Religious Institutions

Ancient Indian ascetic tradition of wandering renouncers that gave rise to Buddhism, Jainism, and shaped Hindu philosophy

Ancient Greece's preeminent prophetic sanctuary where the Pythia delivered Apollo's oracles, shaping politics and colonization

Monastic community of Buddhist monks and nuns practicing and preserving the Buddha's teachings

Plato's philosophical school, the Western world's first institution of higher learning

Jewish sectarian community that produced the Dead Sea Scrolls, practicing rigorous purity, communal living, and apocalyptic expectation

World's largest Christian church, shaping Western civilization for two millennia

Chan Buddhist monastery and legendary birthplace of Zen Buddhism and Chinese martial arts

Early medieval network of Celtic monasteries that preserved classical learning and evangelized northern Europe

One of the world's oldest operating universities, preeminent center of Islamic learning

Major Christian communion preserving Byzantine liturgical and theological traditions across Eastern Europe and beyond

Meditative Buddhist tradition shaping samurai culture, Japanese aesthetics, and global contemplative practice

Reincarnating spiritual leadership combining religious authority with political rule, governing Tibet for centuries

Catholic religious order renowned for education, missions, and intellectual engagement with the modern world

State-regulated Buddhist monastic order governing Thailand's 40,000 temples and 300,000 monks under royal patronage