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#2240 - Wednesday, August 24, 2005 - Editor: Gloria Lee
"Not just in commerce
but in the world of ideas too our age is putting on a veritable
clearance sale. Everything can be had so dirt cheap that one
begins to wander whether in the end anyone will want to make a
bid."
Soren Kierkegaard (b.1813, d. 1855) posted to AlphaWorld
Have you all followed the story of the 'piano man'... Mystery man found wandering around in wet clothes.. didn't speak.. drew picture of piano... great mystery is solved he is mental patient from Bavaria... disappointing ending to the story according to the BBC report...
But, warns media commentator Vince Graff, don't blame the journalists. "They were only reporting what the health authority was saying and yes, they wanted it to be the truth, that he was a virtuoso pianist who had his memory erased like in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but they weren't flamming it up."
The story's grip on the imagination was because it tapped into the most central question of human existence - our identity, he says.
"What would it be like if we woke up one day and said: 'Who am I?'"
It wouldn't be that bad... you could read lots of books and join some non-dual groups...
Cheers,
Sam
posted to NDS
Some people resonate with
the music by composer Philip Glass (e.g. the composer of the
Kundun soundtrack).
Here is a toy and music
machine:
http://www.philipglass.com/html/pages/glass-engine.html
Also you can watch the
movie Kundun in streaming:
Part 1
http://cgi.omroep.nl/cgi-bin/streams?/tv/bos/kundun/bb.20031230-1.rm
Part 2
http://cgi.omroep.nl/cgi-bin/streams?/tv/bos/kundun/bb.20031230-2.rm
Emaho!
Ben.
posted by Ben Hassine to
MillionPaths and nondualnow
It has been
offered before
but maybe you missed out
on a chance to hear somethin'
that could very well stir your heart;
http://snipurl.com/h6vk
Sure does for me!
.:.
Gyan posted to
GuruRatings
(Editor's note: The metta chant is accompanied by wonderful
photographs.)
[The following was posted to Dzogchen Practice by Vaj. It is one of the clearest and most succinct (yes, not kidding) passages on Dzogchen ever, and will really reward a careful reading. -Gloria, who has been known to skip any long emails.]
Chapter 6: THE
VIEW OF DZOGCHEN
Taught by Lopon Tenzin Namdak,
Devon and Amsterdam, Spring 1991,
Compiled and edited by Vajranatha.
1. Dzogchen as the Highest Teaching
Within the Bonpo
tradition, there are nine successive ways (theg-pa rim dgu) to
enlightenment and Dzogchen is the highest of these. But it is not
enough to call Dzogchen the highest; we must know and understand
the reasons why it is the highest. If we understand the reasons
precisely, then no one will be able to destroy our devotion to
the Dzogchen teachings. The source of the Dzogchen teachings is
the Dharmakaya Samantabhadra or Kuntu Zangpo (kun tu bzang-po),
and Dzogchen has had an uninterrupted and continuous lineage from
the Dharmakaya down until the present time. For example, we can
find this lineage in the Zhang-zhung Nyan-gyud.
When we come to
Dzogchen, there are two methods of practicing the teachings: (1)
We do the preliminary practices, and then going to a master, we
are introduced to the Natural State (rig-pa ngo-sprod) by him,
and then we go on to practice in isolation in the wilderness for
years until we attain some realization. (2) But at Menri
monastery in Tibet we had an educational system where students
thoroughly studied Sutra, Tantra, and Dzogchen. However, this
also meant that there was little time for practice. It was mostly
a matter of intellectual study, and at the end of their course of
studies, having passed the oral examinations, they received a
Geshe degree.
For what reasons
is Dzogchen the highest view? In all of the nine successive ways
or vehicles we search for the Natural State (gnas-lugs). But this
depends on the capacity of the individual. Each of these nine
successive ways has a different view. In general, the method of
the Sutra is the path of renunciation (spong lam), the method of
the Tantra is the path of transformation (sgyur lam), and the
method of Dzogchen is the path of self-liberation (grol lam). So
we say that Dzogchen is the final or ultimate way.
