Triyāna, the three vehicles, or conveyances which carry living beings across samsāra or mortality (births-and-deaths) to the shores of nirvāṇa. The three are styled 小,中, and 大. Sometimes the three vehicles are defined as 聲聞 Śrāvaka, that of the hearer or obedient disciple; 緣覺Pratyeka-buddha, that of the enlightened for self; these are described as 小乘 because the objective of both is personal salvation; the third is 菩薩Bodhisattva, or 大乘 Mahāyāna, because the objective is the salvation of all the living. The three are also depicted as 三車 three wains, drawn by a goat, a deer, an ox. The Lotus declares that the three are really the One Buddha-vehicle, which has been revealed in three expedient forms suited to his disciples' capacity, the Lotus Sūtra being the unifying, complete, and final exposition. The Three Vehicles are differently explained by different exponents, e.g. (1) Mahāyāna recognizes (a) Śrāvaka, called Hīnayāna, leading in longer or shorter periods to arhatship; (b) Pratyeka-buddha, called Madhyamayāna, leading after still longer or shorter periods to a Buddhahood ascetically attained and for self; (c) Bodhisattva, called Mahayana, leading after countless ages of self-sacrifce in saving others and progressive enlightenment to ultimate Buddhahood. (2) Hīnayāna is also described as possessing three vehicles 聲, 緣, 菩 or 小, 中, 大, the 小 and 中 conveying to personal salvation their devotees in ascetic dust and ashes and mental annihilation, the 大 leading to bodhi, or perfect enlightenment, and the Buddha's way. Further definitions of the Triyāna are: (3) True bodhisattva teaching for the 大; pratyeka-buddha without ignorant asceticism for the 中; and śrāvaka with ignorant asceticism for the 小. (4) (a) 一乘 The One-Vehicle which carries all to Buddhahood: of this the 華嚴 Hua-yen and 法華 Fa-hua are typical exponents; (b) 三乘法 the three-vehicle, containing practitioners of all three systems, as expounded in books of the 深密般若; (c) 小乘 the Hīnayāna pure and simple as seen in the 四阿合經 Four Āgamas. Śrāvakas are also described as hearers of the Four Truths and limited to that degree of development; they hear from the pratyeka-buddhas, who are enlightened in the Twelve Nidānas 因緣; the bodhisattvas make the 六度 or six forms of transmigration their field of sacrificial saving work, and of enlightenment. The Lotus Sūtra really treats the 三乘. Three Vehicles as 方便 or expedient ways, and offers a 佛乘 Buddha Vehicle as the inclusive and final vehicle. 


 

A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms, William Edward Soothill and Lewis Hodous

梵語 trīni yānāni。即三種交通工具，比喻運載眾生渡越生死到涅槃彼岸之三種法門。(一)就眾生根機之鈍、中、利，佛應之而說聲聞乘、緣覺乘、菩薩乘等三種教法。(一)聲聞乘（梵 śrāvaka-yāna），聞佛聲教而得悟道，故稱聲聞。其知苦斷集、慕滅修道，以此四諦為乘。(二)緣覺乘（梵 pratyeka-buddha-yāna），又作辟支佛乘、獨覺乘。觀十二因緣覺真諦理，故稱緣覺。始觀無明乃至老死，次觀無明滅乃至老死滅，由此因緣生滅，即悟非生非滅，乃以此十二因緣為乘。(三)菩薩乘（梵 bodhisattva-yāna），又作大乘（梵 mahā-yāna）、佛乘、如來乘。求無上菩提，願度一切眾生，修六度萬行，以此六度為乘。
前二乘唯自利，無利他，故總稱小乘，菩薩乘自利利他具足，故為大乘。薩婆多毘尼毘婆沙卷一、究竟一乘寶性論均以小乘所得三乘共知、中乘所得二乘共知、唯佛所得二乘不知等為由，而稱三乘為小乘、中乘、大乘；寂調音所問經、大毘婆沙論卷一二七、大智度論卷十一以於無分別一味法中說上中下而顯三乘差異為由，稱三乘為下乘、中乘、上乘；大乘莊嚴經論卷四、梁譯攝大乘論釋卷一則合稱前二乘為下乘，而稱菩薩乘為上乘。華嚴、天台宗以三乘為方便法門，畢竟歸一佛乘，是為一乘教，即三乘之外別立一佛乘；法相宗則以一乘係對一機而施，是權假之教，三乘則屬真實之教。前者稱「三乘方便一乘真實」，後者則稱「三乘真實一乘方便」。〔大寶積經卷九十四、解深密經卷二、顯揚聖教論卷三、佛性論卷一、佛地經論卷二、華嚴經探玄記卷一、華嚴五教章卷一、法華玄贊卷一、大乘起信論義記卷上〕（參閱「一乘」59、「二乘」206、「四乘」1743）
(二)菩薩隨時修集之天乘、梵乘、聖乘。(一)天乘，即初禪、二禪、三禪、四禪。(二)梵乘，即慈、悲、喜、捨。(三)聖乘，即正見、正思惟、正語、正業、正命、正精進、正念、正定。〔大寶積經卷九十四〕


