Mahayana Ethics: Change in Hinayana Paradigms and its Effect on Soteriology

Some scholars believe that Mahayana Buddhism goes extremely far from early Buddhism. Indeed, they believe that Mahayana is a deviation from the early Buddhism; since Mahayana, as I myself believe, on the one hand, makes use of the conceptions which are not so much important in early Buddhism, and on the other hand, it claims to be superior to Hinayana as regards morality. This article will try to show that the nature of Mahayana ethics is complex; and there is evidence for its development in some respects. In either case it will be shown that Mahayana ethics contains no precepts and values which cannot be found in other major Buddhist ethical traditions. Mahayana texts indicate that Mahayana morality is superior to Hinayana morality. According to this view, Mahayana morality can be regarded as superior to its Hinayana counterpart in four respects: classifications of moral principles, shared and different moral rules, extension, and depth