Nalandra Buddhist Institute belongs to Tsarpa, one of four major sub-sects of the Sakya tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Since its inception, Tsarpa has held and preserved the uncommon lineages of Yogatantra and we practice with respect for all lineages of Tibetan Buddhism, past and present.

The Sakya school, one of the four pillars of Himalayan Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism, was formed from the old Kadampa tradition through the vision of the great master, Sachen Kunga Nyingpo. Sachen was an emanation of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara and had direct visions of Arya Tara and of Manjushri who famously wrote “Parting from the Four Attachments”. During the 11th century, Sachen clarified the Mahayana and Vajrayana systems of Buddhism that were arriving gradually from the Indian subcontinent into the "Land of Snows.”

Great Sachen was the third in the lineage of the royal Khön clan and first of the five eminent founders of Sakya. Since that time right up to the present, there have continued to be oceans of outstanding masters among the Sakya pa.

Although the noble Sachen had received Lamdre teachings from his human root guru, he kept them secret until he witness a pure vision of the Mahasiddha Virupa. In the third quarter of his life, out of the blue, Sachen saw Virupa in the sky above the White Wall Mountain. He received directly from Virupa the Lamdre teaching of the tantra of alaya ground, the path tantra of body mandala, and the result tantra of five kayas of five wisdoms - the innermost Tantra (the Path that is the Result). At the conclusion, in dedication and appreciation, he recited an ecstatic Vajra song—spontaneous words of joy, happiness and tears. Thereafter Sachen declared the birth of "One Flavour”, a view of the inseparability of Samsara and Nirvana.

This was an era of new beginnings for Buddhism in Tibet. At this time, Marpa brought forth the Mahamudra lineage of Naropa and Tilopa which provided the ground for the Kagyu school, the Oral lineage holder. Great Atisha from India with the help of the Tibetan Dromtonpa reaffirmed the stamp of the original New Kadampa, paving a path for the rise of Lama Tsongkhapa in the 14th century. The Sakya tradition preserved the profound "whispered" lineages, marking the final, formal transfer of Buddhism from the monastic universities Nalanda and Vikramashila in India.