Finding your way home: an introduction to dzogchen

Transcription

1 Findingyourwayhome: anintroductiontodzogchen TeachingsgivenbyJamesLow Amorebieta,Spain 1 20June,2010 TranscribedbyDenizCsernoklavek EditedbyJamesLowandBarbaraTerris

2 Excerpts In Tibet it was said that dzogchen was in Tibet before buddhism arrived. It was there beforethebönreligiontoo.thatistosay,itisnotaninventedsystem,butissomething thatwas,andis,alwaysthereandthatpeopleinallplaces,inalltimes,haveaccessto. The view of dzogchen indicates that you have to be fully present so that you are as connected as possible to everything that is there in the undivided uninterrupted phenomenological field, which includes yourself. From the state of relaxation, your spontaneousmovementwillbeconnectedwiththesituation.activityistheneffortlessand intrinsically ethical. Dzogchen texts describe this as the path of non meditation since whether alone or with others, still or in movement, there is no imported object of meditation. Thiswholeworldisthesameriver,buteachofusisalittlemovement.Howeverwhenwe sitinsidethisbubbleofourselves,weprotectourdifferencefromotherpeoplebecausewe wanttobeuniqueandspecial.yetactuallywearemadeoutofthesamestuffaseveryone else.thisdoesnotmeanthatwearethesameasotherpeople.weareneitherthesame nordifferent;weareuniqueformswhichareinseparable. Thebodyisnotathing,it sagreatriverofchange,andthesameistrueforsensationsand feelingsandthoughts.oncewestarttoexperiencetheceaselessmovementofexperience werealisethatwithinthismovementthereisnothingtoholdonto.yetwedon tgetlost, becausethegroundofthismovementiscompletelystill. Ifyougooutonaboatandthewindisblowingabit,youcanseethewavesmoving.Then along comes a seagull, and it lands on the sea. It was flying and now it s sitting on the water.it shavingalittlerest,butwhatit ssittingonismoving.it slikethat.thethought ismovinginyourmindlikethewavesonthesea.anotherthoughtsarises,and Ah,you think, Icanstayhere. Intheverymomentthatyouthink, ThisiswhereIbelong,you arebeingmovedalong.allmanifestationisdynamic,whichiswhywehavetolookagain, and again, and again, so we really see the essential difference between stillness and movement. Movementisneverstill;youcannotmakeitstill.Theonlythingthatisstillispresence,and itnevermoves. Whenlifeisharditisdifficulttotrustthatawakeningiseasy.

3 Index Thebasicprinciplesofdzogchen... 1 Settlingandcalmingthemind... 2 Whatmayfeelnaturalisinfactquiteartificial... 3 Refugeislikeanumbrella you llgetwetifyouletitdown...3 Anaturalstateofperfection... 4 Becomingmoreathomewithoneself... 5 Theillusionofexistence... 5 Storytelling... 6 Dzogchen:everythingisalreadyperfect... 8 Tantra:transformsordinaryintoperfect... 9 Dzogchen:kadagandlhundrup...10 Emptinessislinkedwiththequestionoftime Theungraspabilityofself Relaxingourbody,speechandmind Beingflexible...16 Notfeelingstretchedlikeanelasticband...16 Ourbreathisourfriend Looseningupwhenyougetlockedin...18 Thoughtsaremovingthroughme...19 Theimmediacyofperceptionisself organising:nothingmoreneedbedone. 20 GarabDorje sfirstpoint:awakenonyourrealnature Allthatweseeislikeanillusionbutillusionshavetheirownlogic...23 Thecentreofmyexistenceisalwaysoutsidemyself...23 Practicesforopeningup:Phat! Phat!isthesoundofwisdomandcompassion...25 Whatbuddhismmeansby emptiness...26 Practicesforopeningup:Guruyoga Guru includesallthepeopleyouhavelearnedfrom...28 Thegroundofexperienceisempty Experienceisallwehave:differentwaysoflookingattheworld...30 Myexperienceofmyselfemergesatthesametimeasmyexperienceoftheworld..31 Questionstoaskaboutourmind:it sshape,size,colour...31 Questionsaboutmindfulnessandawareness...32 Howdowelearn? Metaphorofatentandtentpole...34 Themorewetrytobeincontrol,themoredangeroustheotherseems...35 GarabDorje ssecondpoint:staytruetotheexperienceofopening Weariseinrelationtootherpeople...38 GarabDorje sthirdpoint:simplytocontinueinthisway Practice:relaxingintotheout breath...39 Thefunctionsofrituals SpainBilbaoFindingyourwayhome_DC_BT_JLWebready.doc

4 [Day1] Thebasicprinciplesofdzogchen Thebasicprinciplesofdzogchenareimportant,becausedzogchen,asapracticeandasan understanding,isdifferentfromotherpathsinbuddhism.inthedzogchenviewthebase,or the basis of awakening, is something that we already have, and therefore the path to awakening is not a path going somewhere else, and the result of awakening is not being somewhereelse.rather,it stofindawayofbeingfullypresentasoneself,whichisrevealed throughopeningupthepossibilityofexploring Whatdoesitmeantobeoneself? Forthistooccurweneedtodevelopacapacitytoobserveourselvesacrosstherangeofour manifestation. Thoughts, feelings, sensations, movements of the body and so on form the constituentsoutofwhichweariseasourselves.ifwefullyidentifywiththesefactors,they appeartobethedefinitionofwhoweare. Oneaspectofobservationistheclaritywherebyallthesedifferentfactorsarerevealedjust as they are. In fact we exist as the co emergence or integration of the two factors: an opennesswhichrevealsallthatisthereandtheprecisenatureofallthatisthere.thisis not something mystical, it s not something symbolic; it doesn t belong to any particular system of interpretation. Dzogchen meditation resists the temptation to fall into interpretation. From the time we were small our parents, school teachers and employers have been encouragingustotrytounderstandabitmoreandtothinkabitmoreandthereforetorest onthoughtsasbuildingblockstoestablishunderstanding.clearly,knowingabouttheworld and how it functions brings a kind of clarity, but conditions change and our accumulated knowledgeisquicklyoutofdate. Indzogchenweareaimingtoawakentoaqualityofawareness,aparticularkindofknowing thatisnotdependentoncircumstances.themostimportantaspectofthispracticeistrust inyourabilitytorelax.generallyspeakingwhenwereadbuddhisttextstheyexplainthatthe basis of samsara is ignorance, leading to attachment. The word ignorance can create the sensethatthereissomekindofcognitivedisorderandthatweneedtolearnmoretogetrid of ignorance. However from the point of view of dzogchen, the problem is more an ontological one about the nature of being. That is to say, in becoming alienated from ourselvesandthegroundofourbeing,therearisesananxiety,andthisanxietydrivesusinto activity.forexample,whenthereisanaccidentorsomethingdifficultinourliveswetendto think OhwhatshouldIdo? Webecomemobilisedandreadytobecomeveryactive. Ofcourseinthatstateofarousalandagitationourselectiveattentionidentifiesmanythings thatneedstobedoneandthemorewedothemorethereistodo.everyreligionisvery generous in presenting thousands of things for us busy people to do! You can do prostrationseverymorning,thenfillyourwaterbowls,thencleanyouraltar,andthereare all these many mantras to say So there is always something to do. In Tibetan buddhism there are thousands of different gods. First you praise the buddhas, then all the bodhisattvas,thenallthegods,andthenallthedharmaprotectors.that salotofpraisingto bedone.sinceyouhavesaidhellotothemonce,thenthenexttimeyougonearthemyou have to call them by their name otherwise it s a bit rude This kind of activity is good activity,butitisactivity. Indzogchenweareconcernedtounderstandthenatureofactivity.Thatistosay,whatis the movement of the body, what is the experience of speaking? What is sensation in the body?whatisemotion?whatistheexperienceoflistening,eating,walkingandsoon? SpainBilbaoFindingyourwayhome_DC_BT_JLWebready.doc