 

佛光電子大辭典

p593

三乘 [py] sānshèng [wg] san-sheng [ko] 삼승 samsŭng [ja] サンジョウ sanjō ||| The "three vehicles" taught by the Mahayana 大乘 schools, which are three programs of practice that are considered to be suitable for different capacities of sentient beings (tri-yāna). These are the vehicles of śrāvaka 聲聞, pratyekabuddha 縁覺 and bodhisattva 菩薩. The first two of these are categorized by the Mahayana schools as lesser vehicles or "hīnayāna 小乘" and are referred to as the "two vehicles 二乘." Mahayana texts such as the Śrīmālā-sūtra 勝鬘經 and the Lotus Sutra 法華經 offer extensive analysis of the relative capacities of these three, with the Lotus Sutra asserting that all three vehicles are eventually subsumed by the single vehicle 一乘. 

１．聲聞乘、緣覺乘、菩薩乘。聲聞乘又名小乘，其行人速則三生，遲則六十劫間，修空法，終於聞如來聲教，悟四諦之理，斷見思惑，可証阿羅漢果；緣覺乘又名中乘，其行人速則四生，遲則百劫間，破無明，終於悟十二因緣之理，可証辟支佛果；菩薩乘又名大乘，其行人於無數劫間，修六度行，更於百劫間，值三十二相福因，可證無上佛果。２．小乘、中乘、大乘。小乘即聲聞乘，中乘即緣覺乘，大乘即菩薩乘。

陳義孝編, 竺摩法師鑑定, 《佛學常見辭彙》

聲聞乘（或作「弟子乘」）、辟支佛乘（或作「獨覺乘」）、佛乘（或作「大乘」）。

漢譯阿含經辭典，莊春江編(1.4版)

三乘===﹝出法華經﹞

乘，即運載之義。謂聲聞、緣覺、菩薩各以其法為乘，運出三界生死，同到真空涅槃，故名三乘。（三界者，欲界、色界、無色界也。梵語涅槃，華言滅度。）

 

〔一、聲聞眾〕，聞佛聲教而得悟道，故曰聲聞。謂其知苦、斷集、慕滅、修道，故以此四諦為乘也。（四諦者，苦諦、集諦、滅諦、道諦也。）

 

〔二、緣覺乘〕，因觀十二因緣覺真諦理，故名緣覺。謂始觀無明緣乃至老死，此是觀十二因緣生；次觀無明滅乃至老死滅，此是觀十二因緣滅。觀此因緣生滅，即悟非生非滅，故以此十二因緣為乘也。（十二因緣者，一無明、二行、三識、四名色、五六入、六觸、七受、八愛、九取、十有、十一生、十二老死也。）

 

〔三、菩薩乘〕，菩薩，梵語具云菩提薩埵，華言覺有情。謂覺悟一切有情眾生也。菩薩行六度行，廣化眾生出離生死，故以此六度為乘也。（六度者，一布施、二持戒、三忍辱、四精進、五禪定、六智慧也。）

明，一如《三藏法數》字庫

出法華經

辯中邊論中卷十頁云：論曰：應知乘者：謂即三乘。此中如應顯示其義。若從他聞涅槃功德生死過失，而起此智；由斯智故，得出離者；是聲聞乘。不從他聞涅槃功德生死過失，自起此智；由斯智故，得出離者；是獨覺乘。若自然起無分別智，由斯智故，得出離者；名無上乘。

