theg pa chen po

theg pa chen po

Great Vehicle.

Literally the Sanskrit means "great way," but in Buddhism this has developed the meaning of great vehicle, and so is translated literally into Tibetan as "great carrier."

The "Great Vehicle" of Buddhism, called "great" because it carries all living beings to enlightenment of Buddhahood. It is distinguished from the Hinayāna, including the Śrāvākayāna (Śrāvaka Vehicle) and Pratyekabuddhayāna (Solitary Sage Vehicle), which only carries each person who rides on it to their own personal liberation.

The same as the Bodhisattva Vehicle, whose practitioners aim at complete buddhahood.

When the Buddhist teachings are classified according to their power to lead beings to an enlightened state, a distinction is made between the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle, which emphasizes the individual's own freedom from cyclic existence as the primary motivation and goal, and those of the Great Vehicle, which emphasizes altruism and has the liberation of all sentient beings as the principal objective. As the term "Great Vehicle" implies, the path followed by bodhisattvas is analogous to a large carriage which can transport a vast number of people to liberation, as compared to a smaller vehicle for the individual practitioner.

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