Ngakpa Chogyam & Khandro Dechen

DISCOVERING THE MIND OF DZOGCHEN

Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen

THUNDER SILENCE

UNLOCKING DZOGCHEN CONSCIOUSNESS

Translation from English

A. B. Chase, V. Rynkevich

Chogyam N., Dechen K.

H37 Thunderous silence. The Unfoldment of Dzogchen Consciousness: Per. from English. / Ngakpa Chogyam, Yusandro Dechen. - M .: LLC "Publishing House" Sofia ", 2004. - 240 p.

Vajrayana Buddhism teachers Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen, Nyingma lamas, convey in the book Thunder Silence the experience of meditation techniques that allow one to discover the direct experience of enlightenment - dzogchen. They describe the main stages of the dzogchen path - from sitting meditation to direct perception of reality in accordance with the system of four yogas of the dzogchen division of the mind. Each exercise is accompanied by an explanatory section to help evaluate and assimilate the experience gained.

This book is dedicated

Kyungchenu Aro Lingme

and gyo-kar chang-loi-de,

Ngakphang tradition of the Nga-gyur Nyingma school

If there is anything of value in this book,

then we owe it entirely to inspiration,

drawn from the traditions of the Nyingma school.

If there are errors in it, it is entirely

and it's entirely our fault.

OM AH HUM VAJRA GURU JNANA

SAGARA BAM HARI NI

SA SIDDHI HUM -

OM A HUM VAJRA

GURU PADMA SIDDHI HUM *

© Ngakpa Chogyam&Khandro Dechen, 2002 © Blaze A., Rynkevich V., translation, 2003 © Sofia Publishing House, 2004 © Sofia Publishing House LLC, 2004

Thanks................................................................. ....

Introduction ................................................ ..............

PART ONE. Dzogchen: an introduction ...............................

Chapter 1, Heaven and Mind............................................... .

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

PART TWO. Dzogchen: Basic Ways

occurrences.................................................................. ...........

Chapter 6. Flight ............................................... ......

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

PART THREE. Dzogchen: face to face

with all things ....................................................... .......

Chapter 9, Living Gate ..........................................

Head J.O. Measuring Instant Achievement

APPLICATION..............................

Questions and answers.............................

DICTIONARY..................................

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to express our deep gratitude to all our lamas, but above all: His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche, His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. Kyabje Kyunzang Dorje Rinpoche and Jomo Samphelu, and Kyabje Chhime Rigdzin Rinpoche.

Heartfelt love and respect to our sisters in the vajra - Jetsunme Khandro Tendzin Drolkar and Khandro Tsering Wangmo.

And to our brothers in the vajra: Tharchchin Rinpoche, Gyal-tsen Rinpoche, Nagchang Lakar Chokyi Wangchug Rinpoche, Tulku Thubten Rinpoche and Phyuntsog Tulku.

We gratefully mention our Vajra Sangha and all dedicated students of the Ngakphang school: Our Nordzin Rangjung Pamo, Nala Rigdzin Taklung Rolpai Dorje, Ngakpa Odzin Tridral Ozer Nyima Dorje, Nagma Shardrel Dunyam Jagyur Rangpal Chhime Wangmo, Nagma Yeshe Zertsal Wangmo, Naljorma Jigme Khyungtsal Pamo, Naljorma Rangrig Longtsal Dorje and Naljorma Osel Nyima Cherdrel Khandro.

We would like to thank our junior students and junior students Nal Rigdzin Taklunt Rolpai Dorje, Nagma Nordzin Rangjung Pamo and Nagpu Odzin Tridral Ozer Nyima Dorje.

Finally, many thanks to all charitable societies affiliated to the Aro Sangha Union (Sang-ngak-cho-dzong in the UK, Aro Gar in the USA, Aro Union in Austria, and Aro Society in Germany).

INTRODUCTION

Dzogchen is the immensity2 of every moment, the natural simplicity of being, which in itself is the only essence of a teaching or practice. Dzogchen, the pinnacle of the teachings of the Nyingma tradition,3 heralds this natural simplicity like a lion, its roar of reality4. The lion’s roar leaves no room for doubt, There is no threat in it, although it inevitably intimidates those who seek refuge in timidity, but the lion does not proclaim the voice of reality to intimidate.

1 The word dzogchen (rDzogs chen) means "limitless fullness". Other translations are "great completion", "great completion", and "great perfection". - Hereinafter, with the exception of specially specified cases - note, the authors.

2 English vastness. - Approx. ed.

3 Nyingma (rNying ta, lit. "Ancient"), or Nyingmapa, is a school in Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism founded by Padmasambhava and Yeshe Tsogyal in the 8th century. The teachings of the Nyingma are expounded in the "secret books" (ter) of Padmasambhava.

4 Seng-gei dra (seng ge "i sGra).

His roar is just a thunderous silence: a self-existing proclamation of a self-existing trust. The trust naturally inherent in us is empty, it does not need instructions and guidelines" and reveals itself already at the level of the subatomic structure of our experience.

Dzogchen proclaims the self-existent trust of all living beings as they are. The state of enlightenment is the fundamental principle of our essence. The thunderous silence of this boundless fullness is an empty thread on which sparkling pearls of every moment of our existence are strung. Infinite fullness is a term that indicates both the practice itself and the internal state of the practitioner. Dzogchen teaches that meditation is a state of relaxation, a way in which we can be who we are without tension, compulsion, or anxiety. Therefore, there is nothing to change: there is nothing to be abandoned or to be altered in any way. We just need to be what we are, without any influence imposed from outside, and without any struggle - that's all that is required.

Dzogchen is infinite fullness. In addition, dzogchen is a description of the content side of the teaching. It's a catalyst system. It describes the fundamental nature of what we are by simply ripping the veil off our habitual perceptions. Dzogchen encourages us to directly approach our essential nature, for it is close, accessible, present and simple.

1 Indications and orientations", za te (gZo" gTad)

2 Gyokyep gyi Sar du ma e pa (rGyu rKyen gyi gSar du ma byas pa). - letters, "uncreated anew by causes and conditions (of the natural state of enlightenment)".

It is quite possible, but it is this possibility in itself that constitutes the main obstacle. For for people like us, by no means simple, but complex and intricate, the essential nature is too close, too accessible, too present and too simple. The complexity and intricacy of the "unenlightened" state we are in seems to contradict the miraculous claims that we are close to a state of realization.

So, it turns out that we seem to be unable to approach dzogchen directly, directly. And if we can, it is only with such "spontaneity", which is so infinitely far from the genuine that there is no need to speak of any immediacy. There is a paradox here, and where there is a paradox, one has to use metaphors and symbols. It turns out that we seem to need explanations that are as complex and sophisticated as we seem. However, this teaching can be summed up in just four words: stay in the state of nature. From the point of view of dzogchen, this is quite enough. And then, if we have really taken these four words, we gain the ability to leave everything as it is, allowing everything to be in its natural state.

1 The term realization in most of the teachings of the East means the highest degree of the state of enlightenment, unity with the spiritual fundamental principle of the world or with God.- Approx. ed.

1 Dog-dreux (IDog "gros).

But what do these words mean to us in terms of our daily experience of silent sitting? Within the framework of duality, these words raise many questions, many of which not only remain unanswered, but also give rise to an infinite number of others.

Often we are so enslaved by the ruthless censorship of the intellect that even simplicity can seem complicated. The complexity of the intellect can impose such severe limitations on our perception that the admonition to "remain in the state of nature" becomes incomprehensible. It is pointless to think about it, it will not help anything, so we must give up all attempts to comprehend new experience on the basis of our usual understanding, and then we are left alone with the thunderous silence of meditation.

Meditation allows you to avoid the bureaucracy of an inflexible intellectual process and see yourself directly. But first the intellect must be fed a little.

Silent sitting or sitting: here are terms denoting the preparatory stage of meditation, which, in addition to silence, includes the distraction of vision from external objects, the development of attention, etc. - Note. ed.

1 Duality refers to the state in which enlightenment and non-enlightenment, security and insecurity, existence and non-existence (the set of such dual oppositions is inexhaustible) are experienced as separate from each other.

The intellect needs real food, and in order for the “intellectual feeling” to be satiated, chewing, digestion and excretion are necessary. Intellectual appetite must be turned away from the elaborate abstractions of cheap artificial food. The intellect must convince itself that the way it functions is a method of obscuring the nature of Mind. (The capitalized Mind refers to the quality of the emptiness of being, not the content of Mind. The lowercase Mind refers to the mind we are used to within our ordinary dualistic perceptions, judgments, and feelings.) Then the use of the intellect ceases to be an idle pastime or a hidden place. battles of warring concepts. Then the intellect becomes a valuable tool with which we can already make interesting excursions beyond our empirical myopia, due to a purely materialistic approach. Then we can develop a direct view into the nature of Mind. Through study, through beneficent inquisitive skepticism, we will come to a point where a direct look into the nature of Mind becomes a perfectly feasible task.

This is called the development of the view. The view is the cumulative experience of over three thousand years of meditation practice in which many yogis and yoginis3

1 Dzogchen considers thinking, or intellectual feeling, as one of the manifestations of sensibility along with sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. From the point of view of comprehending the world, we “see”, “hear”, “smell”, “taste” and “touch” with thought. made the same discoveries.

2 Eng, view, which conveys Skt. darshana and Tibetan 1Ta ba. - Approx. ed.

"Naljorpa (rNal" byor pa) and naldzkorma (rNal "byor ma) are those who practice the methods of inner yoga.

The view includes both the mechanical functioning in the unenlightened state and the nature of the enlightened state as far as it can be expressed in language. So, the view means, on the one hand, understanding our existence with its anxiety, dissatisfaction, confusion, disappointment, irritation and pain. But the view also includes glimpses of the enlightened state - as far as they can be expressed through oral, symbolic and direct transmission.

In dzogchen, the approach to the view is extremely pragmatic. Here the view is as pragmatic as the art of making a fire. If we know how to start a fire by combining wood and oxygen at a high temperature, then we don't need to remember the instructions - we just build a fire. Once we have unified2 our view, it disappears and becomes knowledge. Knowledge is like breathing - there is no need to remember how to breathe. So the view is a way to engage and use the intellect to transcend it and go beyond it. For this purpose, the view must always be tested in the laboratory of our experience.

1 In the Dzogchen teachings, three methods of transmission of knowledge are accepted: oral transmission, or nyen gyu (sNyan brGyud), symbolic transmission, or da gyu (brDa brGyud) - either formal symbolic, shed~lung da (bShad lung brDa), or informal symbolic, gyu-kyen da (rGyu rKyen brDa) - and direct, or transmission from Mind to Mind, gong gyu (dGongs brGyud).

