Knowledge Transmission and the Transmission of Knowledge

Lineages, the formalized structure or the unacknowledged naturally arising groupings of practitioners, have arisen repeatedly in praxes throughout history. Lineages exist to pass the techne of the praxis to the new practitioners: without the direct transmission of techne, practitioners would need to derive their techniques from first principals (where possible), with each subsequent generation of practitioners “starting over” - such a practice could not be considered a living art. Lineages themselves need not be acknowledged to act as a key method of transmission of techne from teacher to student, or senior member to junior group-member, or from peer-practitioner to peer-practitioner. The establishment of a recognized lineage is independent of the lines of transmission that permeate living arts[1].