There are many different schools in Buddhism. The two main ones are Theravada and Mahayana, but there are also numerous smaller schools and subsects like Zen Buddhism. This website does not subscribe to any school or sect specifically, rather we are open to the teachings of all schools. Importantly, the Buddha was clear in his tolerance of all different religions, so how can a true Buddhist look down on another Buddhist for his beliefs. "Alone of all the great religions Buddhism made its way without persecution, censorship or inquisition." Aldous Huxley, writer and philosopher.
Despite the shared beliefs, the two main schools do have a very big difference- which is what each believes to be the main purpose of Buddhist practice. Theravada Buddhists believe that the main purpose of practice is to enter nirvana as an Arhat (also know as Arahant or Arhant) through the middle path and the dissolution of craving, as the Buddha had taught in his first discourses after his enlightenment. On the other hand, Mahayana Buddhists believe that the main purpose of practice should be to attain the goal of a Bodhisattva (an enlightened being, a Buddha to be), and to aid in the enlightenment of all sentient beings, which is the message the Buddha taught in his later discourses. Although clearly divergent in this regard, there is no reasons why a new aspiring buddhist today cannot dispense with such arbitrary categories and instead take the wisdoms found in both schools to use in his or her own practice.
Coincident with the two schools Buddhist there are different "vehicles" practices to reach the goal. The "Lesser Vehicle" of Theravada is the way of the Arhat or Pratyekabuddha (self taught buddha, one who realized enlightenment on his own and chooses not to teach others). The "Greater Vehicle" of Mahayana is the way of the Bodhisattva. We are using the terms most often seen but they should not denote a preference for one or the other, as it should be the choice of each personal aspirant which to pursue. In Mahayana sutras like The Lotus Sutra, it is clear that the Buddha teaches the Bodhisattva Way as the better of the two, however, it is also clear that Buddha states that there is not many vehicles, but only one vehicle, which is what all beings should be aspiring, and that is the Buddha way.
So if there was only one vehicle, why then are there so many Buddhist sutras and teachings describing the lesser vehicle and the greater vehicle, why did Buddha not just teach the Buddha way from the beginning? To this the Buddha explained his actions with the parable of the burning house in the Lotus Sutra.
Suppose there was a very rich man with a very large house, with hundreds of rooms. Even though the man is very rich the house has become old and decayed. Now because this man is very rich he was able to have many young children. In his house the children would run around and play all day. One day the house catches fire, and the rich man wants to save his children, but there are so many to save. Being very young the children do not understand the danger they are in and continue to play all while the house is burning. If he were to shout out that the house was burning, the children would not understand what he was saying because they had never known of fire and the dangers of it. If instead he were to grab each child and explain to them the dangers, he would surely run out of time and many would perish. Therefore the rich man used an expedient means by shouting throughout the house that whoever leaves the house will get new toy carriage. The kids hearing this message and understanding the joys of a toy all rush out and were all saved from the fire. Afterwards, the rich man being so overjoyed that his children were saved and being of great wealth decided to give them each a real carriage rather than a toy.
After telling this story to Sariputra, one of his first disciples, the Buddha asked "was the rich man guilty of lying or saying falsehoods?" To that Sariputra answered, "No, World Honored One, this rich man simply made it possible for his children to escape the perils of fire and preserve their lives. He did not commit falsehood."*
Thus this is the Buddha's explanation for why there exists in his teachings discussions of different vehicles for enlightenment. The way of the lesser vehicle and the greater vehicle were merely expedient means for people to make it out of the suffering of life and death, once obtained, the Buddha gifted on to people the treasure of the one true way, the Buddha Way. If a person was still clinging to life and craving he would perish in the fire before he could be explained the very difficult to grasp Buddha Way. The Buddha realized that people must first escape the decaying and burning house of this world before they can accept the treasure of the great wisdom.
This begs the question, that if Theravada Buddhist have knowledge of The Lotus Sutra and others like it, why do they continue to remain with the pursuit of the lesser vehicle? Since I am not a practitioner of Theravada Buddhism, I cannot answer this question with certainty, though I have been told that it is because they believe that it is too difficult for people to become a Buddha, therefore, it is more realistic that one pursue the goal of Arhat, which incidentally, is the Buddhism more prevalent in the West as it is taken from the earliest Buddhist texts.
Now, the three vehicles are very complex in and of themselves, and the correct ways to practice each makes up the bulk of Buddhist texts, therefore we will not be able to give a detailed description of each. If you have specific questions, please email us at [email protected] and we will share it with our community in the Discussions section.
