This page groups denominations by whether a state has adopted one as its official religious body. Wikipedia notes that some countries "define themselves in religious terms, such as The Islamic Republic of Iran," conditions under which a single denomination or school can carry formal state backing. Browsing by establishment status lets a visitor separate an officially established denomination from one with no such standing.
Facts
Overview
What Defines This GroupingThe vehicles and schools of Buddhism, distinguished by which scriptures are authoritative, by the ideal held out to the practitioner, by the status accorded the Buddha and by the means to awakening - and geographically, each vehicle having taken its own route out of India. 2 Origins
Whose Classification This IsThe three-vehicle scheme is a Mahayana classification of Buddhism, not a neutral one: Hinayana, the lesser vehicle, is a polemical term for a set of schools that never used it of themselves and whose surviving representative calls itself Theravada. 3 Learn More
The schools of Buddhism
This group holds the major traditions and schools of Buddhism, which spread from its Indian origin across Asia and adapted deeply to each culture it entered. Rather than denominations in the Christian sense, these are lineages and vehicles distinguished by canon, practice and philosophical emphasis.
The browser will find the three great vehicles (Theravada, the older tradition of Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia; Mahayana, the broad northern tradition with its bodhisattva ideal; and Vajrayana, the tantric path prominent in Tibet), together with their many schools, such as Zen, Pure Land, Tiantai, Nichiren and the Tibetan orders. The entries describe each school's texts, practices and lineage.
Varies by Province
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Sources
1. Divinity Atlas Directory Taxonomy, First Edition Category Tree
2. An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices, 2nd edition
3. The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
Robert E. Buswell Jr. and Donald S. Lopez Jr., Princeton University Press, 2014s.v. HinayanaView the Source Divinity Atlas Directory Prose, First Edition Category Descriptions
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