Taken from Kenneth Folk Dharma forum, quotations from Adam West.
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Hey Michael!
Yeah, to realize Rigpa, is to 'recognize' the nature of mind, of one's own mind. It is an expereince insofar as it is an instance of conscious recognition here and now; you might say it is the same as recognizing the Tao as one's very own nature, Being and self. In so doing, one recgnizes that this has always been the case, and nothing in fact has changed. Before this recognition we were ignorant of the nature of things, now, in this moment, we are not. We are omniscient insofar as we know the true nature of things as they are here and now and have always been; not in terms of we know all concepts and ideas. In this recognition we directly apprehend that there is no-self, 'I' or ego as any kind of permaent substrate or atman. And yet, existence, experience and beingness has alwasy been the case, yet there is no one that experiences, nor any thing that is experienced; just experience or be-ing itself.
Often, due to mental habits, we cannot maintain this recognition, and slip back into ignorance where we no longer have real-time recogniztion or contact with the Tao; it becomes but a memory.
In kind regards,
Adam.
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Hey Gozen!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experience. Yeah, correlation, definitely not causation. ;-P I think we can say Rigpa or the inherent wakefulness of reality - and to realize it or 'know' it here and now, rather than being distracted from what is obvious here and now in ordinary awareness - is foundational and causeless - its already here and so can't be caused; it is by virtue of its existence of beingness that we can communicate and be aware of this text before our eyes. However, just because it is always present does not mean we ‘know’ it or notice its presence and the true nature of our mind. To simply be in a relaxed, thought free state is not the same as to ‘know’ or recognize Rigpa. Rigpa seems to be more than just our natural state, which is always causelessly present, Rigpa is more than a name, it is also a verb, it is an ‘act of knowing or recognition’ of the nature of mind here and now - not of ego - it is to ‘know’ and recognize this natural state in real time. Most of us do not, even when we are relaxed and thought free, as we can see when watching TV, or gently gazing at a camp fire. Gazing at a fire in particular or wall-gazing or sky-gazing are probably the best conditions to notice rigpa though, aside from direct pointing out from an adept.
The problem seems to be that we are distracted from this wakefulness or our inherent nature by dualistic thought or dualistic consciousness - Rigpa or our natural state is simply present, but unnoticed, and more accurately stated, ‘obscured’ by dualistic consciousness, which may be as simple as the presence of thought. Point being, while dualistic consciousness is active, we can observe that the pranas are active in pingala and ida. When dualistic thought and consciousness is inactive, we can observe the pranas have entered into the central channel, and thus, there is no longer any obscuration of our inherent nature - Rigpa is unvailed.
Some tantric practices work on bringing the pranas into the central channel, thus, revealing the clear light of the nature of mind - Rigpa. Other practices work on directly cutting-through dualistic consciousness like sky-gazing or pointing out instructions etc., and one may instantly notice wakefullness as it is and always was here and now. In so doing, it seems there is a process where the pranas enter the central channel, removing obsurations. So Rigpa is always present regardless of our condition of mind, yet it is obscured and goes unnoticed. Further, dualistic consciousness seems directly dependent upon the whether or not the pranas are in our out of the central channel – which does indeed seem to have a symmetrical causal relationship.
In kind regards,
Adam.
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When we are thinking, awareness is aware of thinking; when we are not thinking, awareness is aware of not thinking. When there is distraction, there is being lost in distraction, and yet, we are conscious of being absorbed in that, if nothing else. What is it that is aware at all times during this awareness? Wakefulness. It is always present regardless of our mind state. However, it is a matter of recognition, is it not?
What is it that obscures this basic sentient ground of reality; obsures our own 'clear-seeing' of the nature of things? Distraction, right? Because we already are it, but fail to notice it, right? This is where I think Kenneth has done a great job in pointing to the simpleness of not thinking, and what is left is the ground itself. It is an effective separation practice - a Rushan. By practicing this, we are setting up conditions for the noticing of what is here and now, or put another way, cutting through the distraction.
I think for most people, this ground is not immediately recognized in the thought free state. I have been practicing the thought free state for most of the morning and day, and it is clear that in so doing, the pranas move into the central channel and my mind becomes progressively naked in luminous clarity of wakefulness - the sense of subjectivity disolves, and impersonal lucidity presents from the background the to the foreground. it is like a presence of pristine freshness of wakefulness increasingly becomes the dominant foreground of clarity with an accompanying energetic presence of awareness.