2 For what is to be understood by unification in dzogchen, see at the end of Ch. 8. - Approx. ed.

It is a creative application of the intellect, as opposed to our ordinary perception of ourselves. Because intelligence is a natural ability, it can be "untangled". This book explores how we feel when we are involved in complex and confusing problems and when we extricate ourselves from them.

Let's start with three key aspects of the path in the dzogchen tradition. This is the view. meditation and behavior. View stimulates our mental faculties. In the process of meditation, our realization opens up to the view. Meditation enables us to get to the truth ourselves. Behavior is the pure manifestation of our spontaneity in the state of realization.

It is very interesting - both pleasant and distressing - that at the highest level we become our own teachers. This is nice, because sometimes everything goes spontaneously - we seem to easily swim along with the circumstances. But this is also painful, because our situation tends to become self-sufficient, and sometimes we do not notice this. We just need to open the way for the process of non-learning, because then the habits of the intellect to the conditioned schemes of the intellect become obvious, transparent2. The scope and range of logical thinking is rather small, and although it is capable of remarkable feats, yet it cannot give us all the answers. Let's take an example. Clearly, thinking is not the most effective way get rid of mental suffering and pain.

1 Tava (ITa ba), gompa (sGom pa) and chop (spyod pa).

2 Zapg-tal le (zang thai le) - "transparent". What is meant here is the transparency of that which arises in the Mind (see chapters 9 and 10).

Thinking about pain, we inevitably generate more and more thoughts, one way or another related to pain. Thinking about emotionally painful situations also makes us feel worse. Thus, we will never come close to a true understanding of what is happening to us.

Except during some psychotherapeutic procedures, people rarely think about the pain itself. For if we thought about pain itself, we would inevitably enter into the realm of its language. Thought cannot lead us to understand the fundamental structure of pain itself. We can only explore pain by observing it in meditation, without using logical thinking. Thoughts create a barrier - as if "pain" and "in pain" were separate. Most people are well aware of how the whirling of thoughts keeps them awake at night, even when they really want to sleep. Human beings suffer from an unhealthy addiction to the process of thinking, so here, as in the case of any addiction, the possible consequences must also be considered. Let us examine the habit of thinking.

Silence of Thunder is a guide to Aro Naljorji - the four yogas1. We use the term "manual" because the book contains exercises in a form that allows you to do them yourself, and a description of the typical conditions that arise during the practice.

1 The term naajor is an abbreviation of the words nalma (rNal ta) - "natural state" and jorpa ("byor pa) - "remain". In Tantra, this term is used when translating the Sanskrit word yoga ("unification, connection"). But in terminology dzogchen naljor is being in the state of nature (which corresponds to the understanding of yoga at the dzogchen level).

However, the reader should not forget that a formal description of the four yogas is not enough. To perform the practice, it is necessary to receive its transmission.

The four yogas, or naljoras, make up the ngondro1, the preliminary practices of dzogchen semde1. Semde is one of the three divisions of dzogchen, which details the doctrine of the conceptual mind and the sem-nyid, at the kind of Mind.

1 Ngöndro (sNgon "gro) - lit. "going before (something)". Usually this term is translated as "preparation", "foundation" or "preparation". Ngöndro is required for each level of practice, if the practitioner has not yet reached this level of experience that allows him to directly enter into the state of experience indicated in the teachings.The word "ngondro" describes many various kinds practices, so semde ngondro zhi should not be confused with gyu ngondro zhi, the four preliminary practices of tantra.

2 Section on the nature of Mind. The word "sem" (sems) is an abbreviation of the word "sem-nyid" (sems-nyid), "the nature of the mind." The word "de" (sDe) means "group" or "assembly". Semde is sometimes mistranslated by those unfamiliar with Dzogchen terminology as "thinking group" or "thinking class", since the word "sem" literally means "intelligence". However, in the Dzogchen teaching, the word "sem" is an abbreviation of the term "sem-nyid", as well as the term "changchub-sem" (byattg chub sems), or "bodhichitta" - "the heart-mind of the state of enlightenment."

The actual practice of dzogchen semde is called the "four ting-nedjins" (four "meditative absorptions", or four samadhis). These are ne-pa (“serenity”), mi-yo-wa (“immobility”), nyam-nyi (“undivided”) and lhun-drup (“unhindered spontaneity”).

The four yogas are methods for gaining the experience needed to practice dzogchen. The word "naljor" literally means "to remain in the state of nature." So the four yogas are methods to help you stay in the natural state.

The four yogas consist of the practices of shi-ne, lhag-thong, nyi-med, and lhun-drup. For now, we will consider only shi-ne (the rest of the practices will be explained in detail in later chapters of the book).

Shi-ne ("calming")2 - a method of liberation from the enslaving addiction to the process of thinking. This is the main method of meditation according to the four yogas. It can also be found in other schools and trends of Tibetan Buddhism3, where this practice is always associated with relaxation and release from involvement in the internal dialogue.

1 Zhi gNas (lit. "to be calm, serene"), /hag mTong, gNyis med and thun sGrub. They are also called the "four yogas of mahamudra". The practice of shi-not is equivalent to tse-chig (rTse gCig), "concentration on one object"; lhag-tong corresponds to tre-dreya (sPros "bral), "freedom from conceptual constructions"; nyi-med - ro-chig (go gCig), "unanimous taste"; finally, lhun-drup is analogous to gom-me (sGom med), "non-meditation".

2 Shi-ne (ZhigNas) is usually translated literally as "calming" or rendered by the Sanskrit equivalent of sha-matha. We will leave the Tibetan term untranslated to highlight the difference in approach of semde dzogchen compared to other traditions and to avoid the weight of the usual sense of the word "calming". - Approx. ed.

J The practice of shi-ne, or shamatha, is found in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism. In the "formless" mahamudra of the Kagyu school (see Ch. 10), this practice is called tse-nig (rTse gCig), "concentration on one (object)". In Zen Buddhism, this is the initial stage of zazen.

Its task is to stop the chatter of the mind, which prevents direct perception. Shi-ne is the cure for our adherence to thought patterns. If you decide to start treatment, then the first thing you will encounter will be boredom. It is very important to remember that the practice of shi cannot become boring and irritating. It may seem extremely boring to you, especially if you are an active, creative person with a developed intellect. The fact is that a practicing shi-ne actually "walks empty"*, i.e. does without the usual dose of "mental drug". Here you can see some similarities with the initial phase of withdrawal in heroin addicts. Such a comparison seems shocking, but those who have begun to practice shi-ne with full dedication know that this metaphor most accurately describes some of the difficult moments of practice, especially in retreat. The symptoms of quitting the “addiction” to thinking can be quite emotionally difficult, and sometimes beginners have a desire to stop the practice at the very beginning. But objectively, it is much more terrible to reconcile and drag out a miserable existence, remaining in a “drug dependence” on thinking. From the point of view of true reality, the world of those who are “addicted” to thinking brings much more suffering than the state in which a person who practices shi-ne and is cured of addiction to thinking finds himself. If quitting heroin is terribly painful, then the typical symptoms that come with quitting a habit of thinking portend that fertile ground has emerged for self-discovery and self-discovery. Whatever you feel while practicing shi-ne reflects exactly who you are.

When you confront yourself in shi-ne, you are face to face with your insecurity, fear, loneliness, vulnerability, and confusion. All these tensions distort higher being - regardless of whether you practice shi-ne or not. Avoiding the practice of shi-not is pointless. From a Buddhist point of view, in this situation, essentially, no one has a choice. Practicing shi does not mean working directly with who you are: you begin to live actively, instead of letting your life "experience" you. Practicing shi does not mean taking the driver's seat, opening your eyes and seeing the world.

When you open yourself, clarity arises spontaneously. You stop desperately clinging to the thought process, but the thought itself is experienced much brighter and deeper. You have the experience of experiencing different shades, tones and textures of thought. These qualities arise along with the deepening of our experience of openness, through which we can see thought in a "spatial context." We become transparent to ourselves. Motivation becomes easier. Natural compassion arises, to which one does not need to force oneself, for which one does not need to pretend - and this is the first real taste of freedom.

Shi-ne does not depend on the acceptance of any dogma or sophisticated Eastern philosophy. The dzogchsn semde teachings in the preparatory stage of ngöndro describe the view that must be verified by experience. The view must be realized, that is, literally "become real." And this does not require belief in Buddhism or anything else.

We, the authors of this book, belong to the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, and the methods, the basic principles of which are outlined here, are an integral part of this tradition. People from other religious traditions may also benefit from the practices we have described, but we cannot give them any specific advice on how the four yogas can function in the experience of those spiritual paths that we ourselves have not followed. The shi practice we have described does not exist in the context of the Nyingma yogic tradition. Yogis of the Nyingma tradition practice shi-ne in combination with many other practices. All these practices involve the inevitable generation of compassion and the development of devotion towards one's Master and one's lineage. For those who are seriously interested in the four yogas and begin to practice the practices described here, we advise - at a certain stage of studies and especially at higher levels - to seek guidance from an experienced Teacher. Working alone for a few years can be too stressful and frustrating. And, what is especially important, it is necessary to receive a transmission from a knowledgeable and experienced Teacher - otherwise the practice of dzogchen will not bear fruit. Without relying on the spiritual richness of the religious tradition, it is extremely difficult to continue the practice: it seems to “give nothing”. Without regular practice difficult to achieve results. Without being rooted in a religious tradition, people often find that their initial enthusiasm for the practice of meditation dissipates. As for us, based on our own experience, we argue that every practitioner should be associated with a living religious tradition. You have to be a part of something that is much bigger than you in order to find support in something higher, deeper and more extensive. A context is required that leads beyond the isolated island, on which there is only “me and my spiritual development”. The religion of choice for our practices is Vajrayana Buddhism, for that is the religion that gave birth to them. Those who associate themselves with the Nyingma tradition will draw more inspiration from the life-giving power of these practices than those who belong to other branches of Tibetan Buddhism. And this is not an overestimation, but statements of a pragmatic nature, intended to help the reader, not alienate him. Genuine inspiration is essential to doing practices like shi-ne, so you need to look to its source. Until you meet a mentor from some tradition, you will have to work alone. You can start practicing shi-ne just to figure out who you are. Subsequently, when you have the opportunity to meet the Teacher, you will already have ready-made questions based on the real experience of your experiences, and these questions will really be “yours”.

