Practice Lineage

Practice Lineage (sgrub brgyud). The lineage of teachings and masters where emphasis is placed on one's personal experience of the teachings as opposed to the scholastic lineage of expounding the scriptures (bshad brgyud). This phrase also refers to the Eight Great Chariots of the Practice Lineage (sgrub brgyud shing rta brgyad), the eight schools of Buddhism that flourished in Tibet: Nyingma, Kadam, Marpa Kagyü, Shangpa Kagyü, Sakya, Jordruk, Nyendrub, Shije and Chö. Today only the first five survive as independent lineages.