5 P a g e 2 [Aphoneringsintheroom]Thesephonesareinventedtokeepyoubusy.Youcanimagine thebuddhassittinginbodhgaya,underthebodhitreereadytobeenlightenedandthena phonerings.it shismother Areyoualright,dear?Iheardyouweregettingverythin... Settlingandcalmingthemind Sonowletusdosomesimplepracticetoarriveandsettlein,allowingourattentiontosettle onasimplefocus.settleeitheronanexternalobjectsuchasamarkonthefloor,orfocuson thesensationofthebreathgoinginandoutofthenostrils.wesitwiththespinestraight, shouldersrelaxed,chinslightlydown,thetonguerestingonthehardupperpalate.theeyes areslightlyclosedandgazingdownthelineofthenose;themouthisslightlyopenandwe are not controlling our breath. Once you have decided on your focus, develop a clear intention that This is what I m going to do. If you find your attention wanders off into somethingelse,thenassoonasyoubecomeawareofthat,justgentlybringyourattention backontothelineofyourfocus. The practice of tenderness and gentleness in meditation is very important. It s a way of healing some of the wounds which develop around the heart on the basis of the harsh messages which we have received from the outside and which we continue to give to ourselves,blaming,judging,andcriticisingandsoon. Sojustreturntothefocusandwestaywiththat.Wewilldothisforabouthalfanhour. [Meditation] Themaingoalofthepracticewehavejustdoneisnottodevelopanyparticularinsightbut simplytocalmthemindbycultivatingakindofdisinterest.thatistosay,theusualcontents of the mind, which we normally find fascinating and which pull us into all kinds of developments, thoughts and associations, are now allowed to pass by without our paying anyparticularinterest. Thiskindofpracticeissomethingyoumaydofromtimetotimetodevelopyourcapacityfor focussedattention,butfromthepointofviewofdzogchenit snotusefultohaveitasone s main meditation practice. The main goal of buddhist practice is to develop wisdom and compassion and if the mind is simply very calm and undisturbed then there is neither wisdom nor compassion. However, what this practice can do is start to give some kind of space,akindofperspective,sothatyoubegintohaveachoice, WillIbeinvolvedornot? When our mind is very distracted we get into a habit of reactivity to whatever comes whetheritseemstobeinternalorexternal. Soincalmingthemindwegiveourselvesthesenseorthecapacitytostopandlookbefore wegetinvolved.thishelpsustostarttoseewhereisthemaingluethatbindsusintowhat isgoingon.istheglueintheobjectoristheglueinthesubject?sometimeswefeelitis inevitabletobeinvolvedinsomething;theobjectseemssointerestingornecessarythatwe have no choice. It is as if the object is pulling us towards it, causing us to fall into an involvement. WhatelsecouldIdo? Thisisthebasisofalotofeventsinourexistence.Forexample,ifyougotoanycourtroom wherethepersonhastoexplaintothejudgewhytheydidthebadthingtheydid,youwill hearexplanationswhichpointtotheinevitabilityofwhatoccurred. BecauseIwaspoor Because the person hadn t locked their car There was some reason out there which made me do this. So you can t send me to jail; circumstances made this happen. I am a victimofcircumstances. Weoftenthinklikethat,asiftheoutsideissuckingandpullingus, orourthoughts,feelingsandsensationsaresuckingusintosomething.

6 P a g e 3 The advantage of calming the mind is that we can start to create a laboratory, a place of examinationwherewecanseewhatisthenatureoftheforcefieldofsubjectandobject. Fromabuddhistpointofviewwehavebeenbornmany,manytimesbefore,andinallthese lives we have developed likes and dislikes, habits, attitudes and so on. When we are born intothislifewehaveparticularvulnerabilitiesorsusceptibilities.somepeople,whentheygo toapartyandhearthemusic,think Ihavetodance whileotherpeopleatthesameparty, as soon as they see the bottles, think I have to get drunk. So in these ways we have a selective attention, that is to say, an attention that moves towards the world looking for thingsthatareourparticularindividualpatterningoraconstruction. Whatmayfeelnaturalisinfactquiteartificial Thishabitualinvolvementfeelsexactlynormalforussoit softendifficulttoseeitbecausei am just doing what I do. How would I do anything else? This is me. But in fact in that moment our potential, our capacity to express ourselves in many different ways, is being caughtbyanoldpatternandshapedinaverynarrowformthatisreallylimitingus. So by calming the mind and being less immediately reactive or involved with the thoughts andfeelingsandsoonwhicharise,weareabletostartexaminingourselvesandtheworld aroundusandstarttoseeinghowweactuallyfunction.anaspectofthisistostarttosee how other people function. It s always surprising to see what other people do. So for example,ifyougotothesupermarketandyoucometothequeueatthecheckout,it svery interesting to look in other people s baskets. What are they buying? Why would they buy these things? What kind of person is that? How strange. Then we realise Oh they are not me. Theyhaveanotherlife;theyhaveanothermind.Theirmindisarisingduetocausesand circumstanceduetotheirchildhood,theireducation,theirworkortheirnot work,andthe sameistrueforme. ThefunctionoflookinginthiswayistoseethatwhatItakeinmyselftobenaturalisactually somethingquiteartificial.becausemymotherwasasshewas,myfatherwasashewas,my schoolwasasitwas,ihave,throughmyintegrationwiththem,developedcertainpathways insidemyself,certaintiltsofmygazesothatsomethingslookshinytomeandotherdon t. Therealpracticebeginswhenweseethat Iamartificial;Iamaconstruct;Iammadeoutof habits,attitudesandtendencies,allofwhichhaveahistoricalbasis,acontextualbasisbut no true foundation. There is nothing fundamentally reliable in them. If I keep following these habits and attitudes, I m constantly winding myself into story time, into a narrative, into the myth of my existence. Inside of that many things are very important and many thingsdon tbothermeatall.sofollowingthethingsilikeandtryingtogetmoreofthem, and avoiding the things I don t like and trying to have less of them, I spend my whole life goingthiswayandthat.iamalwaysbusytryingtomaintainthesenseofthecontinuityof thisconstructthathasbeencreated. Theviewofdzogchenisawayoflookingthroughthestorytoseeifthereisadifferentbasis for our existence, one which is not simply our old individual patterning of the stream of experience,butsomethingtrulyreliablewhichcouldbealwaysthere. Refugeislikeanumbrella you llgetwetifyouletitdown InthegeneralbuddhistpracticewebeginbytakingrefugeintheBuddha,theteachingsand the association of the people who practice. That is to say, we recognise that we are like a leafintheautumnwindandwewanttofindsomethingtoholdonto.