Buddhism, by its very nature, is not focused on maintaining and spreading faith in Buddhism, especially Sutrayana, a strict empirical science that calls for everything to be tested on one's own experience. In the teachings of the Sutrayana, Buddha Shakyamuni1 emphasized that no one is obliged to accept on faith everything he says just because he said it. Although the source of the four Yogas is not sutrayana, nevertheless the principles underlying the practice of shi-ne are equivalent to sutra. Therefore, the instruction that Buddha Shakyamuni left is so important: to strictly check his teaching on one's own experience. The Teacher will not ask us to give up honesty, but he will ask us to give up all our limitations, so that in this journey into the vast we discover ourselves.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS2

Questioner: You said that the reasoning mind is capable of remarkable feats, but it cannot answer all questions... Could you develop this theme?

1 Buddha Shakyamuni (historical Buddha) is the Buddha of the "chariot of the Sutra" (Sutrayana). Tantrayana Buddhas - Padmasambhava and Yeshe Tsogyal. Dzogchen Buddha - Garab Dorje. In these vehicles, these Buddhas were the first teachers who came in human form. (Yeshe Tsogyal is also the Buddha of Dzogchen and the source of the cycles of revelation-terms of the Aro Lingma lineage.)

Ngakpa Chogyam: Intelligence is form, and form is limited. It is infinite in its variety, but it cannot reach everything with its help. Intellect is not an America Express* card for the brain. Beyond the rational mind there are unimaginable expanses where the intellect is denied access. That is what needs to be experienced directly, directly - or not even attempted at all. The nature of Mind is empty and therefore unlimited.

Khandro Lechen: If we get stuck on the level of the intellect, we isolate ourselves from the richest source of its potentialities. The intellectual ability itself arises from the void, therefore, in order to have a free intellect, it is necessary to go beyond it.

Question: When you say that we have the experience of experiencing the shades, tones and texture of thought, then in fact you are likening thinking to one of the five senses...

Khandro Lechen: Thinking is feeling. The concept of consciousness belongs to one of the spheres of sensory experience. It is a mistake to represent the cognitive faculty as something completely different from other spheres of sensibility. This is the fundamental principle of tantra. This is also vital in meditation, as it would be quite problematic to feel or think if we always did it with our head only.

Ngakpa Chogyam: As a rule, people think of the brain as something like a headquarters or a central administration that manages all other instances, but this is at least not entirely true.

Questioner: I can understand how a feeling can have a certain color and texture, but how can a thought be akin to a sensation or a feeling?

Khandro Dechen: But what do you mean by feeling? It seems that you are separating the feeling from the thought.

Question: Yes, I believe they are different things.

Khandro Dechen: It happens, but not always. For most people, feelings are fertilized by thought. In fact, thought completely controls their emotions. If a feeling can have shades and textures, then a thought can also have shades and textures.

Ngakpa Chogyam: In addition, the spheres of sensuality can be akin to each other in many ways. Many shamanic traditions even contribute to blurring the boundaries between the spheres of manifestation of different feelings, and with altered states of consciousness, it becomes possible to see sound, hear color, and the like. It's actually not that unusual. The main thing is this: it is not at all necessary to resort to the help of the intellect in order to understand that thoughts can have different shades, tone and texture. You will simply discover it when thoughts arise from states of togpa - states without thought.

Questioner: It is quite difficult to understand what you said about giving up attachment to thinking when you have to face your insecurity, fear, loneliness, confusion and so on. It seems that this process proceeds differently for different people and it all depends on who it all happens to ...

Khandro Dechen: Yes, of course. But well-defined states and feelings are always associated with discomfort. The difference is only in their intensity.

Part one

DZOGCHEN INTRODUCTION

http://the-insider.ru
Thunder Silence
Ngakpa Chogyam & Khandro Dechen

DISCOVERING THE MIND OF DZOGCHEN

Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen

THUNDER SILENCE

UNLOCKING DZOGCHEN CONSCIOUSNESS

Translation from English

A. B. Chase, V. Rynkevich

Chogyam N., Dechen K.

H37 Thunderous silence. The Unfoldment of Dzogchen Consciousness: Per. from English. / Ngakpa

Chogyam, Yusandro Dechen. - M .: LLC "Publishing House" Sofia ", 2004. - 240 p.

Vajrayana Buddhism teachers Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen, Nyingma lamas,

convey in the book "Thundering Silence" the experience of meditation techniques that allow you to open

direct experience of enlightenment - dzogchen. They describe the main stages of the journey

dzogchen - from sitting meditation to direct perception of reality in

in accordance with the system of four yogas of the division of the mind of dzogchen. Every exercise

accompanied by an explanatory section to help you appreciate and understand

acquired experience.

This book is dedicated

Kyungchenu Aro Lingme

and gyo-kar chang-loi-de,

Ngakphang tradition of the Nga-gyur Nyingma school

If there is anything of value in this book,

then we owe it entirely to inspiration,

drawn from the traditions of the Nyingma school.

If there are errors in it, it is entirely

and it's entirely our fault.

OM AH HUM VAJRA GURU JNANA

SAGARA BAM HARI NI

SA SIDDHI HUM -

OM A HUM VAJRA

GURU PADMA SIDDHI HUM *

Illustrations for the book "Thunder Silence"

Il. 1 A

Il. 2. Vajra Pose #1

Il. 3. Vajra Pose #2

Il. 4. Vajra

Il. 5. HUM

© Ngakpa Chogyam&Khandro Dechen, 2002 © Blaze A., Rynkevich V., translation, 2003 ©

Sofia Publishing House, 2004 © Sofia Publishing House, 2004

Thanks................................................................. ....

Introduction ................................................ ..............

PART ONE. Dzogchen: an introduction ...............................

Chapter 1, Heaven and Mind............................................... .

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

PART TWO. Dzogchen: Basic Ways

occurrences.................................................................. ...........

Chapter 6. Flight ............................................... ......

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

PART THREE. Dzogchen: face to face

with all things ....................................................... .......

Chapter 9, Living Gate ..........................................

Head J.O. Measuring Instant Achievement

APPLICATION..............................

Questions and answers.............................

DICTIONARY..................................

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to express our deep gratitude to all our lamas, but before

all: His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche, His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse

Rinpoche. Kyabje Kunzang Dorje Rinpoche and Jomo Samphelu and Kyabje Chime

Rigzin Rinpoche.

Heartfelt love and respect to our sisters in the vajra - Jetsunme Khandro Tendzin

Drolkar and Khandro Tsering Wangmo.

And to our brothers in the vajra: Tharchin Rinpoche, Gyal-tsen Rinpoche, Nagchanga Lakar

Chokyi Wangchug Rinpoche, Tulku Thubten Rinpoche and Phyuntsog Tulku.

We gratefully mention our vajra sangha and all the dedicated students of the school

ngakphang: Our Nordzin Rangjung Pamo, Nala Rigdzin Taklung Rolpai Dorje,

Ngakpa Odzin Tridral Ozer Nyima Dorje, Nagma Shardrel Dunyam Jagyur Rangpal

Chhime Wangmo, Nagma Yeshe Zertsal Wangmo, Naljorma Jig-me Khyungtsal Pamo,

Naljorma Rangrig Longtsal Dorje and Naljorma Osel Nyima Cherdrel Khandro.

We would like to thank our junior students and junior students Nala

Rigzina Taklunt Rolpai Dorje, Nagmu Nordzin Rangjung Pamo and Nagpu Ojina

Tridrala Ozer Nyima Dorje.

And finally, many thanks to all charitable societies that are part of the Union

sangkh Aro ("Sang-ngak-cho-dzong" in the UK, "Aro Gar" in the USA, "Union of Aro" in

Austria and the Haro Society in Germany).

INTRODUCTION

Dzogchen is the immensity2 of every moment, the natural simplicity of being,

which in itself is the only essence of the doctrine or practice. Dzogchen -

pinnacle of the teachings of the Nyingma tradition3 - proclaims this natural simplicity as a lion

Your roar of reality4. The lion's roar leaves no room for doubt

there is no threat, although it inevitably terrifies those who seek refuge in timidity. However

1 The word dzogchen (rDzogs chen) means "limitless fullness". Other options

translation - "great completion", "great completion" and "great

2 English vastness. - Approx. ed.

3 Nyingma (rNying ta, lit. "Ancient"), or Nyingmapa, is a school in Tibetan

Vajrayana Buddhism, founded by Padmasambhava and Yeshe Tsogyal in the 8th century. Doctrine

Nyingmas are set forth in the "secret books" (ter) of Padmasambhava.

4 Seng-gei dra (seng ge "i sGra).

His roar is just a thunderous silence: the self-existent proclamation of the self-existent

trust. The trust naturally inherent in us is empty, it does not need instructions and

landmarks" and reveals itself already at the level of the subatomic structure of our

experience.

Dzogchen proclaims the self-existent trust of all living beings as they are.

The state of enlightenment is the fundamental principle of our essence. The thunderous silence of this

boundless fullness - an empty thread on which sparkling

pearls of every moment of our existence. Infinite fullness is a term

which indicates both the practice itself and the internal state

practitioner. Dzogchen teaches that meditation is a state of

relaxation, the way in which we can be what we are without

tension, compulsion or anxiety. Therefore, there is nothing to change: there is nothing from

what should be waived or what should in some way

remake. We just have to be what we are, without any influence,

imposed from without, and without any struggle - that's all that is required.

Dzogchen is infinite fullness. In addition, dzogchen - a description of the content

side of the doctrine. It's a catalyst system. She describes the fundamental

the nature of what we are, simply tearing the veil off our habitual perception.

Dzogchen encourages us to directly approach our essential nature, for it

close, available, available and simple.

1 Indications and orientations", za te (gZo" gTad)

2 Gyokyep gyi Sar du ma e pa (rGyu rKyen gyi gSar du ma byas pa). - letters,

“Uncreated anew by causes and conditions (of the natural state

enlightenment).

It is quite possible, but it is this possibility in itself that is the main thing.

let. For for people like us, by no means simple, but complex and

entangled, the essential nature is too close, too accessible, too

cash and too simple. Complexity and entanglement of the state

"unenlightened" in which we find ourselves, as if contrary to the miraculous

statements about our proximity to the state of realization1.

So, it turns out that we seem to be unable to approach dzogchen directly,

directly. And if we can, then only with such "spontaneity", which

so infinitely far from the genuine that about any immediacy and

do not have to speak. There is a paradox here, and where there is a paradox,

use metaphors and symbols. It turns out that we

as if explanations are needed, as complex and sophisticated as we seem.

However, this doctrine can be summed up in just four words: stay in

natural state. From the point of view of dzogchen, this is quite enough. AND

then, if we have really perceived these four words, we gain

the ability to leave everything as it is, allowing everything to be in its natural

condition.

1 The term realization in most of the teachings of the East means the highest degree

states of enlightenment, unity with the spiritual fundamental principle of the world or with God.-

Note. ed.