Self-liberation (rang grol) is the definitive view of Thegchod
(khregs-chod).
The text we have
here is entitled the Theg-pa'i rim-pa mngon du bshad-pa'i mdo
rgyud, "The clear explanation of the Sutra and the
Tantra in the Nine Ways" (p. 393). This text is from the
collection of Central Treasures or U-Ter (dbu-gter), so-called
because they were found at Samye monastery and at other places in
Central Tibet. It deals with the view of Dzogchen, contrasting it
with the views found in Madhyamaka, Yogachara, and Tantra.
If we depend on
intellectual speculation alone, however, we shall be very far
away from the Dzogchen view. It is not a matter of thinking
"Maybe Dzogchen is like this or like that." That is
something artificial; it is not direct experience. What is
required at first is a direct introduction to the Natural State
(rig-pa ngo-sprod). This Natural State is the view of Thegchod.
The introduction is very simple: we just look back at ourselves.
Everyone of us has the possibility of realizing it for ourselves.
It is not very far, but it must be pointed out to us. So it is
not a matter of collecting different teachings. If so, it only
becomes more remote. No, it is a matter of direct personal
experience. The watcher and what is watched both dissolve at the
same time and we just leave them as they are. We just continue in
the Natural State; that is the view of Thegchod.
But
a direct introduction is necessary because, even though it is
near at hand, due to our obscurations, we do not recognize it. We
get this direct introduction from a master who has had his own
personal experience of the Natural State. He knows what it is and
can point it out to us. This makes for clarity and understanding
and dispels disturbances. The Dzogchen teachings were transmitted
from the Dharmakaya Samantabhadra down to the master Tapihritsa,
who, in the eighth century transmitted them to his disciple
Gyerpung Nangzher Lodpo (Gyer-spungs sNang-bzher lod-po) in the
country of Zhang-zhung and the latter wrote them down. These
teachings have been transmitted from then until the present day
in a continuous lineage. For this reason, in the tradition of the
Zhang-zhung Nyan-gyud, "the oral transmission (snyan-rgyud)
from the country of Zhang-zhung", Tapihritsa is the
principal figure in the Guru Yoga practice. From him as the
Nirmanakaya Guru, all blessings, all the powers of knowledge and
inspiration (byin-rlabs), come to us. He attained the
enlightenment of a Buddha through the practice of Dzogchen and
realized the Rainbow Body of Light ('ja'-lus-pa). Then at a later
time he appeared in the guise of a small child and bestowed the
Dzogchen precepts upon the master Gyerpungpa.
2. The Base
In the Dzogchen
teachings, the Base (gzhi) is the state of total primordial
purity (ka-dag chen-po). This state of primordial purity may, in
some respects, resemble unconsciousness, but it is not at all
unconsciousness as such because it is characterized by the
presence of Awareness (rig-pa). It is often compared to the sky,
but this is only an example, because the sky is not aware. But
just as the sky is not changed by the presence of the clouds in
it, so in Base there is no change or addition in response to
whatever we think or do. There is nothing new to be added to it,
nor is it in need of any correction or modification (ma bcos-pa).
It is naturally pure and never otherwise-- that is its quality.
The Natural State has never been defiled nor modified by the
events of Samsara. It is like the mirror which is in no way
changed or modified by whatever it reflects.
Nonetheless, in
this Base, which is the Natural State, manifestations
spontaneously appear, just as clouds appear in the sky or
reflections appear in the mirror. This is its quality of
spontaneous manifestation (lhun-grub), and these manifestations
represent the creative potentiality (rtsal) of the Natural State.
