ABSTRACT
To preserve and spread his teaching, Buddha created the sangha, and in the centuries following his death Buddha's legacy grew into a strong, reasonably unified tradition. Theravada Buddhism was not intended to be a religious institution; it was fundamentally a secular movement based on the teaching of Shakyamuni Buddha, within which men and to some degree women could devote their lives to the great quest for personal liberation. The nascent Mahayana movement began to gather momentum in the century following the great council that produced the Pali Canon. The focus of the change to the Mahayana within India can best be represented as a modification of the ideal of enlightenment. Another sutra of major importance is the Lankavatara Sutra. This chapter examines six of these most fundamental aspects: diversity and religious elements in Mahayana, the nature of Buddha, Madhyamaka, Yogacara, the Bodhisattva, and Artistic Expression in Early Mahayana.