1 Dog-dreux (IDog "gros).

But what do these words mean to us in terms of our daily experience?

silent sitting1? Within the framework of duality, these words evoke a lot

questions, many of which not only remain unanswered, but also give rise to

an infinite number of others.

Often we are so enslaved by the ruthless censorship of the intellect that

simplicity can seem like something complicated. Intelligence complexity can impose

such severe restrictions on our perception that the sermon "stay in

natural state" becomes incomprehensible. It's pointless to think about it

it won't help, so we must abandon all attempts to comprehend a new

experience on the basis of our ordinary understanding, and then we are left alone with

thunderous silence of meditation.

Meditation allows you to avoid the bureaucracy of an inflexible intellectual

process and see yourself directly. But first the intellect must

feed a little.

Silent sitting or sitting: here are terms for

preparatory stage of meditation, which, in addition to silence, includes

distraction of vision from external objects, development of attention, etc. - Approx. ed.

1 Duality is the state in which enlightenment and

unenlightenedness, security and insecurity, existence and

non-existence (the set of such dual oppositions is inexhaustible) are experienced as

isolated from each other.

The intellect needs real food, and in order to "intellectual feeling"

satiety requires chewing, digestion and excretion.

Intellectual appetite must be turned away from the developed abstractions of cheap

artificial food. The intellect must convince itself that the way it

functioning is a method of obscuring the nature of Mind. (The word Um with a capital

the letter refers to the quality of the emptiness of being, and not to the content of Mind. word mind

with a lowercase letter refers to the mind we are accustomed to within our ordinary

dualistic perceptions, judgments and feelings.) Then the use of the intellect

ceases to be idle entertainment or a hidden place of battle between warring concepts.

Then the intellect becomes a valuable tool with which we can already

to undertake interesting excursions beyond our empirical myopia,

driven by a purely materialistic approach. Then we can work out

a direct look into the nature of Mind. Through study, through beneficent

inquisitive skepticism, we will reach a point where a direct look into nature

Uma becomes quite a doable task.

This is called the development of the view. The view is the total experience of more than

three thousand years of meditation practice, in which many yogis and yoginis3

1 Dzogchen regards thinking, or intellectual feeling, as one of

manifestations of sensuality along with sight, hearing, smell, taste and

touch. From the point of view of comprehending the world, we “see”, “hear”, “smell”,

“tasting” and “touching” with thought. made the same discoveries.

2 Eng, view, which conveys Skt. darshana and Tibetan 1Ta ba. - Approx. ed.

"Naljorpa (rNal" byor pa) and naldzkorma (rNal "byor ma) - those who practice

methods of inner yoga.

The view includes both mechanical functioning in the unenlightened

state, and the nature of the enlightened state - as far as it can be

expressed through language. So, the view means, on the one hand,

understanding our existence with its anxiety, dissatisfaction,

confusion, frustration, irritation and pain. But the view is also

includes glimpses of the enlightened state - as far as they can be expressed

through oral, symbolic and direct transmission.

In dzogchen, the approach to the view is extremely pragmatic. Here is the view

as pragmatic as the art of making a fire. If we know how to ignite

fire, combining wood and oxygen at a high temperature, then we do not need

remember the instructions - we just make a fire. Once we have implemented

unification2 of our view, it disappears and becomes knowledge. Knowledge

akin to breathing - there is no need to remember how to breathe. So,

the view is a way to engage and use the intellect in order to transcend it and

go beyond it. For this purpose, the view should always be subjected to

testing in the laboratory of our experience.

1 In the Dzogchen teachings, three methods of transmission of knowledge are accepted: oral transmission, or

nyen gyu (sNyan brGyud), symbolic transmission, or da gyu (brDa brGyud) -

either formal symbolic, shed~lung da (bShad lung brDa), or

informal symbolic, gyu-kyen da (rGyu rKyen brDa) - and direct, or

transmission from Mind to Mind, gong gyu (dGongs brGyud).

2 For what is to be understood by unification in dzogchen, see at the end of Ch. 8. -

Note. ed.

It is a creative application of the intellect, as opposed to our ordinary perception.

themselves. Since intelligence is a natural ability, it can be

"untangle". This book explores how we feel when we are involved in

complex and confusing problems and when we extricate ourselves from them.

Let's start with three key aspects of the path in the dzogchen tradition.

This is the view. meditation and behavior." The view prompts our mental

capabilities. In the process of meditation, our realization opens up for the view.

Meditation gives us the opportunity to get to the truth ourselves. The behavior is

a pure manifestation of our spontaneity in a state of realization.

Very amusing - both pleasant and distressing - that at the highest level

we become our own teachers. It's nice, because sometimes everything goes

spontaneously - we seem to easily swim along with the circumstances. But it's also painful

for our situation tends to become self-sufficient, and sometimes we do not notice it.

We just need to open the way for the non-learning process, for then the habits

intelligence to conditioned schemas of intelligence become apparent,

transparent 2. The scope and range of logical thinking is rather small, and although

it is capable of remarkable feats, yet it cannot give us the answers to

all questions. Let's take an example. Obviously, thinking is not the most effective

way to get rid of mental suffering and pain.

1 Tava (ITa ba), gompa (sGom pa) and chop (spyod pa).

2 Zapg-tal le (zang thai le) - "transparent". It means transparency.

that which arises in the Mind (see chapters 9 and 10).

Thinking about pain, we inevitably generate more and more thoughts, one way or another.

associated with pain. When we think about emotionally painful situations, we also do

yourself worse. So we will never come close to a true understanding of what is with us.

happening.

Except during some psychotherapeutic procedures, people rarely think

about the pain itself. For if we thought of pain itself, we would inevitably enter into

the scope of her language. Thought cannot lead us to understand the fundamental

structures of the pain itself. We can only explore pain by observing it in progress.

meditation without using logical thinking. Thoughts create a barrier - as if

"pain" and "in pain" were separated. Most people are well acquainted

with how the swirling thoughts keep them awake at night, even if they really want to

fall asleep. Human beings suffer from an unhealthy addiction to process

thinking, therefore here, as in the case of any addiction, also

possible consequences must be considered. Let's explore habit.

to thinking.

Silence of Thunder is a guide to Aro Naljorji - the four yogas1. We

use the term "manual" because the book contains exercises in the form

allowing you to perform them yourself, and a description of typical conditions,

arising in the course of practice.

1 The term naajor is an abbreviation of the words nalma (rNal ma) -

"natural state" and jorpa ("byor pa) - "to remain." In tantra, this

the term is used when translating the Sanskrit word yoga ("union,

connection"). But in Dzogchen terminology, naljor is being in the natural

state (which corresponds to the understanding of yoga at the level of dzogchen).

However, the reader should not forget that the formal description of the four

yoga is not enough. To perform the practice, it is necessary to receive its transmission.

The four yogas, or naljoras, make up the ngöndro1 - the preliminary practices of dzogchen

semde1. Semde is one of the three divisions of Dzogchen, which details

the doctrine of the conceptual mind and the sem-nyid, with the kind of Mind, is expounded.

1 Ngöndro (sNgon "gro) - lit. "going before (something)". Usually this term

translated as "preparation", "foundation" or "preparation". Ngöndro required

for each level of practice if the practitioner has not yet reached that level

experience that allows him to enter directly into the state of experience indicated

in teaching. The word "ngondro" describes many different types of practice, so

semde ngondro ji should not be confused with gyu ngondro ji, the four preliminary

tantra practices.

2 Section on the nature of Mind. The word "sem" (sems) is an abbreviation of the word "sem-nyid"

(sems-nyid), "the nature of the mind." The word "de" (sDe) means "group" or "assembly".

Those unfamiliar with Dzogchen terminology sometimes mistranslate "semde" as

"thinking group" or "thinking class", since the word "sem" literally means

"reason". However, in the Dzogchen teaching, the word "sem" is an abbreviation of the term

"sem-nyid", as well as the term "changchub-sem" (byattg chub sems), or "bodhichitta" -

"heart-mind state of enlightenment."

The actual practice of dzogchen semde is called the “four ting nedjins”

(four "meditative absorptions", or four samadhis). It's not-pa

(“serenity”), mi~yo-wa (“immobility”), nyam-nyi (“non-separation”) and

lhun-drup ("unhindered spontaneity").

The four yogas are methods to help you gain the experience you need to

practice dzogchen. The word "naljor" literally means "to stay in

natural state." So, the four yogas are methods that contribute to

to stay in a natural state.

The four yogas consist of the practices of shi-ne, lhag-thong, nyi-med, and lhun-drup. Now we

we will consider only shi-ne (a detailed explanation of the remaining practices will be given in

subsequent chapters of the book).

Shi-ne ("calming")2 - a method of liberation from an enslaving addiction to

the process of thinking. This is the main method of meditation according to the four

yogis. It can also be found in other schools and trends of Tibetan Buddhism3,

where this practice is always associated with relaxation and liberation from

engaging in internal dialogue.

1 Zhi gNas (lit. "to be calm, serene"), /hag mTong, gNyis med and thun

sGrub. They are also called the "four yogas of mahamudra". Shi-ne practice

equivalent to tse-chig (rTse gCig), "concentration on one object"; lhag tong

corresponds to tre-drey (sPros "bral"), "freedom from conceptual constructions";

nyi-med - ro-chig (go gCig), "unanimous taste"; finally, lhun-drup is similar to gom-me

(sGom med), "non-meditation".

2 Shi-ne (ZhigNas) is usually translated literally as "calming" or transmitted

the Sanskrit equivalent of shamatha. We will leave the Tibetan term without

translation to highlight the differences in the approach of dzogchen semde compared to

other traditions and avoid the burden of the usual sense of the word "calm". -

Note. ed.

J The practice of shi-ne, or shamatha, is found in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism. IN

"formless" mahamudra of the Kagyu school (see Ch. 10) this practice is called tse-nig

(rTse gCig), "concentration on one (object)". In Zen Buddhism it is

initial stage of zazen.

Its task is to stop the chatter of the mind, which prevents direct

perception. Shi-ne is the cure for our commitment to thinking

templates. If you decide to start treatment, then the first thing you will encounter is

there will be boredom. It is very important to remember that the practice of shi-can't get bored and

cause irritation. She may seem extremely boring to you, especially

if you are an active, creative person with a developed intellect. The thing is

the fact that a practicing shi-ne actually "walks empty"*, i.e. does without

habitual dose of "mental drug". Here you can see some

resemblance to initial phase withdrawal symptoms in heroin addicts.

