What are the Lineages?/What is a lineage?
Tibetan Buddhism focuses strongly on maintaining a continuity of teaching traced back to the Buddha. The relationship of the student to the teacher (lama or guru) is very important. This continuity is maintained through practice lineages. The true teachings can only be passed from a living teacher to a living student, and cannot be learned properly from books. Sometimes the teachers are in supernatural form. Tibetan Buddhism has four main lineages: Gelug(school of the Dalai Lama), Kagyu, Sakya, and Nyingma. Each of these has further divisions as well (such as Karma Kagyu and Shangpa Kagyu). Gelug is considered the ‘newest’, started in 1409 with the foundation of Gaden Monastery. Popular thought is that Gelugpas emphasize monastic discipline and intellectual acuity, Kagyupas meditation, Sakyapas scholarly activity, and Nyingmapas guru devotion. These emphases should not be exaggerated though; all the schools advocate all forms of dharma activity.