7 P a g e 4 Onceyouhavearefugeyouhavetoholdontoit.Allkindsofrefugearelikeumbrellas;they willonlykeeptherainoffifyouholdthemup.thatistosay,withouttheeffortofkeeping uptheumbrellayoudon tgetanyprotection.assoonasyourarmgetstired,yourarmgoes down and you get wet. So that s why it s very important to see the nature of religious practice.aslongaswearetryingtostopdoingbadthingsanddevelopgoodthings,weare engagedinactivity.thisactivitymaybeaverygoodactivity,butwheneveryoustopdoingit, whateveryouhaveconstructedwillstarttocrumble. We can observe this again and again when you look in a garden; if the gardener is not working hard then many other things start growing. At one time, here in this nunnery [outsideofbilbao]therewouldhavebeenmanypeoplelivinghere,withmanyservantsand everythingwouldhavebeenveryperfect.nowtherearejustafewoldnunssothingsdon t gosowell. Thesameprincipleoperatesinourmind,wheneveryouarecreatingsomethingbyyourown effort, if your effort stops, that creation will become vulnerable. This is not a punishment; it s just how things are. You ll know this from any kind of possession, whether it s a motorcarorahouseorananimal youhavetotakecareofit. Anaturalstateofperfection Thecentralpointofthepracticeofdzogchenistheclaritythatfromtheverybeginninginall beings notjusthumans,butanimals,insects,everythingwhichhaslife thereisanatural stateofperfection.thepracticeisdesignedtorevealthisnaturalperfection.thatistosay, we are not trying to construct ourselves in a better way; we are not trying to improve or developourselvessinceawakeningisawakeningtotheperfectionthatisalreadythere. There are two aspects to this. There is what is sometimes called the nature of the mind itself,thatistosayourownnatureaswesitheretogether.thisisopenness,meaningthat thereisnothingclosedordefinedorconditionedaboutit.it sanakedquality,notcovered withanyhabitsorkarmicaccretions,andit sthereautomaticallybyitself.thisisthestateof awarenessthatilluminateseverythinginthesamewaythatamirrorilluminateseverything thatisplacedinfrontofit.justasthemirrorisnottouchedbyanyofthereflectionsthat ariseinit,soourawarenessisnotconditionedordistorted,orimprovedorcontaminatedby anythingthatarisesinit.thisstatenevermovesandneverchanges. Withinthisstateeverythingmoves,fornothingthatappearsisstableorreliable.Thebiggest probleminsamsaraisthatpeopletrytostabilisethingswhichcannotbemadestable.we try to make our own mental state stable; we try to make other people stable and reliable and what we find is that something is always happening, since, as the Buddha taught on manyoccasions,everythingisimpermanent. When we are present in our experience rather than thinking about it, we can see that everythingisdynamicandchanging,unfoldingmoment by moment.weseethateachofus isatthecentreofthisevolvingworld.theonewhoisatthecentreofthemovingworlddoes not move. That is to say our awareness, which never changes, and this display which is ceaseless, are inseparable in non duality. The infinite stillness of awareness and the ceaselessmovementoftheworld,includingourselves,arenottwodifferentdomains.what wecall mybody, mythoughts, mysensations or myfeelings isthemovementofenergy; thereisnothingstableaboutourexistence.breathisgoinginandoutallthetime;theblood is going round and round; electric impulses of the brain are ceaseless; the hormones and endocrinesystemareoperatingceaselessly,bringingaboutcommunicationinsidethebody. Thebodyisnotathing,it sagreatriverofchange,andthesameistrueforsensationsand feelingsandthoughts.oncewestarttoexperiencetheceaselessmovementofexperience

8 P a g e 5 werealisethatwithinthismovementthereisnothingtoholdonto.yetwedon tgetlost, becausethegroundofthismovementiscompletelystill. Ournatureisalwaysstillandcalminthemidstofthemovementwhichisalwayshappening. This is the basic vision in dzogchen. It s not about trying to become enlightened, where enlightenment issomespecialstate,whichifwetryreallyhardwecanonedayachieve,a placethatwillsomehowbesecure.whenwelookdirectlyintothephenomenologyofour existencewecanseethatthoughtscomeandgo.badthoughtscomeandgo,goodthoughts come and go. All constructs are impermanent. And yet ungraspable, indestructible awarenessisalwaysrighthere. Manythingsthatpeoplehavethoughttobeverysafeandsecurearerevealedbyeventsto be not so secure. Year by year the Catholic Church is becoming less powerful in most countriesandchurchesthatwereoncefullofpeoplearefairlyemptynow.ahundredand fifty years ago this would have been unthinkable. When the Chinese came into Tibet and attackedthemonasteriesmanyofthetibetanpeoplecouldnotunderstandhowitwouldbe possible to take a statue of the Buddha and break it up. They thought some big dharma protectorwouldkillallthechinesebecausetheyweredoingsomethingvery,verybad.that didnothappen.astatueisjustmetal;ifyouhavefaithit smorethanmetal,it smetalplus faith. Metal plus faith is very powerful. I myself have a lot of faith so I have lots of such pieces of metal in my home. However these things are very important because of our relationshipwiththem;theyletusseedirectlythatwearemakingthemshine.theenergy ofourmindistheradianceoftheworld. Becomingmoreathomewithoneself The basic task is to become more at home with oneself by starting to observe what is reliablyoneself.youcanstartwithageneralreflectiononyourownlife.forexamplewhen youwereyoungyouhaddifferentinterestsfromnow.thedollsorthebikeyouplayedwith asachildarenolongerimportanttoyoubutoncetheywerereallyimportant.thenwecan lookatallthethingsthatareinourlifenowandthatseemveryimportanttous,andask whathasrealvalue?thisdoesn tmeanrejectingeverythingandrenouncingtheworldand goingtoliveinamonasterybutrather,wecanstarttoseethatvaluearisesastheinterplay assubjectandobject. Theillusionofexistence The Buddha explained many times that things are like an illusion, like a reflection of the moononwater,likeamirage,likeanecho.whetherwearehappyorsaditisjustanillusion. Anillusiondoesnotmeanthatthereisnothingthereatall;itmeansthatnothingisthere that is inherently true, true from the inside out. For example, we might feel that meeting togetherlikethisisausefulthingtodo;wemightevenenjoybeinghere,butthenwelook outthewindowandweseethattherearemanyhousesinthistownandyetnoonefrom thistownhascomehere.soisitourdutytogooutthiseveningandknockonpeoples doors andtellthem, Friends,pleasecome,enjoy?Theywillsay Don tbestupid?don tyouknow theworldcupisontelevision? It slikethat.ifwewanttobehere,it sourconstruction.this isanillusiontoo. Everythingisanillusion.Perhapsyouhavebeenoutonabeautifulfull moonnightbyalake andnoticedthereflectionofthemoononthewater.itreallyseemsthatthemoonisinthe water,butitisnot.inthesummerifyouaredrivingyourcarontheroadyoumayhaveseen whatlookslikewater,whathastheappearanceofwater,butthereisnotruewaterthere.it was a mirage. This is the nature of our experience here. There is nothing to grasp. That

