Hinayana

American  

[hee-nuh-yah-nuh] / ˌhi nəˈyɑ nə /

noun

1. earlier of the two great schools of Buddhism, still prevalent in Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, and Cambodia, emphasizing personal salvation through one's own efforts.

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Hinayana British  

/ ˌhiːnəˈjɑːnə /

noun

1. 1. any of various early forms of Buddhism

   2. ( as modifier )

      Hinayana Buddhism

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Other Word Forms

• Hinayanist noun
• Hinayanistic adjective

Etymology

Origin of Hinayana

First recorded in 1865–70; from Sanskrit, equivalent to hīna “lesser, inferior” + yāna “vehicle”

Example Sentences

Information Service movies in the town hall, embraces the Hinayana or southern variety of Buddhism.

From Time Magazine Archive

The two great Buddhist traditions are Hinayana and Mahayana.

From Time Magazine Archive

The sages heard discussions of such topics as the Problem of the Person in Hinayana Buddhism, the Trivialization of Mathematical Logic, Entic Parallelism, and a Practical Philosophy of Cosmic Energy.

From Time Magazine Archive

Buddhism, at least in its older Hinayana form, is a do-it-yourself effort to achieve enlightenment and the end of suffering, minus metaphysics or the idea of God.

From Time Magazine Archive

It must be remembered that this school, though nominally belonging to the Hinayana, came to be something very different from the Theravâda of Ceylon.

From Hinduism and Buddhism, An Historical Sketch, Vol. 3 by Eliot, Charles, Sir