I then notice that there is a deep fundamental stillness that is now recognized and known, and now as I am writing and thinking, I am finding that the stillness persists, and that it always was there, just unnoticed. It is like 'I' as formless presence-stillness just am, an infinitely deep stillness without ground or end, and thinking is like waves of ripples on the surfaces of my mind which I kind of see as a heads-up digital display - not literarily of course - and so I as stillness witness the thinking, and yet am untouched by it. This is what I think is meant by recognizing Rigpa through the 24 hour cycle, regardless of the conditions of mind - thoughts, dreams, and dreamless sleep.
Gozen, I completely agree that 'state' is problematic. I just use it because the Tibetans do - natural state, natural condition, nature of mind - to denote, that which is completely natural to us, and thus not contrived or caused by an act of 'me', ego or a spiritual practice - something that already is. It is like when dust settles in the air or sediment in the water, what you have left is the natural pristine clarity of the natural, 'impersonal' condition of the water or air - this groundless, formless sentient fresh luminosity.
Personally, I would be careful about using Rigpa as the sate that contains all others, even though I think it fair to say it does, like our mind contains our thoughts; I would say it is that which apprehends all states, conditions, thoughts, sensations and displays. That way it is not considered to be a dimension or to be something in and of itself. Is seeing a thing, or hearing a thing? Or does seeing just apprehend the thing. Conventionally, it is a process of cause and effect. What if there was no person there to see, and no thing that was seen, and yet, there still was just hearing, just seeing, just experience, being, existence? Ultimately, there is no proces, thing or person that sees, is there? Just experience, but there is no one home who experiences. ;-P To recognize that is to recognize the nature of things, is it not?
In kind regards,
Adam.
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So that is a great starting point. To realize the unborn is to realize 'cognizant emptiness' itself as your true nature in real time, or the nature of reality. This is the perceiving-knowingness quality of reality, thus, where there is awareness or sentience, there it is, whether recognized for what it is or not. Thus, it is here and now perceiving and knowing this text on your computer, and it is here and now perceiving and reconizing these thoughts in your mind - that is it, that is our true nature - that is vipassana - "clearly seeing the nature of reality". Since it is that which perceives and recognizes all phenomena, it is that which is present in all phenomena, and also that which is present in the absence of all phenomena. Adittionally, all phenomena are seen to be the energetic display of this one basic reality, as Alex says, waves on the ocean; so ontologically, there is no separation or distinction between phenomena and reality - there is but one reality and it is non-dual, and all is empty luminosity.
This is what Jake, as I understand it, went to great length to point out also. It has been discussed many times before.
Once that recognition is made, all is seen from that view, and thus all is seen as fundamental to and intrinsic to that nature - hence, non-dual.
Since all is seen as arising and passing away from and within this nature, which itself does not arise nor pass away - always present whether recognized or not - then it follows all phenomena are recognized as the display of empty luminosity i.e. non-dual - nothing is excluded from reality as it is - non-dual, luminous and empty. It would seem to follow that once this recognition has been stabilized, since nothing is excluded from it, there is no necessary condition that must exist in order for it to persist - that is, phenomena may come and go, and yet recognition of the true nature of that phenomena and reality remains. Right?
In kind regards,
Adam.
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Hey Alex!
Do you think that the final and exhaustive realization and view is a cosmic suicide? Yes, insofar as there is no 'I', but no, insofar as there never was one, thus, nothing is lost. We can see this when we have these occasional exhaustive, no trace of a self, realizations of just seeing, just hearing, just sitting etc.; we realize the nature of things, and yet 'things' continue on as they always were and are - there is no 'I', and yet there is still 'being' and existence, it is just that there is no one that is being or that exists. You've been there, as have I, and others; I wouldn't call that suicide, except by a very narrow definition. And even in this realization, there still is awareness of existence or being, just that there is no one there that is aware; otherwise there could be no consciousness of the realization itself. Without awareness there could be no consciousness of the no-self, just seeing realization, could there? And in this realization, form continues - there is still cutting wood and carrying water - appearance and display - so nothing has changed, and yet everything has. In this way we can see lucidity and impermance are fundamental to reality. I would strongly argue they are not an aggregate nor contingent phenomena.
We may say that in some mysterious way, experience is 'all' there is, and yet there is no-thing that is experienced, nor anyone who experiences - that is the nature of reality - mind-only; and yet there is no mind either.
In kind regards,
Adam.
