Correct and Equal sutras ［方等経］ ( Hōdō-kyō): Also, Broad and Impartial sutras. A generic term for the sutras that were expounded during the Correct and Equal period, the third of the five periods into which T’ien-t’ai (538–597) divided Shakyamuni’s teachings. According to T’ien-t’ai’s classification, these are lower provisional Maha-yana sutras, in which Shakyamuni refuted his disciples’ attachment to Hinayana and led them toward the higher teachings. Representative among them are the Shrīmālā Sutra, the Revelation of the Profound Secrets Sutra, the Golden Light Sutra, the Vimalakīrti Sutra, the three Pure Land sutras, and the three basic sutras of Esoteric Buddhism: the Mahāvairochana, Diamond Crown, and Susiddhikara sutras.