1)The first group is the Prajna group.

(1)The first group is the Prajna group.

It is based on the Prajñāpāramitā-sūtra. Its central concept is svabhāvatā—every phenomenon has no essence of its own and is empty of a permanent self.

All things are empty of self-nature.  Prajñāpāramitā deals with the perfection of wisdom. The main concept of Prajnaparamita sutra is non-grasping of all dharmas and that no dharma has its own intrinsic nature; that is, the concept of the emptiness or unreality of things.

The Perfection of Wisdom sutras teaches that all entities, including dharmas, are only conceptual constructs. They are empty of permanent self, and that nature is void, emerged in opposition to the intrinsic nature concept. All entities are like hallucinatory objects. There is no ultimate truth. ‘Even Nirvana is like a magical illusion, is like a dream.

 The central idea of The prjanparamita is complete release from the world of existence. It goes beyond earlier Buddhist teaching. It offers a way to enlightenment.—the ideal of a bodhisattva.

There are several famous sutras in prajanparamita literature: Perfection of Wisdom sutra, Diamond sutra and Heart sutra .

(2) The second group. In the second group are the sutras  Ratnakara, 宝积 , and Avatamsaka, 华严 , or Garland scriptures, (400-480 CE) with “the middle way” concept of the mind-only doctrine. Examples of Ratanakara literature are: Mahāratnakūta Sūtra and the Mahāsamnipāta Sūtra, both finalized by about the 5th century,.

 The most important teaching is the concept of “fundamental right view”. Right view here means the understanding of the nature of all things based on prajñā.  The Bodhisattva vehicle advocates prajñā, its doctrine surpassing pure emptiness and taking the middle way between void[1] and real.[2]  “The middle way” of the Mahayana is called a“right view”.

The Avatamsaka-sūtra was produced in the same period as the Ratnakara-sūtra

The main themes are:

·         The interdependency of all phenomena (dharmas).

• The progression of the Buddhist path to full Enlightenment, or Buddhahood.

This class of literature is regarded as very important in Mahayana studies as it extends the path of Buddhahood, the destiny of becoming a Buddha, to include all beings. As with most Mahayana scriptures, it treats Buddha not as merely a man of ancient India, but as a cosmic principle. Differing from the austere and non-theist Theravada scriptures, it is full of gods and goddesses, heavens, jewelled trees and imaginary beings.

The Mahayana concept in Avatamsaka sutra was believed to transcend the teachings of all sects. Other schools of thought believed that there was only one Buddha of the present, Śakyamuni Buddha,  there had been six Buddhas in the past, and  there would be one Buddha, Maitreya, in the future. In this view, in one period of time there was only one Buddha; there could not be two Buddhas at the same time. This view led to the belief that achieving Buddhahood was very limited. The Avatamsaka sutra broke through these space and time limitations on becoming a Buddha.

In the new concept, there were numerous Bodhisattvas with no time or space restrictions on becoming Buddhas. Therefore the version of this sutra offers the concept of “all Buddhas in the ten directions”.  There are innumerable other Buddhas in other universes.

The teaching in the Avatamsaka sutra includes the important Vijñāptimātrata doctrine.[3] Its teaching is concerned with the questions about the cosmos and led to the mind-only concept.

The essence of this concept is that all existence in the three realms, originates only from mind.[4] The mind-only doctrine was combined with the fundamental Buddhist doctrine of dependent origination.

The mind-only doctrine differs from the Prajnaparamita approach in that it gives a positive, qualitative description of the Absolute Reality, which is described as being of the nature of pure Consciousness (vijnana); "consciousness-only" (vijnanamatrata, vijnaptimatrata); or "Mind-only" (Chittamatra).

(3) The third group.

In it are the Lotus, or the Dharma-flower Sutra, 法华 , and the Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa-sūtra, 维摩经The important teaching of these texts is that all dharmas are absolute reality.

The lotus sutra is well-known for its extensive instruction on the concept and usage of skillful means (Sanskrit: upāya), mostly in the form of parables. It is also one of the first sutras to use the term Mahayana, or "Great Vehicle" Buddhism.

The first important point the Buddha wishes to convey is that there is only one vehicle or one path to salvation. The Buddha’s earlier preaching on three paths for believers (three vehicles). They are: sravaka or voice-hearer; second was that of the pratyekabuddha; and the third was that of the bodhisattva. 

But now, the Buddha tells us, these lesser paths are to be aside and all beings are to aim for the single goal of Buddhahood via the Bodhisatva route.

The ultimate "teaching" of the sutra, however, is implied to the reader that "full Buddhahood" is only arrived at by exposure to the truths expressed implicitly in the Lotus Sutra via its many parables.