All things, all that we think and perceive as individual sentient
beings, are manifestations of the energy (rtsal) of the Natural
State. In the end they return again to the Natural State. There
is nothing in Samsara or Nirvana that goes beyond the Natural
State. It is the primordial Base (ye gzhi) of both Samsara and
Nirvana. Everything that appears exists as spontaneous
self-perfection (lhun-grub) and yet it is empty. The emptiness
side (stong-cha) of everything is called primordial purity
(ka-dag) and the clarity side (gsal-cha) is called spontaneous
perfection (lhun-grub). And although we differentiate between
these two aspects when speaking, in reality they are inseparable
(dbyer-med). So there is nothing special here. Everything is
present in the Base. The quality of the Natural State is the
inseparability of clarity and emptiness (gsal stong dbyer-med).
If this is not our view, than that view is not Dzogchen.
But when we are
actually practicing the Natural State, we do not analyze and
examine matters in this way intellectually. We leave everything
in the state of being just as it is (ji-bzhin-pa). If we think or
examine or judge, we disturb and loose our contemplation; we fall
out of the Natural State and enter into the workings of the mind.
In the Natural State, everything is fine just as it is; we do not
have to think about it or evaluate it.
In Dzogchen, we
speak of three series of teachings: the Semde or Mind Series, the
Longde or the Space Series, and the Mangagde or Secret
Instruction Series. The Longde emphasizes the emptiness side
(stong-cha), whereas the Semde emphasizes the clarity or
awareness side (gsal-cha, rig-cha). The Mangagde or Upadesha
emphasizes the inseparability (dbyer-med) of these two sides. If
we go along only with Shunyata on the emptiness side, that is not
Dzogchen. Semde and Longde are mainly just names referring to a
matter of emphasis. The ultimate point in both is Yermed
(dbyer-med) or inseparability; otherwise they would not be
Dzogchen. Their difference is only a matter of how they bring the
practitioner to the understanding of Yermed. The Dzogchen
Upadesha begins immediately with Yermed. It assumes that we
already understand Yermed. at least to some degree. It is Yermed
that is most important, and without it, there is no basis for
Dzogchen.
3. Commitment
If this is all
clear to the practitioner, then there is a commitment
(dam-tshig). Although there are no vows and rules to be found in
Dzogchen as there are found in Sutra and Tantra, nevertheless,
there is a commitment to the view of Dzogchen, if we would be
practitioners of Dzogchen. This Damtsik or commitment is four
fold:
1. singularity (gcig-po),
2. spontaneous perfection (lhun-grub),
3. via negativa (med-pa), and
4. abiding naturally in purity (rang-bzhin gnas dag).
The Tibetan word gcig-po
means "single, singular, unique, singularity,
uniqueness". The Dzogchen view is singular and unique
because we do not fall on to the one side or on to the other, but
remain always with Yermed. In the view of Dzogchen, all
appearances are spontaneously perfected (lhun-grub). The word med-pa
means negation: "it is not". But in the context here,
we are not thinking that something does not exist. The Dzogchen
Semde text entitled the Nam-mkha' 'phrul mdzod clearly
explains this negative way of speaking: no refuge, no compassion,
and so on. This via negativa has reference only to the
Natural State. It means that in the Natural State, there is
nothing but the Natural State. On the side of manifestation,
everything exists, including all practices and virtues, but on
the side of the Natural State, nothing exists independently
because all things, including refuge, compassion, the ten
Paramitas, and so on, are already there, present in their full
potentiality, and so there is nothing to realize. Everything is
already there. If we grasp at anything, then that is not
Dzogchen; we have gone beyond the Dzogchen view and fallen into a
lesser view. And so we speak in a negative way (med-pa). Abiding
naturally in purity means we continue in Yermed.
4. The Dzogchen View
If we grasp at
something or try to do something, we loose the Natural State and
deviate from the view of Dzogchen. To leave everything just as it
is without trying to correct or modify anything is the view of
Dzogchen. The Natural State has no partiality or divisions. In
it, there is nothing to affirm or negate. This is what it means
to be without accepting or rejecting anything (spang blang
med-pa). But if we think, "I must be in a state of
Yermed", then this is grasping at a concept and it
represents a wrong view. Thoughts and concepts are not the
Natural State. This awareness (rig-pa) is self-aware (rang-rig);
it is not divided into subject and object. So if we try to do
anything in terms of thinking and judging, we bifabricate it into
two parts and we are no longer in the Natural State.
