The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle - The Mahāsāṃghika

Textual analysis and comparative discussion on early Buddhist sects and scriptures.
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Ceisiwr
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Re: The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle - The Mahāsāṃghika

Post by Ceisiwr »

Lucas Oliveira wrote: Sat Jun 26, 2021 9:45 pm
Ceisiwr wrote: Sat Jun 26, 2021 1:19 pm In his book “The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle” André Bareau discusses the various early Buddhist schools. Specifically he looks at what caused the different “schisms”, what is known regarding the texts each school had and their distinguishing doctrines. To do this Bareau draws upon a range of different sources such as Vasumitra, Bhavya, Vinītadeva the Kathāvatthu and other sources. It is an interesting book, which I would recommend to everyone. In discussing the early schools Bareau outlines the core doctrines of the Mahāsāṃghika and then discusses the unique doctrines of the sub-traditions and schools that developed within it, whilst for the Sthaviras he discusses the main traditions and sub-schools that it developed, with the entry on the Sthavira themselves being rather short. Below is a summary I’ve put together of the Mahāsāṃghika. I was going to do every tradition within one post, but as that is too time consuming and would present too big a wall of text I've decided to do it one tradition at a time. Perhaps then when I am finished they can all be collected together into one thread. I've also only selected the most interesting doctrinal points, rather than list them all (as they are quite numerous).
:thanks:

Thank you Ceisiwr!

Very interesting and important to know about these Schools of Buddhism.

:namaste:
You’re welcome. I’ve made some additional posts regarding the other Mahāsāṃghika schools. More to come, followed by the Sthavira traditions.
“Knowing that this body is just like foam,
understanding it has the nature of a mirage,
cutting off Māra’s flower-tipped arrows,
one should go beyond the King of Death’s sight.”
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Dhammanando
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Re: The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle - The Mahāsāṃghika

Post by Dhammanando »

Ceisiwr wrote: Sat Jun 26, 2021 7:18 pm It's the same with the Jains when they claim the Buddhists have lax morals because they aren't vegetarian. That if a Buddhist accidently ate human flesh there is no fault, so Buddhists are baby eaters. It went something like that, from what I can remember.
I think the text you're alluding to (whose name I can't remember) is a sort of Jain riposte to the Buddhist refutation of Jain kamma theory in the MN's Upāli Sutta. It represents a Buddhist as arguing that since kamma is cetanā, a bhikkhu who eats a breadfruit believing it to be a baby is guilty of cannibalism, while a bhikkhu who eats a baby believing it to be a breadfruit enjoys a blameless meal.
:lol:
Yena yena hi maññanti,
tato taṃ hoti aññathā.


In whatever way they conceive it,
It turns out otherwise.
(Sn. 588)
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Ceisiwr
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Re: The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle - The Mahāsāṃghika

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Dhammanando wrote: Sun Jun 27, 2021 12:16 am
Ceisiwr wrote: Sat Jun 26, 2021 7:18 pm It's the same with the Jains when they claim the Buddhists have lax morals because they aren't vegetarian. That if a Buddhist accidently ate human flesh there is no fault, so Buddhists are baby eaters. It went something like that, from what I can remember.
I think the text you're alluding to (whose name I can't remember) is a sort of Jain riposte to the Buddhist refutation of Jain kamma theory in the MN's Upāli Sutta. It represents a Buddhist as arguing that since kamma is cetanā, a bhikkhu who eats a breadfruit believing it to be a baby is guilty of cannibalism, while a bhikkhu who eats a baby believing it to be a breadfruit enjoys a blameless meal.
:lol:
Yes that sounds about right Bhante :jumping:
“Knowing that this body is just like foam,
understanding it has the nature of a mirage,
cutting off Māra’s flower-tipped arrows,
one should go beyond the King of Death’s sight.”
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Coëmgenu
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Re: The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle - The Mahāsāṃghika

Post by Coëmgenu »

