Integrity as practitioners

We don't have to drift according to the dictates of our conditioning.  We can move according to the dictates of wisdom and compassion.  We can allow our choices and promises to be adaptable according to our integrity as practitioners. 

p197, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4

To be brave

To be brave is to be a pamo (dP mo / female warrior).  To be brave you simply have to give up and accept the consequences of every situation that arises, in the knowledge that there is little you can do to prevent calamity – apart from persevering. 

p135, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

Disorientation

Nyams arise via disorientation in terms of  habitual tendencies. As soon as referential perceptual mechanisms are released—to whatever degree—the psychophysical fields of the senses begin to relax into their own condition.

p76, Shock Amazement: The four naljors and four ting-ngé’dzin from the Dzogchen series of the nature of Mind.   Khandro Déchen and Ngakpa Chögyam,  Aro Books Worldwide, 2018, ISBN 978-1-898185-45-1 

A radical change

When we can enter into a condition without thought and remain present and awake in that experience for extended periods of time – we know that the relationship with thought has undergone a radical change. 

p51, Shock Amazement: The four naljors and four ting-ngé’dzin from the Dzogchen series of the nature of Mind.   Khandro Déchen and Ngakpa Chögyam,  Aro Books Worldwide, 2018, ISBN 978-1-898185-45-1 

Maniacally welcoming

Those for whom mayhem is magical display,find Vajrayana maniacally welcoming.  Although it is a high energy arena – it becomes spacious for those who have the courage to relax into those breakers.

p41, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

In the best cases

 

We do not like anyone to have to alter how they are in terms of their personalities and proclivities – apart from kindness and courtesy to others.  This means—in the best cases—that they are able to disagree without causing offence.  When there is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ behind a view – it can be expressed in an unwithheld manner.

p239, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

No way out

Duality is a condition in which every reference substantiates some other reference.  Without the Lama, there is no way out of this infinite cross-referencing.

p227, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books Worldwide, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Hall of mirrors

No matter to what degree the dualistic hall of mirrors distorts the emotions; a connection with the intrinsic unmanifested nondual condition remains.

p156, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books Worldwide, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Without acting out

One has to address one’s fear.  Fear can be an aspect of compassion in simply being with ‘what is there’.  One accepts the entire texture of what is is felt.  One feels it without acting out; lashing out; or, initiating a primitive bid for self-preservation.  

p116, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books Worldwide, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Existential definition of being

Being is both: thought and absence of thought; phenomena and emptiness; pattern and chaos.  When practising shi-nè however, it becomes evident that this existential definition is not comfortable to a dualistic mindset.

 p104, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Another dimension

Empowerment is a context in which Vajrayana speaks in twilight language.  Twilight language is the bridge between the known and the unknown.  It is poetic in the way that Vajrayanaa ritual is artistic.  Every sense field is a conduit of realised communication.

p87, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Simple self-respect

‘Pride’ in terms of self-obsession, arrogant aloofness, haughty superciliousness, or callous misanthropy is complicated convoluted dishonesty.  Simple self-respect on the other hand is quite straightforward. 

p63, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4 

Paradox

Happiness is a matter of finding security in insecurity.  This is because whatever security occurs in life, is temporary.  If you can find security in the temporary nature of phenomena, then that makes you permanently secure.  That’s known as paradox.  It’s the logic of Vajrayana.

p43, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Creativity

Becoming cheerfully creative means becoming open to playing with ideas, and having enthusiasm in carrying them forward as a mutual project.  You can only feel creative by being creative – and you can kick-start that at any moment as a matter of will.

 p239, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

Happiness

I was not saying that happiness and realisation were synonymous.  I was saying that you should allow yourself to be happy.  The two words however are linked.  Happiness is closer to realisation than depression. 

p238, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

The imaginary illness

The Lama gives us skilful remedies for the imaginary illness of dualistic derangement in order that we discover for ourselves that our illness is imaginary.

p300, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

The vajra master

 

The vajra master provides the truest and most universal, egalitarian context.  Vajra masters see the nondual qualities of all their disciples, and allow them to receive transmission according to their individual capacities and relative constraints. 

p288, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Dance

We need to arrive at a sense in which we can simply flow with the multiplicity of definitions that reality manifests.  There can be some sense of dance there, in which we swim with these currents and relax in these pools of stillness.  Tantra introduces us to the one taste of emptiness and form.

