The Dzogchen Primer Read online

  “In this impressive collection Schmidt pulls together writings from historic and contemporary masters to facilitate study for serious, committed beginners and long time practitioners.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  ABOUT THE BOOK

  The Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice known as Dzogchen (pronounced ZOG-chen) is a practical method for accessing the pristine, clear awareness that lies beneath the chatter and confusion of our daily thoughts. The Dzogchen Primer provides the keys for understanding Dzogchen and putting it into practice.

  Marcia Schmidt, a long-time Buddhist practitioner, has gathered here the most accessible, down-to-earth writings published on this subject and has organized them into a study guide for the serious beginner on the Buddhist path. The collection includes writings from such well-known and venerable masters as Milarepa, Padmasambhava, Shantideva, Chögyam Trungpa, and Tulku Urgyen.

  The concept of Dzogchen is said to lie beyond the confines of our beliefs, our intellectual constructs, our ordinary understanding. A Dzogchen master writes, “We need to dismantle our fixation on the permanence of what we experience. A normal person clings to his experiences as being ‘real,’ concrete, and permanent. But if we look closely at what happens, experience is simply experience, and it is not made out of anything. It has no form, no sound, no color, no taste, no texture; it is simply empty cognizance.”

  The Dzogchen Primer includes an informative editor’s preface as well as two forewords by prominent Tibetan masters that provide fundamental background information that will be helpful to readers new to this subject. The book also includes short, descriptive guiding notes intended to assist both independent students and teachers leading workshops.

  MARCIA BINDER SCHMIDT has been an editor and publisher of books on Vajrayana Buddhism for over fifteen years. With her husband, author and translator Erik Pema Kungsang, she founded and currently runs Rangjung Yeshe Publications, an independent publisher of Buddhist texts in English.

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  The

  Dzogchen Primer

  Embracing the Spiritual Path According to the Great Perfection

  Compiled and edited by

  MARCIA BINDER SCHMIDT

  Introductory teachings by

  CHÖKYI NYIMA RINPOCHE and

  DRUBWANG TSOKNYI RINPOCHE

  SHAMBHALA

  Boston & London

  2013

  SHAMBHALA PUBLICATIONS, INC.

  Horticultural Hall

  300 Massachusetts Avenue

  Boston, Massachusetts 02115

  www.shambhala.com

  © 2002 by Marcia Binder Schmidt

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Schmidt, Marcia Binder.

  The Dzogchen primer: embracing the spiritual path according to the Great Perfection: foreword, introductory teachings by Chèokyi Nyima Rinpoche and Drubwang Tsoknyi Rinpoche / compiled and edited by Marcia Binder Schmidt.—1st ed.

  p. cm.

  Includes bibliographical references.

  eISBN 978-0-8348-2387-7

  ISBN 978-1-57062-829-0 (alk. paper)

  1. Rdzogs-chen (Räniçn-ma-pa) I. Title.

  BQ7662.4 .S34 2002

  294.3′420423—dc21

  2002004532

  Not only the Dharma should be Dzogchen;

  the individual should be Dzogchen as well.

  —KYABJE TRULSHIG RINPOCHE

  CONTENTS

  Preface

  Acknowledgments

  PART ONE: INTRODUCTORY TEACHINGS

  Introduction · Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche

  Introduction · Drubwang Tsoknyi Rinpoche

  PART TWO: STARTING POINT

  1. Buddha Nature · Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche

  2. The Basis: Buddha Nature · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  3. The Ground · Drubwang Tsoknyi Rinpoche

  4. Re-enlightenment · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  5. Meditation · Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche

  PART THREE: INTEGRATION

  6. Integrating View and Conduct · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  7. Padmasambhava’s Overview of the Path · Jamgön Kongtrül

  8. Advice on How to Practice the Dharma Correctly · Padmasambhava

  9. The Qualified Master · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  10. The Guru, the Vajra Master · Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

  11. Wake-up Practice · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  12. The First of the Four Dharmas of Gampopa · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  13. Renunciation Mind · Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

  14. Impermanence · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  15. The Second of the Four Dharmas of Gampopa · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  16. Instructional Advice on Training in Buddhism · Patrül Rinpoche

  17. The True Foundation · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  18. Taking Refuge · Padmasambhava

  19. The Innermost Refuge · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  20. A Guided Meditation · Drubwang Tsoknyi Rinpoche