T807 is a section of Mahāyāna-ized commentary on the Mahāvastu given the Sanskritized name "Lokānuvartanasūtra." Guang Xing translates in his doctorate thesis:
The Buddha was staying at the Vulture Peak Mountain near Rajagrha. At that time, there were twelve thousand bhiksu Sangha and seventy two thousand bodhisattvas sitting together. Manjusri bodhisattva rose from his seat and came forward and said to the Buddha: “Now, the bodhisattvas in the assembly wish to hear from the Buddha about the things regarding the upayakausalya. By what causes does the bodhisattva know the Buddha Dharma and other things? ” The Buddha told Manjusri bodhisattva: “Listen to what I say, it is in conformity with the ways of the world that I teach. The wisdom of the Buddha cannot be measured and the teachings of the Buddha are uncountable. The arhats and the pratyekabuddhas cannot know, how much less so the worldly people. The worldly people act out of attachment, but the Buddha acts without attachment. It is only the Buddhas who know the Buddhas. Just as the sutras say about the mind, the wisdom and also the body of the Buddha. What causes the Buddha to appear in the world? By what causes is it known?

Although the Buddha abides in the world but he does not attach to it, he is a light to the world. All his bodily actions, words of the mouth and thoughts of the mind are in conformity with the ways of the world. Thus he cultivated his mind. No one can surpass the teachings of the Buddhas and no one can achieve the works of the Buddha. It is in conformity with the ways of the world, but there are none who know. The Buddha, out of compassion for the people of the ten directions, illuminates the world by preaching the Dharma in accordance with the likes of the world.

The Bodhisattva was not born from the sexual union of father and mother. His body is magically produced, like illusion. He makes a show of having father and mother. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes such a show.

The Buddha has an immeasurable light which illuminates the ten cardinal directions. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes a show of having a light of seven chi only.


The Buddha has never touched the ground with his feet, but the marks imprint on the ground. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes such a show.

Since many thousand myriad kotis of asamkhyeyakalpas ago the Buddha has accomplished prajnaparamita. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he made a show of being a small boy.

The Buddha illuminates men of the ten directions in darkness. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes a show of having a wife and a child.

When the bodhisattva was born and walked on the ground he uttered the words: “In the whole world no-one surpasses me! I shall deliver men of the ten directions!” It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes such a show.

Some ask that since the prince sat at the foot of a tree in Jambudvipa, there had been six years of suffering with endeavour. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes a show of suffering.

The Buddha sat alone at the foot of the tree when he is about to attain enlightenment. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he emits rays of light to inform Mara of his state.

The Buddha accomplished wisdom which is equal to all Buddhas and there are none who can surpass it. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes a show of having obtained Buddhahood and sits in peaceful seclusion.

The purpose of attaining Buddhahood is to preach the Dharma in order to save the people of the ten directions out of compassion. But the Brahma Sahampati pleads the Buddha to deliver the Dharma to people. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes such a show.

There is nothing which can either increase or decrease the wisdom of the Buddha. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes a show of having more or less wisdom.

The Buddha abides in tathata and emptiness so he does not come and does not go. It is in conformity with the ways of the world to say that the Buddha appears in the world and enters into parinirvana This is just a show.

The Buddha abides nowhere just as the empty space that abides nowhere. It is in conformity with the ways of the world to say that the Buddha lives. It is only a show.

The Buddha’s feet, like lotus flowers, do not get dirty, but the Buddha washes his feet. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes such a show.

The Buddha’s body, like gold, does not get dirty, but the Buddha makes a show of taking a bath. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes such a show.

The Buddha’s mouth is fundamentally clean, with a fragrance like that of kunkuma. Nevertheless the Buddha cleans his mouth with poplar twigs. It is in conformity with the ways of the world that he makes such a show.
(p. 291-3)

You can read the rest in the thesis hosted here in the appendices therein. It's rather long to type out here, but very interesting.

I've bolded two doctrinal points. One of them, the immaterial birth, resonates with some of the Mahāsāṃghika beliefs outlined here and on the other threads related to them from the same time period. The second bolded item concerns the halo/aura of the Buddha. The classical aura depicted in early Buddhist texts is like in this painting from Sri Lanka:
SriLankanBuddhaWithHalo.jpg
It is depicted in SA 197 and the Pali vinaya. It also appears in a similar form in the Atthasālinī. It appears to be deeply related to the fifteenth mark of a great man, the "halo" or "aura."