Such a comparison seems shocking, but one who started with full dedication

practice shi-ne, knows that this metaphor most accurately describes

some difficult moments of practice, especially in retreat. Failure symptoms

from "drug addiction" to thinking can be quite severe in

emotionally, and sometimes beginners have a desire to stop practicing

already at the very beginning. But objectively it is much more terrible to reconcile and drag out a miserable

existence, remaining in a "drug dependence" on thinking. stitches

vision of true reality, the world of those who are "addicted" to thinking carries much

more suffering than the state in which a person finds himself,

practicing shi-ne and cured of an addiction to thinking. If the refusal

heroin is associated with terrible torment, then the typical symptoms that occur after

abandoning the habit of thinking, portend that fertile soil has appeared for

to discover and know yourself. Whatever you feel while practicing

shi-ne, exactly reflects your essence.

When you confront yourself in shi-ne, you are face to face with your

"the-insider.ru" the-insider.ru

Thunder Silence

Ngakpa Chogyam & Khandro Dechen
ROARING SILENCE
DISCOVERING THE MIND OF DZOGCHEN

SHAMBHALA
Boston & London
2002

Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen
THUNDER SILENCE
UNLOCKING DZOGCHEN CONSCIOUSNESS

Translation from English
A. B. Chase, V. Rynkevich

Chogyam N., Dechen K.
H37 Thunderous silence. The Unfoldment of Dzogchen Consciousness: Per. from English. / Ngakpa
Chogyam, Yusandro Dechen. - M .: LLC "Publishing House" Sofia ", 2004. - 240 p.

Vajrayana Buddhism teachers Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen, Nyingma lamas,
convey in the book "Thundering Silence" the experience of meditation techniques that allow you to open
direct experience of enlightenment - dzogchen. They describe the main stages of the journey
dzogchen - from sitting meditation to direct perception of reality in
in accordance with the system of four yogas of the division of the mind of dzogchen. Every exercise
accompanied by an explanatory section to help you appreciate and understand
acquired experience.

This book is dedicated
Kyungchenu Aro Lingme
and gyo-kar chang-loi-de,
Ngakphang tradition of the Nga-gyur Nyingma school
If there is anything of value in this book,
then we owe it entirely to inspiration,
drawn from the traditions of the Nyingma school.
If there are errors in it, it is entirely
and it's entirely our fault.
OM AH HUM VAJRA GURU JNANA
SAGARA BAM HARI NI
SA SIDDHI HUM OM A HUM VAJRA
GURU PADMA SIDDHI HUM *

Illustrations for the book "Thunder Silence"

Il. 2. Vajra Pose #1

Il. 3. Vajra Pose #2

Il. 4. Vajra

Il. 5. HUM

© Ngakpa Chogyam&Khandro Dechen, 2002 © Blaze A., Rynkevich V., translation, 2003 ©
Sofia Publishing House, 2004 © Sofia Publishing House, 2004

CONTENT
Thanks................................................................. ....
Introduction ................................................ ..............
PART ONE. Dzogchen: an introduction ...............................
Chapter 1, Heaven and Mind............................................... .
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
PART TWO. Dzogchen: Basic Ways
occurrences.................................................................. ...........
Chapter 6. Flight ............................................... ......
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
PART THREE. Dzogchen: face to face
with all things ....................................................... .......
Chapter 9, Living Gate ..........................................
Head J.O. Measuring Instant Achievement
APPLICATION..............................
Questions and answers.............................
DICTIONARY..................................

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to express our deep gratitude to all our lamas, but before
all: His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche, His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse
Rinpoche. Kyabje Kunzang Dorje Rinpoche and Jomo Samphelu and Kyabje Chime
Rigzin Rinpoche.
Heartfelt love and respect to our sisters in the vajra - Jetsunme Khandro Tendzin
Drolkar and Khandro Tsering Wangmo.
And to our brothers in the vajra: Tharchin Rinpoche, Gyal-tsen Rinpoche, Nagchanga Lakar
Chokyi Wangchug Rinpoche, Tulku Thubten Rinpoche and Phyuntsog Tulku.
We gratefully mention our vajra sangha and all the dedicated students of the school
ngakphang: Our Nordzin Rangjung Pamo, Nala Rigdzin Taklung Rolpai Dorje,
Ngakpa Odzin Tridral Ozer Nyima Dorje, Nagma Shardrel Dunyam Jagyur Rangpal
Chhime Wangmo, Nagma Yeshe Zertsal Wangmo, Naljorma Jig-me Khyungtsal Pamo,
Naljorma Rangrig Longtsal Dorje and Naljorma Osel Nyima Cherdrel Khandro.
We would like to thank our junior students and junior students Nala
Rigzina Taklunt Rolpai Dorje, Nagmu Nordzin Rangjung Pamo and Nagpu Ojina
Tridrala Ozer Nyima Dorje.
And finally, many thanks to all charitable societies that are part of the Union
sangkh Aro ("Sang-ngak-cho-dzong" in the UK, "Aro Gar" in the USA, "Union of Aro" in
Austria and the Haro Society in Germany).

INTRODUCTION

Dzogchen is the immensity2 of every moment, the natural simplicity of being,
which in itself is the only essence of the doctrine or practice. Dzogchen -
pinnacle of the teachings of the Nyingma tradition3 - proclaims this natural simplicity as a lion
- its roar of reality4. The lion's roar leaves no room for doubt
there is no threat, although it inevitably terrifies those who seek refuge in timidity. However
the lion proclaims the voice of reality, not to frighten.

1 The word dzogchen (rDzogs chen) means "limitless fullness". Other options
translation - "great completion", "great completion" and "great
perfection". - Hereinafter, except where otherwise noted,
authors.
2 English vastness. - Approx. ed.
3 Nyingma (rNying ta, lit. "Ancient"), or Nyingmapa, is a school in Tibetan
Vajrayana Buddhism, founded by Padmasambhava and Yeshe Tsogyal in the 8th century. Doctrine
Nyingmas are set forth in the "secret books" (ter) of Padmasambhava.
4 Seng-gei dra (seng ge "i sGra).

His roar is just a thunderous silence: the self-existent proclamation of the self-existent
trust. The trust naturally inherent in us is empty, it does not need instructions and
landmarks" and reveals itself already at the level of the subatomic structure of our
experience.
Dzogchen proclaims the self-existent trust of all living beings as they are.
The state of enlightenment is the fundamental principle of our essence. The thunderous silence of this
boundless fullness - an empty thread on which sparkling
pearls of every moment of our existence. Infinite fullness is a term
which indicates both the practice itself and the internal state
practitioner. Dzogchen teaches that meditation is a state of
relaxation, the way in which we can be what we are without
tension, compulsion or anxiety. Therefore, there is nothing to change: there is nothing from
what should be waived or what should in some way
remake. We just have to be what we are, without any influence,
imposed from without, and without any struggle - that's all that is required.
Dzogchen is infinite fullness. In addition, dzogchen - a description of the content
side of the doctrine. It's a catalyst system. She describes the fundamental
the nature of what we are, simply tearing the veil off our habitual perception.
Dzogchen encourages us to directly approach our essential nature, for it
close, available, available and simple.

1 Indications and orientations", za te (gZo" gTad)
2 Gyokyep gyi Sar du ma e pa (rGyu rKyen gyi gSar du ma byas pa). - letters,
“Uncreated anew by causes and conditions (of the natural state
enlightenment).

It is quite possible, but it is this possibility in itself that is the main thing.
let. For for people like us, by no means simple, but complex and
entangled, the essential nature is too close, too accessible, too
cash and too simple. Complexity and entanglement of the state
"unenlightened" in which we find ourselves, as if contrary to the miraculous
statements about our proximity to the state of realization1.
So, it turns out that we seem to be unable to approach dzogchen directly,
directly. And if we can, then only with such "spontaneity", which
so infinitely far from the genuine that about any immediacy and
do not have to speak. There is a paradox here, and where there is a paradox,
use metaphors and symbols. It turns out that we
as if explanations are needed, as complex and sophisticated as we seem.
However, this doctrine can be summed up in just four words: stay in
natural state. From the point of view of dzogchen, this is quite enough. AND
then, if we have really perceived these four words, we gain
the ability to leave everything as it is, allowing everything to be in its natural
condition.

1 The term realization in most of the teachings of the East means the highest degree
states of enlightenment, unity with the spiritual fundamental principle of the world or with God.-
Note. ed.
1 Dog-dreux (IDog "gros).

But what do these words mean to us in terms of our daily experience?
silent sitting1? Within the framework of duality, these words evoke a lot
questions, many of which not only remain unanswered, but also give rise to
an infinite number of others.
Often we are so enslaved by the ruthless censorship of the intellect that
simplicity can seem like something complicated. Intelligence complexity can impose
such severe restrictions on our perception that the sermon "stay in
natural state" becomes incomprehensible. It's pointless to think about it
it won't help, so we must abandon all attempts to comprehend a new
experience on the basis of our ordinary understanding, and then we are left alone with
thunderous silence of meditation.
Meditation allows you to avoid the bureaucracy of an inflexible intellectual
process and see yourself directly. But first the intellect must
feed a little.

Silent sitting or sitting: here are terms for
preparatory stage of meditation, which, in addition to silence, includes
distraction of vision from external objects, development of attention, etc. - Approx. ed.
1 Duality is the state in which enlightenment and
unenlightenedness, security and insecurity, existence and
non-existence (the set of such dual oppositions is inexhaustible) are experienced as
isolated from each other.

The intellect needs real food, and in order to "intellectual feeling"
satiety requires chewing, digestion and excretion.
Intellectual appetite must be turned away from the developed abstractions of cheap
artificial food. The intellect must convince itself that the way it
functioning is a method of obscuring the nature of Mind. (The word Um with a capital
the letter refers to the quality of the emptiness of being, and not to the content of Mind. word mind
with a lowercase letter refers to the mind we are accustomed to within our ordinary
dualistic perceptions, judgments and feelings.) Then the use of the intellect
ceases to be idle entertainment or a hidden place of battle between warring concepts.
Then the intellect becomes a valuable tool with which we can already
to undertake interesting excursions beyond our empirical myopia,
driven by a purely materialistic approach. Then we can work out
a direct look into the nature of Mind. Through study, through beneficent
inquisitive skepticism, we will reach a point where a direct look into nature
Uma becomes quite a doable task.
This is called the development of the view. The view is the total experience of more than
three thousand years of meditation practice, in which many yogis and yoginis3

1 Dzogchen regards thinking, or intellectual feeling, as one of
manifestations of sensuality along with sight, hearing, smell, taste and
touch. From the point of view of comprehending the world, we “see”, “hear”, “smell”,
“tasting” and “touching” with thought. made the same discoveries.
2 Eng, view, which conveys Skt. darshana and Tibetan 1Ta ba. - Approx. ed.
"Naljorpa (rNa" byor pa) and naldzkorma (rNa "byor ma) - those who practice
methods of inner yoga.

