Mahāvastu ［大事］ (;  Daiji): “The Great Event.” A Sanskrit writing depicting the life of Shakyamuni Buddha. A work of the Lokottaravāda school, an offshoot of the Mahāsamghika school. The title Great Event refers specifically to the birth of Shakyamuni Buddha. This work consists of three sections. The first describes the Buddha’s previous life as a bodhisattva in the age of the Buddha Burning Torch. The second relates the Buddha’s life from his birth through his enlightenment. It tells of how he entered his mother’s womb, emerged from her body, renounced secular life, conquered devils, and attained enlightenment, or Buddhahood. The third section describes how he taught, or “turned the wheel of the Law,” and established the Buddhist Order.