In Tibetan Buddhist history, the religious group known as the Yellow Hats, or Gelug school, was founded by the disciples of which teacher?

Introduction / Context:
Tibetan Buddhism includes several major schools or orders, each with its own history and traditions. One of the most influential is the Gelug school, whose followers are sometimes called Yellow Hats because of their distinctive ceremonial headgear. Questions about the origins of this school test basic knowledge of Buddhist history and important religious leaders in Tibet.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The question refers to Yellow Hats, also known as the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.
• It asks whose disciples founded this order.
• Options include the historical Buddha, Tsongkhapa, Ramakrishna and Kabir.
• We assume awareness that Tsongkhapa was a key reformer in Tibetan Buddhism and that Ramakrishna and Kabir belong to different religious traditions in India.

Concept / Approach:
The Gelug school was founded in the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries by the followers of Tsongkhapa, a Tibetan monk and scholar. He promoted stricter monastic discipline and a synthesis of earlier teachings. After his death, his disciples organised the school that became known as Gelug. Over time, this order grew in influence and produced the line of Dalai Lamas who became both spiritual and political leaders in Tibet. Therefore, the correct answer is Tsongkhapa, not the earlier Buddha or later Indian mystics.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify Yellow Hats as a nickname for the Gelug school in Tibetan Buddhism.Step 2: Recall that Tsongkhapa was a Tibetan religious leader who lived many centuries after the historical Buddha.Step 3: Remember that his teachings inspired disciples who formally organised the Gelug school.Step 4: Review the answer choices and locate Tsongkhapa among them.Step 5: Recognise that Ramakrishna and Kabir were Indian figures connected with Hindu and bhakti traditions, not founders of Tibetan Buddhist schools.Step 6: Select Tsongkhapa as the correct teacher whose disciples established the Yellow Hats.

Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, recall that the Dalai Lama is usually associated with the Gelug school. Historical summaries of the school consistently mention Tsongkhapa as the key reformer whose teachings led to its creation. In contrast, Ramakrishna is linked with nineteenth century Hindu devotional movements in Bengal, and Kabir is known for his poetry and teachings in medieval India, neither of which are directly tied to Tibetan monastic orders. This confirms that Tsongkhapa is the correct answer.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A is wrong because the historical Buddha founded the original Buddhist teaching, not this later Tibetan school. Option C is incorrect because Ramakrishna did not work in Tibet and did not form the Gelug order. Option D is also wrong because Kabir was a North Indian poet saint whose ideas influenced bhakti and Sufi traditions, not Tibetan Buddhism.

Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes see the word Buddha and choose it automatically whenever a Buddhist related question appears, forgetting that many later teachers founded specific schools. Another pitfall is to confuse Asian religious figures from different regions and centuries. A good strategy is to associate Tsongkhapa specifically with Tibetan reform and the Yellow Hats, and to keep Indian figures like Ramakrishna and Kabir clearly grouped with Hindu and bhakti traditions.

Final Answer:
The Yellow Hats or Gelug school was founded by the disciples of Tsongkhapa, the Tibetan reformer and scholar.