Buddhist philosophical school based on the Madhyamaka school. East Asian Mādhyamaka refers to the Buddhist traditions in East Asia which represent the Indian Mādhyamaka system of thought. In Chinese Buddhism, these are often referred to as the Sānlùn school, or "Three Treatise" school, known as Sanron in Japan, although modern scholars think them not an independent sect. The Mādhyamaka texts that it was founded on were first transmitted to China in the early 5th century by the Buddhist monk Kumārajīva.