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Theravada Buddhism, along with Mahayana Buddhism, are the two main branches of the Buddhist faith. This is the most extensively in Sri Lanka, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand. Like Mahayana Buddhism, Theravada (Pali for "School Of Elders") claims that immortalized the true teachings and methods of the Buddha.

Theravada school traces its descent of the original sangha, or monastic community, it is first followed the Buddha. His canon of scripture consists of the Tipitaka (Three Baskets), the first great summary of Buddhist scriptures, composed in the Pali language. Theravada caring for theological conservatism, illustrated in the careful interpretation of its canon. Because from this, this distance, expletive called Hinayana (Sanskrit for "Smaller Vehicle") of his rivals, who call their own tradition of Mahayana ( "A great Vehicle"). Purpose Theravadin, or an adherent of Theravada, to Become arhat, a sage who completed the nirvana (enlightenment) and will never be reborn. Mahayana traditionally prefers the number of the bodhisattva - who, out of compassion, helps others to salvation - to the arhat, who are concerned mainly with his own salvation.

Origin and Development.

Theravada tradition was the only one among the so-called Eighteen schools from early Buddhism to survive the first centuries after Buddha's death in the 5th century BC. Some authorities trace its origins to the events after the second great council of Buddhism at Vaishali, India, in 383 BC, in which a new interpretation of the doctrine was condemned by conservatives - Theras (Senior) - who thus became the creators of Theravada orthodoxy. Converters, in turn, accused the conservatives who also gone into himself and dogmatic.The ideological division has been confirmed in the third council, convened by King Ashok in Pvtaliputra (now Patna, India) in about 250 BC. Then, according to tradition, the Orthodox school, believed to be circulating in Sri Lanka, the son of Ashoka, the monk Mahinda.There it became a national symbol of faith, centered in the great monastery Mahavihara and is closely associated with Sri Lankan monarchy. Ashoka missionaries also spread Theravada Buddhism to Myanmar and Thailand. For much of the 1st millennium AD, Theravada existed a number of Mahayana Buddhism and secret in all these areas.