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In Dzogchen rigpa (Tibetan: རིག་པ་, Wylie: rig pa; Skt. vidyā; "knowledge") is the knowledge of the fundamental ground or Buddha-nature.^[2]^[3] The opposite of rigpa is marigpa (avidyā, ignorance).

Definition

Rigpa is the "self-reflexive awareness that cognizes Buddha-nature."^[3] It has also come to mean the "pristine awareness" that is the ground of being itself.^[4] Erik Pema Kunsang translates a text which provides basic definitions of rigpa and marigpa in a Dzogchen context:

Unknowing (marigpa) is not knowing the nature of mind. Knowing (rigpa) is the knowing of the original wakefulness that is personal experience.^[5]

Kadag and lhungrub

Rigpa has two aspects, namely kadag and lhun grub.^[6]^{[note 1]} Kadag means "purity" or specifically "primordial purity".^[8]^[9] Lhun grub in Tibetan normally implies automatic, self-caused or spontaneous actions or processes.^[10] As quality of rigpa it means "spontaneous presence"^[8]^{[note 2]} It may also mean "having a self-contained origin", being primordially Existent, without an origin, self-existent.^[10] It is the compassionate aspect of rigpa.^[11] This division is the Dzogchen-equivalent of the more common Mahayana wisdom and compassion division.^[6]

Rigpa and mind

In Dzogchen, a fundamental point of practice is to distinguish rigpa ("pure awareness"^[12]) from sem (citta, (grasping) mind).^[13] Sem is the mind which is temporarily obscured and distorted by thoughts based on a dualistic perception of subject and object.^[12] Rigpa is pure awareness freem from such distortions.^[12] Cittata, the nature of mind, is the inseparable unity of awareness and emptiness, or clarity and emptiness, which is the basis for all the ordinary perceptions, thoughts and emotions of the ordinary mind.^[14]

Practice

The Menngagde or 'Instruction Class' of Dzogchen teachings are divided into two parts: Kadag Trekchö and Tögal (thod rgal).^{[note 3]}^{[note 4]}

Kadag Trekchö

The practice of Kadag Trekchö means "thorough cut" or "cutting through".^[15]

Preliminary practices

Trekchöd starts with nine preliminary practices, to prepare the student for the main practice.^[18] Trekchöd has a specific preliminary practice,^{[note 5]} , rushan, which may be rendered into English as "differentiating saṃsāra and nirvāṇa".^{[note 6]}Template:Pettit

Main practice

The main practice starts with zhiné, concentration meditation.^[19] Zhiné develops from a forced practice into a natural, effortless state.^[20] There-after the "true nature" is pointed out^[21] by a qualified teacher,^[4] and leads to insight.^[22] Thödgal represents more a fruition than a practice itself.^[23]

The main trekchö instructions in the Lamrim Yeshe Nyingpo state:

This instant freshness, unspoiled by the thoughts of the three times,
You directly see in actuality by letting be in naturalness.^[24]

Drubwang Tsoknyi Rinpoche states:

Trekchö is the thorough cut of cutting through, cutting the obscurations completely to pieces, like slashing through them with a knife. So the past thought has ceased, the future thought hasn't yet arisen, and the knife is cutting through this stream of present thought. But one doesn't keep hold of this knife either; one lets the knife go, so there is a gap. When you cut through again and again in this way, the string of thought falls to pieces. If you cut a rosary in a few places, at some point it doesn't work any longer.^[25]

Insight leads to nyamshag, "being present in the state of clarity and emptiness".^[26]

Lhundrub Tögal

Lhündrub Tögal^{[note 7]} means "leaping over", "direct crossing" and "direct approach". It is the compassionate or skillful means aspect of rigpa.^[11]

Rainbow Body

Lhun grub practice may lead to full enlightenment and the transformation of the human body into a rainbow body^{[note 8]} at the moment of death.^[27] It is a nonmaterial body of light with the ability to exist and abide wherever and whenever as pointed by one's compassion.^[28]^[29]^[15] It is a manifestation of the Sambhogakāya.^[28]

Some exceptional practitioners such as Padmasambhava and Vimalamitra are held to have realized a higher type of rainbow body without dying. Having completed the four visions before death, the individual focuses on the lights that surround the fingers. His or her physical body self-liberates into a nonmaterial body of light (a Sambhogakāya) with the ability to exist and abide wherever and whenever as pointed by one's compassion.^[30]

