The middle vehicle to nirvana, includes all intermediate or medial systems between Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna. It also corresponds with the state of apratyekabuddha, who lives chiefly for his own salvation but partly for others, like a man sitting in the middle of a vehicle, leaving scarcely room for others. It is a definition made by Mahayanists unknown to Hīnayāna.