Adjacent Words

Theravada definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: one of two great schools of Buddhist doctrine emphasizing personal salvation through your own efforts; a conservative form of Buddhism that adheres to Pali scriptures and the non-theistic ideal of self purification to nirvana; the dominant religion of Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and Myanmar (Burma) and Thailand and Laos and Cambodia [syn: Theravada, Theravada Buddhism]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Pali therav?da, literally, doctrine of the elders Date: 1882 a conservative branch of Buddhism comprising sects chiefly in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia and adhering to the original Pali scriptures alone and to the nontheistic ideal of nirvana for a limited select number — compare Mahayana

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. a more conservative form of Buddhism, practised in Burma (now Myanmar), Thailand, etc. Etymology: Pali theravada f. thera elder, old + vada speech, doctrine