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If people find the term Rigpa unclear, then change it to Buddha Nature or one's Original Face, or one's true nature; all Buddhist terms that point to that which has no name, so it does not matter what we call it. We are just attempting to point to that which is fundamental to reality - that which is unborn; unchanging; is not a thing or ontological essence; is empty; is that which is pure perceiving and knowingness, but which is not a thing, person or entity - just perceivingness-knowingness, without a knower or a separate object that is known; it is presence-awareness; it is cognizant-emptiness; it is sentience, without a being who is sentient; it is *reality* itself at its most fundamental, and yet all phenomena are of it, arise from it and return to it, and yet never were separate from it; and are its energetic display - it is that which is *always* present, but which is *unrecognized* by the unenlightened, and is this very same perceivingness-knowingness that sees this text before you - that cognizant-emptiness *is* your true nature, is *you* here and now. This *is* the 'always-already' of the direct path.
Because it is that which is fundamental to you and is always present at all times, and is the very basis of all reality in every phenomenal presentation, it is by definition, present and recognizable during the presentation and display of all phenomena at all times i.e. thoughts, aversive emotive states, no-thought, sex, killing, and all aspects of ordinary life.
I hope it is clear by now, that special states come and go i.e. jhana, no-thought, high samadhi etc., that which is fundamental to us, Buddha Nature or Rigpa, or the unborn, is always present, and it is *not* an object of meditation - not a state or condition that we perceive - rather it IS the source of all perception-knowing-ness that experiences-knows-perceives-sees all passing states and phenomena; and its recognition may be stabilized and permanently realized as the very definition of Buddha-hood. In this recognition, there is no self, witness or subjectivity, there is simply experience, without an 'experiencer' or an object of 'experience' - there is merely the direct apprehension of the dependently arising nature of phenomena as the energetic display of cognizant emptiness.
This recognition of Buddha Nature is not dependent upon conditions or states, and thus is untouched by them, and is present through *all* states including thinking and all else. This, I hope is clear, as per the logical basis of the model just outlined; the very same model outlined by the Buddha and his lineage holders as per its various traditions, as I understand them. To realize this Buddha nature as none other than reality itself, in its ordinary, everyday, here and now sense – inclusive of all phenomenal existence-display - is the ‘clear seeing’ of vipassana – enlightenment.
In kind regards,
Adam.
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Yep, I'm with you there Ken. I don't advocate a *perfect* recognition of Dharamakaya. As such idealistic thought, like perfect round circles and perfectly straight lines do no exist in realty, they are logical entities and exist only in our mind. In the same way that we are all normally distracted from being aware of ourselves through working, or thinking or drifting off in thought - I forget me, Adam, am distracted from this fact, then I recognize it again, that I am Adam, without effort, completely naturally, so is an enlightened person, I would propose, distracted from recognition of reality as it is, and then effortlessly returns to this recognition as their base-line, just as Adam is my base-line.
Recognition of me as Adam is my ongoing base-line state. Distraction continues, but I always come back to it. Enlightenment, I would propose is the same. Recognition of me as none other than *reality* itself in this completely ordinary sense here and now, and not as 'me' as a distinct, persistent, separate entity that experiences 'us and them'; rather, there is just reality, just seeing, just hearing, just doing the laundry, completely ordinary, yet wholly fresh and perfect - distinctions and self-reference are conceptually imposed as socially constructed conventions, and prevent us from recognizing *this* - reality as it is here and now. When distinctions are imputed to have a solid, real and necessary existence, that is when we suffer, and fall from grace. Such distinctions serve a functional purpose, but have no ontological necessity in and of themselves.
In this way we can see, to be enlightened is to live this as one's base-line; even in enlightenment this convention continues, it is a part of reality as it is - no artificial distinctions or 'this is reality and that is not reality' all is reality and reality is inclusive of distinction, it is just that distinctions are seen for what they are, I would propose. Distraction is ongoing as described above, as is distraction into identification with old ways of perceiving one's self and reality, due to habitual patters of thought and ways of relating to each other and the world. However, to be enlightened, as I see it, is for our basic self-identity as *reality* to be our base-line for most of the time; in which we effortlessly and naturally return from distraction to this enlightened base-line over and over again.
Adam is my base-line, it cannot be lost - just distraction for a greater or lessor amount of time. So too, is enlightenment as this very reality, our base-line. That is the model of enlightenment I am proposing, and suggesting other traditions are proposing also.
In kind regards,
Adam.
The following is from an
oral commentary on the Trekcho teaching "The Three Words that Hit the
Vital Point" given by Khenpo Sonam Tobgyal Rinpoche.
THE ROOT
TEXT
Homage to the guru.
The view is Longchen Rabjam (Infinite
Great Expanse)
The meditation is Khyentse Oser (light rays of
Knowledge and Love)
The action is Gyalwai Nyugu (Son of the
Victorious Ones)
For the one who practices in this way,
There is
no doubt about enlightenment in one lifetime.