9 P a g e 6 doesn tmeanthatthereisnothingatall.thereissomething,butitisnotasolidentitythat youcanbuildonorholdonto,andthesameappliestoourselves. Insideourbodywefeelthemusclestenseandrelax,wenoticehowourbreathingchanges, howourposturemoves.thatistosay,ourbodyissomethingthatappearsforus,justasour bodiesalsoappearforotherpeopleandthisappearanceischangingintime.ourskinlooks different as the daylight changes, if the sun is shining, or if it s raining or there is artificial light.thatistosay,ourselvesandeverythingthatweseeisanexperiencewhichisarising.it is there as an experience but you can never get hold of it. This usually is hidden from us becausewearecaughtupinourthoughts,beingbusy makingsense oftheworld.wehave ourideasabouthowthingsareandonthebasisofthatwecreateabaseofsolidenduring entities.onthebasisofthatwestarttobuildupacompositepictureofouterthingsand innerthings,andthenwemovethesereliableentitiesaroundtocreatetheworldwewant. Butallthetimeitisreallyanillusion.IrememberwhenIwasinschoolwewerealwaysbeing encouragedtoworkhardtogetthroughtheexams.soeveryyearinmayandjuneiwould bewritingandwritingforhourstodotheseschoolexams.thenamonthlaterthroughthe postiwouldgetalettertellingmeifihadpassedorfailed.onceihadopenedtheenvelope andknewtheresult,well,lifegoeson.inenglishwetalkabout astorminateacup.thisis whathappenswhenwetakethingstooseriously. Storytelling SometimesIsitandeatwithmycolleaguesatwork.Wetalkaboutourselves,wherewehave comefrom,whatwehavedoneattheweekend,whatweplantodointhesummer Thatis to say, we all tell a story about ourselves. But when we are relaxed and open, there is nothingtosay.mostofoursocialinteraction,evenwhenweareinteractingwithourselves on our own, is just a flow of stories. Stories about the past what has happened, stories aboutthefuture whatwehopewillorwillnothappen.whilewearetellingthesestories thereistheimmediacyofourpresenceasourselves,andthiswecan ttalkabout.wecan t say what it is, yet it is the heart of our experience. Words describe things, events, manifestations yettheminditselfisnotathing.itisbeyondlanguage,beingtheopenfield throughwhichlanguagemoves.sotheverywaysinwhichwetrytocommunicatewithother people, which are the same ways in which we talk internally to ourselves, conceal the immediacyofourselvesintheverymomentthattheyrevealthestoryaboutourselves. Thisisanimportantprinciple.It snotthatstorytellingiswrongorbad,butit storecognise thestatusandthefunctionofthestory.ifitellyousomethingaboutmychildhood,theni m making little bridges from my world into your world, like some fast growing creeper like RussianVineorVirginiaCreeper.Whenpeoplearetalkingtogetherlittletendrilsaregrowing out from their mouths and wrapping around each other. This creates the possibility of feelingconnectedandwarm,anditalsoallowsustobehelpfulandtogetasenseofthe shapeoftheotherpersonsothatwecanfindawaytobeclosetothem.thatistosay,itis aboutcompassion;it snotaboutwisdom.wisdomishowthingsactuallyare,thatistosay, staying relaxed open and present with the immediacy of our direct experience. Direct experiencecannotbedescribedbecauseitisnotathing.speakingcancreatetheillusionof therebeingrealentities. Theactualfunctionofspeakingisaboutconnectionandconnectionpermitsthemovement ofenergy.forexampleinthisroomrightnowwearedifferenttypesofpeopleandweare movingtogetherthroughtime;wearedirectlythemovementoftime.alongthisceaseless gesture of time, we are all moving. It might help to imagine that this whole room is a big riverwithastrongcurrentmoving.thisiswhatitlikebeinghere;weareinthesameriver. Thiswholeworldisthesameriver,buteachofusisalittlemovement.