Another concept introduced by the Lotus Sutra is the idea that the Buddha is an eternal entity, who achieved nirvana eons ago, but willingly chose to remain in the cycle of rebirth to teach beings the Dharma time and again.

From this we see that in the Lotus sutra, the Buddha, who had earlier been viewed as a historical personality, is now conceived as a being who transcends all boundaries of time and space, an ever-abiding principle of truth and compassion that exists everywhere and within all beings.

Bodhisattva: Earlier Buddhism often described Sakyamuni Buddha as a Bodhisattva in his previous existences, when he was still advancing toward enlightenment. But in Mahayana texts such as the Lotus sutra the bodhisattvas are pictured as unlimited in number, all-seeing and all-caring, capable of extending boundaries aid and succor to those who call upon them in sincere faith. BODHISATTVAs aspire to Supreme Enlightenment and Buddhahood for themselves and all beings. The word Bodhisattva can therefore stand for realized beings such as Avalokitesvara or Samanthabhadra but also for anyone who has developed the Bodhi Mind -- the aspiration to save oneself and others

The concept of non-duality, often described in English as “nondualism”, rejects or transcends all distinction. The world perceived through the senses, the phenomenal world as we know it, was described in early  Buddhism as “empty” because all such phenomena arise from causes and conditions, are in constant state of flux, and are destined to change and pass away in time.

They are also held to be “empty” in the sense that they have no inherent or permanent characteristics by which they can be described, changing as they do from instant to instant. But in Mahayana thought it became customary to emphasize the positive aspects of Emptiness. If All phenomena are characterized by the quality of ‘emptiness’, then emptiness must constitute the unchanging and abiding nature of existence, and therefore the absolute or unchanging world must be synonymous with the phenomenal one. Hence all mental and physical distinctions that we perceive or conceive of with our minds must be part of a single underlying unity.

It is this concept of Emptiness or nonduality that leads the Mahayana texts to assert that samsara, the ordinary world of suffering and cyclical birth and death, is in the end identical with the world of nirvana, and that earthly desires are enlightenment.

The Lotus Sutra indicates that emptiness (śūnyatā) is not the ultimate vision to be attained by the aspirant Bodhisattva, but the attainment of Buddha Wisdom is indicated to be a bliss-bestowing treasure which transcends seeing all as merely empty.

We do not know what language the Lotus Sutra was first composed in, it was very probably not Sanskrit, and therefore the Sanskrit versions of the text are already one step removed from the original.

The Lotus Sutra is one of the most popular and influential Mahayana sutras in Asia and the basis on which the Tien Tai in China (Tendai in Japan) school and the Nichiren schools in Japan were established. The full text of lotus sutra usually includes the lotus sutra, the Sutra of Innumrable Meanings Wu liang yi jing), and the Sutra of Meditation on the Bodhisattva Universal Worthy (Pu Xian Jing). These other sutras that are usually included with the lotus sutra, were probably composed later than it was,

The Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa Sutra is also classified in the same genre of the Lotus Sutra. Its famous teaching is nondualism. The Lotus Sutra gives its teaching in outline while the Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa gives it in detail.    

What we have to notice especially in this text is that Mahyana Buddhism does not require us to lead a homeless life as a Bhikshu in order to attain enlightenment, that is, the householder's life is as good and pure as the mendicant's. The sutra is seen by some as a strong assertion of the value of lay practice that to be a perfect Buddhist one need not renounce family life and join the order of monks and nuns, where it was seen as being compatible with Confucian values. This sutra was influential on Pure Land schools, and very popular in China and Japan .

The doctrine of non-duality is essentially a re-statement of the Buddha’s teaching of the middle way between the existence and non-existence. It is beyond the realm of good and bad, nirvana and samsara, virtue and evil, self and liberation. They are both void because wherein ultimately, there is neither existence nor non-existence.

(4) The fourth group is the Pure Land Sutras      

The Pure Land genre of early Mahayana literature concerns faith in the Buddha. In the literature dealing with the Buddha Land, it is said that besides the Buddha Land of Śakyamuni Buddha, there are other Buddha Lands, in particular the Buddha Lands in the East , and in the West.

It is said that to the east there is a land called Abhirati,[5] possessed by Akṣobhya Buddha; to the west there is a land called sukhavati possessed by Amitabha Buddha.

There are three major sutras that fall into this category: the Infinite Life Sutra, the Sutra of Boundless Life (Sukhāvatī-vyūha-sūtra, or Amitayus-sūtra also known as the Larger Pure Land Sutra; the Amitabha Sutra, Amitabha-sūtra or (the shorter Sukhāvatī-vyūha-sūtra) also known as the Smaller Pure Land Sutra; and the Contemplation Sutra, or Visualization, Sutra or the Sutra on the Meditation of Amitayus . These texts describe the origins and nature of the Western Pure Land in which the Buddha Amitabha resides.

