spiritual lineage
Teachers teaching teachers
A spiritual lineage is the chain of teachers and teachings connecting a practitioner to the founding figures of a religious or contemplative tradition.
In Buddhism, Hinduism, and other Eastern traditions, lineage establishes authentic transmission of practices and authority: She traces her spiritual lineage through three generations of Zen masters.
The concept emphasizes that spiritual knowledge passes person to person, not just through texts.
- paramparaGuru-disciple transmission chain
- discipleCommitted follower of teaching
- shaykhArab elder title
- guruRevered authority figure
- ordinationClergy appointment ceremony
teacher-student relationship · silsila · meditation · legacy · ancestry · succession · dharma · inheritance · transmission · oral tradition · initiation · authenticity · preservation · mantra · mentorship · apprenticeship · master · sacred
spiritual lineageautodidacticism
Practice of self-instruction
self-realization · personal revelation · direct experience · self-discovery