The Lower Ways
speak of the Two Truths, but in Dzogchen, we do not do that, but
speak of a single source or Base (gzhi). Thus Dzogchen is also
known as Thiglay Nyagchik (thig-le nyag-gcig), the Unique
Essence. In the Tibetan language, the word dzogpa (rdzogs-pa)
means two things: (1) something is completed, finished,
exhausted; and (2) everything is full, perfect, and complete. The
Sambhogakaya is called Dzogku (rdzogs-sku) in Tibetan because it
is effulgent, complete, and perfect. It is the actual form or
visible manifestation (sku) of perfection (rdzogs-pa). But this
does not mean that it is finished or ended. In the Dzogchen view,
everything is perfect because it is Lhundrub (lhun-grub).
Everything exists
in potential in the Natural State. But things manifest according
to secondary causes. In the Dzogchen view, this also applies to
the ten Paramitas and other virtues. The entire accumulations of
merit and wisdom are already present in the Natural State. There
is nothing more to be added or developed. So if we practice in
just one single way by remaining in Rigpa, all virtues will
manifest in their entirety because they are already fully
contained in the Natural State. Everything is encompassed by the
Natural State; there is no external or internal in relationship
to it. Yet each Natural State (in each sentient being) is
individual, and has the same quality and level. The Natural
States in an enlightened Buddha and in an ignorant insect are the
same. One is not bigger and the other smaller. The differences
between an enlightened being and an ignorant being is in terms of
the Path and the Fruit, but in both cases the Base is the same.
And the Base is the Natural State. But the Natural State is
individual with each sentient being. We are not all "One
Mind". Otherwise, if the was only one single Natural State
[or One Mind], then when the Buddha attained enlightenment, all
sentient beings would have become enlightened. But that is not
our experience.
However, the
eight Lower Ways or vehicles (yanas) contradict this Dzogchen
view. The text we have here deals with four contradictions or
objections brought against Dzogchen and refutes them in turn.
5. First Contradiction - Chittamatra
According to the
Chittamatra (sems-tsam-pa) view, everything that exists is
connected with mind. It is created by the mind. That is the real
view of Chittamatra, the philosophy of the Yogachara school. When
we see the blue color of the sky, this means that the eye
consciousness, which is the subject doing the apprehending, and
the blue color, which is the object apprehended, are inseparable.
This is because they arise from the same karmic cause. This is
true of all perceptions of appearances, and so we can say that
everything is connected with mind, even though they are not made
out of some sort of mind-stuff. Nothing exists which does not
have this connection with consciousness. It cannot exist
independently.
The Chittamatra
view of the Yogachara school asserts that everything depends on
mind (sems) and that there is nothing beyond mind. Thus the
Chittamatrin asks: So how can you Dzogchenpas do any better than
this? That is to say, how can you go beyond thoughts to a state
beyond mind? It is not possible that there is anything beyond
mind.
Dzogchen is
always talking about "mind" (sems), so some people
think that Dzogchen has the same view as Chittamatra. But
"mind" (sems) has a different meaning in the context of
Dzogchen where it means, not mind (sems), in the sense of the
thought process, or in the sense of consciousness (rnam-shes),
but "mind" in the sense of the Nature of Mind
(sems-nyid). In Dzogchen, Sem (sems) means Semnyid (sems-nyid),
and it is not part of the system of eight consciousnesses (tshogs
brgyad). This Nature of Mind is characterized by awareness
(rig-pa); it is inseparable with the Base. But this Base is
unknown to Chittamatra, which knows nothing beyond the Kunzhi
Namshe (kun-gzhi rnam-shes) that is the receptacle for karmic
traces (bag-chags). When Dzogchen speaks about the Kunzhi, the
basis of everything in both Samsara and Nirvana, this has a very
different meaning than the Kunzhi Namshe in Chittamatra where it
is only the basis for the karmic traces.
