founder of a sect; patriarch
Primarily used in Buddhist contexts for the founding teacher of a particular school or lineage.
Zen Master Dōgen is regarded as the founder of the Sōtō school.
Bodhidharma's coming from the west
founder of our sect; our revered founder
From Middle Chinese 祖師 (tsuX srij), meaning 'ancestral teacher' or 'founder of a school'. The kanji 祖 means 'ancestor' or 'founder', and 師 means 'teacher' or 'master'.