Theravāda

Also known as Theravada Buddhism, Southern Buddhism, Doctrine of the Elders, Southeast Asian Buddhism, South Asian Buddhism, South-East Asian Buddhism

Theravāda is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed Theravādins (anglicized from Pali theravādī), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or Dhamma in the Pāli Canon for over two millennia. As of 2010, Theravada is the second largest branch of Buddhism with 36% Buddhists belonging to Theravada, compared to 53% to Mahayana.

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Theravāda is the oldest existing school of Buddhism, whose followers have preserved the Buddha's teachings in a collection of texts called the Pāli Canon for over two thousand years. As of 2010, it is the second-largest branch of Buddhism, representing about 36% of the world's Buddhist population.

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Commons category: Theravada
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Article

40 sections

Contents

Etymology
History
Pre-modern
Modern history
Texts
Pāli Tipiṭaka
Non-canonical literature
Other Buddhist texts
Doctrine (''pariyatti'')
Core teachings
Main doctrinal differences with other Buddhist traditions
Abhidhamma philosophy
Cosmology
Soteriology and Buddhology
Modern developments
Practice (''paṭipatti'')
Textual basis
Moral conduct
Meditation
Forms
Aims of meditation
Historical development and sources
Other practices
Lay and monastic life
Distinction between lay and monastic life
Lay devotee
Monastic vocation
Ordination
Monastic practices
Bhikkhunis
Monastic orders
Impact on modern society
Demographics
See also
Notes
References
Sources
Printed sources
Web sources
External links

The Pāli Canon is the most complete Buddhist canon surviving in a classical Indian language, Pāli, which serves as the school's sacred language and lingua franca. In contrast to Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna, Theravāda tends to be conservative in matters of the theoretical study (pariyatti) of the doctrine (Dhamma) and monastic discipline (Vinaya). One element of this conservatism is the fact that Theravāda rejects the authenticity of the Mahayana sutras (which appeared onwards). Consequently, Theravāda generally does not recognize the existence of many Buddhas and bodhisattvas believed by the Mahāyāna school, such as Amitābha and Vairocana, because they are not found in their scriptures.