But even if not, there
is still happiness - a la la.
The view, Longchen Rabjam, is as
follows:
To hit the vital point with the three lines,
First, let
your mind rest loosely.
Without projecting, without concentrating -
without thoughts.
While relaxed and remaining evenly in that state
Suddenly
exclaim a mind shattering PHAT!
Forceful, short and sharp - emaho!
Nothing
whatsoever - totally blank.
A blankness which is utterly open.
A
total openness which is indescribable.
Recognize this as the
Dharmakaya awareness.
TO RECOGNIZE YOUR NATURE; THAT IS THE FIRST
VITAL POINT.
After this, whether you are thinking or still,
Whether
you are angry, or attached, happy or sad,
At all time and on all
occasions
Acknowledge the recognized Dharmakaya (this is our basic
awareness)
And let the child luminosity unite with the already known
mother.
Rest in the state of inexpressible awareness.
Destroy
again and again stillness, bliss, clarity and thinking.
Let the
syllable of knowledge and means suddenly strike down.
No difference
between meditation and post meditation.
No division between sessions
and breaks.
Rest continuously in the undivided state.
However, as
long as you have not attained stability,
It is essential to give up
distractions.
Divide your meditation into sessions.
At all times
and in all situations
Maintain the single
continuity of Dharmakaya ( basic presence of awareness)
Resolve that
there is nothing other than this.
TO DECIDE ON ONE THING; THAT IS THE
SECOND VITAL POINT.
At this time, your likes and dislikes, joys and
sorrows
And all your passing thoughts without exception
Leave no
trace in the state of recognition.
By recognizing Dharmakaya (basic
awareness) in what is liberated,
As in the analogy of drawing on
water,
There is unceasing self-occurring self-liberation.
Whatever
occurs is fresh food for the empty awareness.
Whatever is thought is
an expression of the Dharmakaya king.
Traceless and naturally free -
a la la.
The way thoughts occur is the same as before,
But the
way they are freed is the most essential key point.
Without this,
meditation is but the path of confusion.
Possessing it is the
uncultivated state of Dharmakaya (awareness)
TO GAIN CONFIDENCE IN
LIBERATION; THAT IS THE THIRD VITAL POINT.
This view endowed with
three vital points
And the meditation of combined knowledge and
compassion,
Is aided by the general actions of the sons of the
victorious ones. Even if the victorious ones of the three times were to
confer together, They would have no oral instruction superior to this.
The
Dharmakaya treasure revealer of awareness-display
Discovered this as
a treasure from the expanse of knowledge.
It is unlike extracts of
earth and stone.
It is the testament of Garab Dorje.
It is the
heart of the three lineages.
It is entrusted with secrecy to heart
disciples.
It is the profound meaning and words from the heart.
It
is words from the heart, the essential meaning.
Do not let the
essential meaning fade away.
Do not let the instruction dissipate.
This
was the special teaching of Khepa Shri Gyalpo
Translation by Tulku
Thondrop and Tulku Pema Wangyal
Tregchöd and thödgal
Once
the state of non-dual contemplation has been arrived at, one has to
continue in it. This continuation has two levels of practice: tregchöd
and thödgal. These are main practices presented in the Menngagde series
(Oral Instruction Series) of the dzogchen teachings.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dzogchen#Tregch.C3.B6d_and_th.C3.B6dgal
The
following quotes are from the commentary on the above root text on the
precious inner secret instructions of Dzogchen Trekcho. Secret because
without first-hand realization, they make minimal sense.
"The
Second Word: Decide On One Thing (the Meditation)
In the last posting
we completed the presentation of the first of the Three Words, which is
the recognition within oneself of the innate wisdom that is the
fundamental nature of one's mind and the ground of all experience. The
second point is concerned with the manner in which one can bring this
recognition into one's experience, through maintaining it in
meditation."
"To begin with, if there has been no recognition of
the innate wisdom, then there is nothing to meditate upon. There is no
way to go further. That recognition must occur first. But once one
has recognized the innate wisdom, the next concern is the cultivation of
a meditation that is continuous and unbroken like the flow of a river, a
meditation that consists of simply allowing the mind to rest naturally
within that which has been recognized, and maintaining such a meditation
in all situations and at all times. If one does not waver from this
recognition, then it makes no difference what else is going on in one's
mind."
"Therefore, other than
resting within this recognition of the innate wisdom, there is no
fabrication, change or effort that one needs to make. There is nothing
else to do in meditation than simply to maintain that recognition.