In this Mahāsāṃghika/Mahāyāna commentary above, it is explained as for the sake of conformity with the world that the Buddha limits the size of his halo of light. This much later text from the same vein of Buddhist thought will greatly elaborate on this sort of belief concerning the Buddha's halo that seems to be shared between Mahāyāna and earlier Mahāsāṃghika Buddhism. From a famous apocryphal commentary to the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikāprajñāpāramitāsūtra:
Sūtra:
Atha khalu Bhagavān prakṛtiprabhayā trisāhasramahāsāhasraṃ lokadhātum avabhāsayāmāsa. yāvat pūrvasyāṃ diśi gaṅgānadīvālukopamā lokadhātavas tayā prabhayā avabhāsitā abhūvan. yāvat daśasu dikṣu gaṅgānadīvālukopamā lokadhātvas tayā prabhayā avabhāsitā abhūvan. ye ca sattvas tayā prabhayā spṛṣṭās te sarve niyatā abhūvan anuttarāyāṃ samyaksaṃbodhau.
Then by means of his usual light (prakṛtiprabhā) the Bhagavat illumined the trisāhasramahāsāhasralokadhātu; this brilliance extended to all the universes of the east as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, and it was the same in the ten directions. All the beings who were touched by this light were destined to supreme complete enlightenment.

Śāstra:
First the Buddha smiled with his entire body then he emitted rays from the pores of his skin; why now does he exhibit his usual light to light up the ten directions?

Some people who have seen the different rays [shooting out from the body and the pores of the Buddha] believed that this was not the light of the Buddha. [Now] seeing the great development of the usual light of the Buddha, they are filled with joy and, recognizing the true light of the Buddha, they finally reach anuttarasamyaksaṃbodhi.

What is the usual light of the Buddha?

It is a light one armspan in width surrounding the body of the Buddha on all sides; the Bodhisattva possessed it since his birth and it is one of the thirty-two marks called vyāmaprabhālakṣaṇa.

Why is the usual light of the Buddha one armspan in width and not larger?

The usual light of the Buddha is immense and lights up the universes of the ten directions. The miraculous bodily light of the Buddha Śākyamuni is immense; it is the width of one armspan, a hundred armspans, a thousand prabhedakoṭi of armspans and fills up the trisāhasramahāsāhasralokadhātu and the ten directions. However, the Buddhas’ custom is to manifest in the world of the five corruptions, where beings are of middling qualities and knowledge, a brilliance of only one armspan. If he showed a larger brilliance, the people today, of little merit and weak faculties, would be unable to tolerate the light. When a person sees a god, his eyes are blinded because the greater the light, the more the eye contracts. It is to people of keen faculties and eminent merit that the Buddha shows his immense brilliance.

Besides, there are people who, seeing the usual light of the Buddha, rejoice and find salvation.

The king makes a gift of the leftovers from his usual table to his inferiors, and the latter receive them rejoicing greatly. The Buddha does the same. Some people feel no joy in seeing the other many lights of the Buddha but, on contemplating his usual light, they are destined to anuttarasamyaksaṃbodhi.
(Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa translated by Ven Migme Chodron)

The later texts goes to lengths to stress its "literalist" reading of the Buddha's halo. It is "actual light," i.e. electromagnetic radiation to a modern, that could conceivably light a room. In the later text, the light is specifically not a mental light or a mentally-perceived light.
What is the Uncreated?
Sublime & free, what is that obscured Eternity?
It is the Undying, the Bright, the Isle.
It is an Ocean, a Secret: Reality.
Both life and oblivion, it is Nirvāṇa.
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Coëmgenu
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Re: The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle - The Mahāsāṃghika

Post by Coëmgenu »

I just found a French translation of the first 12 fascicles of EĀ by a Venerable Tao Ngan. French to English is a lot easier than Middle Chinese to English. I'll see if there's anything interesting in them.
What is the Uncreated?
Sublime & free, what is that obscured Eternity?
It is the Undying, the Bright, the Isle.
It is an Ocean, a Secret: Reality.
Both life and oblivion, it is Nirvāṇa.
User avatar
Ceisiwr
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Location: Wales

Re: The Buddhist Schools of the Small Vehicle - The Mahāsāṃghika

Post by Ceisiwr »

Coëmgenu wrote: Tue Sep 21, 2021 7:33 pm I just found a French translation of the first 12 fascicles of EĀ by a Venerable Tao Ngan. French to English is a lot easier than Middle Chinese to English. I'll see if there's anything interesting in them.
:thumbsup:
“Knowing that this body is just like foam,
understanding it has the nature of a mirage,
cutting off Māra’s flower-tipped arrows,
one should go beyond the King of Death’s sight.”
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