Dzogchen falls
outside of their view. To the objection raised by the
Chittamatrin, the Dzogchenpa replies: You say that everything is
solid and exists independently. But we do not recognize this. We
do not recognize all these phenomena as real nor the thoughts
that know them as real. According to Chittamatra, whatever we see
or experience is inherently existing (rang-bzhin), but Dzogchen
does not claim that the Natural State exists inherently. So our
view goes beyond yours.
6. Second Contradiction - Madhyamaka
The second
contradiction represents the Madhyamaka criticism of Dzogchen.
Both Chittamatra and Madhyamaka recognize the Two Truths, the
Relative Truth which are appearances and the Absolute Truth which
is Shunyata. Madhyamaka asserts that everything is related to
these Two Truths and that there is nothing beyond them. Subject
and object have no independent existence; they exist only as
names created by thoughts. Nothing has any independent existence.
Shunyata is the final or ultimate reality and there is nothing
beyond this. So the followers of Madhyamaka ask: How can you
Dzogchenpas do better than this? Your Dzogchen is not even
Buddhism!
To this,
the Dzogchenpa relies: We do not recognize the subject/ object
dichotomy and the Two Truths. Our view is inseparability
(dbyer-med) without any partiality. There is only one Truth which
we call Thiglay Nyagchik (thig-le nyag-gcig), the Unique Essence.
So our view is beyond your view of the Two Truths. Dzogchen is
beyond your Madhyamaka view, but this does not mean that Dzogchen
is not the Buddha's teaching-- it simply means that it is beyond
your definition of the Two Truths. [On this, see the Gal mdo.]
Je Tsongkhapa, in
his commentary to the Madhyamakavatara of Chandrakirti and
in his Lam-rim chen-mo, criticizes Dzogchen for not
asserting the Two Truths. Dzogchen claims that the final view
pertains to only a single nature, a state beyond cause and
effect. It does not say that karmic causes and consequences are
ultimate. If there are two truths, then we must have two minds in
order to know them. Tsongkhapa does speak of two kinds of
cognition: (1) a discriminating intelligence (the subject side)
that understands Shunyata (the object side) (stong-nyid
rtogs-pa'i shes-rab) and (2) and a discursive intellect that
knows names and concepts. Both of these represent
"wisdom" or "intelligence" (shes-rab), but
here we have two minds, not one. According to Dzogchen there is
only one cognition, the Thiglay Nyagchik, and not two minds.
Again, the
Madhyamaka practitioner objects: If Dzogchen does not have the
Two Truths, then it does not recognize the ten Paramitas. Then
how can you Dzogchenpas do any practice? And if you do not do any
practice, how can you accumulate any virtues? And if you do not
have the two accumulations of merit and wisdom, how can you
attain Buddhahood? The sources of the two accumulations are the
Two Truths and the result of the two accumulations are the
realizing of the Two Bodies, the Dharmakaya and the Rupakaya. So
you cannot realize Buddhahood unless you have these Two Truths.
They are required as causes for the Dharmakaya and the Rupakaya.
Without such a cause, you cannot realize Buddhahood.
The Dzogchenpa
replies: Dzogchen agrees that without a cause we cannot realize
Buddhahood. But if we are given a piece of gold, we do not have
to search for its qualities-- they are inherent in it from the
very beginning. Dzogchen never says that we should not practice
the ten Paramitas; it only asserts that the Natural State already
contains the ten Paramitas and, when we realize the Natural
State, they will manifest spontaneously. So we do not need to
practice them separately, one after the other. The ten Paramitas
are spontaneously present within the Natural State. Thus Dzogchen
only explains the Thiglay Nyagchik (thig-le nyag-gcig) or Natural
State, and that is sufficient. If we practice the Natural State,
we will realize the Dharmakaya and the Rupakaya because all
things are present already in the Natural State, and when the
secondary causes arise, they will manifest spontaneously. If we
practice the one Natural State, everything is present there
already, and so that is enough.