10 P a g e 7 However when we sit inside this bubble of ourselves then we protect our difference from otherpeoplebecausewewanttobeuniqueandspecial.yetactuallywearemadeoutofthe samestuffaseveryoneelse.thisdoesnotmeanthatwearethesameasotherpeople.we areneitherthesamenordifferent;weareuniqueformswhichareinseparable. Thisillustratesthefactthatwisdomandcompassioninseparable.Inwisdomweareathome in the spaciousness that is the ground of all beings. In buddhist language it means the dharmakaya, or true nature, of all beings is exactly the same, but as we manifest weeach have our own particular qualities. These qualities influence how we talk and how we walk and so on, and this influences the play of our compassion how we can relate to other people.ifwearecutofffromourownexperienceofourspaciousnesstheninsteadofhaving this ungraspable and infinite openness at our centre, we find ourselves wrapped up inside stories.wetalkourselvesintoexistencejustlikescheherazadebutthesestoriespositionus inparticularwaysthatlimitourcapacitytorespondtootherpeople. Sothefunctionofthepracticeistointegratetheopennesswiththeexpression,thestillness with the movement, so that our movement becomes an expression of the integrated movementof the situation as it presents itself moment by moment, rather than being the expressionof whoiam intermsofmyhabitualstory. Practice Wewilldoalittlepracticenow.Thisisvery,verysimple,wejustsitasweareandwithout doinganythingartificialwejustallowexperiencetoflow.wearenottryingtodoanything special,wearenottryingtodevelopsomethingorcreatesomethinginparticular,simplyto stay present with everything that is occurring. You can do this with your eyes closed if it s easier but normally we do this with our eyes open. If something moves outside, some soundscomein,justallowittocome.don tblockexternalexperience,don tblockinternal experience. Ifyoufindyourselfspirallingintoaparticularpatternofthoughts,assoonasyourecognise thisjustletgoandletthesethoughtsvanish.asitoftensaysindzogchen,themindislike the sky. The sky is open to whatever comes into it. Sometimes it s clouds, sometimes it s rainbows.birdsandplanesflythroughit,bombsgooffinitbuttheskystaysopen.sointhe sameway,justlikethesky,remainrelaxedandopen Whatevercomes,youjustletitbe there.oksowillwesitlikethisforawhile. [Practice] The basic instruction for dzogchen meditation is to not do anything at all. That does not meanthatnothingwillhappenbecause,strangelyenough,youarenottheonlyonemaking thingshappen.theegohasabigfantasyaboutbeinginchargeofmentalactivity,yetstuffis happeningallthetime whatfreudiansmightcalltheunconsciousandjungiansmightcall thecollectiveunconscious.whateveritis,thereisalotofstuffgoingonthatidon tknow muchabout. Sincetheinstructionisnottodoanythinginterferingorartificial,wheneverathoughtarises in your mind and your next response is I like it or I don t like it then following the instruction,justallowthethoughttocomeandthenjustallowittogo. Theonewhosays Ilike,theonewhosays Idon tlike isjustathought.allthatwethinkwe are,isjustthoughts.aslongasweidentifywiththesethoughtsasbeingourtrueselves,our preoccupationwiththetransientarisingmomentsgetsinthewayofjustseeingourselvesin themomentofouropenness.forexample,ifyouaredrivingacareverytimeyoulookinthe mirroryouseesomethingdifferent.youarelookingupinthemirrorinsidethecarandyou go Ah, that car is coming up behind me, Ah, that car is passing Many things are

11 P a g e 8 appearing in the mirror for you. Then when you arrive at your destination you look in the mirroragainandtidyyourhairalittlebit,maybeputonalittlemorelipstick.nowwhenyou lookinthemirroryouseeyourself.themirrorisfullofyou.why?thisisourattachment. Whenyouweredriving,thingswerehappeninginthemirror;itwasverydynamicbutnow whenyoulookatyourownreflectioninthemirroritseemstobemorereal.thisisbecause you invest it with a particular kind of significance. So when the meditation instruction is Don tdoanythingatall,itgivesusthechancetoseetheprocessofinvestmentofme.that istosay,oneideasaystoanotheridea Ireallylikeyou andthenextideasays Ireallylike youtoo andinthosewayideaschaseideas,chaseideas.thisiswhatiscalledsamsara.the freedom from samsara begins with seeing that an idea is only an idea. But when we live insideourhabitualattachmentwedon tseeatransientidea weseeanotherappearance. Thisistheillusioncreatedbysittinginsideanideaasifitweretellingthetruth. OKsonowwewillbreakfortodayandmorningwewillmeettogetherhereat7.30andwe candomorepractice.ifyouprefertostayinbedthat salsoallowed,becausethisisnota punishmentcamp!youhavetobeintouchwithyourownconditionsincetheheartofthe practice is to make friends with yourself, to be so close with yourself that the internal divisionofsubjectandobjectisreintegrated,andthat swhenwecanstarttoexperiencethe stateofnonduality. [Day2] Dzogchen:everythingisalreadyperfect Dzogchenmeansgreatperfectionorgreatcompletion.Thatistosaywhateverneedstobe done is already being done, and therefore the idea that there is any fault or error is incorrect.theonlyfaultorerroris,infact,tothinkthatthereisafaultorerror!clearlythis makesitdifferentfrommostreligions.mostreligionsstartwithsomekindoffallfromgrace, some variation on the stories of having to leave the Garden of Eden, some entry of ignorance... These myths involve two aspects: one is that the good place is lost, and the secondisthatthedoortogetbackinisclosed. From the point of dzogchen, the natural state or the open ground of our own existence andtheexistenceofallbeings isnotsomethingthatislost.itcan tbelostanditcan tbe gained.itcan tbesoldanditcan tbepurchased.it salwaysthere,butonecanattendtoit or not. By taking it for granted we create a false notion of what it is we actually are dependenton.forexamplewhenyouwalkdownthestreet,youarewalkingonyourshoes, and our shoes are walking on the pavement, but both the shoes and the pavement are invisibletoyouaslongasthingsaregoingwell.butthenifsomebodyhasspilledoilonthe pavementorifthereisabananaskinorsomedogshit,suddenlyyoubecomeawareofthe pavementandofyourshoes.theveryeaseofourexistencemakesusnotlookverycarefully at what is there. The practice of dzogchen is to avoid the extremes of either lazily taking thingsforgrantedoranxiouslyreactingtoacrisis.rather,weattendtowhatoccurswithout interpretationorbias. InTibetitwassaidthatdzogchenwasinTibetbeforebuddhismarrived.Itwastherebefore thebönreligiontoo.thatistosay,itisnotaninventedsystem,butissomethingthatwas, andis,alwaysthereandthatpeopleinallplaces,inalltimes,haveaccessto.veryoften,if you spend some time with small children you can have that sense that they are in this experience. Of course when children are small they do not make a commentary on what they are doing which means that their life, their experience, is open and immediate for them. It s wonderful to see people when they encounter a small baby and, generally

