Bhāvanā-krama. A work by Kamalaśīla in three parts, partly surviving in Sanskrit as well as Tibetan and Chinese versions. The work outlines the gradual path to enlightenment (bodhi) as taught within the Indo-Tibetan tradition in contrast to east Asian teachings of ‘sudden enlightenment’ found in the Ch'an and zen schools. The Bhāvanā-krama is thought to have been written as a summary of orthodox Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist views to counter the ‘sudden path’ teachings advocated by Hvashang Mahāyāna at the Council of Lhasa.

A Dictionary of Buddhism, Oxford University Press, 2003, 2004 (which is available in electronic version from answer.com)