Padmasambhava in the context of "Padum"

Nyingma (Tibetan: རྙིང་མ་, Wylie: rnying ma, Lhasa dialect: [ɲ̟iŋ˥˥.ma˥˥], lit. 'old school'), also referred to as Ngagyur (Tibetan: སྔ་འགྱུར་རྙིང་མ།, Wylie: snga 'gyur rnying ma, Lhasa dialect: [ŋa˥˥.ʈ͡ʂuɹ], lit. 'order of the ancient translations'), is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The Nyingma school was founded by Padmasambhava as the first translations of Buddhist scriptures from Pali and Sanskrit into Tibetan occurred in the eighth century. The establishment of Tibetan Buddhism and the Nyingma tradition is collectively ascribed to Khenpo Shantarakshita, Guru Padmasambhava, and King Trisong Detsen, known as Khen Lop Chos Sum (The Three: Khenpo, Lopon, Chosgyal).

The Nyingma tradition traces its Dzogchen lineage from the first Buddha Samantabhadra to Garab Dorje, and its other lineages from Indian mahasiddhas such as Sri Singha and Jnanasutra. Yeshe Tsogyal recorded the teachings. Other great masters from the founding period include Vimalamitra, Vairotsana, and Buddhaguhya. The Nyingma tradition was physically founded at Samye, the first monastery in Tibet. Nyingma teachings are also known for having been passed down through networks of lay practitioners, and of Ngakmapas (Skt. mantrī).

Mangyül Gungthang (Tibetan: མང་ཡུལ་གུང་ཐང, Wylie: mang yul gung thang), simplified Chinese: 芒域贡堂; traditional Chinese: 芒域貢堂; pinyin: mángyù gòngtáng) alternatively known as Ngari Me (Lower Ngari) is the name of a Tibetan kingdom established under Sakya overlordship in Southwest Tibet around 1265. Historically it lies in an area that was an important transit point between the north and south Himalayas, and it was through this route that Padmasambhava and Śāntarakṣita arrived in Tibet. It was founded by a descendant of the Tibetan royal house, Bumdegon (1253–1280) It was one of the thirteen myriarchies (khri skor bcu gsum) ruled by a Sakya lama viceroy appointed by the Yuan court of China.

Chökyi Drönma, the eldest daughter of Thri Lhawang Gyaltsen (1404–1464) and the first Samding Dorje Phagmo – the third highest-ranking person in the Tibetan hierarchy – hailed from the district.

Mêdog (Tibetan: མེ་ཏོག་རྫོང་།; Chinese: 墨脱县), formerly known as Pemako (Tibetan: པདྨ་བཀོད་, Wylie: pad ma bkod, THL: Pémakö, ZWPY: Bämagö lit. "Lotus Array"), is a county of Nyingchi in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China. Pemako is considered famous because it is the Nyingma master Dudjom Rinpoche's birthplace, and it is a prophesied refuge for Tibetan Buddhists by Padmasambhava.

Udiana (also: Uḍḍiyāna, Uḍḍāyāna, Udyāna or 'Oḍḍiyāna'), a small region in early medieval India, is ascribed importance in the development and dissemination of Vajrayāna Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhist traditions view it as a Beyul (Tibetan: སྦས་ཡུལ, Wylie: sbas-yul), a legendary heavenly place inaccessible to ordinary mortals. Padmasambhava, the eighth-century Buddhist master who was instrumental in the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet, was believed to have been born in Oddiyana. The Dzogchen Siddha Garab Dorje is likewise attributed to this region.

It is ascribed importance in the development and dissemination of Vajrayāna Buddhism. The region was also an important place for the practice of Śaivite Hinduism. It is seen as the homeland of the Mahārtha (aka Krama Kalikula) lineage of Śaiva Tantra. The first Mahārtha Siddha, Jñānanetra Nātha, is said to have awakened and taught in this country. It was also called as “the paradise of the Ḍākinīs”.