p34, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4 

 

Merely distortions

Tantra is based on the experience of emptiness, and through this experience we can come to the actual knowledge, that all negative or painful states of mind are merely distortions of our enlightened nature.    

p110, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4

Bewilderment and wonderment

We oscillate between bewilderment and wonderment, and practice allows us to experience a space where duality and non-duality begin to flicker.

p224, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

Kindness

Although it is not always kind to say what you mean – it is always kind to mean what you say.  Kindness comes before being frank. 

p317, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Otherness

From the perspective of the visionary practices of Vajrayana it is possible to transform every aspect of prejudice against otherness – of every possible description.

p304, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Drala

The practice of Drala is a method of becoming aware of the sentient nature of the world.  This is important at this time of climate change and increasing pollution.

p284, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Meaning

Life is an existential kaleidoscope in which meaning is only found in the moment.  If one tries to extend meaning beyond the moment – meaning often becomes increasingly meaningless. 

p239, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Curiosity

Life is far richer when inquisitiveness is more powerful than anxiety – when curiosity is more powerful than fear. 

p228, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

All one can ‘do’

The journey involves whatever it involves and there is always a sense of time and distance – but with a fruitional path, those aspects of time and space have no direct application.  All one can ‘do’ when one reaches the goal, is to remain.

p74, Shock Amazement: The four naljors and four ting-ngé’dzin from the Dzogchen series of the nature of Mind.   Khandro Déchen and Ngakpa Chögyam,  Aro Books Worldwide, 2018, ISBN 978-1-898185-45-1 

The fruit of any practice

The fruit or result of any practice cannot actually be practised as such, because the end result of anything is theoretically a position of stasis.  One can make a journey and arrive at a destination – but having arrived at one’s destination, all that can be said is that one ‘enjoys being there’.   

p74, Shock Amazement: The four naljors and four ting-ngé’dzin from the Dzogchen series of the nature of Mind.   Khandro Déchen and Ngakpa Chögyam,  Aro Books Worldwide, 2018, ISBN 978-1-898185-45-1 

Perception

When we open our perception, we do not feel constrained to anticipate events or people's possible reactions.  We stop registering every being by our perceptual sonar in terms of our preconceptions.  Perception then begins to expand.  We are led naturally towards the liberation of our responses.    

p33, Rays of the Sun, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books worldwide, 2010, 978-1-898185-06-2 

How we see what happens

The circumstances which befall us in the world are—generally speaking—the random functioning of the universe.  So merit is not what happens to us – but how we see what happens.  If we have kindness-Mind we initiate kindness-action – and kindness becomes the way in which we perceive the world. 

p81, Rays of the Sun, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books worldwide, 2010, 978-1-898185-06-2  

Honour

You need to keep agreements with yourself, and with others.  I think this is really fundamental.  You need to be able to stick to some course of action; to see it through in spite of difficult circumstances.  You need to be reliable.  You need to be form for others; rather than being emptiness for them.  That’s one meaning of compassion.

p192, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4  

Infinite variety

‘Infinite variety’ speaks of the limitless, transient nature of form – the way it continually arises out of emptiness and dissolves back into emptiness,  Infinite variety means that there is nothing about the way in which form arises that is predictable according to dualistic perception.  

p102, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4 

On the brink

Non-duality and duality are not disconnected from each other.  If you understand that, then suddenly you’re always perched on the brink of realisation!  Every moment becomes potentiated, because it is seen as a distortion of our intrinsic liberated energy.

p208, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4  

For practice to mean anything

For practice to mean anything, one has to change for the better.  One has to be free—or freer—from habitual responses such as territorial avarice, petulance, selfishness, manipulativeness, and obdurate obfuscatory self-protectiveness. 

p19, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

An unequivocal effect

Practitioners whose experience of the non-dual state has had an unequivocal effect on perceptions in daily life, are people who are no longer subject to sulkiness, sullenness, and surliness.

p19, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

The prison of moodiness

One must be able to remain free of the prison of moodiness – the infantile tendency to the three Ss: sulkiness, sullenness, and surliness.  We employ these three out of resentment that life is not what we feel it should be according to what is fair and just in relation to ‘ME’.

p19, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

Everything which moves you

Deliberately name everything which moves you to smiles, laughter, or tears as Guru Rinpoche or Yeshé Tsogyel – because this is precisely what these experiences are.

