Post by Longchen Rabjam on May 19, 2024 15:43:38 GMT
Dzogchen, an abbreviation of Dzogpa Chenpo, is a Tibetan term that
means total completion, or perfection: the original state, or condition, of
every living being whether or not they are aware of it. Dzogchen is one of
the various names, and currently the best known together with atiyoga, or
"yoga of primordial knowledge" (gdod ma'i rnal 'byor), of a very ancient
teaching that clearly and directly communicates the nature of this original
state. Examination of the literature in Tibetan currently available reveals
that the Dzogchen teaching existed in Tibet at least as early as the eighth
century in both its great religious traditions: Buddhism and Bon. The
Dzogchen of the Buddhist tradition derives from the teacher Garab Dorje
of Oddiyana, a region that many scholars have identified as the Swat
valley in Pakistan, once a flourishing center of Buddhism. The Dzogchen
tantras and teachings he transmitted were subsequently introduced into
Tibet during the first spread of Buddhism in the eighth century, and they
still form part of the canon of the Nyingma or "ancient" tradition, the
Nyingma Gyud Bum. Bon on the other hand had already existed for
several centuries prior to the introduction of Buddhism. Although this
tradition asserts that its founder, Shenrab Miwoche, who probably lived
far earlier than Garab Dorje, transmitted the first Dzogchen teachings, as
no written documents of sufficient antiquity are extant, it is difficult to
establish the chronological precedence of the Dzogchen scriptures of Bon
or of Buddhism." In any case, study of the scriptures, transmission of the
teachings, and realization of the practice have continued to our own day
in both traditions. Following this brief mention, let us put aside Bon
Dzogchen in order to focus our attention on the origin of Dzogchen as
handed down within the Buddhist tradition.
The Tibetan texts that recount the history of the Dzogchen teaching
describe a threefold division in its mode of transmission: direct
transmission (dgongs brgyud), symbolic transmission (brda brgyud), and
oral transmission (snyan brgyud), respectively tied to the three kayas, or
fundamental dimensions of existence. These are the dharmakaya, or
dimension of the essence; the sambhogakaya, or dimension of the
richness of qualities; and the nirmanakaya, or dimension of the
manifestation. Underlying these modes, and in particular the direct
transmission, is the notion of an absolute reality present in every being
whence the whole manifestation of samsara and nirvana issues forth.
Concerning this, in a work on the history of Dzogchen, Chogyal Namkhai
Norbu has written:
Self-arising wisdom, the essence of all the Buddhas, exists prior to
the division of samsara and nirvana and is beyond the limits of
transmigration and liberation. As it transcends the four conceptual
limits12 and is intrinsically pure, this original condition is the
uncreated nature of existence that has always existed, the ultimate
nature of all phenomena. It cannot be identified with a stable and
eternal substance allowing the assertion "It is thus!" and is utterly
free of all the defects of dualistic thought, which is only capable of
referring to an object other than itself. It is given the name ineffable
and inconceivable "base of primordial purity" (ye thog ka dag gi
gzhi), beyond the conceptual limits of being and non-being. As its
essence is the purity of original emptiness, it transcends the limits of
being an eternal substance: it has nothing concrete and no specific
characteristics to display. As its nature is self-perfection, it
transcends the limit of nothingness and nonbeing: the clarity of light
is the pure nature of emptiness. Thus, this natural condition of
primordial enlightenment, which is the immutable state of
dharmakaya, does not entail subdivision into samsara and nirvana.
Self-arising wisdom, primordially empty, is in a condition similar to
space, and it pervades all beings without distinction, from glorious
Samantabhadra down to the tiniest insect on a blade of grass. For
this reason the total state of dharmakaya, the inseparability of the
two truths, absolute and relative, is called "the primordial
Buddha"....
Even though in the condition of the base there is no separation or
duality between samsara and nirvana, when its primordial energy
manifests, it becomes the common ground of liberation and of
delusion. Consequently, according to the guise it assumes, it is
designated as nirvana or samsara, just like a vase that, even though it
has no name, can be referred to in various ways according to the
language one speaks."