Sukhavati is a Sanskrit word meaning “Realm of Bliss” or “Land of Happiness” and  Vyuha means “magnificent display.” งดงาม And so “Sukhavati-Vyuha Sutra” could be translated as “The Sutra of the Magnificent Display of the Realm of Bliss.”  Both the Shorter and Longer Sutras are thought to have been written about 1700 years ago on the frontier of northwest India in what is now Pakistan.  The earliest renditions are said to have been written in the first or second century C.E.  Kumarajiva wrote a Chinese translation of the Shorter Sutra in the fifth century C.E.

The Shorter Sukhavati Sutra introduces us to the fact that there is hope for suffering beings due to the boundless compassion of the Buddha Amitayus/Amitabha (Boundless Life, Boundless Light), that a realm of rebirth exists in which enlightenment is easy to attain, that one should generate an earnest desire to be reborn there and that Amitabha Buddha will meet sentient beings more than halfway, a function of Amitabha’s boundless compassion and wisdom.

Two Main Sutras of the Pure Land Canon are Infinite Life Sutra , and Amitabha Sutra

The Sukhāvatīvyūha-sūtra, or 无量寿经 in Chinese, or the Infinite Life Sutra, or Larger Pure Land Sutra is the primary text of Pure Land school, and the longest of its three major texts.

The sūtra begins as a discourse between the Buddha and Ānanda (阿難/阿难 Ānán),  In the first sections, the Buddha describes his awareness of the existence of other Buddhas, who in turn are aware of him. He then describes a lineage of Buddhas that existed before him, starting with Dipankara all the way to the 53rd Buddha, named Lokesvararaja Buddha, or Sovereign of the World Buddha.

Later, it goes on to relay the story of Dharmakara (法藏 Fǎzàng), a king who lived eons ago, who met Lokesvararaja Buddha, and was so impressed by his sermon that he become a monk who renounced his royal status to pursue enlightenment.

He vowed to become a buddha to earn a land of bliss - the Pure Land - whose inhabitants would be assured a life of bliss until they earned entry into Nirvana. Through his efforts he attained this, becoming the Amitābha Buddha (阿彌陀佛/阿弥陀佛 Āmítuófó).

The sūtra describes in great detail this Land of Bliss and its inhabitants. It also details how sentient beings are able to attain rebirth into it. The text also provides a detailed account of the various levels and beings in the Mahayana Buddhist cosmology.

The sūtra also contains the Forty-eight vows (四十八願/四十八愿 sìshíbā yuàn) made by the Amitābha Buddha to save all sentient beings. The eighteenth vow is among the most important as it forms a basic tenet of the Pure Land school. This vow is most commonly known as 十念必生願/十念必生愿 (shí niàn bì shēng yuàn) because it states that if a sentient being makes even "ten recitations" (十念 shí niàn) of the Amitābha Buddha's name they will attain "certain rebirth" (必生 bì shēng) into the Pure Land.[6]

This sutra is dedicated exclusively to Amitabha Buddha, the direct realization of the Pure Land and the vows which created the Pure Land.  In many ways the Longer Sutra is seen as an expansion of the Shorter Sutra.  The principles of self-cultivation and hope or trust come together, which may also be seen as the combination of faith and practice.  Additionally, the Sutra is a demonstration of the transference of merit on a vast scale and of the power of vows.

A principal teaching of the Longer Sutra is that powerful vows may change the external environment of the person who makes them if that person trusts the vows with a serene mind (Sk. prasada,meaning “serene trust”).  This causes one to be  transformed from one’s former state, so it may be said that the mind which trusts a vow participates in that vow.  The vows which are responsible for the creation of Sukhavati are the culmination การบรรลุถึงจุดสูงสุด of a Bodhisattva’s eons of effort.  This effort resulted in an incredible storehouse of merit which is now available to sentient beings in order to help them attain Nirvana.

Amida Buddha is a manifestation of the Truth of Universe in human form while His vows, especially the eighteenth, are an active merciful and loving expression of His Great Compassion

Lastly the Sutra shows the Buddha discoursing at length to the next Buddha to come, Maitreya, describing the various forms of evil that Maitreya must avoid to achieve his goal of becoming a Buddha, as well as other admonitions and advice.

The Amitabha Sutra or The Shorter Sukavativyuha sutra, or阿彌陀經, or the Buddha's Discourse of the Amitabha Sutra is also one of the primary sutras recited and upheld in the Pure Land Buddhist schools.

