sitting on his own throne. At the appropriate moment, all the buddhas are revealed to the devas, and one asks which is real – his own buddha, or all the others. In the Śūraṅgama Samādhi Sūtra, the Buddha's answer is ultimately that they are all equal, because the nature of buddhas is not apart from all phenomena. [23]
In the Mahāvastu, the future buddha Maitreya is mentioned a number of times, and the text states that he will be just one of the one thousand buddhas who are destined to appear in the future following Gautama Buddha. The Mahāsāṃghika-Lokottaravāda view is contrasted with that of the Theravada, which holds that five buddhas are destined to follow Gautama. [24]
In Buddhism, Buddha is a title for those who are spiritually awake or enlightened, and have thus attained the supreme goal of Buddhism, variously described as pristine awareness, nirvana, awakening, enlightenment, and liberation or vimutti. A Buddha is also someone who has fully understood the Dharma, the true nature of things or the universal law of phenomena. Buddhahood is the condition and state of a buddha. This highest spiritual state of being is also termed sammā-sambodhi and is interpreted in many different ways across schools of Buddhism.
Maitreya (Sanskrit) or Metteyya (Pali), is a bodhisattva who is regarded as the future Buddha of this world in all schools of Buddhism, prophesied to become Maitreya Buddha or Metteyya Buddha. In some Buddhist literature, such as the Amitabha Sutra and the Lotus Sutra, he is also referred to as Ajitā. In Tibetan Buddhism he is known as the "Lord of Love" or the "Noble Loving One". The root of his name is the Sanskrit word maitrī. The name Maitreya is also related to the Indo-Iranian name Mitra.
The Mahāyāna sūtras are a broad genre of Buddhist scripture (sūtra) that are accepted as canonical and as buddhavacana in certain communities of Mahāyāna Buddhism. They are largely preserved in Sanskrit manuscripts, and translations in the Tibetan Buddhist canon and Chinese Buddhist canon. Several hundred Mahāyāna sūtras survive in Sanskrit, or in Chinese and Tibetan translations. They are also sometimes called Vaipulya ("extensive") sūtras by earlier sources. The Buddhist scholar Asaṅga classified the Mahāyāna sūtras as part of the Bodhisattva Piṭaka, a collection of texts meant for bodhisattvas.
Buddhist texts are religious texts that belong to, or are associated with, Buddhism and its traditions. There is no single textual collection for all of Buddhism. Instead, there are three main Buddhist Canons: the Pāli Canon of the Theravāda tradition, the Chinese Buddhist Canon used in East Asian Buddhist tradition, and the Tibetan Buddhist Canon used in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism.
The term Nikāya Buddhism was coined by Masatoshi Nagatomi as a non-derogatory substitute for Hinayana, meaning the early Buddhist schools. Examples of these groups are pre-sectarian Buddhism and the early Buddhist schools. Some scholars exclude pre-sectarian Buddhism when using the term. The term Theravada refers to Buddhist practices based on these early teachings, as preserved in the Pāli Canon.
The Mahāsāṃghika was a major division (nikāya) of the early Buddhist schools in India. They were one of the two original communities that emerged from the first schism of the original pre-sectarian Buddhist tradition. This schism is traditionally held to have occurred after the Second Buddhist council, which occurred at some point during or after the reign of Kalashoka. The Mahāsāṃghika nikāya developed into numerous sects which spread throughout ancient India.
The Ekavyāvahārika was one of the early Buddhist schools, and is thought to have separated from the Mahāsāṃghika sect during the reign of Aśoka.
The Kukkuṭika were an early Buddhist school which descended from the Mahāsāṃghika.
The Prajñaptivāda was a branch of the Mahāsāṃghika, one of the early Buddhist schools in India. The Prajñaptivādins were also known as the Bahuśrutīya-Vibhajyavādins.
Caitika was an early Buddhist school, a sub-sect of the Mahāsāṃghika. They were also known as the Caityaka sect.
The Dharmaguptaka are one of the eighteen or twenty early Buddhist schools, depending on the source. They are said to have originated from another sect, the Mahīśāsakas. The Dharmaguptakas had a prominent role in early Central Asian and Chinese Buddhism, and their Prātimokṣa 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 Theravāda and the Mūlasarvāstivāda.
The Bodhisattva vow is a vow taken by some Mahāyāna Buddhists to achieve full buddhahood for the sake of all sentient beings. One who has taken the vow is nominally known as a bodhisattva. This can be done by venerating all Buddhas and by cultivating supreme moral and spiritual perfection, to be placed in the service of others. In particular, bodhisattvas promise to practice the six perfections of giving, moral discipline, patience, effort, concentration and wisdom in order to fulfill their bodhicitta aim of attaining buddhahood for the sake of all beings.
Buddhism, a religion founded by Gautama Buddha, first arrived in modern-day Afghanistan through the conquests of Ashoka, the third emperor of the Maurya Empire. Among the earliest notable sites of Buddhist influence in the country is a bilingual mountainside inscription in Greek and Aramaic that dates back to 260 BCE and was found on the rocky outcrop of Chil Zena near Kandahar.
Mahīśāsaka is one of the early Buddhist schools according to some records. Its origins may go back to the dispute in the Second Buddhist council. The Dharmaguptaka sect is thought to have branched out from the Mahīśāsaka sect toward the end of the 2nd or the beginning of the 1st century BCE.
The Mahāvastu is a canonical text of the Mahāsāṃghika Lokottaravāda school of Early Buddhism which was originally part of the school's Vinaya pitaka. The Mahāvastu is a composite multi-life hagiography of the Buddha Shakyamuni. Its numerous textual layers are held by scholars to have been compiled between the 2nd century BCE and 4th century CE.
Kāśyapīya was one of the early Buddhist schools in India.
In Buddhism, an Arhat or Arahant is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved Nirvana and has been liberated from the endless cycle of rebirth.
Tipiṭaka or Tripiṭaka, meaning "Triple Basket", is the traditional term for ancient collections of Buddhist sacred scriptures. The Tripiṭaka is composed of three main categories of texts that collectively constitute the Buddhist canon: the Vinaya Piṭaka, the Sutta Piṭaka, and the Abhidhamma Piṭaka.
Mahāyāna is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices developed in ancient India. It is considered one of the three main existing branches of Buddhism, the others being Theravāda and Vajrayāna. Mahāyāna accepts the main scriptures and teachings of early Buddhism but also recognizes various doctrines and texts that are not accepted by Theravada Buddhism as original. These include the Mahāyāna sūtras and their emphasis on the bodhisattva path and Prajñāpāramitā. Vajrayāna or Mantra traditions are a subset of Mahāyāna which makes use of numerous tantric methods Vajrayānists consider to help achieve Buddhahood.
Bahuśrutīya was one of the early Buddhist schools, according to early sources such as Vasumitra, the Śāriputraparipṛcchā, and other sources, and was a sub-group which emerged from the Mahāsāṃghika sect.