There is no need to attempt to establish a state of stillness, or to
attempt to get rid of the movement of thought within the mind. If the
mind rests within the recognition of innate wisdom, then the mind is
manifesting as the nature of the Dharmakaya (our true nature), as the
nature of that innate wisdom itself."
"If the mind is active, if
there is the occurrence of thought within the mind, as long as this
recognition is not lost, then whatever thought arises is merely the
expression of that wisdom and is experienced as such, as the "magical
display" of awareness. Hence, when there is recognition, then it
becomes irrelevant whether there is stillness or occurrence in the mind.
So therefore, the next line in the root text says, "THEN IT MAKES NO
DIFFERENCE WHETHER THERE IS OCCURRENCE OF THOUGHT OR STILLNESS."
With
regard to the occurrence of thought within the mind, examples of such
thoughts are kleshas, such as aversion towards that which one perceives
as threatening, or attachment towards that which one perceives as
pleasant or as affording some kind of security. One would classify such
thoughts as pertaining to the Second Noble Truth, the truth of the
origin of suffering, since kleshas are the origin of suffering."
"Or there could be an
experience of some kind of affect that is not itself particularly a
klesha, such as delight or misery, happiness or depression, in which
case the thoughts pertain to the First Noble truth, the truth of
suffering. So, in the midst of recognition, whatever thought arises in
one's mind, whether it is suffering or something that would normally
cause suffering, if the recognition is not lost, then one sees the
suchness, or the nature of these thoughts. One sees that these thoughts
have no nature other than the innate wisdom itself."
"In that
sense, whatever occurs in the mind, without any exception, is merely the
uprising, or the expression of our own innate wisdom. The only issue
here is the recognition of this, or the absence of recognition. So
therefore, the next line in the root text says, "WHETHER YOU EXPERIENCE
AVERSION OR ATTACHMENT, WHETHER YOU ARE EXHILARATED OR DEPRESSED, MAKES
NO DIFFERENCE."
Since nothing other than resting in the recognition
of innate wisdom is an issue in this practice, the maintainance of the
recognition becomes the deciding factor. In other words, even though
you may have recognized the view, recognized the innate wisdom, if you
cannot maintain this recognition in meditation, then while the nature of
thoughts could never pass beyond being the uprising of that innate
wisdom, you will not recognize them as such because you are no longer
recognizing the innate wisdom."
"Therefore, when you are
distracted from this state of recognition, when you become lost in
ordinary delusion, bewilderment, or confusion, then thoughts become
independent. "Independent" here means unrecognized. At that point, it
appears to you as though thoughts have solidity, have independent
existence. And once you are without this recognition of thoughts as
being merely the uprising of innate wisdom, then thoughts can bind you
in Samsara and actually become causes of suffering."
"Thus, in
the absence of recognition, your mind and Dharma have temporarily
separated and are no longer keeping company. At that point, you are
really no different from anyone else, you have no advantage. If you
fall from the recognition back into ordinary confusion, then you
accumulate karma just like everyone else. At all times and in all
circumstances, a practitioner of Dzogchen must never depart from this
natural settling into recognition that we refer to as non-meditation.
So therefore, the next line in the root text says, "AT ALL TIMES AND IN
ALL SITUATIONS....."
"In Dzogchen, we do not
resort to separate remedies for separate mental afflictions, because the
only issue here is the presence of and absence of recognition. And if
there is recognition, then the mental afflictions are seen as being the
expression of the nature, and therefore do not themselves pose a
problem. Hence, this is called, the "application of one remedy which
liberates everything."
"This liberation is complete; there is
nothing that could possibly arise within your mind that from this point
of view would require any special treatment. In the maintenance of
the view that has been identified, in the continuing recognition of the
innate wisdom, everything is taken care of. So therefore, the next line
in the root text says, "CONTINUALLY RECOGNIZE THE INNATE WISDOM, THE
DHARMAKAYA."
"You will notice that there are two things that we
are talking about here:
the innate wisdom itself which is always
present and has always been present, and the recognition of the innate
wisdom which is not always present. This ever-present innate wisdom is
the true nature of the mind, and therefore the nature of whatever arises
within the mind: whatever thoughts and mental afflictions arise in the
mind are not OTHER in nature than the innate wisdom. They cannot pass
beyond that. If something is the nature of everything in a certain
sphere, then anything that occurs within that sphere must partake of
that nature. This innate wisdom, or naked awareness, that is the nature
of all thoughts, is called the "ground clear light," or "ground
Dharmakaya." It is also called the "mother clear light present as
ground." Another rendition of the Tibetan term translated here as
"clear light," is "luminosity" or "luminous clarity."
