Mahayana Buddhism

Most off the people practicing Mahayana Buddhism are from Tibet, China, Mongolia, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. The Mahayana Buddhism is a collection of different Buddhist traditions: Zen Buddhism, Pure Land Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism, they are all different forms. You can compare the Mahayana easily with the Theravada Buddhism, since they both following the teachings of the historical Buddha. Furthermore they are about individual searching for the escape of samsara.

The main idea of the Mahayana is the Bodhisattva, which can be translated as enlightenment being. You can also compare the main believes of Mahayana with humanism, because they believe in all beings no matter who or what they are and that everybody can reach enlightenment.

Another main idea of the Mahayana is the three bodies of Buddha.

·         Dharmakaya: Buddha as transcedent

·         Sambhogakaya: Buddha’s enjoyment body

·         Nirmanakaya: Buddha’s earthly body

With these three bodies it is easier to imagine what Buddha really is. A “normal” human, who reached enlightenment and the founder of the important teaches.