12 P a g e 9 speaking,somethingintheheartopensupandthefacebecomeslight,andtheyarefriendly and immediately connected with the baby. It s the very openness and undefendedness of thebabythatinvitestheadulttoenterthatworld.ofcourseababyisratherhelpless.then asitgrowsupandlearnshowtotakecareofitself,itlosesthatopenness.thisisverysadyet ithashappenedtoeachofus.therewasatimewhenwewerejustourselves,andthenwe developed ourselves, which is necessary for social adaption, but in the process we lost ourselves. We became turned into, or turned towards, the rhythm of the world, the necessary demands of existence. Moreover if our childhood is unhappy, then that process becomesevenmorecomplicated. However from the point of view of dzogchen, openness is always there and the task in meditationistointegrateourcapacityforcomplex beingintheworldwithothers withthe simplicityoftheground.thebasisofthepracticeistoawakento,tobefullyopento,the state that is already here, a state that is hidden from us by nothing other than our own activity.thislastpointisveryimportantsinceitmeansthatallyouneedisalreadyherewith you;itisabouthowyoupayattentiontoyourexistence. If you are familiar with buddhism, this is not the usual presentation because usually it is describedthatasituationarisesduetoignorance,thatistosay,thatwehavelosttouchwith trueknowledgeandwehavetofindawaytothisknowledgeagain.so,peoplewillprayand makeaspirationslike MayIbecomeenlightenedforallsentientbeings,thatistosay, IrecognisethatmyinterestsaresmallandIammainlyconcernedwithmyself and I want to open this out so that my attention is with all beings equally. Through that I will escape this limitation, creating freedom for myself and so I willbecomemoreavailableforotherpeople. Todothatitistraditionallysaidthatyouneedtohavedeveloped thetwoaccumulationsof merit and wisdom which become the basis for achieving of enlightenment. This is often describedintermsofremovingallthathastoberemovedandgainingordevelopingallthat has to be developed. The Tibetan word for Buddha, sang gye comprises these two activities.sangmeanstoclearortopurify;gyemeanstoincreaseordevelop.sothestateof buddhahoodisseenasoneinwhichallfaults,obscurationandlimitationsareclearedaway and all good qualities necessary for the benefit of oneself and others are completely achieved, completely fulfilled. Buddhahood is seen as the result of a process. Should you enteratraditionalpathwayoftraining,asyougetinthefourschoolsoftibetanbuddhism, you are immediately concerned with these two activities of clearing away obstacles and developingwhateverisuseful.thisactivityisseenastakingmanylifetimes.howeverthesocalled highertantras teachhowitcanbeachievedinonelifetime. Tantra:transformsordinaryintoperfect Theword tantra meanscontinuityandreferstothecontinuityofthestatesoflimitation called samsara, and the states of non limitation called nirvana. The practice is to transformallthatwetaketobesamsara theworldofseparateobjects,theworldoftruly existing phenomena into the mandala of the deity. A mandala simply means a situation that has no limit. Essentially mandala means that whatever aspect of existence you get fixatedonandinvestasbeingveryimportantisnotsealedinsideaninternaldefinition,but isactuallyafractalofalltheotherthingsthatarearising Inthatwaywecometoseethateachthing,whichinourordinaryperceptionwetaketobe somethingverystrongandveryreal,isactuallyinseparablefromtheopenfieldofactuality. In particular, our sense of I, me myself which seems to differentiate us from all other people, is revealed as merely the play of empty signifiers which establish nothing. In the

13 P a g e 10 pathoftantrawecometorealisethisthroughatransformationofourordinaryidentityinto thesymbolicrealmofthedeity, Forexample,wecouldvisualisetheyoginiMachigLabdronintheclearblueskyinfrontof us,herbodytranslucentsothatyoucanseethroughit.sheistherebutsheisanappearance withoutsubstance.thenbydoingthemeditationpracticewelinkourenergywithhersand outofherbodyraysoflightcomeanddissolveintoourbodyfillingourbodywithlight.so nowherbodyismadeoflightandourbodyismadeoflight.herbodynowcomestothetop ofourheadanddissolvesintoaballoflightandthatballoflightcomesdownintoourheart. Ourbody,whichislight,dissolvesintothatballsothereisonlyoneballoflight.That sallwe arepayingattentionto,andthisballoflightgetssmallerandsmallerandsmalleruntilitis just one little dot, one point. The point now dissolves into emptiness and we rest in that openstate.thengraduallythoughts,feelings,sensationsariseandallofthesearetheforms ofemptiness,theformsofthedeity. Gradually we become more aware of the world around us, tables, chairs, flowers, people andsoon.everythingwesee,weseeasbeinginseparablefromthebodyofthedeity.for exampleweseeflowers.actuallywedon tseetheflowersbecause flower isthenamewe givetothis.whatweactuallyseeissomethingquitestrange,quiteunbelievable thereisa littleballofsomethingandgraduallyitopensupandwow!aflower.butassoonaswesay It saflower,lifebecomeseasy,wefeelsafe.nowwe know whatitis,butifwejustlookat it,it sjustaprettyshapeandcolour. Themorewedothepracticethemoreeverythingsurprisesus.Insteadofbeingasleepinthe dreamoflanguage,thefreshvitalityofeachmomentcanberevealedtous. Inordertoenterintothepathoftantrayouhavetogetanynecessaryinitiationsandthen dothepracticeeveryday,dothevisualisations,recitethemantras.thengraduallyyouwill getsomeexperience.thedangerwiththismethodisthatbecauseittakesyoualongtimeto do,andyouknowthatifyoudon tmaketheeffortyoudon tgettheresult,itbecomeseasy todrawtheconclusionthat Iammakingithappen. ImightthinkthatIamimaginingthismandala,inthewayachildimaginesBatmanorsome otherhero.thatistosay,thisactivitycomesoutofme.thatbeliefmaintainsthecentrality oftheego theveryoppositeoftheintentionofthepractice.wehavetoimaginethatwe are entering the timeless world of the symbolic, of the sambhogakaya, in which all the aspects of the practice are unfolding by themselves. By merging with the deity we merge withourowntruenature. Dzogchen:kadagandlhundrup From the point of view of dzogchen, from the very beginning everything has been very perfectandthestateofbuddhahoodispresentinallbeings.therearetwobasicprinciples indzogchen. The first is kadag, a Tibetan word, meaning primordially pure. It means that your own mind,yourownstate,ispurefromtheverybeginning.ithasneverbeenlimited,ordefiled orcoveredupbyanythingelse.whateverbadthingsyoumayhavedoneinthislife,noneof thishasconditionedorlimitedyourownnature. The purity of the mind is indestructible. This is a fundamental principle. Without this you cannothaveanyconfidence.whenyouwearnice whiteclothestheylookveryattractive, especially if the sun is shining but you do have to be more careful when you drink your coffee because white cloth shows up every possible stain. Such relative purity is always a

