True Buddha School

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Vajrayana Buddhism
Traditions Historical traditions: Ari-Acharya Burmese-Bengal † Yunnan Indonesian Esoteric Buddhism † Filipino Esoteric Buddhism † East Asian Chinese Japanese Nepalese Inner Asian Tibetan Altaic (o, x, b, t, k, y) New branches: Gateway of the Hidden Flower New Kadampa Buddhism Shambhala Buddhism True Awakening Tradition
History Tantrism Mahasiddha Sahaja
Pursuit Buddhahood Bodhisattva Kalachakra
Practices Generation stage Completion stage Phowa Tukdam Tantric techniques: Fourfold division: Kriyayoga Charyayoga Yogatantra Anuttarayogatantra Twofold division: Inner Tantras Outer Tantras Thought forms and visualisation: Mandala Mantra Mudra Thangka Yantra Yoga: Ngöndro Guru yoga Deity yoga Six yogas: Inner heat Luminosity yoga Dream yoga Death yoga Sex yoga
Festivals Ganachakra Ullambana Puja
Tantric texts Anuttarayoga Tantra Cakrasaṃvara Tantra Guhyagarbha Tantra Kulayarāja Tantra Mahāmāyā Tantra Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa Mañjuśrīnāmasamgīti Tattvasaṃgraha Tantra Vajrasekhara Sutra Yuthok Nyingthig
Symbols and tools Damaru Ghanta Melong Phurba Vajra Yab-Yum
Ordination and transmission Esoteric transmission Pointing-out instruction Samaya Vajracharya
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The True Buddha School (Chinese: 真佛宗; pinyin: Zhēn Fó Zōng; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Chin-hu̍t-chong) is a (Vajrayana oriented) Buddhist sect founded in the 1970s. While predominantly focused on Tantric Buddhist teachings and practices, it also includes practices and deities from Taoism. Its headquarters are in Redmond, Washington, USA, and the school has a large following in Taiwan and East Asia.^[1] There are also many temples and chapters worldwide. In China, the sect is reportedly on a list of banned religious organisations.^[2]

In 1975 Lu Sheng-yen established Ling Xian Zong (School of Efficacious Immortals) in Taiwan and he officially changed its name to True Buddha School in 1983.^[3] Lu's followers call him "His Holiness Living Buddha Lian Sheng." Lu has written 294 books [as of May 2023].^[4]

True Buddha School's funding relies heavily on donations, supplemented by the income from the publication from Lu's books. The money is distributed through the Sheng-Yen Lu Foundation^[5] and the Lotus Light Charity Society, which has branches in Vancouver and Singapore.