It was translated from Sanskrit into Chinese by the Tripitaka Master Kumarajiva in 402, but may have existed in India as early as year 100, and composed in Prakrit language. The bulk of the text, considerably shorter than other Pure Land sutras, consists of a discourse which the Buddha gave at Jeta Grove in Sravasti to his disciple Shariputra. The talk concerned the wondrous adornments that await the righteous in the Western Pure Land (Chinese: 西方極樂國), as well as the beings that reside there, including the buddha Amitabha. The text also describes what one must do to be reborn there.

Amitāyus-vipaśyana-sūtra or The Contemplation Sutra of Amitayus or佛說觀無量壽佛經Contemplation sutra, or Visualization Sutra or the Sutra on the Meditation of Amitayus

It begins with a story where a prince named Ajatasatru was enticed by the villain Devadatta to murder his father in order to ascend the throne. Ajatasatru killed his father, and nearly killed his mother, Queen Vaidehi, but after advice from his other ministers relented and threw his mother in prison.

Lamenting her fate, Queen Vaidehi prayed to the Buddha for help, and had a vision of him. In this vision, the Buddha told her that even though she was in prison, she could still obtain salvation through devotion to another Buddha named Amitabha. The Buddha goes on to describe Amitabha and how one could obtain rebirth in his "Pure Land"

The Visualization Sutra (Amitayur-Buddhanusmrti Sutra or Amitayur-Dhyana Sutra)

Amitayur is a Sanskrit word referring to the Buddha Amitayus/Amitabha (Endless Life, Endless Light).  Dhyana means “meditation” or “meditative concentration.”  Buddhanusmrti means “visualization or recollection of a Buddha.”  The title of this sutra in its original Chinese uses the term “kuan” which means “recollection through visualization.” 
The Visualization Sutra was written in the 4th century C.E. in Central Asia and was first translated into Chinese between the mid-4th and mid-5th century C.E.  No evidence of Sanskrit or Tibetan versions exists.

In the Longer and Shorter Sukhavati Sutras, the primary emphasis is rebirth based on recollection and vows; in the Visualization Sutra, the Buddha vision and how to attain it is emphasized.  This sutra was actually one of a series of visualization sutras dealing with various Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, but it’s generally accepted that it played the most central role in the emergence of Pure Land Buddhism as a major Buddhist school.

These scriptures are central to the Pure Land schools of China and Japan, as well as other parts of east Asia. These describe the merits of the Pure Land (Sukhāvatī, or Land of Bliss) that exists an unimaginable distance to the west of the present world of suffering and was created by the karma generated by the practices of the Buddha Amitābha (‘Boundless Light’, or sometimes Amitāyus, ‘Boundless Life’).

PURE LAND BUDDHISM. "Pure Land comprises the schools of East Asia which emphasize aspects of Mahayana Buddhism stressing faith in Amida, meditation on and recitation of his name, and the religious goal of being reborn in his 'Pure Land,' or 'Western Paradise.'"[7] "The goal of those devoted to Amitabha and the Pure Land is to be reborn there, and attain enlightenment (Buddhahood)"[8] . "Pure Land Buddhism chiefly consists in hearing and reciting Amitabha Buddha's name with a faithful mind, but it does not exclude meditation (dhyana) and insight (vipasyana) through which one can visualise the Buddha. How Pure Land works. The goal espoused by all Buddhist schools is for the practitioner to achieve Buddhahood, i.e., to become an 'Enlightened Being.' Thus, to practice Buddhism is to cultivate enlightenment, to attain Wisdom. Although there are many paths to reach this goal, they all involve severing greed, anger and delusion, thus perfecting the qualities of the Mind (paramitas). Traditionally, Buddhist sutras enumerate six or ten paramitas, but they may be subsumed under three key paramitas: Discipline, Concentration and Wisdom (the second, fifth and sixth paramitas, respectively). Pure Land , symbolized by the Buddha Recitation method, is a Mahayana approach that employs, inter alia, the techniques of meditation-visualization (of the Pure Land, Amitabha Buddha) and of oral recitation of the Buddha's name, to realize these paramitas. That is, when a practitioner is busy visualizing the Buddha or reciting the Buddha's name, he cannot commit transgressions or violate Buddhist precepts. Therefore, he has effectively fulfilled the paramita of Discipline. Likewise, reciting the Buddha's name with a completely focussed Mind is nothing less than fulfilling the paramita of Concentration. Once Concentration is achieved, the practitioner's Mind becomes empty and still, leading to the emergence of his innate wisdom -- the Wisdom of the Buddhas. Thus, a sincere Buddha Recitation practitioner, by dint of his own effort, effectively attains Buddhahood. According to Pure Land doctrine, however, most practitioners in this Degenerate Age find the "self-power," self-help approach too difficult and arduous; therefore, in their Pure Land teachings, the Buddhas and Sages compassionately emphasized the additional element of "other-power." This involves reliance on Amitabha Buddha's Vows, made countless eons ago, to welcome and escort all sentient beings to his Land of Ultimate Bliss -- an ideal training ground, an ideal environment.