But then, one might ask, how does samsara arise? How does one enter
the dualistic vision that is the cause of transmigration? The text continues
by explaining that:
If, at the moment the energy of the base manifests, one does not
consider it something other than oneself and one recognizes one's
own state as the indivisibility of essence, nature, and potentiality of
energy, the movement of energy self-liberates.... Understanding the
essence that is the very nature of primordial enlightenment, one
finds oneself always in this state: this is called "Samantabhadra," or
"Immutable Light" ('od mi 'gyur), this itself is the "Primordial Lord"
(gdod ma'i mgon po) perfect in his original condition.... Without
color or form, beyond the limit of size, and transcending the duality
of abode and of someone dwelling therein, it is the immutable nature
of the fourth time, beyond past, present, and future, the infinite
space of self-perfection endowed with the five perfect conditions for
the transmission of knowledge until the end of time." This is the
pure dharmakaya dimension, the essence of the vajra of clear light,
that also contains the dimensions of sambhogakaya and
nirmanakaya.15
As mentioned, the principle of the three transmissions is closely
connected to the three dimensions, or kayas, of the state of enlightenment.
In fact, as often explained in the Kunjed Gyalpo, it is from these three
dimensions that the various types of teachings arise in congruity with the
diverse capacities of beings. In particular, there is the explanation that the
three series of inner tantras derive from the dharmakaya, the three series
of outer tantras from the sambhogakaya, and the Mahayana and Hinayana
sutra teachings from the nirmanakaya.
For example, a History of the Dharma ascribed to Longchenpa states:16
How does the fundamental nature manifest as pure dimension and
as teacher in order to help beings? Because they do not understand
the fundamental nature due to ignorance and erroneous conceptions,
the beings of the three worlds accumulate actions and passions that
produce various kinds of suffering. The Buddhas, who with the eye
of omniscience perceive the suffering undergone by beings in the
same way as a mother who loves her own son, help them with great
compassion by manifesting the dimension of the body, the wisdom
that abides therein, and beneficial activities... [The tantra] The
Unified State of Knowledge'' says:
Furthermore:
And further:
The Vairo Drabag, which is believed to relate an ancient tradition,
speaks of the transmission of the teaching through four kayas or
dimensions: svabhavikakaya, or dimension of the fundamental nature,
dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and the secret kaya, or dimension (gsang
ba'i sku). However, this subdivision takes into consideration only the
transmission of the Tantra and Dzogchen teachings.L°
The Supreme Source th Supreme Tantra of Dzogchen
Chogyal Namkhal Norbu
means total completion, or perfection: the original state, or condition, of
every living being whether or not they are aware of it. Dzogchen is one of
the various names, and currently the best known together with atiyoga, or
"yoga of primordial knowledge" (gdod ma'i rnal 'byor), of a very ancient
teaching that clearly and directly communicates the nature of this original
state. Examination of the literature in Tibetan currently available reveals
that the Dzogchen teaching existed in Tibet at least as early as the eighth
century in both its great religious traditions: Buddhism and Bon. The
Dzogchen of the Buddhist tradition derives from the teacher Garab Dorje
of Oddiyana, a region that many scholars have identified as the Swat
valley in Pakistan, once a flourishing center of Buddhism. The Dzogchen
tantras and teachings he transmitted were subsequently introduced into
Tibet during the first spread of Buddhism in the eighth century, and they
still form part of the canon of the Nyingma or "ancient" tradition, the
Nyingma Gyud Bum. Bon on the other hand had already existed for
several centuries prior to the introduction of Buddhism. Although this
tradition asserts that its founder, Shenrab Miwoche, who probably lived
far earlier than Garab Dorje, transmitted the first Dzogchen teachings, as
no written documents of sufficient antiquity are extant, it is difficult to
establish the chronological precedence of the Dzogchen scriptures of Bon
or of Buddhism." In any case, study of the scriptures, transmission of the
teachings, and realization of the practice have continued to our own day
in both traditions. Following this brief mention, let us put aside Bon
Dzogchen in order to focus our attention on the origin of Dzogchen as
handed down within the Buddhist tradition.
The Tibetan texts that recount the history of the Dzogchen teaching
describe a threefold division in its mode of transmission: direct
transmission (dgongs brgyud), symbolic transmission (brda brgyud), and
oral transmission (snyan brgyud), respectively tied to the three kayas, or
fundamental dimensions of existence. These are the dharmakaya, or
dimension of the essence; the sambhogakaya, or dimension of the
richness of qualities; and the nirmanakaya, or dimension of the
manifestation. Underlying these modes, and in particular the direct
transmission, is the notion of an absolute reality present in every being
whence the whole manifestation of samsara and nirvana issues forth.
