Due to the geographical position of China, direct contacts with India were limited to the long journey by way of the silk road or the southern sea route by way of the straights of Malacca. For this reason there was relatively little direct contact with India. Those who made the arduous journey to India usually brought back large collections of Buddhist Texts. The authenticity of the primary texts of a school served to legitimize the various schools, all of which were vying for support amoung the ruling class. With the exception of the Ch'an/Zen School, which was acclaimed as "A Direct Transmission outside of the Sūtras" and whose legitimacy was the subject of much controversy, schools not based on recognized Indian texts did not survive long.

The table below outlines the schools, texts, and founders of the early Chinese Mahāyana schools which later, in turn, were carried on to Korea, Japan and Vietnam.