Bönpo Dzogchen Teachings

Description

Nowadays, there are two principal philosophical traditions followed by Tibetan Lamas. The first is found among the Sarmapas, or Newer Schools, employing the Prasangika Madhyamaka view of Chandrakirti, not only in clarifying the real meaning of the Sutra system but also in the interpretation of the Tantras. The second is found among the followers of the two Older Schools, the Nyingmapa and the Bönpo, who emphasize the Dzogchen point of view in elucidating their understanding of the Higher Tantras. In the Older Schools, dzogchen, “the Great Perfection”, which lies beyond the process of Tantric transformation, is regarded as the quintessential teaching of the Buddha pointing directly to the Nature of Mind and its intrinsic awareness, known as Rigpa. However, according to Lopön Tenzin Namdak Yongdzin Rinpoche, the leading dzogchen master among the Bönpo Lamas living today: “Us as practitioners must know what Dzogchen is, how to practice it, and the result of this practice.”

Lopön Rinpoche undertakes this task in a series of nine teachings he gave some years ago to Western students interested in the view of Dzogchen and its meditation practice. Here, Lopön compares the Dzogchen view with the views of Madhyamaka, Chittamatra, Tantra, and Mahamudra, clearly indicating their similarities and differences. Unlike the traditional educational system found in other Tibetan monasteries, at Tashi Menri Monastery and Triten Norbutse Monastery, both now re-established in India and Nepal, respectively, Dzogchen is not restricted to private meditation instruction only. Instead, it is brought out into the daylight of the marketplace of philosophical ideas and discussed with the viewpoints of Sutra and Tantra. Lopön’s blatant exposition of these various views, which have consequences for one’s meditation practice, will interest Western students and practitioners.

Transcribed and edited by John Myrdhin Reynolds from Lopön’s original lectures, the teachings are provided here with a new introduction and annotations. An appendix includes a brief biography of Lopön and a sketch of the educational system at his monastery of Triten Norbutse in Nepal.

Author: Yongdzin Lopön Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche was born in Kham, Eastern Tibet in 1926. After studying for four years in a remote cave with his master, he obtained his Geshe degree and became head teacher of Menri Monastery in Tsang, central Tibet. Today, he is the supreme lineage holder and teacher of Yungdrung Bön. In exile, Yongdzin Rinpoche established two monasteries, Menri in Dolanji, India, and Triten Norbutse in Kathmandu, Nepal. In 2005, he opened Shenten Dargye Ling, an international center for studying and practicing Yungdrung Bön in Blou, France. He has been teaching Dzogchen regularly in Europe and the USA since 1989.