For the novice, there is a very simple way that I use to delineate the three ways: The Arhat way is about freeing yourself (your being) from suffering, the Bodhisattva way is about freeing other beings from suffering, and the Buddha way is about freeing all beings upon realizing that in fact there are no beings to be freed.
*Watson, Burton. The Lotus Sutra (1993)
Despite the shared beliefs, the two main schools do have a very big difference- which is what each believes to be the main purpose of Buddhist practice. Theravada Buddhists believe that the main purpose of practice is to enter nirvana as an Arhat (also know as Arahant or Arhant) through the middle path and the dissolution of craving, as the Buddha had taught in his first discourses after his enlightenment. On the other hand, Mahayana Buddhists believe that the main purpose of practice should be to attain the goal of a Bodhisattva (an enlightened being, a Buddha to be), and to aid in the enlightenment of all sentient beings, which is the message the Buddha taught in his later discourses. Although clearly divergent in this regard, there is no reasons why a new aspiring buddhist today cannot dispense with such arbitrary categories and instead take the wisdoms found in both schools to use in his or her own practice.
Coincident with the two schools Buddhist there are different "vehicles" practices to reach the goal. The "Lesser Vehicle" of Theravada is the way of the Arhat or Pratyekabuddha (self taught buddha, one who realized enlightenment on his own and chooses not to teach others). The "Greater Vehicle" of Mahayana is the way of the Bodhisattva. We are using the terms most often seen but they should not denote a preference for one or the other, as it should be the choice of each personal aspirant which to pursue. In Mahayana sutras like The Lotus Sutra, it is clear that the Buddha teaches the Bodhisattva Way as the better of the two, however, it is also clear that Buddha states that there is not many vehicles, but only one vehicle, which is what all beings should be aspiring, and that is the Buddha way.
So if there was only one vehicle, why then are there so many Buddhist sutras and teachings describing the lesser vehicle and the greater vehicle, why did Buddha not just teach the Buddha way from the beginning? To this the Buddha explained his actions with the parable of the burning house in the Lotus Sutra.
Suppose there was a very rich man with a very large house, with hundreds of rooms. Even though the man is very rich the house has become old and decayed. Now because this man is very rich he was able to have many young children. In his house the children would run around and play all day. One day the house catches fire, and the rich man wants to save his children, but there are so many to save. Being very young the children do not understand the danger they are in and continue to play all while the house is burning. If he were to shout out that the house was burning, the children would not understand what he was saying because they had never known of fire and the dangers of it. If instead he were to grab each child and explain to them the dangers, he would surely run out of time and many would perish. Therefore the rich man used an expedient means by shouting throughout the house that whoever leaves the house will get new toy carriage. The kids hearing this message and understanding the joys of a toy all rush out and were all saved from the fire. Afterwards, the rich man being so overjoyed that his children were saved and being of great wealth decided to give them each a real carriage rather than a toy.
After telling this story to Sariputra, one of his first disciples, the Buddha asked "was the rich man guilty of lying or saying falsehoods?" To that Sariputra answered, "No, World Honored One, this rich man simply made it possible for his children to escape the perils of fire and preserve their lives. He did not commit falsehood."*
Thus this is the Buddha's explanation for why there exists in his teachings discussions of different vehicles for enlightenment. The way of the lesser vehicle and the greater vehicle were merely expedient means for people to make it out of the suffering of life and death, once obtained, the Buddha gifted on to people the treasure of the one true way, the Buddha Way. If a person was still clinging to life and craving he would perish in the fire before he could be explained the very difficult to grasp Buddha Way. The Buddha realized that people must first escape the decaying and burning house of this world before they can accept the treasure of the great wisdom.
This begs the question, that if Theravada Buddhist have knowledge of The Lotus Sutra and others like it, why do they continue to remain with the pursuit of the lesser vehicle? Since I am not a practitioner of Theravada Buddhism, I cannot answer this question with certainty, though I have been told that it is because they believe that it is too difficult for people to become a Buddha, therefore, it is more realistic that one pursue the goal of Arhat, which incidentally, is the Buddhism more prevalent in the West as it is taken from the earliest Buddhist texts.
Now, the three vehicles are very complex in and of themselves, and the correct ways to practice each makes up the bulk of Buddhist texts, therefore we will not be able to give a detailed description of each. If you have specific questions, please email us at [email protected] and we will share it with our community in the Discussions section.
For the novice, there is a very simple way that I use to delineate the three ways: The Arhat way is about freeing yourself (your being) from suffering, the Bodhisattva way is about freeing other beings from suffering, and the Buddha way is about freeing all beings upon realizing that in fact there are no beings to be freed.
*Watson, Burton. The Lotus Sutra (1993)