p205, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

The Lama can conjure

Our personalities are the interface between the patterns of our limitations, and the unconditioned energies of our enlightened condition.  It’s this unique balance which the Lama sees.  It’s this unique balance with which the Lama can conjure.

p148, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4 

The Lama can be relied upon

We should not expect our teacher to be able to know what we are thinking.  The Lama can be relied upon for something different: to know the meaning of liberation, and the meaning of confusion.  The Lama can be relied upon to see the student’s particular patterns of liberation and confusion, and to work with them.  

p148, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4  

How we are

The only difference we can make in the world is through how we are, not what we say and what we try to impose.

p255, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

A heart sensation

In order to establish a connection with the tradition and the lineage, a heart sensation for Guru Rinpoche and Yeshé Tsogyel is indispensable – just as form and emptiness are indispensable in our practice.

p205, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4 

Out of the state of emptiness

After you’ve received empowerment into the practice of a particular awareness-being or yidam, the form of this awareness-being will spontaneously arise out of the state of emptiness when you engage in practice.  Your experience of emptiness is the oven where the bread of vision bakes itself. 

p116, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4 

The practice of yidam

The word 'yidam' can be translated as 'awareness-being' or 'meditational deity'.   To arise as the awareness-being, is to wear the body of visions.  The form of the yidam gives us the opportunity to enter the world of form as the yidam.  This is what is called living the view.  Living the view means that we retain the feeling that we are the yidam in whatever we do.  We experience the world around us as the realised dimension of the yidam.   

p96-97, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4 

A good horse which can be ridden with joy

rLung is the wind principle – which is powerful and direct.  rTa means horse – the energy which can be ridden.  rLung rTa is a sophisticated energy. which is clean, decent, honest, honourable, and committed – a good horse which can be ridden with joy.  The situation resplendent with rising rLung rTa is fresh and exuberant – but only eminently rideable once you have mucked out, groomed thoroughly, and cared for the tack with assiduous patience.               

p197, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

Self-sustainingly cheerful

rLung rTa is the cheerful uplifting quality which resides as a natural aspect of our lives.  One could define it as authentic existential appreciation.  It is spontaneously present and self-created as an aspect of awareness.  When rLung rTa is present—or if we wish to encourage rLung rTa—we give phenomena the attention they deserve.  

p197, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

Likes and dislikes

We feel it is important for people to be open and forthright about their subjectivity – and at the same time to acknowledge their subjectivity as being just that: subjectivity.  If you regard your likes and dislikes as subjective, there is never any clash with another person – no matter how strongly worded your like or dislike happen to be.

p192, Emailing the Lamas from Afar, Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9653948-5-7

Assume kindness

It is important to observe ourselves and understand our condition.  It is also important not to observe others with a judgemental eye because we probably have no conception of their condition or motivation.  It is always better to assume that other people have kind motivation – especially when they are acting in ways we would not act.  We all see the world in different ways – and so it is not possible to judge someone else’s actions or words on the basis of our own way of seeing.

p73, Rays of the Sun, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books worldwide, 2010, 978-1-898185-06-2  

Communicating with dignity

When it can take as long to spell out an acronym or letterisation in speech – there is more dignity in using the words the initials represent.  A Vajrayana practitioner needs to communicate with dignity – because Mind, Speech, and Body need to be the focus of practice in every arena of life.

p56, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4

Transparent to ourselves

 

The experience of meditation practice is essential as a means of realising the view.  It is only within the development of the meditational experience that we become transparent to ourselves.  When we become transparent to ourselves, we can witness the mechanics of stylised perception – and only then can we free ourselves from restriction.

p49, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4 

Dance with the situation

The dance costume of Vajrayana is demanding in terms of personal responsibility, integrity, and honour.  One can don the costume and enter the dance – but to sustain the dance throughout one’s life requires a degree of familiarity with the pattern of motivation.  Life resembles dance – and a piece of advice which Trungpa Rinpoche gave was to ‘dance with the situation’.

p42, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4 

Both imposters

Neither cynicism nor naïveté should be taken as reference points for one’s identity.  If one wishes to impress people with one’s intellect one opts for cynicism.  If one wishes to impress people with one’s spirituality one opts for naïveté.  If one has no desire to impress anyone, one opts for treating both imposters just the same.

p35, Tracts of the Sun : An Earth Orbit of Vajrayana Expressions.  Ngakpa Chögyam and Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1-898185-28-4