There are five main sects of Tibetan Buddhism: the Nyingma sect, the Sakya sect, the Kagyu sect, the Kadam sect, and the Gelug sect.
1. Nyingma Sect (rnying-ma-ba) is the oldest sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It is the earliest esoteric religion introduced to Tibet and absorbs some contents of primitive Bon religion. It attaches great importance to the search and excavation of the classics hidden when the ancient Langdama destroyed the Buddha. Because the monks of this sect only wear red hats, they are also called the Red Sect.
Ningma monks can be divided into two categories: the first category is called Aba, who rely exclusively on chanting sutras and mantras to move around in society, and do not pay attention to studying Buddhist scriptures and have no Buddhist theory. The second category includes classics, which are also taught between master and disciple or father and son. In some places, the requirements for monks are not very strict and they can marry wives and have children.
2. The Sakya sect has two inheritances: lineage and legal lineage. After the Yuan Dynasty, three more tribes appeared in the Sakya sect: Er, Gonggar, and Chaer. Important monasteries of the Sakya Sect include Gongqin Temple in Dege, Sichuan, Jiegu Temple in Yushu, Qinghai, Shizang Temple in Chengduo County, Nalanda Temple in Linzhou, Tibet, and Jiecai Temple in present-day Sikkim.
3. The Kagyu Sect is the sect with the most branches of Tibetan Buddhism. This sect has many branches, including Dapo Kagyu and Shangpa Kagyu. The main monasteries of the Kagyu Sect include Zhigong Temple in Mozhugongkar, Tibet, and Babang Temple in Dege, Sichuan.
4. The Kadam Sect was founded in 1056. The Tibetan word "Karma" refers to the Buddhist language, and "Dang" refers to the professor. The popular saying is to use Buddha's teachings to guide ordinary people to accept Buddhist principles. The founder of the Kadam Sect was the famous Buddhist master Atisha who was invited from India during the Guge period. Rezhen Temple is the main temple of the Kadam Sect. This sect focuses on practicing sutras and advocates sutras first and esoteric later.
5. The Chinese word "Gelug" in the Gelug Sect (dge-lugs-pa) is translated as Shangui, which refers to the monk who advocated the Yellow Sect - Master Tsongkhapa (5 photos) The precepts should be strictly observed.
Because this sect believes that its teachings originated from the Kadam Sect, it is called the New Kadam Sect. Because this sect wears yellow monk hats, it is also called the Yellow Sect. The Gelug Sect has both distinctive characteristics and a strict management system, so it quickly overtook others and became one of the important sects of Tibetan Buddhism.
Extended information:
Many customs and lifestyles of our modern Tibetans are also inherited from the ancient Zhangzhong era. For example, the Tibetan people's weddings and funerals, astronomy and calculus, medical literature, singing, dancing and painting, choosing a house and auspicious days when traveling, driving away disasters and evil spirits, divination and divination, etc., all still follow the traditions of this religion to some extent. .
Tibetans also have many unique ways of praying: such as walking around the sacred mountain, worshiping at the sacred lake, scattering wind-horse flags, hanging colorful prayer flags, carving stone scriptures, and placing Mani piles (the tradition of this religion is to carve scriptures on stones). There are stone piles with the eight-character mantra of light: "Om Majimou Yesalinde"), doing divinations, offering torma plates, butter flowers and even using prayer wheels, etc. These are all the remaining customs of this religion.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Tibetan Buddhism