A gurukula or gurukulam (Sanskrit: गुरुकुल, translit. gurukula) was a type of residential education system in ancient India with shishya ('students' or 'disciples') living near or with the guru, in the same house. The guru-shishya tradition is a sacred one in Hinduism and appears in other religious groups in India, such as Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism.