Our worshipable predecessor, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, wrote in Jaiva Dharma (Chapter 13). There, in response to the question, “Why is there a disciplic succession?” he writes:

'In this world, many people are contaminated by the impersonalist doctrine and thus fall into a life of sin. If there were no disciplic succession, or institution of devotees free of this contamination, then it would be very difficult for ordinary people to find saintly association. This is why the Padma Purana tells us, 'Any mantra that does not come in disciplic succession is considered to be fruitless. Therefore, four divine individuals will appear in the age of Kali to establish disciplic schools.' Of these four schools, the oldest is the Brahma sampradaya. This disciplic succession has existed since the time of Lord Brahma and is still strong. Whatever scriptures—whether Veda, Vedanta or other—are taught in a particular school maintain their original form; no interpolations are possible in these texts. Thus there can be no doubt about the mantras that are found in the books of these ancient schools. Thus a disciplic succession of saintly persons is an absolute necessity for human society and that is why the institution has existed since the earliest times.'

Bhaktivinoda Thakura continues his discussion of the subject by asking the question, 'Is the list of names of spiritual masters in the disciplic succession given without any breaks?' His answer: 'From time to time, only the more important spiritual masters' names are included in these lists.'

Every disciple has the duty to remember the names of the spiritual masters in his disciplic succession as a part of his daily meditation. This is confirmed by Baladeva Vidyabhusana in his Prameya-ratnavali (1.4):

bhavati vicintya vidusam
niravakara guru-parampara nityam
ekantitvam siddhyati
yayodayati yena hari-tosah

'The learned disciple should daily remember the entire flawless disciplic succession. From them comes single-minded devotion, and from such devotion, the pleasure of Lord Hari.'

Srila Prabhupada comments: 'The disciple purifies his own character by hearing and discussing the exemplary lives of the previous spiritual masters. As his character is purified, he identifies himself as a servant of the pure devotees. He thus receives the blessings of the Lord to engage in bhajanawithout distractions. Narottama Dasaa Thakura says that Nityananda's lotus feet are eternal, and the servant of Lord Nityananda is also eternal. When the living being abandons his materialistic way of thinking and takes shelter of the transcendental lotus feet of the spiritual master, he attains the eternal spiritual world and his greatest good.' (Gaudiya-bhasya)

In the Gaudiya Vaisnava world today, there are a few short-sighted individuals who wish to disavow any connection to the Brahma-Madhva sampradaya and consider the Gaudiya disciplic succession to have come into being with Mahaprabhu himself. But we have to ask the question why Mahaprabhu accepted Madhavendra Puri into his spiritual lineage? Bhaktivinoda Thakura took up this question in his Mahaprabhura Siksa as well:

'Nimbarka Acarya's doctrine of 'difference and non-difference' (bhedabheda) was inadequate. With the advent of Lord Caitanya and his teachings, the Vaisnava world finally received this doctrine in its complete form. Madhvacarya accepted the idea of the Lord's eternal form of consciousness and bliss (sac-cid-ananda-vigraha) and because this is the basis of the acintya-bhedabheda concept, Mahaprabhu accepted the disciplic line that came from Madhva.

'Previously, the Vaisnava acaryas had some technical points of difference in their teachings and this resulted in the establishment of different religious schools. Only with the advent of the Supreme Truth himself in the form of Lord Caitanya, could the lacunae in these various doctrines be corrected as a result of his omniscience. Mahaprabhu combined Nimbarka's 'oneness in difference' with the concept of the sac-cid-ananda-vigraha of the Supreme Lord found in Madhva's teachings, Ramanuja's concept of the Lord's energy (sakti), Visnu Svami's idea of purified non-dualism (suddhadvaita) and the dedication of the Lord to His own devotees (tadiya-sarvasvata). By this most scientific doctrine, which he named acintya-bhedabheda, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu showered his mercy on the entire universe.

'In a very short time, there will exist only one school of Vaisnava teaching, which will be named the Brahma sampradaya. All other Vaisnava schools will come into the fold of that one disciplic succession.'