  21. The Excellence of Bodhichitta · Shantideva

  22. Devotion and Compassion · Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

  23. Bodhichitta · Padmasambhava

  24. The Bodhisattva Vow · Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

  25. The Two Truths · Thinley Norbu Rinpoche

  26. The Sutra of the Heart of Transcendent Knowledge

  27. Shunyata · Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

  28. Egolessness · Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

  29. The Nature of the Mahamudra of Perception · Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche

  30. Wisdom through Meditation · Patrül Rinpoche

  31. The Song of Realization · Milarepa

  32. Root of Mahayana · Padmasambhava

  33. The Meditation of Ultimate Bodhichitta and Its Result · Jamgön Kongtrül

  Facilitator Guidelines

  Notes

  Glossary

  Recommended Reading

  Contributors

  Credits

  E-mail Sign-Up

  PREFACE

  The Dzogchen Primer offers a joyful way to access the traditional principles of Tibetan Buddhism. It is a guidebook on how to study, contemplate, and meditate in a supportive environment abundant in rich material and practices. Here is a definitive map showing where practitioners of this path are going and how to get there. The Primer includes the basics for proper understanding and practice—a source anyone on this path can turn to for guidance.

  These days there is a strong interest in the Vajrayana, especially the Dzogchen and Mahamudra teachings. As Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche says, “During this age, the Vajrayana teachings blaze like the flames of a wildfire. Just as the flames of negative emotions flare up, so do the teachings. During the Age of Strife, it seems as though people are seldom amiable; rather, they are always trying to outdo one another. This fundamental competitiveness has given rise to the name Age of Strife. But this is exactly the reason that Vajrayana is so applicable to the present era. The stronger and more forceful the disturbing emotions are, the greater the potential for recognizing our original wakefulness. Thus, the vast amount of conflict in the world today is precisely why the Vajrayana teachings will spread like wildfire.”1

  The Primer provides a much-needed corrective to the many misconceptions and wrong views being promoted about Dzogchen—and there are many. One of the most
serious obstacles that can confront practitioners is the entertainment of wrong views. Unless we study, we will not know how to differentiate between what is correct and what is incorrect. Study does not have to mean the extensive program of a Tibetan shedra. Here, study is presented in the kusulu fashion, the style of a simple meditator.

  “The causal and resultant vehicles—Hinayana, Mahayana, and Vajrayana—differ in what they regard as path. In particular, to actually apply Vajrayana in practice, there are three different approaches: taking the ground as path, taking the path as path, and taking the fruition as path. These three approaches can be understood by using the analogy of a gardener or farmer. Taking the ground or cause as path is like tilling soil and sowing seeds. Taking the path as path is like weeding, watering, fertilizing, and coaxing crops forth. Taking the fruition as path is the attitude of simply picking the ripened fruit or the fully bloomed flowers. To do this, to take the complete result, the state of enlightenment itself, as the path, is the approach of Dzogchen. This summarizes the intent of the Great Perfection.”2

  So, here we are, practitioners in the Age of Strife, replete with inner and outer conflicts, who are described further as being extremely sharp but extremely lazy. It is only natural that we, materialistic seekers of objects of high quality, would be drawn to the pinnacle of vehicles. Lacking in diligence, we are attracted to what is the least complex and most unelaborated.

  Unfortunately, gaining the right understanding is not that easy. It is extremely important not to oversimplify and lose sight of the true meaning. Although Padmasambhava gave us these custom-made teachings, designated for our particular times and temperament (the beauty of Hidden Treasures), we need the proper conditions to connect with them. These include the presence of a fully realized teacher and qualified lineage holder, as well as our own circumstances of being born at the right time and place with the right frame of mind.

  The right frame of mind means that we trust and appreciate the teachings and the teachers and have devotion and pure perception. Likewise, it is fundamental that we aspire to put these teachings into practice for the benefit of the countless other less fortunate beings of the dark age who lack the opportunity to meet the teachers and the teachings. The Dharma needs to be practiced. Teachings—no matter how high or lofty—have little value for the individual who does not apply them.

  As Sogyal Rinpoche states, “Whichever way the training is tailored, from the traditional point of view, there must be a solid grounding in the basic Dharma teaching. The main points, the heart of the teaching, must be instilled in the student’s mind so that he or she will never forget them. For example: refraining from harm, the crux of the Fundamental Vehicle; developing Good Heart, the essence of the Mahayana; and pure perception, the heart of the Vajrayana.”3

  The Dzogchen Primer offers a way to acquire the correct grounding as well as the confidence that we can continue on the path to enlightenment. Not only do we need to study; we need to integrate the teachings into our beings. This integration is twofold. It is important not to separate the spiritual, or absolute truth, from our ordinary mundane experiences, or relative truth. We need to bring all circumstances onto the path and maintain our dharmic perspective as much as possible. Also, it is crucial to be truly convinced that we can eventually benefit beings and reach accomplishment. Unless we gain certainty in our own inherent nature, we might not trust that we can reach realization. Like enlightened beings, we embody the basic material for buddhahood, the buddha nature. We need to cut the net of doubts that surrounds us. Yes, we are in a compromised state now; we are obscured, but this is only temporary. We can purify our obscurations through the various practices. These teachings show us how to unfold the view “from the top” while ascending the path from below. The Primer thus allows readers to share in this profound approach at any point on the Vajrayana path. All the pieces in this book are pith instructions from qualified masters.

