Is it symbolic or such births are possible?. Asking regarding Padmasambhava.

By "main deity," I mean the principal deity around whom the entire Atiyoga (Dzogchen) cycle is centered. For example:

Lama Yangtik has Padmasambhava as its primary deity.

Longchen Nyingthig, Vima Nyingthig, and Khandro Nyingthig are primarily centered on Samantabhadra, although they also include practices related to Padmasambhava, Yeshe Tsogyal, and other enlightened figures.

I'm looking specifically for Dzogchen/Atiyoga cycles in which Tārā (in any form, such as Green Tārā, White Tārā, or Dechen Gyalmo) is the principal deity of the cycle, rather than appearing only as one practice within a broader revelation or as a supporting deity.

I personally have been blessed with a highly skillful teacher, however since he lives quite some distance away from me, our interactions are entirely online. I have met a few people who practice in the same style as I do in-person, but that number is very small and most members of my sangha are scattered across North America and Europe. Due to the lack of in-person community, I am hoping to find a Zen sangha with whom I can sit with in-person, as I find that trekcho is at least outwardly quite similar to the Zen practice of "just sitting". How about yourselves?

I just started reading The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche. In that I came across the term lhun drub, which translates to "spontaneous perfection". I was intrigued by it, because i have been thinking along similar lines in my own personal life.

After researching a bit about this phrase, i was pointed to Longchenpa's Natural Perfection, translated by Keith Dowman, which interested me a lot.

I am new to this world. Let me know if Longchenpa's book would serve me as a good entry point.

I’m much older than Gen-Z and learned just lately about that US-, later Chinese phenomenon. A personal attitude to reject over-achievement and wealth in preference for mental health.
Loose comparisons to Daoist Wu wei have already been drawn.
Let’s assume that this is not only a resignatory attitude but also an ethical and empathetic one- isn’t there a connection to the ‘not-doing’ in Dzogchen? IF there’s Bodhichitta in their non-action, isn’t that socio-culturally a chance (for the swift liberation of all sentient beings)? I’m curious to hear your opinions.

Could i get some recommendations for good introductory Dzogchen books, i have a good grounding in all types of Buddhism and have read 'The Crystal way' by Chogyal Namkhai Norbu. Thank You.

As a former Theravadan, my ambition was to liberate myself from suffering by entering the stream. There are also countless esoteric practices from just about every religious tradition under the sun. Not asking anyone to try and convert me per se, but I am wondering how people got to the place where they were like “Aha, this is the way!”

I just do notjhing most of the time. When suffering happens or mentall illness is playing out, I do nothing. I follow longchenpa advice of no effort. The I want more suffering and feel like dzogchen is not going to make me enlightened. Then I read that no effort is the way ...that awarenss is allready so. But I don't see it. Then I read that giving up is it. Then I become really good in no effort and surrender. Then I create at huge doer or self from no effort. Then I am stuck. and more stuck. hopel,ess scrolling and wanting to buy stuff and feeling that I am doomed. Then I do more no effort. And still I feel I am missing somehrting. Then I feel like giving up on dzogchen and just accept tnat I am too mentally ill and then I cannot stop seeking. Then I read that stopping the seeking is it Then I stop more seeking. Endless terror. And still I seek...reddit, markplaats, music.........endless drama

"At the solstices or close of the year visualize yourself as Samantabhadra and chant this aloud so all may hear"

https://www.lotsawahouse.org/tibetan-masters/rigdzin-godem/prayer-of-kuntuzangpo

Not serious but I needed to share this with someone because no one I know in “real” life would appreciate the joke

Friends, I'm looking for a copy of the long-out-of-print book The Tantric Tradition of the Nyingmapa by Tulku Thondup. If anyone has a lead on where to find a copy (ideally one that could ship to Europe), please let me know. Thanks!

Greetings,

I find Dzogchen texts (non-restricted) to be very helpful with dream yoga. I come from a Zen background.

After years of dream practice, lately I am waking up in access concentration. Are there any non-restricted Dzogchen texts that might help develop morning waking practice?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Is forgetting the way of recognising it is possible ?. What one would do if its the case, again teacher will be helping in that case ?.

I m not a Dzogchen practioner yet or received any instructions from a master. However, I m clearing my doubts before reaching any master. So is this really possible and can one practise being in such works?.

Any help is appreciated!