According to the
Sutra system in general, if we do not recognize the Two Truths,
then there exists no cause for the realization of the Two Bodies.
The Gelugpas, in particular, rely upon the exposition of
Chandrakirti in his Madhyamakavatara (dbu-ma la 'jug-pa).
They take his Prasangika view as being the highest view and
assert that there can be nothing beyond that. They follow
Tsongkhapa in this. According to Madhyamaka, the Buddha-nature is
the conventional meaning, whereas Shunyata is the ultimate
meaning. In his Tshig don mdzod, the great Dzogchen master
Longchenpa maintains that the Buddha actually taught Dzogchen in
the Prajnaparamita texts. There he interpreted Prajnaparamita as
Dzogchen, in contrast to the interpretation of Chandrakirti. Once
we discover our real nature [=the Natural State], we do not need
to search for anything else. Everything is present there already
and will manifest spontaneously. But in Dzogchen, we do need
secondary causes for the manifestation of the Trikaya. [Contrast
this with the view of the Jonangpas.] So Dzogchen can justly
claim that its view is the higher.
7. Third Contradiction - The Lower Tantra
Along with
Chittamatra and Madhyamaka, the Tantras recognize the Two Truths.
But here the emphasis and the method is different. According to
the Kriya Tantra, the practice involves two kind of beings, the
Knowledge Being (ye-shes sems-dpa') and the Symbolic Being
(dam-tshig sems-dpa'). The Symbolic Being is the visualization of
the deity in the sky in front of us; it is created by our mind,
and then the Knowledge Being is the blessing and energy invoked
into it from a higher source. Then the two of them are united
into one and that unification is called the Action Being (las kyi
sems-dpa'). In Kriya Tantra, this Knowledge Being is like a king
and the Symbolic Being is like a servant. The king gives siddhis
and blessings to the servant. Thereby it becomes much more
powerful and wise, so that this power can overflow into
practitioner.
The Kriya Tantra
practitioner asserts: We visualize that the entire universe has
become a celestial palace and that all beings become the deities
in this palace. How can you do better than this point of view? We
invoke the wisdoms of the deity, and uniting the Symbolic Being
and the Knowledge Being, we receive siddhis from this Action
Being. How can you Dzogchenpas explain something better than
this? There is no better view or practice!
To this the
Dzogchenpa replies: You do not actually understand the real
nature of things. You are unable to go beyond visualization
(dmigs-med). You create one being with your mind and invoke the
wisdoms as another being, and then try to mix them together. But
you cannot make them into one. You do not know Nyamnyid
(mnyam-nyid, the state of identity), and so you make one the lord
and the other the servant. You are like a child. You do not know
real unification, and so our view is beyond yours. Our view is
spacious and unlimited; our conduct has no negative rules, and so
our view is the higher. The "highest" view means
getting near to the real nature. And we do not use thoughts to do
that. You cannot practice the Two Truths simultaneously, but only
consecutively. You must alternate one with the other. But in
Dzogchen, we have gone beyond that.
8. Fourth Contradiction - The Higher Tantra
In the Bonpo
system, there are four kinds of Tantra. The two Lower Tantras are
the Kriya Tantra (bya-ba'i rgyud) and Charya Tantra (spyod-pa'i
rgyud). The two Higher Tantras are called Yeshen gyi Gyud
(ye-gshen gyi rgyud) and Yeshen chenpo Gyud (ye-gshen chen-po'i
rgyud). The distinction here is somewhat similar to the
distinction between Mahayoga Tantra and Anuyoga Tantra in the
Nyingmapa system, and the distinction between Father Tantra and
Mother Tantra in the Sarmapa system.
