Consider the following information: Dimension Mahayana Tradition Hinayana Tradition 1. Spiritual Goal Bodhisattva Ideal (universal liberation) Arhat Ideal (individual liberation) 2. Concept of Buddha Transcendent and divine deity Historical teacher and moral guide 3. Religious Practice Practice of Paramitas (Perfections) Strict monastic discipline and Eightfold Path 4. Primary Scripture Exclusively compiled in Pali Written in Tibetan and Chinese only In which of the above rows is the given information correctly matched? |ForumIAS

[A] 1, 2 and 3 only

[B] 2 and 4 only

[C] 1 and 3 only

[D] 1, 2, 3 and 4

Answer: A

Notes:

Explanation:

Row 1 is correctly matched: Mahayana seeks universal liberation for all sentient beings via the Bodhisattva path, whereas Hinayana focuses on individual Nirvana via the Arhat path.
Row 2 is correctly matched: Mahayana deifies the Buddha as an eternal, supramundane manifestation, whereas Hinayana views Gautama Buddha as a human teacher who showed the way to liberation.
Row 3 is correctly matched: Mahayana highlights the Paramitas (generosity, patience, wisdom, etc.) practiced by Bodhisattvas, while Hinayana emphasizes adherence to the Noble Eightfold Path and strict monastic discipline (Vinaya).
Row 4 is incorrectly matched: It reverses the scriptural languages. Hinayana (Theravada) scripture is preserved in Pali (Pali Canon), whereas Mahayana texts were originally composed in Sanskrit (and later translated into Chinese, Tibetan, and other languages).