Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism

Buddhism is a major world religion, which was founded in northeastern India and is based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama--more commonly known as the Buddha, or the Enlightened One. The worldwide followers of Buddhism number between 150 to 300 million, most of whom belong to the two major branches of Buddhism--the Theravada (the “Way of the Elders”) and Mahayana (the “Great Vehicle”) Buddhism. This paper is going to show the traces of the origins of the two branches of Buddhism, compares and contrasts the major theological differences between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism and explains how these differences are manifested in practice.

Theravada Buddhism is one of 18 branches of the Nikaya school of Buddhism (and the only surviving branch) that originated in the century following Buddha’s death. “Theravada” (is translated as the “Way of the Elders” or the “teaching of the Elders”) is the most conservative school of Buddhism that claims to have