Within Vajrayāna, the contrast between Nyingma and Sarma can be felt most clearly in how each understands lineage, textual authority, and the architecture of the path. Nyingma roots its transmission in the earliest Tibetan translations associated with figures such as Padmasambhava and Vimalamitra, preserving a distinct tantric corpus and emphasizing both continuous oral transmission (kama) and revealed “treasure” teachings (terma). Sarma, encompassing Kagyu, Sakya, and Geluk, builds its authority on the later wave of translations from India, centering its practice on tantras and commentaries that are tightly linked to Indian sources and unbroken oral lineages. This difference in sources shapes not only what is practiced, but how authenticity and continuity are understood in each stream.

The two also diverge in how they map the tantric path. Nyingma employs a nine‑yāna schema, in which Mahāyoga, Anuyoga, and Atiyoga (Dzogchen) form the inner tantras and are treated as the highest vehicles, with Dzogchen often regarded as the pinnacle of direct realization. Sarma traditions instead use a fourfold classification—Kriyā, Caryā, Yoga, and Anuttarayoga Tantra—without separating Mahāyoga, Anuyoga, and Atiyoga as distinct categories, and generally do not present Dzogchen as a formal, independent path. For Sarma, Anuttarayoga Tantra stands as the summit, frequently elaborated into highly systematized cycles that integrate generation and completion stages.

These differing taxonomies are mirrored in practice methods and style. Nyingma’s inner tantras emphasize deity yoga, subtle‑body work, and especially Dzogchen, which centers on direct introduction to primordial awareness and may, once the view is stable, place less stress on elaborate ritual structures. Sarma approaches Highest Yoga Tantra through carefully graded, codified systems, with detailed manuals and a strong concern for precise observance of tantric commitments, often culminating in sophisticated generation‑ and completion‑stage yogas. Both, however, remain firmly within the shared Vajrayāna framework of mantra, mandala, and deity practice, even as they articulate distinct visions of how the esoteric path is best transmitted and actualized.