The Lamdre teachings are said to have originated with teachings given to the Indian siddha Virūpa by the deity Nairātmyā. They was transmitted in Tibet by the eleventh century translator Drokmi Lotsawa Śākya Yeshe, who received them from the Indian paṇḍita Gayādhara. Although the Lamdre has primarily been transmitted in the Sakya and its related tradition such as the Jonang, there have been masters in the lineage transmission that cannot be said to have belonged to any particular religious tradition.