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Indian Mahayana Buddhist practice included numerous elements of devotion and ritual, which were considered to generate much merit (punya) and to allow the devotee to obtain the power or spiritual blessings of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas. These elements remain a key part of Mahayana Buddhism today. Some key Mahayana practices in this vein include:
Some sub-schools, such as the Kukkuṭikas, did not accept the Mahayana sutras as being word of the Buddha, whole others, like the Lokottaravādins, did accept them. [29] Although there are differences in the historical records as to the exact composition of the various schools of early Buddhism, a hypothetical combined list would be as follows:
According to Alex Wayman, the philosophical view of the Vajrayana is based on Mahayana Buddhist philosophy, mainly the Madhyamaka and Yogacara schools. [39] The major difference seen by Vajrayana thinkers is the superiority of Tantric methods, which provide a faster vehicle to liberation and contain many more skillful means .
In his translation and commentary of Asanga's Distinguishing Dharma from Dharmata, he writes, "all three traditions of hinayana, mahayana, and vajrayana were practiced in Tibet and that the hinayana which literally means "lesser vehicle" is in no way inferior to the mahayana." [9]
Ongoing contact between Southeast Asia and India brought a variety of doctrines, relics, and texts into Southeast Asia from both the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions, as well as the Theravada and the other early Buddhist schools. Only after the decline of Buddhism in India did Theravada Buddhism begin to dominate in Southeast Asia, with ...
There is further disagreement among Tibetan Buddhist thinkers on whether Buddhist tantra has a different view than non-tantric ("Sūtra") Mahayana Buddhist thought. In the Gelug school for example, it is said there is no difference in the view of tantra and the Madhyamaka view of emptiness of inherent existence (which is considered the highest ...
In Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, the Five Tathāgatas (Skt: पञ्चतथागत, pañcatathāgata; (Ch: 五方佛, Wǔfāngfó) or Five Wisdom Tathāgatas (Ch: 五智如来, Wǔzhì Rúlái), are the five cardinal male and female Buddhas that are inseparable co-equals, [1] although the male cardinal Buddhas are more often represented.
Kūkai wrote at length on the difference between exoteric, that is to say, mainstream (non-tantric) Mahayana Buddhism and esoteric Mantrayana (or Vajrayana) Buddhism. For him, the differences between exoteric and esoteric can be summarised as follows: [ 91 ]