Notes

^ The two aspects are not to be confused with the three aspects of the sugata-gharba, namely essence, the wisdom of emptiness; nature, the spontaneous presence of this wisdom; and capacity, compassion.^[7]
^ See also rywiki, lhun grub
^ Dudjom Rinpoche: "The practice is that of Cutting through Solidity (khregs chod), which is related to primordial purity (ka dag); and Direct Vision of Reality (thod rgal), which is related to spontaneous presence (Ihun grub)."^[15]
^ Karma Chagme associates Trekchö with Semde.^[16] He further equates Trekchö with Mahāmudrā,^[17] which is more typical.
^ Wylie: sngon 'gro
^ Korday Rushen; Tibetan: འཁོར་འདས་རུ་ཤན, Wylie: khor 'das ru shan
^ Tibetan: ལྷུན་གྲུབ་ཐོད་རྒལ།, Wylie: lhun grub thod rgal
^ Wylie]] 'ja' lus, pronounced Jalü

References

^ Norbu, Namkhai. Dream Yoga Revised. Snow Lion 2002, page 56.
^ Khenchen Trangu Rinpoche 1998, p. 148.
^ ^a ^b Newman 2004, p. 46.
^ ^a ^b Batchelor 2010.
^ Kunsang, Erik Pema. Quintessential Dzogchen. Ranjung Yeshe 2006, Chapter 15.
^ ^a ^b Dalai Lama 2004, p. 32.
^ rywiki, ngo bo rang bzhin thugs rje
^ ^a ^b Rinpoche Dzogchen Ponlop 2003.
^ Dalai Lama 2004, p. 30.
^ ^a ^b Hookham 1991, p. 49-50.
^ ^a ^b rigpawiki, Tögal
^ ^a ^b ^c Dalai Lama 2004, p. 31.
^ Kunsang, Erik Pema. Perfect Clarity. Ranjung Yeshe 2012, page 154.
^ Rigpa Shedra, Nature of mind
^ ^a ^b ^c Dudjom Rinpoche. Wisdom Nectar. Snow Lion 2005, page 296.
^ A Spacious Path to Freedom: Practical Instructions on the Union of Mahamudra and Atiyoga by Karma Chagme, Gyatrul Rinpoche and B. Alan Wallace. Snow Lion Publications: 1998 1559390719 pg 180
^ A Spacious Path to Freedom: Practical Instructions on the Union of Mahamudra and Atiyoga by Karma Chagme, Gyatrul Rinpoche and B. Alan Wallace. Snow Lion Publications: 1998 1559390719 pg 69
^ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001.
^ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 75-86.
^ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 65.
^ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 66, 83-86.
^ Newman 2004, p. 54.
^ Ray 2001, p. 318-319.
^ Schmidt, Erik. (2001). The Light of Wisdom Vol IV. Kathmandu: Rangjung Yeshe Publications. p.77
^ Schmidt 2002, p. 38. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFSchmidt2002 (help)
^ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 87.
^ >Dalai Lama 2004, p. 204.
^ ^a ^b Matthieu, Richard. 2001. The Life of Shakbar. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications. pg. 153
^ Reginald Ray, Secret of the Vajra World. Shambhala 2001, page 323.
^ Matthieu, Richard. 2001. The Life of Shakbar. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications. pg. 153

Sources

Batchelor, Stephen (2010), Confession of a Buddhist Atheist, Random House LLC
Dalai Lama (2004), Dzogchen. Heart Essence of the Great Perfection, Snow Lion Publications, ISBN 978-1-55939-219-8
Hookham, S.K. (1991), The Buddha Within: Tathagatagarbha Doctrine According to the Shentong Interpretation of the Ratnagotravibhaga, SUNY Press
Khenchen Trangu Rinpoche (1998), The Practice of the Tranquility and Insight: A Guide to Tibetan Buddhist Mediation, Snow Lion Publications
Newman, Bruce (2004), A Beginner's Guide to Tibetan Buddhism, Snow Lion Publications
Pettit, John Whitney (1999), Mipham's Beacon of Certainty: Illuminating the View of Dzogchen, the Great Perfection, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-157-2
Ray, Reginald (2001), Secret of the Vajra World, Shambhala
Rinpoche Dzogchen Ponlop (2003), Wild Awakening: The Heart of Mahamudra and Dzogchen, Shambhala Publications
Schmidt, Marcia Binder (Ed.) (2002), The Dzogchen Primer: Embracing The Spiritual Path According To The Great Perfection, Shambhala Publications, Inc., ISBN 1-57062-829-7
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche (2001), Het wonder van onze oorspronkelijke geest. Dzokchen in de bontraditie van Tibet (Dutch translation of "Wonders of the Natural Mind"), Elmar BV

External links

Terms

Texts

[8] The two aspects are not to be confused with the three aspects of the sugata-gharba, namely essence, the wisdom of emptiness; nature, the spontaneous presence of this wisdom; and capacity, compassion.^[7]

[12] See also rywiki, lhun grub

[18] Dudjom Rinpoche: "The practice is that of Cutting through Solidity (khregs chod), which is related to primordial purity (ka dag); and Direct Vision of Reality (thod rgal), which is related to spontaneous presence (Ihun grub)."^[15]

[21] Karma Chagme associates Trekchö with Semde.^[16] He further equates Trekchö with Mahāmudrā,^[17] which is more typical.

