The First Paramita: Generosity

Buddhism can be approached by studying the teachings and by practicing the teachings. It is not always easy to distinguish between the two. Deliberating upon and profoundly discerning the teachings can itself become a way of practice. Similarly practicing to attain wisdom (prajna) requires stabilizing the mind (samadhi) through understanding the teachings. Study and practice, like prajna and samadhi, are thus intimately connected.

Hinayana and Mahayana

By a hundred years after the Buddhak nirvana, approximately twenty different schools of Buddhism had arisen and had begun interpreting the teachings in various ways.1 About 400 years later, Mahayana (Great Vehicle) Buddhism first appeared, and distinguished itself from the earlier schools by referring to them as Hinayana (Small Vehicle).