sect founder; founder of a religious denomination
Refers specifically to the person who established a particular Buddhist sect or, by extension, the founder of any religious school or denomination.
Hōnen is regarded as the founder of the Jōdo sect.
Study the teachings of each sect's founder.
This temple regards Saichō as its founder.
The believers continue to uphold the founder's teachings.
This shrine enshrines the sect's founder.
創始者 is a general word for the founder of any organization, movement, or method, whereas 宗祖 is restricted to the founder of a religious denomination.
Compound of 宗 (しゅう, 'sect, religion') and 祖 (そ, 'ancestor, founder'). The reading is on'yomi for both characters.