Major Buddhist thinkers, historical figures and founders of schools
- Ananda (Early disciple of Sakyamuni who is said to have memorized his sermons)
- Asanga(Brother of Vasubandhu; one of the founders of Yogacara)
- Atisha (founder of the Gelugpa school of Tibetan_Buddhism)
- Bodhidharma (legendary first patriarch of Chan in China)
- Buddhaghosha (Theravadin commentator)
- Chandrakirti
- Dharmakirti
- Chih I -- See Zhiyi
- Dogen Zenji (transmitter of Soto Zen to Japan)
- Fazang (Wade-Giles: Fa-tsang; third patriarch of Huayan)
- Gihwa (McCune-Reischauer: Kihwa; major Korean monk of the Joseon)
- The Buddha
- Hakuin (Rinzai Zen teacher in Japan)
- Huineng (6th Patriarch of Chan in China)
- Jinul Founder of Korean Jogye school
- Kukai (founder of Shingon)
- Longchenpa
- Nagarjuna (Founder of Madhyamaka tradition)
- Nichiren Daishonin (founder of Nichiren Buddhism)
- Padmasambhava (semi-legendary founder of Nyingma school of Tibetan_Buddhism)
- Ryokan (18th_Century Japanese Zen monk and poet)
- Sariputta (Pali. Shariputra Sanskrit. One of the ten chief disciples of the Buddha)
- Shantideva (8th_Century Indian)
- Shinran (Founder of True Pure Land sect in Japan
- Takuan Soho (Zen teacher, and, according to legend, mentor of the swordsman Miyamoto Musashi)
- Tsongkapa
- Uisang (Major Korean monk of the Unified Silla period)
- Vasubandhu (Brother of Asanga; one of the founders of Yogacara)
- Weonchuk (Major Korean monk of the Unified Silla period)
- Weonhyo (Major Korean monk of the Unified Silla period)
- Xuanzang (WG: Hsuan-tsang) (took Tripitaka to China)
- Zhiyi (Wade-Giles: Chih I; de-facto founder of Tiantai school)
- Zongmi (WG: Tsung-mi; fifth patriarch of Chinese Huayan school)