朱芾煌《法相辭典》字庫

（術語）乘人而使各到其果地之教法，名為乘。有一乘乃至五乘之別，其中三乘有四種：（一）大乘之三乘也。一聲聞乘，又云小乘。速則三生，遲則六十劫間修空法，終於現世聞如來之聲教。而悟四諦之理，以證阿羅漢者。二緣覺乘，又云中乘，辟支佛乘。速則四生，遲則百劫間修空法，於其最後之生不依如來之聲教，感飛花落葉之外緣，而自覺十二因緣之理，以證辟支佛果者。三大乘，又云菩薩乘，三無數劫間修六度之行，更於百劫間植三十二相福因，以證無上菩提者。或以羊鹿牛三車譬之，或以象馬兔三獸比之。是為大乘之三乘，故不攝不愚法之二乘（二乘有愚法不愚法二種，【參見: 二乘】）。法華經譬喻品曰：「若有眾生，內有智性，從佛世尊聞法信受，慇懃精進，欲速出三界，自求涅槃，是名聲聞乘。（中略）若有眾生，從佛世尊聞法信受，慇懃精進，求自然慧，獨樂善寂，深知諸法因緣，是名辟支佛乘。（中略）若有眾生，從佛世尊，聞法信受，勤修精進，求一切智、佛智、自然智、無師智、如來知見、力、無所畏，愍念安樂，無量眾生，利益天人，度脫一切，是名大乘。」（二）小乘之聲緣菩三乘也。又稱小中大，皆灰身滅智，故此中之聲緣，即是愚法。四教儀註上曰：「三乘，乘以運載為義，聲聞以四諦為乘，緣覺以十二因緣為乘，菩薩以六度為乘，運出三界歸於涅槃。」五教章上二曰：「大乘中乘小乘為三乘。（中略）如小論中自有聲聞緣覺法及佛法。」（三）大小合論之聲緣菩三乘也，又云小中大。此中之菩薩乘攝一乘，聲緣二乘，攝愚法不愚法之二類。五教章上二曰：「融一乘同大乘合愚法同小乘唯三也。」（四）一、一乘。如華嚴法華明一切皆成佛者。二、三乘法，如深密般若別立三乘之得道者。三、小乘，執於四阿含等之所明而不信一切大乘之教理者。見五教章上。是由大小合論之三乘中菩薩乘聞一乘，由其二乘別開愚法之一類也。密教以第一類之三乘為法佛內證之三密。聲聞依聲教而悟道，故配之於語密，緣覺只心觀十二因緣而悟道，故配之於意密，菩薩以大悲利他之故，捨身於娑婆界，而廣修六度萬行，故配之於身密。菩薩之行，通於三業，而於身業最重，故且為身密。三業之中，身兼意口，三乘之中菩薩之行廣兼三業，故寄於總德而配之於身密。然而法華經以三乘為方便，一佛乘為真實。會三乘而歸於一乘也。然密教之見，以為三乘即法佛內證之三密。故三乘之行不動，直以為秘密佛乘之體也。故大日經疏三，釋經之通達三乘文曰：「真言門乘三密印至佛三平等地，名為通達三乘。」詳見秘藏記鈔七。

丁福保《佛學大辭典》

tri-yāna, yāna-traya, tri-yānika, trīṇi yānāni, trividhaṃ yānam, tri-gotra

佛教漢梵大辭典, 平川彰 Buddhist Chinese-Sanskrit Dictionary, Akira Hirakawa

p6

三乘(sān chéng) 　 三乘(sān shèng) ;

 

 

三乘 (sān shèng) 　( “the three Vehicles, the three kinds of teachings” )

{《漢語大詞典》1.222a(魏書)} ; {《大漢和辞典》1.151a(法華經)} ;

Dharmarakṣa: {72b23} 吾等爲佛 履上跡時 分爲三乘 而開化之(v)

{K.56.1} (padaṃ) tṛdhā

{O} tṛvidhaṃ

Kumārajīva: {L.9c24} 三乘

Dharmarakṣa: {85a23} 本無三乘，縁行致之(p)

{K.132.3} tri~ yāna~

Kumārajīva: {not found at L.20b24}

《添品妙華蓮華經》Taishō, Vol. 9, No. 264, {Ten.153b7} 三乘

Dharmarakṣa: {85a24} 迦葉白佛：“設無三乘，何故得有菩薩、縁覺、聲聞？” (p)

{K.132.5} do.

Kumārajīva: {not found at L.20b24}

《添品妙華蓮華經》Taishō, Vol. 9, No. 264, {Ten.153b8} 三乘

Dharmarakṣa: {85c5} 世尊………便見三乘(p)

{K.136.8} do.

Kumārajīva: {not found at L.20b24}

《添品妙華蓮華經》Taishō, Vol. 9, No. 264, {Ten.154a17} 三乘

Dharmarakṣa: {92b18} 爾乃解知如來之法有一滅度，無有二乘也。皆是如來善權方便説三乘耳(p)

{K.186.8-}

Kumārajīva: {not found at L.25c19}

Dharmarakṣa: {92c13} 如來……覩見生死、長久艱難、虛乏之患，現于三乘，禪定一心，使得滅度(p)

{K.189.1-}

Kumārajīva: {not found at L.26a15}

Dharmarakṣa: {103a16} 宣暢《法華經》 以示諸不及 解本無三乘 順一無上眞(v)

{K.241.13-}

Kumārajīva: {not found at L.32c18}

etc. 

A Digital Edition of A Glossary of Dharmarakṣa translation of the Lotus Sutra by Seishi Karashima, 1998