The view includes both mechanical functioning in the unenlightened
state, and the nature of the enlightened state - as far as it can be
expressed through language. So, the view means, on the one hand,
understanding our existence with its anxiety, dissatisfaction,
confusion, frustration, irritation and pain. But the view is also
includes glimpses of the enlightened state - as far as they can be expressed
through oral, symbolic and direct transmission.
In dzogchen, the approach to the view is extremely pragmatic. Here is the view
as pragmatic as the art of making a fire. If we know how to ignite
fire, combining wood and oxygen at a high temperature, then we do not need
remember the instructions - we just make a fire. Once we have implemented
unification2 of our view, it disappears and becomes knowledge. Knowledge
akin to breathing - there is no need to remember how to breathe. So,
the view is a way to engage and use the intellect in order to transcend it and
go beyond it. For this purpose, the view should always be subjected to
testing in the laboratory of our experience.

1 In the Dzogchen teachings, three methods of transmission of knowledge are accepted: oral transmission, or
nyen gyu (sNyan brGyud), symbolic transmission, or da gyu (brDa brGyud) -
either formal symbolic, shed~lung da (bShad ung brDa), or
informal symbolic, gyu-kyen da (rGyu rKyen brDa) - and direct, or
transmission from Mind to Mind, gong gyu (dGongs brGyud).
2 For what is to be understood by unification in dzogchen, see at the end of Ch. 8. -
Note. ed.

It is a creative application of the intellect, as opposed to our ordinary perception.
themselves. Since intelligence is a natural ability, it can be
"untangle". This book explores how we feel when we are involved in
complex and confusing problems and when we extricate ourselves from them.
Let's start with three key aspects of the path in the dzogchen tradition.
This is the view. meditation and behavior." The view prompts our mental
capabilities. In the process of meditation, our realization opens up for the view.
Meditation gives us the opportunity to get to the truth ourselves. The behavior is
a pure manifestation of our spontaneity in a state of realization.
Very amusing - both pleasant and distressing - that at the highest level
we become our own teachers. It's nice, because sometimes everything goes
spontaneously - we seem to easily swim along with the circumstances. But it's also painful
for our situation tends to become self-sufficient, and sometimes we do not notice it.
We just need to open the way for the non-learning process, for then the habits
intelligence to conditioned schemas of intelligence become apparent,
transparent 2. The scope and range of logical thinking is rather small, and although
it is capable of remarkable feats, yet it cannot give us the answers to
all questions. Let's take an example. Obviously, thinking is not the most effective
way to get rid of mental suffering and pain.

1 Tava (ITa ba), gompa (sGom pa) and chop (spyod pa).
2 Zapg-tal le (zang thai e) - "transparent". It means transparency.
that which arises in the Mind (see chapters 9 and 10).

Thinking about pain, we inevitably generate more and more thoughts, one way or another.
associated with pain. When we think about emotionally painful situations, we also do
yourself worse. So we will never come close to a true understanding of what is with us.
happening.
Except during some psychotherapeutic procedures, people rarely think
about the pain itself. For if we thought of pain itself, we would inevitably enter into
the scope of her language. Thought cannot lead us to understand the fundamental
structures of the pain itself. We can only explore pain by observing it in progress.
meditation without using logical thinking. Thoughts create a barrier - as if
"pain" and "in pain" were separated. Most people are well acquainted
with how the swirling thoughts keep them awake at night, even if they really want to
fall asleep. Human beings suffer from an unhealthy addiction to process
thinking, therefore here, as in the case of any addiction, also
possible consequences must be considered. Let's explore habit.
to thinking.
Silence of Thunder is a guide to Aro Naljorji - the four yogas1. We
use the term "manual" because the book contains exercises in the form
allowing you to perform them yourself, and a description of typical conditions,
arising in the course of practice.

1 The term naajor is an abbreviation of the words nalma (rNa ma) -
"natural state" and jorpa ("byor pa) - "to remain." In tantra, this
the term is used when translating the Sanskrit word yoga ("union,
connection"). But in Dzogchen terminology, naljor is being in the natural
state (which corresponds to the understanding of yoga at the level of dzogchen).

However, the reader should not forget that the formal description of the four
yoga is not enough. To perform the practice, it is necessary to receive its transmission.
The four yogas, or naljoras, make up the ngöndro1 - the preliminary practices of dzogchen
semde1. Semde is one of the three divisions of Dzogchen, which details
the doctrine of the conceptual mind and the sem-nyid, with the kind of Mind, is expounded.

1 Ngöndro (sNgon "gro) - lit. "going before (something)". Usually this term
translated as "preparation", "foundation" or "preparation". Ngöndro required
for each level of practice if the practitioner has not yet reached that level
experience that allows him to enter directly into the state of experience indicated
in teaching. The word "ngondro" describes many different types of practice, so
semde ngondro ji should not be confused with gyu ngondro ji, the four preliminary
tantra practices.
2 Section on the nature of Mind. The word "sem" (sems) is an abbreviation of the word "sem-nyid"
(sems-nyid), "the nature of the mind." The word "de" (sDe) means "group" or "assembly".
Those unfamiliar with Dzogchen terminology sometimes mistranslate "semde" as
"thinking group" or "thinking class", since the word "sem" literally means
"reason". However, in the Dzogchen teaching, the word "sem" is an abbreviation of the term
"sem-nyid", as well as the term "changchub-sem" (byattg chub sems), or "bodhichitta" -
"heart-mind state of enlightenment."
The actual practice of dzogchen semde is called the “four ting nedjins”
(four "meditative absorptions", or four samadhis). It's not-pa
(“serenity”), mi~yo-wa (“immobility”), nyam-nyi (“non-separation”) and
lhun-drup ("unhindered spontaneity").

The four yogas are methods to help you gain the experience you need to
practice dzogchen. The word "naljor" literally means "to stay in
natural state." So, the four yogas are methods that contribute to
to stay in a natural state.
The four yogas consist of the practices of shi-ne, lhag-thong, nyi-med, and lhun-drup. Now we
we will consider only shi-ne (a detailed explanation of the remaining practices will be given in
subsequent chapters of the book).
Shi-ne ("calming")2 - a method of liberation from an enslaving addiction to
the process of thinking. This is the main method of meditation according to the four
yogis. It can also be found in other schools and trends of Tibetan Buddhism3,
where this practice is always associated with relaxation and liberation from
engaging in internal dialogue.

1 Zhi gNas (lit. "to be calm, serene"), /hag mTong, gNyis med and thun
sGrub. They are also called the "four yogas of mahamudra". Shi-ne practice
equivalent to tse-chig (rTse gCig), "concentration on one object"; lhag tong
corresponds to tre-dreya (sPros "bra"), "freedom from conceptual constructions";
nyi-med - ro-chig (go gCig), "unanimous taste"; finally, lhun-drup is similar to gom-me
(sGom med), "non-meditation".
2 Shi-ne (ZhigNas) is usually translated literally as "calming" or transmitted
the Sanskrit equivalent of shamatha. We will leave the Tibetan term without
translation to highlight the differences in the approach of dzogchen semde compared to
other traditions and avoid the burden of the usual sense of the word "calm". -
Note. ed.
J The practice of shi-ne, or shamatha, is found in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism. IN
"formless" mahamudra of the Kagyu school (see Ch. 10) this practice is called tse-nig
(rTse gCig), "concentration on one (object)". In Zen Buddhism it is
initial stage of zazen.

Its task is to stop the chatter of the mind, which prevents direct
perception. Shi-ne is the cure for our commitment to thinking
templates. If you decide to start treatment, then the first thing you will encounter is
there will be boredom. It is very important to remember that the practice of shi-can't get bored and
cause irritation. She may seem extremely boring to you, especially
if you are an active, creative person with a developed intellect. The thing is
the fact that a practicing shi-ne actually "walks empty"*, i.e. does without
habitual dose of "mental drug". Here you can see some
similarity to the initial phase of withdrawal in heroin addicts.
Such a comparison seems shocking, but one who started with full dedication
practice shi-ne, knows that this metaphor most accurately describes
some difficult moments of practice, especially in retreat. Failure symptoms
from "drug addiction" to thinking can be quite severe in
emotionally, and sometimes beginners have a desire to stop practicing
already at the very beginning. But objectively it is much more terrible to reconcile and drag out a miserable
existence, remaining in a "drug dependence" on thinking. stitches
vision of true reality, the world of those who are "addicted" to thinking carries much
more suffering than the state in which a person finds himself,
practicing shi-ne and cured of an addiction to thinking. If the refusal
heroin is associated with terrible torment, then the typical symptoms that occur after
abandoning the habit of thinking, portend that fertile soil has appeared for
to discover and know yourself. Whatever you feel while practicing
shi-ne, exactly reflects your essence.
When you confront yourself in shi-ne, you are face to face with your
insecurity, fear, loneliness, vulnerability and confusion. All these
tensions distort higher being - regardless of whether you practice shi-ne or
No. Avoiding the practice of shi-not is pointless. From a Buddhist point of view,
In this situation, essentially, no one has a choice. Practicing shi-does not mean
work directly with who you are: you begin to live actively, instead of
to let your life "live" you. To practice shi-does not mean to take
driver's seat, open your eyes and see the world.
When you open yourself, clarity arises spontaneously. you stop
desperately to cling to the thought process, but the thought itself is experienced much
brighter and deeper. You have the experience of experiencing different shades, tones and
textures of thought. These qualities arise along with the deepening of our experience.
openness, thanks to which we can see thought in the "spatial
context." We become transparent to ourselves. Motivation becomes easier.
Natural compassion arises, to which one does not need to force oneself, for
which you do not need to pretend - and this is the first real taste of freedom.
Shi-ne does not depend on the acceptance of any dogma or sophisticated Eastern philosophy.
The dzogchsn semde teachings in the preparatory stage of ngöndro describe the view
which must be verified experimentally. The vision must be realized
i.e. literally "become real". And this does not require belief in Buddhism,
to nothing else.
We, the authors of this book, belong to the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, and
methods, the basic principles of which are set forth here, are an integral part of this
traditions. People belonging to other religious traditions, described by us
practices can also be beneficial, but we cannot give them any specific
advice on how the four yogas can function in the experience of those
spiritual paths that we ourselves have not followed. The shi-ne practice we have described
exists in the context of the Nyingma yogic tradition. Yoga of the Nyingma tradition
practice shi-ne in combination with many other practices. All these practices
presuppose the inevitable generation of compassion and the development of devotion according to
towards his Master and towards his lineage. For those who are serious
will become interested in the four yogas and begin to practice the practices described here,
we advise - at a certain level of studies and especially at higher
levels - seek guidance from an experienced teacher. Working alone in
for several years may be too painful and disappointing. AND,
most importantly, it is necessary to receive transmission from a knowledgeable and experienced
Teachers - otherwise the practice of dzogchen will not bear fruit. No reliance on
the spiritual richness of the religious tradition is extremely difficult to continue the practice:
it's like she doesn't give anything. Difficult to achieve without regular practice
result. Without being rooted in a religious tradition, people often find that
their initial enthusiasm for the practice of meditation dissipates. Concerning
us, then, based on our own experience, we affirm that every practitioner
must be associated with a living religious tradition. You have to be part of something
much more than you, in order to find support in the higher, deeper and more extensive.
A context is required that goes beyond the isolated island on which
just me and mine spiritual development". Preferred religion for our practices -
Vajrayana Buddhism, for it was this religion that gave birth to them. Those who have associated themselves with
Nyingma tradition, learn more from the life-giving power of these practices.
inspiration than those who belong to other branches of Tibetan
Buddhism. And this is not an overestimation, but a pragmatic statement,
designed to help the reader, not alienate him. For
performing practices such as shi-ne, genuine inspiration is essential, so
you need to go to its source. Until you meet a mentor,
belonging to some tradition, you will have to work alone. Can
start practicing shi-ne, just to figure out who you are
imagine. Subsequently, when you have the opportunity to meet
Teachers, you will already have ready-made questions based on the real experience of your
experiences, and these questions will really be “yours”.
Buddhism is not inherently oriented towards maintaining and spreading
faith in Buddhism, especially Sutrayana - a rigorous empirical science,
urging everyone to check on their own experience. In the teachings of the Sutrayana Buddha
Shakyamuni1 emphasized: no one is obliged to take on faith everything he says only
because he said it. Although the source of the four Yogas is not a Sutrayana, nevertheless
the principles underlying the practice of shi-ne are equivalent to the sutra. That's why it's so important
the instruction that Buddha Shakyamuni left: to strictly check his teaching on
own experience. The teacher will not ask us to give up honesty, but he
will require us to give up all our limitations, so that on this journey to
the immensity we discovered ourselves.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS2
Questioner: You said that the reasoning mind is capable of remarkable feats,
but it can't answer all the questions... Could you elaborate on this subject?

