Aspects of Mahayana Buddhism and its Relation to Hinayana c9.s3.26

c9.s3.26

The mental pūjās were all converted into rituals, and ended in the ceremonious worship of the images and caityas of various Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The underlying object of these Pūjās is, of course, to develop Śraddhā (reverential faith) in one's mind for Buddha, his Dharma and his followers. Be it Hinayāna or Mahāyāna, Śraddhā is at the basis of all practices⁸. In the Nikāyas, one of the stock passages is that a disciple must have firm faith (aveccapasādena samannāgto bhavati) in Buddha, Dhamma and Saṅgha¹. Perfection in the practice of Śraddhendriya is laid down in the Hinayāna works, as one of the conditions which a candidate for Arhathood must fulfil. The Śikṣāsamuccaya quotes sūtra after sūtra to establish the necessity of ‘śraddhādīnaṃ sadābhyāsaḥ’ (i.e. faith, etc., should be constantly practised)². From the Akṣayamatisūtra it cites the definition of Śraddhendriya which runs as follows: One can be said to have Śraddhendriya if he believes that (a) there is a right view (samyagdrṣṭi) for men of the world; (b) one enjoys the fruits of his actions; (c) there is merit in performing the duties of a bodhisattva; (d) things in reality are devoid of any essence (śūnya) and therefore are non-existent. The first two of these debar him from committing any evils for the sake of livelihood, the third from developing a desire for any practice other than Mahāyānic, and the fourth from following any doctrine other than Mahāyānic³. Śraddhā comprises the three anusmṛtis (i.e. constantly thinking of the excellent qualities) of Buddha⁴, Dharma⁵ and Saṅgha⁶, the Hinayānists adding to these the three others, viz., cāga (gifts), sila (precepts) and deva (gods)⁷. In short, faith (Śraddhā and Prasāda) in Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha is the first essential to be fulfilled by a person aspiring for Buddhahood or Arhathood.