Gelug School

Overview

The Gelug (Way of Virtue) school was founded by the great reformer Je Tsongkhapa Lobsang Drakpa, who emphasised rigorous monastic discipline, systematic study of the Madhyamaka philosophy (particularly Chandrakirti's Prasangika interpretation), and the graduated path to enlightenment (Lamrim). Tsongkhapa founded Ganden Monastery in 1409, and his students went on to found Drepung and Sera, forming the three great Gelug monasteries near Lhasa. The Dalai Lama institution, which became both the spiritual and (from the 17th century) temporal head of Tibet, belongs to the Gelug school. The Panchen Lama, second in the Gelug hierarchy, holds the throne at Tashilhunpo. The Gelug tradition is distinguished by its synthesis of Sutra and Tantra, strict emphasis on the Vinaya (monastic code), and the use of the Lam-Rim Chenmo (Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path) as its foundational curriculum.

Transmission Lineage 傳承

Tsongkhapa → Gyaltsab Je + Khedrub Je → 1st Dalai Lama Gendun Drup → continuing Dalai Lama reincarnation line (currently 14th: Tenzin Gyatso)

Principal Texts 要典

• ▸Lam-Rim Chenmo (Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path — Tsongkhapa)
• ▸Ngag-Rim Chenmo (Great Treatise on Tantra — Tsongkhapa)
• ▸In Praise of Dependent Origination (Tsongkhapa)
• ▸Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life (Shantideva)
• ▸Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand (Pabongka Rinpoche)

Core Practices 修行法門