1 Shakyamuni Buddha (historical Buddha) is the Buddha of the "Sutra Chariot"
(sutrayana). Tantrayana Buddhas - Padmasambhava and Yeshe Tsogyal. Dzogchen Buddha - Garab
Dorje. In the named vehicles, these Buddhas were the first teachers who came
in human form. (Yeshe Tsogyal is also the Buddha of Dzogchen and the source
cycles of revelations-terms of the Aro Lingma line.)
2 We are talking about a discussion between the authors of the book and their students during
seminars. - Approx. ed.

Ngakpa Chogyam: Intelligence is form, and form is limited. She is endless in
its diversity, but with its help it is not possible to reach everything. Intelligence is not a card
"America Express * for the brain. Beyond the rational mind sprawled
unimaginable spaces where the intellect is denied access. This is exactly what is needed
experience directly, directly - or not even try at all. Nature of Mind
is empty and therefore unbounded.
Khandro Lechen: If we get stuck on the level of intelligence, we isolate ourselves from
the richest source of its potentialities. The very intellectual
ability arises from emptiness, therefore, to have free
intelligence, it is necessary to go beyond it.
Questioner: When you say that we have experience of shades, tones and
texture of thought, then in fact you liken thinking to one of the five senses ...
Khandro Lechen: Thinking is feeling. The concept of consciousness belongs to one of the
spheres of sensory experience. Misrepresentation of cognition
something completely different from other realms of sensibility. This is fundamental
principle of tantra. This is also vital in meditation as it would be very
it is problematic to feel or think if we always did this only
head.
Ngakpa Chogyam: As a rule, people think of the brain as something like
headquarters or central administration which supervises all other
authorities, but this, at least, is not entirely true.
Question: I can understand how a feeling can have a certain color and
texture, but how can thought be akin to sensation or feeling?
Khandro Dechen: But what do you mean by feeling? It looks like you're separating
feeling from thought.
Question: Yes, I believe they are different things.
Khandro Dechen: It happens, but not always. Most people have feelings
fertilized with thought. In fact, thought completely controls their emotions. If
a feeling can have shades and textures, then a thought can also have shades and textures.
invoice.
Ngakpa Chogyam: In addition, the spheres of sensuality can be akin to each other in many ways.
friend. Many shamanic traditions even contribute to blurring the lines between
spheres of manifestation of different feelings, and in altered states of consciousness
it becomes possible to see sound, hear color, and the like. In fact
it's not that unusual. The main thing is this: it is not at all necessary to resort to
help of the intellect to understand that thoughts can have different shades, tone
and invoice. You will simply discover it when the thoughts arise from the states of the
- states without thought.
Question: It is rather difficult to understand what you said about giving up attachment to
thinking when you have to confront your insecurities face to face,
fear, loneliness, confusion, and so on. It seems that different people have this
the process proceeds in different ways and it all depends on who it all happens to ...
Khandro Dechen: Yes, of course. But discomfort is always associated quite
certain states and feelings. The difference is only in their intensity.

Part one
DZOGCHEN INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1
SKY AND MIND

Preparation is absolutely necessary for everyone, except for those who have already experienced
voids1. In addition, it is important that you have moments of realization of non-dual
the nature of emptiness and form. Emptiness is the basis of tantra. The state of non-duality -
basis of dzogchen. Therefore, before embarking on dzogchen as a spiritual path,
you need to reach the foundation, which is the beginning of this path. It doesn't have to be at all
enlightened to approach this chariot, but you need to have experience
experiences of the non-dual basis. Even if there were only brief outbreaks of such
experiences are already experience, and it is necessary. Otherwise you will just get confused.
So, to perform the practice, you must first reach the foundation. Wherein
it is not known how many years it will take to prepare. Dzogchen can become
viable practice only if there are certain criteria of real
experience. Otherwise, those methods that are called "dzogchen" will only
just a pretense.

1 Here emptiness is equivalent to the state of mi-togpa, the absence of thoughts.

"Thunder Silence" is a practical study of the criteria for achieving
certain states characteristic of real spiritual experience. These
states cannot be considered imposed by dzogchen as a Tibetan tradition. This -
objective requirements. If a practitioner does not meet these requirements, he will
removed from the spiritual path by that very path. Although preparation is required, no
no rigid, conceptually conditioned law that prescribes
what exactly must be done to reach the basis of experience. Various traditions
have different requirements, so you need to get guidance from your
Teachers. So, after all the caveats, we want to re-emphasize that
dzogchen is the original state of the individual, therefore, each
man is a necessary basis. Each of us has reached this state, having for
shoulders the unique experience of a former life, and it makes no sense to talk about how
We have hidden powers.
Now let's turn to the problem of preparation. Since dzogchen semde has
own nyondro. then there is no need to practice tantric ngöndro with its
four hundred thousand practices of devotion, generosity, purification and
non-duality1 - unless your Teacher requires it. But even though
tantric ngondro is not necessary for the practice of dzogchen semde, it must be clear
understand that the result of tantric ngondro is always necessary.

1 Tantric Ngöndro includes 100,000 prostrations with taking refuge and
bodhichita, 100,000 mandala offerings, 100 1)00 hundred-syllable mantra recitations
Vajra sattvas and 100,000 guru yoga practices.

Different traditions and different teachers tend to have their own special approach,
therefore, it is impossible to do without the advice of a mentor regarding the choice of a particular
way. In matters of practice, the guidance of the Master is of cardinal importance, and all
decisions about what is considered necessary and what is not depend on him. That's why
instruction taken from a book cannot be considered appropriate advice if it
is at odds with the advice you received directly from a mentor.
It is pointless, having found the Teacher and asking him for guidance, meticulously evaluate
his advice based on information obtained from other sources. teachers
choose based on recognition for him certain qualities, and having made a choice, firmly
follow his instructions.
From a functional point of view, four yogas preparing for the practice of dzogchen semde
through the four kinds of instructions, are similar to the tantric ngondro. Regardless
within which system you practice is essential
careful preparation. Tantric Ngöndro is the first stage of the symbolic
the method by which we arrive at the basis of dzogchen, and the ngondro of the four yogas
- not a symbolic approach. Both approaches are characterized by that chariot
(respectively, tantra or dzogchen), for which they are the basis.

1 You can read more about the role of the Teacher in Vajrayana practice in the books: Ngakpa
Chogyam. Wearing the Body of Visions and Rig "dzin Dorje. Dangerous Friend, and on
in Russian, in Alex Berzin's book "Reliance on a Spiritual Teacher". - Approx.
ed.

Tantric ngöndro has the character of tantra, and its innermost practice is the heart
tantras, and the four yogas have the character of dzogchen, and their secret practice is
the heart of semde, a section devoted to the nature of Mind.
Here we are faced with the fact that it is possible to approach dzogchen, and at the same time
impossible; but if we have a sense of humor, inspiration and determination, if we
if we show courage and boldness, we will be able to find an approach to it.
We need humor so we don't take ourselves too seriously; we need to be able
laugh at the fact that we ourselves are constantly creating our own ignorance. Without
humor, we wouldn't be able to grasp the fact that Master sees through comedy
our personal duality and masterfully manages it for our own benefit. We
We hope that our book will create certain grounds for such
humorous approach.
To begin silent sitting and eventually find a mentor,
who would guide us and give clear instructions, we need inspiration.
Inspiration can only come from the feeling that "something" is possible. We
must catch a glimpse of such "something" - or catch a glimpse of "nothing". IN
we must be suspicious of the nature of what we are
presenting. Search for the right information, book, listen to meaningful
talking, doing - all these are manifestations of inspiration. Even without inspiration
would not read this book. Therefore, all that is required of you is to nourish and
grow inspiration through the experience of shi-ne.
We need determination to be at the foundation that makes dzogchen
becomes possible. Determination is a sign of self-respect, inner
dignity. Determination grows naturally from a sense of humor and
inspiration. He who intends to investigate the nature of his being must nourish
respect for the direction in which further discoveries lie. If you, having
necessary spiritual potential, caught the opportunity to discover something
wonderful, you hardly want to go back to the backyards, to the cramped and routine
everyday life.
So we need humor, inspiration and determination to move forward. At
the presence of these human qualities, the unattainability of dzogchen does not prevent
the opportunity to enter into his living moral spirit. Practicing Ngöndro Dzogchen Semde
the spirit of dzogchen is inherent, and we can live in two worlds - in the world of the possible and in the world
impossible. This is called the starting point.