  The Primer draws on the teachings of some of the greatest masters of Dzogchen and Mahamudra (see the list of contributors at the end of the book). In particular, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche and his sons Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche and Tsoknyi Rinpoche have a distinctive teaching style in common, widely known for its unique directness in introducing students to the nature of mind in a way that allows immediate experience.

  As mentioned briefly earlier, traditionally in Tibetan Buddhism there are two main approaches, the analytical approach of a scholar and the resting practice of a simple meditator, a kusulu. Through either of these, or through a combination, it is possible to establish with certainty the natural state of all things. The ultimate result of the scholarly approach is to go beyond analysis. So, depending on our temperament, we will be drawn to one style or the other.

  To quote Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche:

  There are some people who can trust a master and be introduced to the natural state without using any lengthy explanations. They do not need to establish the meaning through reasoning or through quotes from scriptures. Maybe they are not interested; maybe they “have no need.” It is possible for them to understand simply and directly. There are other people for whom that is not enough. Then it is necessary to use quotes from the scriptures and intelligent reasoning to establish certainty in the view.

  According to the analytical meditation, everything is examined, until the scholar has run out of analysis. That is the point of arriving at the understanding of the true view, intellectually. After that, he still needs to receive the blessings of a qualified master and to receive the pointing-out instruction from such a master.4

  What this book emphasizes is a combination of these two approaches. The buddhas’ words are not valid and correct merely because we are Buddhists and accept them on blind faith. They are true because they describe the nature of how things are, whether we are Buddhists or not. One vital way that that truth can be logically arrived at is through reasoning and study. Moreover, after studying the teachings, we blend them into our being by applying them in practice. Then through our own personal experience we come to know that there is no contradiction in what we have learned and what we have assimilated and understood. From another angle, study clears away doubts and uncertainties that may arise in our practice. In short, we combine the three perfect measures of the words of the Buddha and the great masters with our own individual intelligence. This is absolutely crucial for the skeptical Western mind.

  My own experience is different from that of most people living in the West. I have spent over twenty years living closely with realized teachers and extraordinary practitioners in Nepal. With my own eyes, I have seen the value of the tradition borne out by the result that practice and study can bring. Even gifted individuals, like recognized reincarnations of enlightened masters, still undergo years of study and training. The result of this discipline is the many great younger teachers we can meet these days. But this fruition can be seen not only in tulkus, who we might believe begin with a higher potential than ordinary beings. I have watched many other practitioners nurtured by this tradition go on to develop into impressive individuals who benefit whomever they encounter.

  When it comes to practice itself, the approach is to unfurl the view from the top like a canopy and ascend with the conduct from the bottom. “Conduct” here refers to the various applications of the methods of Vajrayana, used as the ladder to climb to the top. Here is Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche’s explanation of this style—his own style, in fact:

  According to the traditional method of Tibetan Buddhism, the student begins practice with the four or five times 100,000 preliminaries in the proper, correct manner. Then he or she proceeds on to the yidam practice with its development stage, recitation, and completion stage. After that, the student is introduced to the true view of Mahamudra and Dzogchen. The sequence is conventionally laid out in this order: first you remove what obscures you; next, you suffuse your being with blessings; finally, you are introduced to the natural face of awareness.

  These days, however, disciples do n
ot have so much time! Also, masters do not seem to stay in one place and teach continuously. The view and the conduct need to be adapted to the time and circumstances. In the world now, there is a growing appreciation of and interest in Buddhism. This is because people are more educated, more intelligent. When masters and disciples do not have a lot of time to spend together, there is no opportunity to go through the whole sequence of instructions. I usually also give the whole set of teachings in completeness, all at once.

  This approach, of giving the essence at the beginning and then later teaching ngöndro, development stage, mantra recitation, and completion stage, can be compared to opening the door all the way from the start. When you open the door, the daylight penetrates all the way in so, while standing at the door, you can see to the innermost part of the shrine room.