About Mahāsāṃghika

The Mahāsāṃghika was one of the early Buddhist schools. Interest in the origins of the Mahāsāṃghika school lies in the fact that their Vinaya recension appears in several ways to represent an older redaction overall. Many scholars also look to the Mahāsāṃghika branch for the initial development of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.
The Mahāsāṃghika was one of the early Buddhist schools. Interest in the origins of the Mahāsāṃghika school lies in the fact that their Vinaya recension appears in several ways to represent an older redaction overall. Many scholars also look to the Mahāsāṃghika branch for the initial development of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.
Pre-modern copies of the Tipiṭaka were preserved in Palm-leaf manuscripts

Nikaya Buddhism – The early Buddhist schools

The term Nikāya Buddhism was coined by Masatoshi Nagatomi as a non-derogatory substitute for Hinayana, meaning the . Examples of these groups are pre-sectarian Buddhism and the early Buddhist schools. Early Buddhism in India is generally divided into various monastic fraternities, or nikāyas. Conventionally numbering eighteen, the actual count varied over time. The doctrinal orientation of each school differed somewhat, as did the number of piṭakas in their canon. An example of .
Timeline: Development and propagation of Buddhist traditions (c. 450 BCE – c. 1300 CE)

Early Buddhist schools – The Buddhist monastic saṅgha

The early Buddhist schools are those schools into which the Buddhist monastic saṅgha initially split, due originally to differences in vinaya and later also due to doctrinal differences and geographical separation of groups of monks. The original saṅgha split into the first early schools (generally believed to be the and the ) a significant number of years after the death of Gautama Buddha. Later, these first early schools were further divided into schools .