The practitioner
of the Higher Tantras asserts that we know both awareness
(rig-pa) and contemplation or equipoise (mnyam-bzhag, samadhi).
All the deities spontaneously exist; this is the view of Yeshen
gyi Gyud. Therefore, the Knowledge Being and the Symbolic Being
are like brothers, and what we unify here is bliss (bde-ba) and
emptiness (=bde stong zung-'jug). All the deities and the
universe itself are visualized as arising from the dimension of
space (dbyings =Shunyata). Everything is connected with Shunyata
and is a manifestation arising out of Shunyata. We meditate on
these visualizations and discover that everything arises from
this cycle of Dimension and Primordial Awareness (dbyings dang
ye-shes). So there can be no better view than this!
To this the
Dzogchenpa replies: You Tantrikas are still grasping ('dzin-pa)
at knowing Shunyata as an object. But our Dzogchen view is beyond
all grasping at anything. We do not create anything whatsoever
with the mind, such as visualizations of deities and mandalas. We
do not come to any conclusions nor create anything, but we go
directly to the Natural State. Therefore, our Dzogchen view is
the higher. You Tantrikas are always playing like children, that
is, playing with discursive thoughts. You are always trying to
create or to dissolve something. And this mind-created cycle is
never finished. But Dzogchen is not bounded by thoughts. All of
the lower vehicles are bounded by this sickness (or obsession
with) discursive thoughts, but the Natural State is primordially
beyond all thoughts and actions. In the Higher Tantras, you
assert that all the deities are reflections or manifestations
(rtsal) of the state of emptiness and that they are not created
by thoughts. You say that Dzogrim represents reality! They are
not just mind-made visualizations, as is the case with Kyerim
practice. Everything exists spontaneously. Yet you have to
visualize deities and mandalas. You are perpetually creating
things with the mind, and so you are always limited by thoughts.
You are tied up with thoughts. This is not at all compatible with
Dzogchen. Dzogchen is primordially liberated from all thoughts
and deliberate actions. In it, there is nothing artificial or
contrived. Therefore, it represents the highest view.
These replies
clearly indicate why Dzogchen is the deepest and highest (zab
rgyas) view. We should know these reasons why Dzogchen represents
the highest view; otherwise the assertion means nothing. For the
practice of Dzogchen, it is necessary to understand the Natural
State, but it is not necessary to create anything intellectually
or experientially in order to find ourselves in the Natural
State..
9. Inseparability
Inseparability
(dbyer-med) is what is emphasized in Dzogchen. This term Yermed
does not mean bringing two different things together and making
them one. That is unification or coalescence (zung-'jug).
Inseparability means that they have never been separate. We may
speak about them being separate qualities or aspects, but in
reality they have never been otherwise than perfectly unified,
like water and wetness, or fire and heat. Dzogchen asserts that
primordial purity (=Shunyata) and spontaneous manifestation have
been inseparable from the very beginning (ye-nas ka-dag lhun-grub
dbyer-med), and never otherwise. So as practitioners of the view
of Dzogchen, we do not fall on the one side or on the other. The
emphasis may be different in the three series of Dzogchen
teachings. The Longde emphasizes the emptiness side (stong-cha)
and the Semde emphasizes the clarity or awareness side
(gsal-cha), but even here, what is basic and fundamental is to
realize their unify or inseparability (dbyer-med). Dzogchen
Upadesha or Mangagde at the very outset stresses Yermed; it
begins with inseparability and it does not first need to go
through emptiness or clarity to get at it. The real nature of
Dzogchen is beyond expression in words; we can only discover it
within ourselves. For this, the experiences of the calm state
(gnas-pa), the movement of thoughts ('gyu-ba), and immediate
awareness (rig-pa) can be used as a direct introduction to the
Natural State. However, if we just play around with discursive
thoughts, like children playing with toys, we will fall away from
the Natural State. So philosophies and intellectual speculations
are no enough on their own to discover Reality.