"As long as one does not
lose the recollection of the clear light, this recognition of one's
innate wisdom, other than resting in this recognition, there is no issue
with regard to meditation. No matter what arises in your mind, it is
an expression of that innate wisdom. No matter what mental affliction
or thought arises, there is no need whatsoever to attempt to alter or
control any of it. There is no need to attempt to get rid of anything
that arises or to add anything. As long as there is recognition,
nothing that arises is a problem in any way. Also, there is no problem
with anything not arising; there is nothing missing, and therefore,
there is nothing that needs to be added."
"This is an extremely
significant point, and it bears repeating; other than maintaining
recognition, there is no need to attempt to reject anything that arises
in the mind, and there is nothing that could possibly arise that has any
special status whatsoever, that deserves any special attention or is
considered in any way superior, or to be adopted as somehow special. So
therefore, the next line of the text says, "SIMPLY REST IN
INEXPRESSIBLE AWARENESS."
"So therefore, it is
extremely important to maintain an unimpeded post-meditative awareness.
In other words, while meditation has to come first, it is not enough,
it has to be expanded into post-meditation. Therefore, the text at this
point says, "AT ALL TIMES AND IN ALL SITUATIONS...."
"So one
needs to maintain an unobstructed awareness at all times and in all
situations. In the same way as in the meditation session, in
post-meditation there is nothing to be meditated upon. You do not have
to look for anything to be aware of and recognize other than innate
awareness itself. The essence of the even placement of this meditation
is not being separate from the view of the Dharmakaya, the recognition
of innate wisdom. All your actions, all of your experiences, all of
your thoughts, are naturally freed without fixation: literally, they
become unreckoned. Unreckoned here means that nothing unseats you,
nothing gets any special status that takes you away from awareness. In
that even, undistracted recognition, whatever happens is of itself
evened out or relaxed; nothing has to be done to your experience.
Within that recognition you are not attempting to get rid of anything,
or to add anything. You are not attempting to restrict your experience,
nor are you attempting to introduce something new to it."
"In the same way, if you
do not resolve that there is nothing to pursue beyond this unfabricated
and natural practice, if you still think there is something more still
to be gained from fabrication, then you become lost in a forest of
fabrication, attempting to contrive or create an enlightened state. You
will never become awakened until you give that up. Therefore, it is
very important to resolve the utter primacy of unfabricated awareness.
Hence, the next line of the text says, " RESOLVE THAT THERE IS NOTHING
BEYOND THIS."
"In other words, whatever arises is nothing other
than the display of this fundamental nature.
Because that is the
case, it is extremely important to recognize the innate wisdom in what
arises, the wisdom that is the basis of liberation. It is important
that you let the arising not sway you from this recognition, but rather
intensify it in such a situation. Therefore, in the root text it says,
"IN THAT SITUATION (MEANING AT THE TIME OF PRACTICE) WHEN ATTACHMENT OR
AVERSION, DELIGHT OR MISERY ARISE...."
"This need for recognition
is not limited only to the arising of strong afflictions such as strong
attachment or aversion. As long as you do not possess this essential
point of simultaneous arising and liberation in your meditation, as long
as you do not recognize that whatever arises in the mind is the
expression of awareness, all the under-currents of thought that arises
in your mind, all of the thoughts that are flowing unnoticed beneath
your meditative stability, will accumulate samsaric karmas."
"If you are resting in a
state of meditation, and you do not experience thoughts, but there is
still an undercurrent of thought that is flowing through but does not
particularly bother you, you are still accumulating karma, that thought,
those thoughts, are not being revealed and recognized. All thoughts,
whether coarse or very subtle, a mere undercurrent, have to be
recognized and liberated as they arise, through this essential point of
experiencing them as the expression of awareness, even if they do not
plainly distract you from that recognition of awareness. Therefore, the
root text says at this point, "ALL SUDDEN THOUGHTS, WITHOUT EXCEPTION,
MUST BE RECOGNIZED...."
The key point of recognition is that there is
a liberation simultaneous with the arising of the thought, which means
it leaves no trace. This is explained in the commentary as follows,
"Whatever thought arises, and especially the undercurrent of thought
that is constantly going on, that does not manifest into full
consciousness, that does not become loud enough to really disturb us,
has to be recognized and liberated."
"This undercurrent of
thought is like water that is flowing through high grass growing in a
field. The water may be flowing around the bottom of the grass but you
will not see it: if you go by the field, it will look like a dry field
of grass but actually it is full of water. Something similar is
happening in your mind all the time, and as long as that is not exposed
and liberated, the undercurrent still constitutes a vague kind of
confusion that adulterates the meditation."
