[ther-uh-vah-duh] 
| Hinayanist name for Hinayana. |
[hee-nuh-yah-nuh] | earlier of the two great schools of Buddhism, still prevalent in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, and Cambodia, emphasizing personal salvation through one's own efforts. |
| Ther·a·va·da (thěr'ə-vä'də) n. Buddhism A conservative branch of Buddhism that adheres to Pali scriptures and the nontheistic ideal of self-purification to nirvana and is dominant in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. [Pali theravāda : thera, an elder (from Sanskrit sthaviraḥ, old man, from sthavira-, old, venerable; see stā- in Indo-European roots) + vāda, doctrine (from Sanskrit vādaḥ, statement, doctrine; see wed-2 in Indo-European roots).] |