Ebullience

Where there’s ebullience—or natural joy—concerning phenomena, there’s a connection with the realised state through the elements. Kyabjé Düd’jom Rinpoche did tell me never to abandon Blues or any of the Arts with which I’d engaged before meeting him.  

p143, Goodbye Forever Vol IV Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books Worldwide, 2026, ISBN 9781898185741

Patterns

Buddhism locates karma as patterns in conceptual mind rather than patterns locked into phenomenal reality. Karma is how we interpret reality rather than it being the mechanism of existence.

p116, Goodbye Forever Vol IV Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books Worldwide, 2026, ISBN 9781898185741

Magic

Magic isn't really of much interest from the point of view of Dzogchen...  Because everything is magic simply by being as it is...  If you’re open to seeing and hearing—and sensating through all the senses—everything is magic.

p63-64, Goodbye Forever Vol IV Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books Worldwide, 2026, ISBN 9781898185741

Courtesy

People should try to avoid making suggestions to each other in terms of health, or anything else for that matter.  We’re an old-fashioned English couple. We believe in courtesy – and it is discourteous to offer opinions when no one has solicited them.  

p269, 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 

It’s inexhaustible

So not to become jaded is simply to appreciate what is there. Kyabjé Künzang Dorje Rinpoche said that when you appreciate what is there—you find that it’s inexhaustible. You cannot become jaded when you authentically enjoy anything.  

p326, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

Siddhis

Different people have different capacities and certain aptitudes arise more naturally for some. Whatever capacity one has however‚ one has the responsibility to use it for good. 

p162, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

An apparitional array

The elemental neuroses do not have to be obliviated – they could remain as an apparitional array. They could manifest as vajra appetetite, vajra alertness, vajra appreciation, vajra cynicism, and vajra composure.

p240, 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  

Expression and dissolution

If there was no natural passionately responsive appreciation – it could not arise in response to the Lama, as devotion. If appearances were not intrinsic to emptiness – they could not express themselves, as phenomena. If emptiness was not innate – there could be no display of the dissolution of phenomena.

p251, 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

Active compassion

Each of the six classes of tantra expresses this appreciative interactive empathy according to progressively subtler and increasingly vivid criteria. We begin by cultivating compassion – only to learn that compassion – is none other than the innate energy of the natural state.

p133, 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 

The outer world is simply there; we are simply here

The space of being and the space of existence are both separate and non-separate – therefore they reflect each other. They reflect each other either as duality or as non-duality; depending on whether we attach to form or whether we allow form and emptiness to dance.

p135, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4

Through empowerment

We need to develop some workable sense of living the view before we can appreciate the nature of empowerment. In some sense living the view is a an advanced stance. It comes from deep experience of practice. But if you are open enough, empowerment can unlock this door. 

p212, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4

Anything might lurch out from nothingness

In terms of the sensory fear of emptiness, such as fear of silence, the fear is not based on isolation but on what may be lurking in the silence. Remember that the root misconception of the air element is groundless anxiety. 

p217, Spectrum of Ecstasy, Ngakpa Chögyam with Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 1997, ISBN 0-9653948-0-8 

Sensing

The fundamental genius of Tantra is that the sense fields are interconnected. You can feel with your mind and think with your nose.

p216, Spectrum of Ecstasy, Ngakpa Chögyam with Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 1997, ISBN 0-9653948-0-8 

Capacity to perceive

Wherever you dedicate time to anything, the capacity to perceive in that area, evolves. It’s the same with all the sense perceptions. They can all open up if we allow them free attention.

p128, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

Not Art in the literal sense

The Arts lie behind everything we’ve ever done. We do not necessarily mean Arts in the literal sense. We mean that which lies beneath the Arts: the space from which the Arts arise. 

p124, 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

Being human

Dzogchen is unique in that it deals with the fundamental experience of being human at the most essential level of perception.

p186, 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 

Visceral teachers and visceral students

I don’t really know how ‘online teaching’ would function, realistically. There could be no transmission. For transmission to occur there have to be visceral teachers and visceral students. One has to be able to see the eyes of those hearing the oral transmission.

p347, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

Every aspect of our existence

If we view all situations as opportunities to relate with the capacity of the Lama to show us our enlightenment and the patterns of our unenlightenment‚ then everything we do becomes inspiring. Every aspect of our existence is enlivened with the presence of the Lama. 

