The process by which the Buddhist teachings have been transmitted from master to disciple in a continuous line from their original source until the present day, either from the teacher’s mind to the disciple’s mind (in the mind lineage of the Conquerors), or through symbolic gestures (in the symbol lineage of the knowledge holders), or by the disciple’s hearing the master’s words (in the hearing lineage of ordinary beings), or by the teachings being transmitted to a disciple before being hidden as treasure to be rediscovered later by an incarnation of that disciple (in the treasure lineage). [TLWF 2011] The fact that a teaching has been preserved and transmitted through an unbroken lineage is what makes the practice of that teaching a potent, living experience.[NS]