[23] Wylie: sngon 'gro

[24] Korday Rushen; Tibetan: འཁོར་འདས་རུ་ཤན, Wylie: khor 'das ru shan

[33] Tibetan: ལྷུན་གྲུབ་ཐོད་རྒལ།, Wylie: lhun grub thod rgal

[34] Wylie]] 'ja' lus, pronounced Jalü

[1] Norbu, Namkhai. Dream Yoga Revised. Snow Lion 2002, page 56.

[FOOTNOTEKhenchen_Trangu_Rinpoche1998148-2] Khenchen Trangu Rinpoche 1998, p. 148.

[FOOTNOTENewman200446-3] Newman 2004, p. 46.

[FOOTNOTEBatchelor2010-4] Batchelor 2010.

[5] Kunsang, Erik Pema. Quintessential Dzogchen. Ranjung Yeshe 2006, Chapter 15.

[FOOTNOTEDalai_Lama200432-6] Dalai Lama 2004, p. 32.

[7] rywiki, ngo bo rang bzhin thugs rje

[FOOTNOTERinpoche_Dzogchen_Ponlop2003-9] Rinpoche Dzogchen Ponlop 2003.

[FOOTNOTEDalai_Lama200430-10] Dalai Lama 2004, p. 30.

[FOOTNOTEHookham199149-50-11] Hookham 1991, p. 49-50.

[rigpawiki-togal-13] rigpawiki, Tögal

[FOOTNOTEDalai_Lama200431-14] Dalai Lama 2004, p. 31.

[15] Kunsang, Erik Pema. Perfect Clarity. Ranjung Yeshe 2012, page 154.

[Rigpa_Shedra_-_Nature_of_mind-16] Rigpa Shedra, Nature of mind

[Dudjom_Rinpoche_2005,_page_296-17] Dudjom Rinpoche. Wisdom Nectar. Snow Lion 2005, page 296.

[19] A Spacious Path to Freedom: Practical Instructions on the Union of Mahamudra and Atiyoga by Karma Chagme, Gyatrul Rinpoche and B. Alan Wallace. Snow Lion Publications: 1998 1559390719 pg 180

[20] A Spacious Path to Freedom: Practical Instructions on the Union of Mahamudra and Atiyoga by Karma Chagme, Gyatrul Rinpoche and B. Alan Wallace. Snow Lion Publications: 1998 1559390719 pg 69

[FOOTNOTETenzin_Wangyal_Rinpoche2001-22] Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001.

[FOOTNOTETenzin_Wangyal_Rinpoche200175-86-25] Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 75-86.

[FOOTNOTETenzin_Wangyal_Rinpoche200165-26] Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 65.

[FOOTNOTETenzin_Wangyal_Rinpoche200166,_83-86-27] Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 66, 83-86.

[FOOTNOTENewman200454-28] Newman 2004, p. 54.

[FOOTNOTERay2001318-319-29] Ray 2001, p. 318-319.

[30] Schmidt, Erik. (2001). The Light of Wisdom Vol IV. Kathmandu: Rangjung Yeshe Publications. p.77

[FOOTNOTESchmidt200238-31] Schmidt 2002, p. 38. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFSchmidt2002 (help)

[FOOTNOTETenzin_Wangyal_Rinpoche200187-32] Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche 2001, p. 87.

[FOOTNOTE>Dalai_Lama2004204-35] >Dalai Lama 2004, p. 204.

[MR-36] Matthieu, Richard. 2001. The Life of Shakbar. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications. pg. 153

[Reginald_Ray_2001,_page_323-37] Reginald Ray, Secret of the Vajra World. Shambhala 2001, page 323.

[38] Matthieu, Richard. 2001. The Life of Shakbar. Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications. pg. 153

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@@ Line 87: / Line 87: @@
 ==External links==
+;Terms
 * [http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Rigpa Rigpawiki, ''Rigpa'']
 * [http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Primordial_purity Rigpawiki, ''Primordial purity'']
 * [http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=T%C3%B6gal rigpawiki, ''Tögal'']
+;Texts
 * [http://www.abuddhistlibrary.com/Buddhism/A%20-%20Tibetan%20Buddhism/Authors/Shabkar/The%20Flight%20of%20the%20Garuda/The%20Flight%20of%20the%20Garuda.htm Shabkar Lama (author), Keith Dowman (translator), ''The Flight of the Garuda'']
+* [http://www.lotsawahouse.org/tibetan-masters/patrul-rinpoche/tsik-sum-nedek-root ''Hitting the Essence in Three Words'']
 [[Category:Dzogchen]]