14 P a g e 11 cause of anxiety but the purity described in dzogchen can never be stained or destroyed sinceitsnatureisempty.iwilltalkaboutthenatureofemptinessalittlelater. The second principle of dzogchen is called lhundrup in Tibetan: lhun means a heap or a pile,anddrupmeans tobemade or beaccomplished.thereforelhundrubmeans made all at once, not bit my bit. This refers to the aspect of manifestation. Whatever we experienceisimmediatelyhere,wedon tneedtoconstructit.themoreweunderstandthe opennessandthepurityofthemind,themoreweseethattheimmediacy,thespontaneity ofmanifestation,isinseparablefromthatpurity. Thismightsoundalittlebitabstractbutitisexactlyourexperienceaswearesittinghere. Thatistosaywhateverthoughts,feelings,perceptionsarise,theyhaveanimmediacy.They show themselves. Who is this shown to? Me. Who is this one I call me? It s a noetic capacityorapossibilityofbeingaware.thatistosayourabilitytoregisterexperienceisnot donebysomething;it snottheproductofafunction,butitisarevelation.forexampleifi putmyhandinfrontofamirror,thereflectionofmyhandisimmediatelyinthemirror. Becausethemirrorhasnothinginsideit,becauseithasnofixedcontent,itcanimmediately show what is there. Because our mind is naturally empty, it also has no fixed content and thereforeitimmediatelyrevealswhateverisarising. Yesterday,whenIcameherewithMarta,welookedalittleattheroomtoseehowwecould fit the seating, Marta had already been here some days before and moved some of the chairs.thatistosay,theroomwasalreadyoccupiedorfilledinaparticularway,andwehad toworkwithwhatwashereintheroom.thisisthewayourordinaryconsciousnessworks. Wealreadyhavefurnitureinourheadandwhenyoucomeintoanewsituationyoucanonly manage these new experiences according to the amount of remaining space you have. A verynormalwaywehaveofdealingwiththisproblemistosaythisnewexperienceisvery likethisoldexperience. By comparing and contrasting events, two functions arise. The first is that I have a kind of confidence that I know how to make sense of the world, and the second is that I am protectedagainsttheshockingfreshnessofeachnewexperience.becauseifyoureallylook attheflowerstheyareveryverystrange,evenifyoulookatjustaplasticcup,it svery,very strange. When I was a child things like this didn t exist. Suddenly someone developed the capacitytomakethis,somethingthatissocheapyoujustthrowitaway.wheniwasachild you always had to clean everything and keep it very safe. Maybe we could say that this plastic cup is part of the Buddha s teaching because this is a something that is already nothing, but this kind of nothing is simply capitalist consumerist nothing! It s very strange, verystrangeandwetendnottoseethestrangeness. In that way we tend to exchange the unsettling immediacy of freshness for the power of knowing.ifyou rewithchildren especiallyboysaboutseven,eightornine it ssadtosee howtheybecomeveryobsessedwithknowingthings.itstartswithknowingthenamesofall the different kinds of dinosaurs, then the names of all the motorcars, and then all the football teams and so on. If you don t know all these things people say you are stupid. Of coursefromadevelopmentalpointofviewthisistheaccumulationofknowledge,butitis an empty kind of knowledge, knowledge as a defence against the anxiety of not knowing who you are. Now that we have the internet and knowledge banks like Wikipedia the problemismuchworse.thisisbecausetherearealotofthingsintheworldthatyoucan know;youcanspendhoursandhoursonacomputergettingmoreandmoreinformation, andallthetimeyouarelookingattheinformationyouarenotlookingatyourself.sothe existentialquestionof WhoamI? becomeshiddenwithinthesearchforinformationabout otherthings.

15 P a g e 12 Emptinessislinkedwiththequestionoftime OK, now I am going to say a little bit about emptiness and then start to look at different kinds of meditation in relation to understanding our own nature and relaxing our body speechandmind.thenwewillhaveplentyoftimeforquestionsyoumayhaveespecially abouthowtoapplythisinyourordinarylife. Emptiness is very strongly linked to the question of time. Generally speaking we move in whatiscalledthethreetimes,thepast,thepresentandthefuture.whenwetalkaboutthe present,weusuallymean HereIaminthisroomwithyou.IknowIamhereandit salready 11o clockbecausewehavealreadyhadbreakfastandlunchisstilltocome.thatistosay whatwecangenerallyconsidertobethepresentissomethingwhichstandsatacrossroads betweenthepastandthefuture.it snottheradicalpresentofbeingfullyawaketowhatis here,withagreatfreshness,ratherit sthepointwherethepastturnsintothefuture. The past moves into the future on the basis of there being the continuity of truly existing entities.so,hereismywatch,mywatchshowsthetimebecauseitcontinuesintime.ifit turnedintoanappleitwouldnotbeveryuseful.wheniputitonmyarminthemorningi putonawatch.ifaftertwohourswhenilookedatmywrist,itwasafriedeggiwouldbe verysurprised!thatistosayiexpectsomethingtoremainsomething. It sthesamewatchihadyesterday,whichmakessense.butfromabuddhistpointofview thisisnotcorrect,becausewhenilookatthisandisay It sawatch,then watch isitselfan interpretation.it sanabstractconceptandwhatihaveinmyhandseemstobeanexample of that abstract concept. For example, maybe you re out shopping and you stop for a momentoutsideajeweller sshop,you'llseetheyhaveahundreddifferentkindsofwatches. All of these are watches but they don t all look the same. So the watch ness of the watch existsoutsidetheparticularityofthiswatch.whenyouweresmallyouhadtolearntotell thetime.there sabighandandasmallhand.thebighandshowstheminutesandthesmall handshowsthehours.youhavetolookagainandagainandeventuallyyougetabletotell thetime. Now,whenyouareachilditispresentedtoyouthateveryoneknowshowtotellthetime andifyouwanttobeanormalpersonyoualsohavetolearntotellthetime.youaregiven tounderstandthattimeisinthewatchandifyouknowhowtoreadthewatchyouwillget thetime!thewatchhoweverdoesn ttellyouanything.infactyoutellthewatchthatitis thewatchthatistellingyouthetime.thatiswhatishappening.youaredeceivingyourself inthenameofgivingknowledge. You develop a mental capacity which you project into this movement of the watch hands andwiththatyoumovewithintheculturalconstructionoftheframeoftime.thesenseof timeisdifferentinthisnunnerywherewearenowforclocktimeisnotthemostimportant time. The most important time is the time of the bell which brings you to the different churchservicesthroughtheday.thisgoesrightbacktothe6thcenturywhenthereligious day was divided up into its six periods of devotion. It was the same in Tibet; the day was dividedintosixperiods.itstartswiththemiddleofthenight,andthencockcrowandsoon. So,watchtimeisaculturalconstruct,andwhenyouliveinsidethatconstructitappearsto bejusthowitis.itsartificialnature,itsconditionednature,ishiddenbythefactthatweall takeitforgrantedthatitistwominutespasteleven.inbuddhismwhentheytalkoftheroot ofsufferingbeingattachment,thisoperatesondifferentlevels.