1 The starting point or foundation of dzogchen is the experience of non-duality;
this task is achieved through the four yogas.

It was said above how important it is to find a knowledgeable and experienced Teacher. However
it is possible to start classes and silent sitting on your own. This is one of
goals of our book. But we would like to captivate you further, relying on your
own experience. We want - based on the transmission we ourselves received,
- to convey to you the originality of this path. In the meditation manuals there is some
fine line, and we have to be honest about what an opportunity or
the impossibility of achieving it is individual. Those who have established with a mentor
relationship of deep devotion, there will be an undeniable advantage over all
others. So, although this book may be useful, yet without a genuine
transmission, you won't get very far in the shi-ne. However, the experience of shi-ne and his
fruits are the most important basis that allows you to seek the Teacher and receive the transmission. AND
it is extremely useful in itself.
It is necessary to clearly understand not only the principle and function of the four yogas, but also
which is not shi-ne practice. Before trying to practice the four yogas
even at the level of shi-ne, one should do a little non-learning. Even those who have
there are no preconceived ideas about shi-ne, they can go in the wrong direction - from the point of
view of true understanding - direction. We need to develop immunity to
diseases of distraction, distortion and complication. In many religious and
philosophical systems, there are numerous methods that are called
meditation, which creates certain difficulties in the use of this concept.
For this reason, we will use this word relatively rarely. It will
serve as an auxiliary term for us in discussing various techniques in the spectrum
Tibetan meditation systems. Tibetan word that serves as the equivalent
the word "meditation" - gom (sGom). And it is always necessary to be very clear to yourself,
which kind of meditation (gom) is meant. So, for example, lung-gom
(rLung-gom) is a meditation that focuses on lung1. Therefore, specific
methods will be referred to using Tibetan terms. The first of them is shi-ne,
which in Tibetan means “to be serene* or “to remain
involved" 2.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Question: Khandro Dechen, I was struck by your words about what dzogchen can become
viable practice only if there are certain criteria of real
experience, otherwise the methods that are called "dzogchen" will be just a pretense.
Could you elaborate on this?
Khandro Dechen: Okay, let's take puberty for example, there is also
the basis. You must be over a certain age to be sexually active.
and level of development. If small children, seeing how their parents are engaged
sex, tried to imitate them, then soon this occupation would have bored them. They
find a more interesting game.

" Internal energy, literally, "wind", corresponds to the Sanskrit concept of prana.
7 letters - stay in calm state", but this term is often translated as
"serenity".

For dzogchen to become a viable practice, it is necessary to reach a certain
maturity level of real living experience. If you haven't reached this level,
which includes the experience of a non-dual nose and - at least "light
smack,” then you cannot practice the outer form of the methods of dzogchen. Under
"by external methods * I understand not just physical exercise yoga or special
postures, but specific instructions on how to discover the nature of Mind as it is.
An external method might be that you simply look up into the sky and
get rid of the division into subject and object.
Ngakpa Chogyam: The description of the practice is just a shell of language in which one can
to discover the real practice of being in the nature of Mind. These are all important things, but
suffice it to say that practice is not just practice. In Buddhism she
is defined as the union of the practice itself and the total of who performs it. There is no such
practice that can be given to any person, regardless of his particular
situations and motives. Those who have a deep relationship with the Master
devotion, there will be a completely different experience compared to those who do not have
teachers.
Question: Tell me, does this also apply to those who teach? And does it happen that someone
teaches without real experience?
Khandro Denen: Yes, it happens.
Question: But how do you know about it? After all, this is an important circumstance, isn't it?
Khandro Denen: Yes. very important. And you can find out if you are with
this person to delve into the teachings and practice together.
Ngakpa Chogyam: And also watch the Master to find out how much he
consistent with teaching. The discrepancy may be that in public he
friendly and gentle, but in normal communication irritable and aggressive. Or in
Everyday life he will go against his own instructions. Just to you
should be guided common sense. Sometimes teachers behave pretty
unusual, we do not deny it ... But the Teacher must be checked on the basis of nature
the path itself, and not on the basis of any moral patterns. Ability
expounding a doctrine does not make a teacher. Experience is needed, and the only way
to find out if your mentor has real experience is to delve into the teachings and
to practice. Most people are poorly versed in the doctrine and are unable to
check your teachers, although such a check should be started. But you don't have to be
suspicious.
Khandro Dechen: Yes, such a test should inspire even greater feelings of devotion
mentor, because then you begin to appreciate him for real.
Ngakpa Chogyam: Such a test also becomes a self-test, that is, it
simply confirms the reality of your relationship with the Master. If you are practicing
sincerely, with good motives, then the test you speak of will take place
by herself.
Question: In last years it has become fashionable to think of meditation as a kind of therapy.
What can you say about this from a shi-ne's point of view?
Khandro Lechen: Unfortunately, for most people, the beginning of shih practice is not connected
with three points: drowsiness, incessant "mental conversations" and
boredom. We are well aware that, speaking of shi-ne in this way, we are by no means
we contribute to the attractiveness of the practice. But we do it on purpose. We would
I really wanted to arouse your real enthusiasm for doing this practice,
but this is a more subtle task. Its implementation should be approached with greater
honesty and responsibility than is required in a simplified presentation.
It is remarkable that in this way - thanks to the unique opportunities that
gives the publication of the book - spiritual teachings become available to the general public,
but at the same time you need to understand the meaning of the most ordinary mediocre effort.
In order to advance in this practice, you need - being healthy, vital and
open - forget what you heard or read about it in a simplified retelling.
If you practice shi-ne, it is not at all necessary that in a week, a month or
even a year you will become more liberated. This may disappoint you, but
disappointment is due to expectations. The more you expect, the more
chance of being left with nothing.
Question: So, we should try to expect as little as possible from practice?
Khandro Dechen: Yes, in fact one should try not to expect anything at all, especially
nothing special or specific.
Ngakpa Chogyam: If you go by your notions of "experiencing
cosmic*, you will hardly find what you expect. And sit down and find it.
most likely out of any connection with the shi-ne.
Khandro Dechen: The very first experience of silent sitting is bound to disappoint you.
But if, despite the great disappointment, you are still going
continue, then you can already consider yourself a potential student. Human,
who has shown interest in the study of this subject, already has the necessary prerequisites
to practice shi-ne. Anyone who reads this book will be able to discover what
already discovered by all enlightened beings.
Ngakpa Chogyam: At first there will be boredom. And then - even more boredom. (Laughs.)
Khandro Dechen: So, if you are not ready to work with boredom, there is no point
discuss the practice of shi-ne. If you are not ready to sit in spite of boredom and
continue this sitting further, then you will not be able to even approach the beginning
practices. But, oddly enough, shi-not is the only key to the real
understanding boredom, the key that unlocks what life is like without boredom. Shi-not -
it is the means by which we perceive boredom: boredom is revealed as
energy, as the energy that is part of our potential
enlightenment.
Ngakpa Chogyam: Shi-does not allow himself to be found beyond suffocating boredom. Shi-ne
allows us to dissolve our tension in the boundless horizons of our
existence. This inner dimension of being includes both the energy of the inexpressible
delight, and the energy of boredom: both of them colorize this infinity.
Khandro Dechen: As the experience of shi-ne practice develops, boredom ceases
be yourself and become a source of energy. Therefore, from the point of view of shi-ne
boredom indicates the beginning of realization. Without boredom there can be no opportunity
discoveries. By avoiding the experience of boredom, you miss the chance to enter a new dimension.
being.
Ngakpa Chogyam: Boredom is one of the defense mechanisms of unenlightenment. She
manifests itself when we have a suspicion that we are not at all like that
stable, permanent, isolated, extended but in time and qualitatively
certain beings as we think we are. Shi-ne has nothing to do with
contemplation 2.

1 The listed characteristics refer to those implicit criteria by which we
we use to confirm our existence. These criteria are
psychological aspects of the five psychological elements: earth, water, fire,
air and space. In the sutra teaching they are examined in terms of the five skandhas.
2 This word is sometimes used in relation to dzogchen, but in a special sense,
different from the generally accepted, which involves thinking about this or that
subject.

A particular concept or point of view can be extremely subtle or
deep, they can inspire and cause spiritual uplift, but contemplation as
meditation is by no means a practice of shi-ne. Cognitive reflection
may well have many virtues, stimulate a "better" life, but
it has nothing to do with shi-ne.
What then is the practice of shi-ne? Shi-ne - not a prayer, not
relaxation, not a dream, not a sleepy drowsiness, not a trance state, not controlled
thinking, not contemplation, not blackness without thoughts, not self-observation and not
some other state, about which one could from all that

Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen. Audiobook "Thunder Silence. Opening the Consciousness of Dzogchen" - listen online.
Authors: Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen
Artist: Andrey
Genre: esoteric, dzogchen, buddhism, self-development, spiritual realization, awakening of consciousness, enlightenment
Playing time: 06:03:32

Description:
Vajrayana Buddhism teachers Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen, Nyingma lamas, convey in the book Thunder Silence the experience of meditation techniques that allow one to discover the direct experience of enlightenment - dzogchen. They describe the main stages of the dzogchen path - from sitting meditation to direct perception of reality in accordance with the system of four yogas of the dzogchen division of the mind. Each exercise is accompanied by an explanatory section to help evaluate and assimilate the experience gained.

About the Dzogchen teaching:
According to the ati yoga tantras, this teaching lies beyond the temporal and spatial dimensions. But in the history of human civilization, the teaching of the Great Perfection goes back to the first patriarch Prahevajra (Tib. Garab Dorje). This teaching is not localized, that is, tied to any particular religion. Dzogchen is a practical method leading to full awakening, and contains provisions that allow one to practice in any situation, at any time, in any conditions, and even in the context of other religions.

In the middle and second half of the 20th century, when dzogchen texts were not translated, there was an opinion of some Western historians that this teaching appeared due to the influence of the principles of the Chinese school of Chan (Zen) (which in turn also came from India) on the Vajrayana teaching. Now that many dzogchen texts have been translated into Western languages, this version seems untenable, since most of its methods and terminology have no analogues in either Chan or Vajrayana.

In the Bon tradition, the pre-Buddhist religion of the Tibetans, it is believed that the principle of dzogchen was present in the Bon teachings even before the advent of Indian Buddhism in Tibet. Some teachers believe that the Bon teaching of Shang Shung Nyen Gyu in its original form of 12 short lines represents the true principle of the teaching of ati yoga and, obviously, goes back to Tonpa Shenrab, the ancient teacher, the founder of Bon from the kingdom of Shang Zhung.

Thunderous silence. Unfolding Dzogchen Consciousness (Audiobook) -

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