"So that has to be
recognized, and recognition means that there has to be a liberation of
the thought as it arises. As long as you are not distracted from this
recognition, whatever arises in the mind is directly seen, even at the
moment of its arising, as nothing other than the display of innate
awareness. Therefore, even as it arises, thought is liberated.
Liberation upon arising means that thought leaves no trace. It does not
produce karma, it does not lead to any further thought, it does not
leave a trace in the mind."
"For this liberation to occur, there
has to be present what is called a "natural mindfulness." If you have
recognized the innate wisdom and are resting in that recognition, then
there is a natural mindfulness present in the mind that will reveal and
recognize the nature of whatever arises in the mind, including the
undercurrent. This is not a heavy handed, intentional mindfulness, as
though you were holding some kind of hook that you use to try to pull
thoughts up from the undercurrent into the field of easy recognition.
It is a mindfulness that is naturally present, based on your being
settled in the recognition of the nature of innate awareness."
"It
is necessary to recognize whatever thought arises and not just to
recognize its arising but also to recognize its nature. What will happen
then is that thoughts will be liberated upon arising; they will not
leave any trace. The analogy for this in the text is "LIKE A DESIGN
DRAWN ON WATER." Even as the design is being drawn, it already
vanishes; it does not persist, it does not in any way change the water,
or leave a trace in it. That is what needs to happen with all thoughts,
including the undercurrent. Therefore, the root text says at this
point, "WITHIN RECOGNITION NO TRACE IS LEFT."
"With regard to that
recognition of thought, to repeat, it means more than simply recognizing
the arising of a thought (or smell, or tastes, or sound, or sight, or
feeling, or sensation) it means the self-liberation of the thought.
Merely to recognize the presence or arising of a thought (or sound, or
sight or....etc) does not sever the production of karma by that thought;
however, the self-liberation of that thought does. Self-liberation
means that at the very moment at which the thought is recognized, one
sees the face of one's own awareness. Just as the arising of the
thought did not distract you from the recognition of the innate nature,
the recognition of the thought must also not distract you from the
recognition of the nature."
"Because there is a direct, totally
unfiltered recognition of awareness in the midst of the recognition of
the thought, you continue to recognize the innate wisdom that you have
been recognizing all along. You remain in that state, resting in the
state of recognition, and therefore, thought vanishes without a trace.
In this case, recognition means that neither the thought nor the
awareness of the thought distracts you from the recognition of awareness
itself. And that, the text says, is a very important point about the
liberation of thought.
‘To drive home this essential point, neither
the thought nor the recognition of the thought, and the recognition of
its nature, distracts you from recognition of the innate awareness, and
as a consequence, thought vanishes without a trace. The mere
recognition of it will not do that. Because of that, the text says at
this point, "RECOGNIZE THE DHARMAKAYA, WHICH IS THE SOURCE OF
LIBERATION."’
"Again, recognition of
thought here means recognizing the nature, not just recognizing the
presence of thought. This causes the thought to vanish like a design
drawn on water; as the thought is arising, it already vanishes. It is
experienced as having no duration and no aftereffect. Just as for a
design drawn on water there is the simultaneous appearance and
dissolution of the design, so with thought there is a simultaneous
occurrence of arising and liberation."
"Self-liberation means
that just as thought arises of itself, it liberates by itself. You do
not intentionally generate a thought, and you do not intentionally get
rid of it, it is self-arisen and self-liberated. Because you are not
distracted from the recognition of the innate awareness, the thought is
self-liberated as it arises. As long as you rest in the innate
awareness, this self-arising and self-liberating quality of thought is
unbroken and continuous. Because of the fact that the arising and
self-liberation are simultaneous, the text says at this point, "FOR
EXAMPLE, IT IS LIKE A DESIGN DRAWN ON WATER."
"From this it also
follows that you in no way attempt to prevent thoughts from arising.
Whatever for the thought takes, whether it is normally what you would
consider a good thought or an unpleasant thought, makes no difference.
Because you never waver from the recognition of the innate nature, which
includes the nature of thought, whatever thought arises is liberated by
being recognized as an expression of this nature. This must be held as
a very important part of meditation practice. So therefore, the text
at this point says, "THERE IS AN UNCEASING CONTINUITY OF SELF-ARISING
AND SELF-LIBERATION OF THOUGHT."