p215, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4

No limit

With awareness and kindness there is no limit to the possibilities available in terms of being human.

p114, Spectrum of Ecstasy, Ngakpa Chögyam with Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 1997, ISBN 0-9653948-0-8 

Into the sphere of Vajrayana

If you push any skill far enough‚ it takes you into the sphere of Vajrayana. It has to – because although Vajrayana is a religion‚ it’s also natural.

p268, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

Beyond social convention

So there are choices to be made when you go beyond social convention. To a certain extent—where it only affects you personally—any consequence of going beyond social convention is fine. But when it upsets other people‚ then it’s not really freedom any more – not in the sense of compassionate activity. 

p234, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

Our true condition

The Lama’s function is to mirror our intrinsic enlightenment. The Lama shows us the nature of what we actually are. If we have opened sufficiently‚ through following the methods as instructed by the Lama‚ we could catch a dazzling glimpse of our true condition. We could find ourselves‚ for a moment‚ outside the constraints of dualism. 

p145, Wearing the Body of Visions, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books, 1995, ISBN 1-898185-03-4

The death of any spiritual culture

Sectarianism and bigotry betoken the death of any spiritual culture; even if‚ ironically‚these activities are motivated by the wish to preserve these traditions. 

p113, Spectrum of Ecstasy, Ngakpa Chögyam with Khandro Déchen, Aro Books, 1997, ISBN 0-9653948-0-8

Laughing at oneself

Being able to laugh at oneself is crucial. One has to see one’s contradictions and find them amusing. Once the contradictions are amusing‚ they’re workable. They’re workable because one is not taking oneself entirely seriously. This depends on space – on the emptiness of silent sitting. 

p261, 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

The conditioning is going to be stronger

For people who are not in the nondual state however – it might be more helpful to be at a retreat centre, by the ocean, or in a forest. As long as you are dualistically conditioned—if you’re in a place which evokes that conditioning—the conditioning is going to be stronger than in a place that doesn’t evoke conditioning.

p383, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

The ultimate acknowledgement

Kindness gives confidence to others. Kindness encourages self-respect and authentic dignity. Tantra is the hot blood of kindness. In essence – vajra commitment is the ultimate acknowledgement of that.

p67, 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 

Authentic practice

Craft is authentic practice when it is successful. Success necessitates the development of integrity, honesty, scrupulousness, accuracy, authenticity, genuineness, and reverence. These qualities are as important to meditation as they are to craft.

p64, 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 

It would be deranged

Why would you want to persuade anyone to do anything apart from what was going to be beneficial? It would be deranged. With the realised protectors‚ we have the example of terrific power being controlled in such a way as to serve practitioners. 

p246, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

History

History was composed of what happened and what was sensed – what was ordinary and what was extraordinary. The important factor to bear in mind about history—in the Vajrayana sense—was it’s subtle function in terms of perception. 

p164, Goodbye Forever Vol III, Ngakpa Chögyam, Aro Books Worldwide, 2023, ISBN 9781898185666

Power

Anybody who wants power has a problem‚ immediately. Power is not something to want for itself. Unless it has a function and it’s operative in terms of helping somebody – there’s no point in having it.

p245, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680 

Hallucination

The idiocy of buying into prevalent conditioned perception and relating to arbitrary ideas as if they were truth – is that we can make no sense of the world as it is. We relate to the world more-or-less as an hallucination. 

p213, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

Fashions which pass

You have to have a sense of suspicion or scepticism concerning what seems attractive – and this applies to clothing, music, Art, social conventions, politics, and every other area of life. Almost every aspect of life has ‘fashions which pass’. You have to be aware of that.

p313, Warp and Weft of Wonderment, Ngakma Mé-tsal, Aro Books Worldwide, 2024, ISBN 9781898185680

The edge

Power is not necessarily concerned with having great capacities – but knowing the limits of one’s capacities and being willing to go to the edge. 

p46, 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

Being alive

Engage with the sense fields. Become authentically involved with the senses. Being alive is being surrounded by colour, sound, fragrance, and texture. 

p38, 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 

The essential method

The essential method is to be free in the nature of chaos. We always look for pattern in order to understand anything – but that kind of understanding is manacled to mundane meaning unless one can allow understanding to be amorphous, nebulous, unstructured, formless, or unformed. 

p32, 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