16 P a g e 13 OntheouterlevelIamattachedtothiswatch;thisismywatch,Ihavehaditforsomeyears andsoihavegrownaccustomedtothisparticularwatch,butifilosethiswatchicanalways buyanotherwatch.forawhilei llstillremember Oh,howmuchnicermyoldwatchwas! buttheni llforgetaboutitandbecomeusedtothenewwatchandthenitwilljustbecome mywatch. Muchmoredangerousisattachmenttotheideaofwatch nessofthewatch.sothatevery timeiseesomethinglikethisithink Ohit sawatch.betweenthearisingoftheobjectand the arising of the thought in my mind there is no gap, which means that instead of being able to really look and see what this is, I look at it through the lens or the filter of my knowledgeorassumptionofwhatitis.inthewesterntraditionofphenomenologymerleau Ponty, Husserl and others struggle with, as they say, the epoché, the bracketing off, of assumptions that we put onto the object. They attempted to put the assumption into parenthesisbutthoughtscomesoquicklyandaresoplausiblethatitisverydifficultnotto betakenin,inthemomenttheyarise.andanalysingandusingthethoughtpatternsafter theyhaveoccurreddoesnottakeusveryfar. For example when I was growing up and was around eighteen or nineteen it was still possibleasamantosaythatwomenarelikethisorlikethat;butinmythirtiesicameback from India and the new feminism had occurred during my absence and so now it felt very dangerousforanymantovoiceanyassumptionabouthowwomenwere.womensaidifyou wanttoknowwhoiam,youcaniaskme.iwillshowyou,butyoucan tknowmebeforeyou seeme. Thisisveryimportant,becauseitisabeginningofakindoffreedom.Solongasmencan define women according to an old patriarchal structure, that knowledge of the woman precedesherownindividualexistence.so,youcouldsaythatbuddhismisapplyingasimilar levelofconsciousness raising,butisapplyingittoeverythingintheuniverse. Thatistosay,ifyouwanttoknowwhatthingsare,youhavetolook.Youcan tjustassume, especially since your assumptions are full of old limited patterns. Although it seems very cleartoyouhowtoseethings,thisisthepseudo clarity,thefalseclarity,oftheintensityof yourownopinions!therefore,insteadoftellingtheworldwhatitis,weneedtoreceivethe worldandlettheworldtelluswhatitis. Thisiswhy,asIwassayingyesterdayevening,thereisaparadoxinthemainfunctionofthe practice, which is not to do anything at all. The less you do, the more you will receive, becausethereissomuch intermsofthecoloursofthetilesoftheroof,theshadeofthe trees,thewaydifferentpeoplewalkandtalk thereissomuchrichnessintheworldandit willshowitselfifwejustletitbeabsorbedintous. Theungraspabilityofself The buddhist notion of emptiness can be made very, very complicated, but it s not complicated.itmeansessentiallytheabsenceofinherentself nature.whichmeansthereis noessenceinsidetheobjectforyoutograsp,anditsungraspabilitymeansthatthemoveof theegotogainpowerovertheworldbyknowledgeisexposedassomethingridiculous. Inthesameway,inthefirstwaveoffeminisminBritain,fromthe1890 stoabout1910,the suffragetteshadtheexplicitaimofgettingthevoteforwomen.theninthesecondwavein the 1960 s and 1970 s women were saying that women can define themselves, that they werenotapuppetofthemalegazeorthemaledefinition.nowadayswehavewhatsome peoplerefertoasthe thirdwavefeminism,wherewomendomany,manydifferentthings. Last year was an anniversary for many of the founding writers of second wave feminism

17 P a g e 14 anditwasveryinterestingbecausemanyofthesewomenhadbeenverypassionateabout establishing rights for women and there had been a sense of solidarity, of women being sisters, and of going in the same direction. But when I went to conferences about this, I heardthesewomensaying Nowitismuchmoredifficult.Theseyoungwomennowadaysdo things that we would never, never do. They think it s a sign of freedom to wear a skirt so short that it shows their knickers. The older feminists think How can this be? How can it havecometothis? andtheyoungeronesrespond, IfIwanttolooklikeatart,Iwilllooklike atart.thatispartofmyfreedom. That s very, very interesting, because the more that you have freedom, the less you can grasp anything, what can you say? As long as you have an enemy and you re fighting for something,youcandefineyourself. Iamagainstthis;thismustchange. Butonceyouhave somedegreeoffreedom,lifecangoinallsortsofdirections.ifyoutakethatchangeinthe feminist movements as a metaphor, you can see that something similar happens with our relationwithourownmind.whenyoustopstrugglingtogainenlightenmentbyovercoming your obstacles, you find yourself participating in a realm of infinite possibilities. Of course this brings a lot of freedom but also its own particular difficulty, because we still have the question How shall I live? If you follow the theravada path, and think, Inside me I have many impulses and if I indulge these impulses I will get into trouble. Therefore maybe I shouldbecomeamonkoranunandtheniwillhavemanyrulestofollowandtheseruleswill showmewhattoavoidandwhattodo. thenyoucanalwayschecktherulebookonhowto proceed. Inmahayanabuddhismwhatisdevelopedinsteadistheintention, Iwanttohelpallsentient beings. So this gives a sense if direction. That is to say that in any situation I try to think whatwouldbebeneficialfortheother.soyouhavesomethingtoreferto,whichisthevow, thebodhisattvavoworintention. Ifyoupracticeaccordingtotantrayouhavethecommitmenttoseethewholeworldasthe mandalaofthedeityandtoseeeveryoneyoumeetasagodoragoddess.so,again,you alwaysknowwhattodo. Butindzogchenthereisnorule. WhatshouldIdo? Nobodycantellyou;youhavetobean adultandthat snotsoeasy.lifeiseasierifyouareachild.somehowyoucanfindamamma orapapaandtheywilltellyouwhattodo.sometimesmammaandpapaaremad.inthe last century we had many mad mammas and papas, Stalin, Hitler and Franco and so on somebodywhoalwaysknowswhatisright.thisisabigproblem. The view of dzogchen indicates that you have to be fully present so that you are as connected as possible to everything that is there in the undivided uninterrupted phenomenological field, which includes yourself. From the state of relaxation your spontaneousmovementwillbeconnectedwiththesituation.thenactivityiseffortlessand intrinsically ethical. Dzogchen texts describe this as the path of non meditation, for whetherwearesittingorwhetherwearemovingaroundandbeingwithotherpeople,we don thaveanyimportedobjectofmeditation. The object of meditation is always simply that which is arising. Sometimes it feels inside, sometimes it feels outside. Without editing, without trying to improve or change, without fallingintoafusionwiththeobjectorseeminglyprotectingyourselfbytryingtomaintaina distance,staycompletelyclosetowhateverisarising,lettingitcomeandlettingitgo.thisis illustratedbythetraditionalimageofthemirror.thereflectionseemstobeinthemirror, andyetwhenthemirrormoves,thatreflectionvanishes;itdoesn tleaveatrace.themore youopenandyouexperiencetheindestructibleemptinessofyourmind,themoreyoulose thefearthatexperienceisgoingtomarkorconditionyouropenness.yourmindcanremain