Mahayana Buddhism

Mahayana ( "Great Vehicle", Chinese: 大乘, Dàshèng; Japanese: 大乗, Daijō; Korean: 대승, Dae-seung; Vietnamese: Đại Thừa; Tibetan: theg-pa chen-po; Mongolian: yeke kölgen) is a classification of Buddhism used in several different senses. The most common, found in English dictionaries, is as one of two major branches of Buddhism existing today, the other being Theravada (上座部). However, the normal usage in the Mahayana in sense 1 is to refer to a level of spiritual motivation and practice, namely the Bodhisattvayana, the Bodhisattva's vehicle..The term Mahayana is also often used in a sense exclusive of the Vajrayana, which is itself used in a variety of senses.
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Noun
1. one of two great schools of Buddhist doctrine emphasizing a common search for universal salvation especially through faith alone; the dominant religion of China and Tibet and Japan
(synonym) Mahayana
(hypernym) Buddhism
(hyponym) Yogacara

Mahayana means "The Great Raft" or "The Great Vehicle." It is the largest and most influential of the three main forms of Buddhism (the other two being Theravada and Vajrayana ). It is practiced in China, Japan and Korea. Vajrayana derived from it and shares many similarities with it. Mahayana emphasizes the idea of the bodhisattva over that of the arhat . The goal of an individual is therefore not to pass out of this world into nirvana, but to attain enlightenment--with the wisdom, understanding and power that goes with it--and then to show compassion by returning to this world to help those in need. Amitabha Buddha did this to establish Pure Land Buddhism. In comparison to Theravada , Mahayana Buddhism emphasizes the help that gods and bodhisattvas can give to people to help them escape samsara . It has elaborate descriptions of how this works and emphasizes prayers and rituals that enable people to seek this help. Zen is another branch of Mahayana Buddhism.