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Characteristics of the Lesser Vehicle
Keep each step solid, relaxed, and filled with happiness by nourishing mindfulness, concentration, and insight with every step of walking meditation. Each step is an opportunity to return to the present moment, to dwell solidly like a green mountain, to be at ease like a white cloud, and to manifest sovereignty over body and mind, so that we “become the king, the emperor of ourselves.” Using verses such as
“I have arrived, I am home, dwelling in the here and now, solid as a green mountain, free as a white cloud; thus the door of the unborn opens, just with one step, calm and unmoving”
helps maintain mindfulness, so that the Pure Land, the Kingdom of God is right in the present moment.
The early teachings of the Theravada tradition include the 37 factors of enlightenment, among which are the four foundations of mindfulness, the four right efforts, the four bases of spiritual power, the five faculties, the five powers, the seven factors of awakening, and the Noble Eightfold Path. In the beginning, there was only the Ninefold Teaching (Nava Anga), later developed into the Twelvefold Teaching (Dvadasa), which includes:
- Sutra (Discourses)
- Geya (Repetitions)
- Gatha (Verses)
- Itivrittaka (Stories of This Is What Happened)
- Jataka (Stories of Former Lives)
- Adbhutadharma (Marvelous Dharma)
- Avadana (Illustrative Stories)
- Upadesa (Instructions)
- Udana (Inspired Utterances)
- Nidana (Causes and Conditions)
- Vaipulya (Extensive Teachings)
-
Viakarana (Prophecies)
The two literary forms, Jataka and Avadana, became a great body of literature, contributing to the widespread dissemination of Buddhism throughout India during the period of the early schools.