"When one uses thoughts
in this way to train in the recognition of the Dharmakaya, of innate
awareness, whatever thought arises becomes an opportunity to train in
the recognition of this awareness. When thoughts are self-liberated
like this, not only do they not pose a problem, they actually become an
opportunity for enhancement. When the arising of a thought is seen as
an arising of awareness, when thought is recognized as being of the
fundamental nature of that innate awareness, then the coarser and more
outrageous a thought is, the more clarity and sharpness of awareness it
actually brings up."
"Since there has been no separation of
awareness and occurrence in the mind, no matter how intense a thought
is, the recognizing and liberating awareness that occurs simultaneous
with it will be equally intense. Because of that, the root text says
next, "WHATEVER THOUGHT ARISES IN THE MIND IS FOOD FOR NAKED AWARENESS
AND EMPTINESS."
"This brings up a crucial point that
distinguishes Dzogchen meditation from other approaches. In most
approaches to meditation, one is told either that one has to get
thoughts to stop altogether, or at least one has to ameliorate their
content. Some thoughts are alright and other thoughts are not; one has
to try to clean them up a bit. But in Dzogchen, we view thoughts as a
source of great help in our meditation practice. Because as long as
there is sufficient stability of recognition, all that thoughts do is to
bring out further clarity of awareness. Even the most outrageous
thought, such as fierce anger or intense desire or pride, whatever
arises in the mind, is only fuel that will cause one's awareness to be
even clearer."
"Because one maintains
this impartiality in the recognition of the nature of thought, all
thoughts are liberated as they arise. Because of that, nothing that
arises in the mind is experienced as other than the expression of
Dharmakaya, of innate awareness. So therefore, the root text says,
"WHATEVER OCCURS IN THE MIND IS THE DISPLAY OF THE ROYAL DHARMAKAYA."
"When
thoughts are experienced in this way, then the conceptuality of mind,
which is nothing other than ignorance, and all of the various forms
which that ignorance can take, is purified into the expanse of wisdom
awareness of the Dharmakaya. In being recognized as never having a
nature other than that, thoughts do not leave traces, and thus do not
manifest true impurity; therefore, they are purified.
As long as this recognition is maintained, this purification is unceasing. It is not better at some times and worse at other times, or present at some times and absent at other times. As long as the fundamental recognition of innate awareness is maintained, whatever thought arises in the mind is in its essence empty and is experienced as the expression of that emptiness. So therefore, the root text says, "THOUGHTS ARE PURIFIED BY THEMSELVES AND LEAVE NO TRACE. HOW WONDERFUL!"
"The word for "becoming
accustomed to something" in Tibetan is etymologically closely related to
the word for meditation, and there is a saying in the Dzogchen
tradition, "There is nothing to meditate upon, but there is a process of
getting used to it." So when you become accustomed to this approach to
thought, then thought itself arises as meditation, and you finally heal
the split between stillness and occurrence in the mind."
"In
this practice, there is no preference with regard to whether the mind
has thoughts or does not have thoughts. Even when thoughts arise, they
in no way impede your stillness, the stillness of course being the
stillness of recognition. The arising of thoughts in no way harms your
meditation anymore. So therefore, the text says,
"THE WAY THOUGHTS
ARISE IS JUST AS BEFORE."
"When you are accustomed to this
practice, that does not mean that thoughts will not arise. In fact,
apart from their being recognized as the display of innate awareness,
the variety of thoughts that arise, for example, as delight or
displeasure, hope or fear, is exactly like the way thoughts arise for
anyone else, for an untrained person. The difference is explained in
the next line of the text: an ordinary person gets caught by thought,
clings to thought, reacts to thought with a heavy-handedness, a
solidification, that consists of trying to hold onto thoughts and states
of mind that are perceived as pleasant and as creating security, and
attempting to get rid of, or being frightened by, thoughts and state of
mind that are perceived as unpleasant or as threatening."
"Because of this
reaction to thought, the ordinary person accumulates karma and comes
under the power of his or her attachment and aversion. Of course, the
whole process of Samsara rests on that. In this practice, thoughts
naturally arise, and the variety of thoughts that arise is the same, but
since for the practitioner these thoughts are liberated simultaneously
with their arising, they do not accumulate karma. Thus, the difference
between the practitioner and the untrained person in not in the arising
or non-arising of thoughts, but in whether thoughts are fixated on or
liberated."
These quotes are from a very large text. There is a
lot more. If anyone wants the original text, message me. Oppologies
for the large number of quotes, however, I wanted to place a complete
teching on Trekcho in one place.
In kind regards,
Adam.
note: the text is available at http://atijoga.webpark.pl/t-trekch.zip