The refuge tree of the Gelug Order

The lama Tsongkhapa, founder of the Gelug order, sits at the summit of a mountain-like lotus held aloft by a massive tree trunk that rises from the primordial waters. Above are the teachers in his direct lineage, stretching back to the Primordial Buddha Vajradhara at the tree’s peak. To his left and right are teachers belonging to two different schools of philosophy. Below are numerous deities and perfected beings from Tibetan Buddhism’s vast pantheon.

Tsongkhapa based many of his teachings on visionary communications with other teachers and deities from across Tibetan Buddhism’s universe. Like a lens, he gathered their diverse wisdom and focused it into a coherent system. Paintings like this present a hierarchal arrangement of these teachers, formulated into a kind of cosmographic family tree.