Q : What does Mahayana mean?

A : It means the great (Maha) carrier (Yana) that can accommodate all beings without any discriminations.

Q : It is hard to understand. What exactly is the great carrier?

A : It is “the Mind of the sentient being”, because the meaning of Mahayana can be unfolded through this Mind.

Q : It is more difficult to grasp. How can this Mind manifest the meaning of Mahayana?

A : The Mind of sentient being has two kinds of aspects: Samsara and Nirvana. The aspect of enlightenment of the Mind shows the nature of Mahayana. On the other hand, the worldly aspect of the Mind indicates how the nature of Mahayana is manifested into forms and functions according to the environment and condition.?

Q : Then, do you mean we have both worldly mind and transcendental mind? Are they one and the same?

A : Yes. This is why we call the Mind as Mahayana.

Q : What exactly does the term, Maha, imply in the compound, Mahayana?

A : It has three meanings: first, all different things in the phenomenon world are identical and equal in terms of nature. Second, although the mind of sentient being manifests as the defiled phenomena by afflictive emotions and delusional thinking, there is also the seed of the innate enlightenment and uncountable merits in the mind. Third, the seed of the innate enlightenment functions wholesomely in all of the phenomenal and transcendental worlds. That is, its influences always give rise to the good cause and effect.

Q : Are they the ones we call the "Three Greatness": the greatness of the essence, the greatness of the form, and the greatness of the function?

A : Yes.

Q : What does the term, Yana(carrier) imply in the compound, Mahayana?

A : All buddhas attained enlightenment through these three greatness of the essence, the form, and the function. All bodhisattvas can also become buddhas and reach the stage of Tathagata through them. Therefore, it is called as yana in the sense that carries all sentient beings and bodhisattvas toward into the world of buddhas.

Q : What is the ultimate teaching of Mahayana Buddhism?