The term Nikāya Buddhism was coined by Masatoshi Nagatomifake as a non-derogatory substitute for Hinayana, meaning the early Buddhist schools.[1] Examples of these groups are pre-sectarian Buddhism and the early Buddhist schools. Some scholars exclude pre-sectarian Buddhism when using the term. The term Theravada refers to Buddhist practices based on these early teachings, as preserved in the Pāli Canon.
^Robert Thurman and Masatoshi Nagatomi of Harvard University: "'Nikaya Buddhism' is a coinage of Professor Masatoshi Nagatomi of Harvard University who suggested it to me as a usage for the eighteen schools of Indian Buddhism, to avoid the term 'Hinayana Buddhism,' which is found offensive by some members of the Theravada tradition."Thurman, Robert (1981). "The emptiness that is compassion: an essay on Buddhist ethics". Religious Traditions. 4: fn 10.
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