Garje Khamu Monastery, and by extension Lhundrub Chime Gatsal Ling, is a branch of Mindroling Monastery, which was founded by Terdak Lingpa.

Terdak Lingpa Gyurme Dorje (1646-1719) was born in 1646 to a master of the Dzogchen teachings named Sangdak Trinley Lhundrup. At the feet of his father, Gyurme Dorje received numerous empowerments and soon began to display the qualities of an accomplished master. As a youth of 11, he received monastic ordination from the Fifth Dalai Lama. Over time the two developed a close relationship such that Terdak Lingpa considered the Great Fifth to be one of his two main teachers. Terdak Lingpa in turn offered many teachings and transmissions to the Great Fifth.

In the years that followed, Terdak Lingpa received instruction from numerous lamas. In particular, he studied both the kama and terma lineages and came to master the works of Longchen Rabjampa. Through diligent practice, his realization of the teachings deepened and he began to reveal hidden treasures concealed centuries before in the expanse of his enlightened mind.

Terdak Lingpa played a critical role in the preservation and propagation of the Nyingma lineages of kama and terma. The kama teachings had been transmitted orally since their introduction into Tibet during the eighth and ninth centuries. The terma teachings, though originally concealed by Guru Rinpoche, were only revealed in subsequent centuries by incarnations of Guru Rinpoche’s direct disciples. Terdak Lingpa compiled the Nyingma Kama, the canon of teachings orally transmitted in the Nyingma tradition. He also gathered a great many termas into a single collection, entitled the Excellent Vase the Provides All You Desire (Dojo Bumzang). This would later become the core of Jamgon Kongtrul’s famous Precious Treasury of Termas (Rinchen Terdzo). Terdak Lingpa thus ensured neither lineage would disappear, thereby offering a service of immeasurable value to later followers of the Nyingma teachings.

In 1670 or 1676, with the urging and support of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama, Terdak Lingpa founded Orgyen Mindroling Monastery in the Drachi Valley south of Lhasa. Under Terdak Lingpa, it swiftly emerged as one of the premier Buddhist institutions in Tibet.