"Some of our readers may be led to think that the sole object of Pure Land devotees is to be born in Amida's Land of Bliss and Purity ... But the fact is that the birth itself ... is not the object, but to attain enlightenment in the country of Amida where conditions are such as to ensure a ready realization of the true Buddhist life ... If we can say so, to be born in the Pure Land is the means to the end; for Buddhism in whatever form is a religion of enlightenment and emancipation."[9]

(5) The fifth group combined Mahayana concepts with traditional teachings.The Mahāvairocana-sūtra and the Vajraśekhara-sūtra are key sutras of this period.

It is generally supposed that the Mahāvairocana-sūtra, 大日经 ,

emerged in the seventh century. In the Mahāvairocana-sūtra, Mahāvairocana Buddha, in dialogue with Vajrasattva, explains the way of obtaining Buddha-wisdom. He defines the aspiration for enlightenment as the cause, great compassion as the foundation, and skilful means as the way to realize that wisdom. The sutra teaches that to observe the true nature of one's mind is to obtain Buddha-wisdom. It also describes rituals and various aspects of practice, such as mudra (hand gesture), mantra (magical formula), and mandala.

In Mahayana Buddhism, Monkhood is part of the system of “vows of individual liberation”. These vows are taken by monks and nuns from the ordinary sangha, in order to develop personal ethical discipline. The vows of individual liberation are taken in four steps. A lay person may take the five vows called “approaching virtue”. The next step is to enter the monastic way of life. After that, one can become a novice or samanera. The last and final step is to take all the vows of a “fully ordained monk”, or nun. There are five vows for lay Buddhists, 250 for fully ordained monks.

Pratimoksa has two meanings. The first is 'guaranteed liberation', the second is 'special liberation'. Guaranteed liberation means if one holds these Bodhisattva precepts, it's guaranteed that one can go from the level of an ordinary person to the level of a Sage. Special liberation means that for every precept you hold, you obtain that partcular liberation" .

In Mahayana Buddhism, all precepts can be grouped into two main categories: Sravaka precepts (of laymen, monks and nuns); and Bodhisattva precepts, the exalted code above the Sravaka precepts. All these precepts are derived from Three Root Precepts which form the basis of all Buddhist practice: Do not what is evil, do what is good and be of benefit to all sentient beings.

The essence of this code is compassion toward all sentient beings:

This love is the Great Compassion that motivates the Bodhisattvas to lead all sentient beings to Buddhahood. It is a compassion beyond all attachment and discrimination -- the supreme compassion of Buddhism. 

the most noteworthy of the sutra are: 1) the practice of vegetarianism; 2) the compassionate duty to rescue sentient beings in danger and guide them to Enlightenment; and most of all, 3) the concept of compassion  toward all sentient beings. 

The most serious type of offense in Mahayana Buddhism is killing beings. "An offense that merits casting out -- being cast out of the sea of the Buddhadharma

ThisBrahmajala sutra introduces Vairocana Buddha and his relation to Shakyamuni Buddha and states the 10 major precepts for Bodhisattvas and the 48 minor precepts one should follow to advance along the path. These precepts came to be treated in China as a higher ethic that a monk would adopt after ordination, in addition to the monastic rules. In Japan, they came to displace the monastic rules almost completely, so that for example most Japanese clergy are now married.

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[1] Ibid., p. 181b: 空观

[2] 实有 See Lv Cheng, op. cit., p. 2043.

[3] Ibid., p. 337b: 唯识论, Vidyamātrasiddhi-śastra, (“proof of nothing-but-cognition”).

[4] 三界所有, 唯是一心 .

[5] 妙喜世界 : See Chen Guan Sheng, Li Pei Zhu, op. cit., p. 211b: Kingdom of Joy, a fabulous realm situated east of our universe: the sphere of Akṣobhya. The Realm of Profound Joy, the country of Vimalakīrti, who is stated to have been a contemporary of Śakyamuni.

[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infinite_Life_Sutra

[7] K. Crim, Perennial Dictionary of World Religions

[8] Larousse: 419

[9] D.T. Suzuki in The Eastern Buddhist, v. 3, no. 4.