Schools of Buddhism

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Three main historical traditions of Buddhism

This article lists the main Schools of Buddhism with the major Buddhist traditions.

Early schools

See also: Early Buddhist schools
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Map of the major geographical centers of Sectarian Buddhist schools in India. Sarvāstivāda (red), Theravāda (orange), Mahāsāṃghika (yellow), Pudgalavāda (green), and Dharmaguptaka (gray).

Twenty sects

Sthaviravāda split into 11 sects:

Mahāsāṃghika split into 9 sects:

Theravada schools

Theravāda refers to the form of Buddhism practiced in Sri Lanka and the Southeast Asia nations of Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. While there are a variety of practices and traditions that are subsumed under the name Theravāda, all of these traditions share the same set of core texts and the same monastic lineage.

The forms of Theravada Buddhism tend to reflect the local cultures of the countries in which this form of Buddhism is practiced. Hence, the form of Theravada differs in these countries:

These traditions have influenced Western Theravada teachers:

Also notable are:

Indian Mahayana schools

East Asian schools

Main article: East Asian Buddhism

Chinese Buddhism

Main article: Chinese Buddhism

The schools with direct Indian counterparts include:

The schools that originated in China (and were later transmitted to the other East Asian countries) are:

Korean Buddhism

Vietnamese Buddhism

Japanese Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism

Main article: Schools of Tibetan Buddhism

Also notable is the Ri-mé (non-sectarian) movement.

Other traditions

Tantric traditions

See also

Further reading

External links

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