The foregoing paradigm of ‘skilful means’ pioneered by the Buddha in the early suttas provided a template for all future developments in Buddhist pedagogy. In later Mahayana Buddhism, in particular, ‘skilful means’ (Sanskrit: upaya-kaushalya) – along with wisdom (prajna) – was the defining quality of the Bodhisattva, the ‘enlightenment being’ who postpones final entry into nirvana until all sentient beings have been guided to enlightenment. ‘Skilful means’ also proved pivotal to Buddhism’s successful expansion from India into other Asian countries, 13.which began in the first century B.C.E. By sympathetically integrating foreign beliefs (e.g. Taoism, Shinto, etc.) into their ‘gradual instruction,’ Buddhist missionaries conferred legitimate status upon these beliefs as ‘stepping stones’ to nirvana, and thereby easily won new converts.
