[4][5] The Sera Monastery, as a complex of structures with the Great Assembly Hall and three colleges, was founded in 1419 by Jamchen Chojey of Sakya Yeshe of Zel Gungtang (1355–1435), a disciple of Je Tsongkhapa.

There are now 3000 or more monks living in Sera, India and this community has also spread its missionary activities to several countries by establishing Dharma centres, propagating knowledge of Buddhism.

The original Sera Monastery is a complex of structures founded in 1419 by Jamchen Chojey Sakya Yeshe of Zel Gungtang (1355–1435), a disciple of Je Tsongkhapa.

[5][6][9] The Jé and Mé colleges were established to train monks, over a 20-year programme of tsennyi mtshan nyid grwa tshang (philosophical knowledge), which concludes with a geshe degree.

It was under his tutelage — seen by followers as divine — that his disciple Jetsun Kunkhen Lodroe Rinchen Senge established the Sera Jey Monastery complex in the early 15th century AD.

It was only 12 years later that one of his pupils, Jamchen Choje, fulfilled the prophecy of his guru by establishing the Sera Je as a seat of learning knowledge of the complete teachings and practices of the Mahayana tradition.

Many of those who survived (monks and common people) this onslaught by the Chinese fled to India, under severe winter weather conditions, across the Himalayas.

Further, 38 tenements were built with grants by the Government of India for the Monks to reside and pursue their vocation of monkshood coupled with tilling the surrounding allotted land for raising food crops for survival.

The Sera-India monk community of the Bylakuppe Monastery, has gone global with their missionary activity by establishing “dharma centres” in many parts the world, thus removing the cultural isolation of pre-1959 years in Tibet.

The hall measured an area of 2,000 square metres (22,000 sq ft) built with 125 pillars (86 tall and 39 short columns) and was constructed by Lhazang Qan.

It is said that Chengzhu, emperor of the Ming dynasty, presented these scriptures (printed on wood blocks with gold cover engraved in red lacquer and made in China) to Jamchen Chojey, the builder of the monastery.

Other deities installed were of Maitreya (5 metres (16 ft) height and gilded) flanked by statues of two lions, Dalai Lamas V, VII and XII, Tsongkhapa (with his favourite disciples), Chokyi Gyeltsen, Desi Sangye Gyatso and many more.

The other Bodhisattvas enshrined along with the main deity were of Maitreya, Manjushri, Amatyas, Bhavishyaguru, Tsongkhapa (with his students), Dalai Lama VII, Pawanga Rinpoche and several other past teachers of the college.

[20] Sera Monastery that developed over the centuries into a renowned place of learning, which trained hundreds of scholars who attained name and fame in the Buddhist nations, has under its affiliation 19 hermitages, including four nunneries, which are all located in the foothills above Lhasa.

The site, which is over 1,300 years old, dates back to Songtsän Gampo, the founder of the Tibetan Empire, and was amongst the first buildings built in the Lhasa area by him during the 7th century after settlement.

[24] Although originally the site of his castle or fort, the Tibetan Annals have revealed that Pabonka was converted into a monastery, possibly under the reign of the second great Buddhist king of Tibet Trisong Detsen.

[28] After receiving permission from the Lhasa municipal government, he began renovating the site, although a former official of the Bari Lama's estate who had previously controlled the monastery initially objected to it being converted into Nyingma practice centre.

This hermitage is also part of the Sera Mountain Circumambulation Circuit (se ra’i ri ’khor) that pilgrims undertake during the ‘Sixth-Month Fourth-Day (drug pa tshe bzhi)’ celebrations.

The Dalai Lama's reverence for his guru was so deep that when the Bzod pa rgya mtsho died, he even performed the last rites for him, got installed his funerary stūpa and statue.

Panglung lies completely in ruins although it once had a large temple and a Rdo rje shugs ldan oracle; an individual who would go into trance to make prognostications while possessed by the god.

Over the centuries, the monastery has seen many leading lights of the Tibetan monastic order playing a role in its building, such as the Zhang ’gro ba’i mgon po g.yu brag pa (1123–1193), female saint Ma cig lab sgron, Sgrub khang dge legs rgya mtsho's (1641–1713), Ngawang Jampa (Phur lcog sku phreng dang po ngag dbang byams pa, 1682–1762) and Pan chen blo bzang ye shes (1663–1737).

Royal family members like the Queen Tsering Trashi (Rgyal mo tshe ring bkra shis) and the Tibetan King Pho lha nas (1689–1747) also supported the activities of the hermitage.

[36] Sera Chöding Hermitage (Se ra chos sdings ri khrod) was a tantric college (rgyud smad grwa tshang) before the 1959 Cultural Revolution.

It was Tsongkhapa's favourite hermitage where he spent substantial time and composed his magnum opus, the “Great Commentary on the Prajñāmūla (Rtsa shes Dīk chen).

According to a legend, Dge-lugs bla-ma Pha bong kha bde chen snying po, on a visit to this area to find a retreat in the hills north of Sera, had a vision of a crow which spoke to him.

The hermitage is now a part of the Pabongkha Lama's estate, the present incarnation, (after his recent return to Tibet) and is stated to be functioning as an autonomous institution with minimum allegiance to Sera.

[44] In 1921, Pha bong kha bde chen snying po (1878–1941) stayed at Chubzang and published his teachings through his most famous work, Liberation in Our Hands (Rnam grol lagbcangs).

[45] The Nunnery's fame in recent years is the leading and bold role that some of the nuns have played in organizing silent demonstrations against the Chinese rule, and seeking freedom of Tibet.

It is believed that it was originally a retreat of the Buddhist scholar of the Sera Jé College's (Grwa tshang byes) Gomdé Regional House (Sgom sde khang tshan), Nam mkha’ rgyal mtshan.

Founding the hermitage as a nunnery is credited to a nun (interpreted as a Dakini) by name Jetsün (or Khachö) Dröldor Wangmo (Rje btsun nam mkha’ spyod sgrol rdor dbang mo).