Concerning this, in a work on the history of Dzogchen, Chogyal Namkhai
Norbu has written:
Self-arising wisdom, the essence of all the Buddhas, exists prior to
the division of samsara and nirvana and is beyond the limits of
transmigration and liberation. As it transcends the four conceptual
limits12 and is intrinsically pure, this original condition is the
uncreated nature of existence that has always existed, the ultimate
nature of all phenomena. It cannot be identified with a stable and
eternal substance allowing the assertion "It is thus!" and is utterly
free of all the defects of dualistic thought, which is only capable of
referring to an object other than itself. It is given the name ineffable
and inconceivable "base of primordial purity" (ye thog ka dag gi
gzhi), beyond the conceptual limits of being and non-being. As its
essence is the purity of original emptiness, it transcends the limits of
being an eternal substance: it has nothing concrete and no specific
characteristics to display. As its nature is self-perfection, it
transcends the limit of nothingness and nonbeing: the clarity of light
is the pure nature of emptiness. Thus, this natural condition of
primordial enlightenment, which is the immutable state of
dharmakaya, does not entail subdivision into samsara and nirvana.
Self-arising wisdom, primordially empty, is in a condition similar to
space, and it pervades all beings without distinction, from glorious
Samantabhadra down to the tiniest insect on a blade of grass. For
this reason the total state of dharmakaya, the inseparability of the
two truths, absolute and relative, is called "the primordial
Buddha"....
Even though in the condition of the base there is no separation or
duality between samsara and nirvana, when its primordial energy
manifests, it becomes the common ground of liberation and of
delusion. Consequently, according to the guise it assumes, it is
designated as nirvana or samsara, just like a vase that, even though it
has no name, can be referred to in various ways according to the
language one speaks."
But then, one might ask, how does samsara arise? How does one enter
the dualistic vision that is the cause of transmigration? The text continues
by explaining that:
If, at the moment the energy of the base manifests, one does not
consider it something other than oneself and one recognizes one's
own state as the indivisibility of essence, nature, and potentiality of
energy, the movement of energy self-liberates.... Understanding the
essence that is the very nature of primordial enlightenment, one
finds oneself always in this state: this is called "Samantabhadra," or
"Immutable Light" ('od mi 'gyur), this itself is the "Primordial Lord"
(gdod ma'i mgon po) perfect in his original condition.... Without
color or form, beyond the limit of size, and transcending the duality
of abode and of someone dwelling therein, it is the immutable nature
of the fourth time, beyond past, present, and future, the infinite
space of self-perfection endowed with the five perfect conditions for
the transmission of knowledge until the end of time." This is the
pure dharmakaya dimension, the essence of the vajra of clear light,
that also contains the dimensions of sambhogakaya and
nirmanakaya.15
As mentioned, the principle of the three transmissions is closely
connected to the three dimensions, or kayas, of the state of enlightenment.
In fact, as often explained in the Kunjed Gyalpo, it is from these three
dimensions that the various types of teachings arise in congruity with the
diverse capacities of beings. In particular, there is the explanation that the
three series of inner tantras derive from the dharmakaya, the three series
of outer tantras from the sambhogakaya, and the Mahayana and Hinayana
sutra teachings from the nirmanakaya.
For example, a History of the Dharma ascribed to Longchenpa states:16
How does the fundamental nature manifest as pure dimension and
as teacher in order to help beings? Because they do not understand
the fundamental nature due to ignorance and erroneous conceptions,
the beings of the three worlds accumulate actions and passions that
produce various kinds of suffering. The Buddhas, who with the eye
of omniscience perceive the suffering undergone by beings in the
same way as a mother who loves her own son, help them with great
compassion by manifesting the dimension of the body, the wisdom
that abides therein, and beneficial activities... [The tantra] The
Unified State of Knowledge'' says:
Furthermore:
And further:
The Vairo Drabag, which is believed to relate an ancient tradition,
speaks of the transmission of the teaching through four kayas or
dimensions: svabhavikakaya, or dimension of the fundamental nature,
dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and the secret kaya, or dimension (gsang
ba'i sku). However, this subdivision takes into consideration only the
transmission of the Tantra and Dzogchen teachings.L°
The Supreme Source th Supreme Tantra of Dzogchen
Chogyal Namkhal Norbu