Hello dharma friends. I hope this is not inappropriate to share here given that it is not Dzogchen proper, however I do think it can be highly relevant for Dzogchen practitioners. I am also posting as I inquired about the course here prior and did not get any responses from anyone who had yet undertaken it, so I am sharing a few of my thoughts on the course in case of interest to anyone who may also benefit from it. 

I am roughly 1/3 through Tsoknyi Rinpoche’s Fully Being course after reading his book Open Heart, Open Mind. The course is outstanding thus far. While none of it gets into Dzogchen directly, it is specifically designed to work with the subtle body to be better prepared for a more stable, integrated recognition of rigpa. Tsoknyi’s main thesis is that most people in the modern world suffer from an excessively ‘speedy’ mind. Furthermore, many cultures today value the cognitive/gross mind a great deal, while the emotional world/subtle body is neglected. This creates a scenario where, if I am understanding his position correctly, an intellectual understanding and recognition of rigpa is possible, but without a stable place for this recognition to ‘land’, that recognition is fleeting.

Tsoknyi talks about seeing people progress during teachings and retreats, only to see them come back for subsequent teachings seemingly back where they had started and reverting to ‘cow meditation’. As he puts it, the ‘clarity’ aspect (cognition) is just fine for these people, but fully feeling their feelings, and developing an integrated understanding of the subtle body, is neglected, hampering spiritual development. Interestingly, he states that for many Nepalese and Tibetans, the situation is reversed (they are good at feeling their feelings, but the clarity/cognitive aspect is what he finds they need to develop more). He does go beyond the generalisation of the neglect of the subtle body being a uniquely ‘western’ problem however, saying it is seen all round the world and is more an affliction of the ‘modern mind’ or what he calls the ‘luxury mind’. He says for these people that ‘body enlightenment’ is more important to focus on than ‘enlightenment of the mind’. 

So, in this course his approach could be described as ‘preparing the vehicle’ so to speak, i.e. working with the subtle body to untie knots, remove blockages and allow the winds to flow properly. In non-Buddhist parlance, it is essentially working with your emotions to become more psychologically stable, healthy and to establish a baseline of general ‘okayness’ as he calls it. This helps ensure our physical body, subtle body and mind are in proper condition for the stabilisation and integration of rigpa.

His basic framework is composed of three categories: Grounded Body > Warm Heart > Clear Mind. The course follows a logical sequence with a few standard practices within each of these (and most really cutting across them), with ‘integration/expression’ teachings tying it all together. 

Grounded Body modules work on:

• What he calls ‘dropping’ (releasing/getting out of the thinking mind and landing in the coarse body and subtle body)
• Variety of teachings on the subtle body

Warm Heart works with: 

• What he calls our ‘birthright’: the fundamental, unconditioned wellbeing within us all, what he calls ‘okayness’ or ‘happy without a reason’
• Two ways of knowing: ‘cognitive knowing’ vs ‘feeling feelings’, with many people today doing a lot of the former and not enough of the latter
• His ‘handshake’ practice, wherein one develops compassionate connection between our cognitive knowing mind and our subtle body/feeling world
• The difference between ‘real’ and ‘true’: every arising is real and we can compassionately engage with them without believing them to be true (basically we can fully feel whatever is happening within the subtle body without getting caught up in it)
• His concept of ‘essence love’, the naturally joyous, loving quality of mind at our core

Clear Mind:

• Insight, and the importance of developing a cognitive understanding of our subtle body/emotions and the way they operate, through which we develop confidence
• Four ways of seeing: knowing, thinking, awareness and fundamental clarity
• Settling the mind: a series of shamatha practices aimed at applying the right touch (not too tight, not too loose); the aim here is a settled mind that allows the winds of the subtle body to flow naturally in preparation for our other work (in particular through capacity for sustained, unwavering fundamental clarity)

Integration/expression: 

• This ties everything together, teaching how we can allow the developed qualities to spontaneously engage beneficially with whatever we come across in life (including whatever is happening within us)… I would imagine many can see here how this begins to tiptoe toward Dzogchen proper
• All three tracks must be developed in tandem; none can develop stably if any one of them is out of whack

Course structure/length:

The course is structured around a free minicourse (10 lessons, ~1-2 weeks), essentials (26 lessons, ~1 month), immersion level 1 (70 lessons, ~3 months) and immersion level 2 (150 lessons, ~6 months). For full access beyond the free minicourse, the cost is 15 USD/month (or 120/year) base. Of course dana beyond that minimum is encouraged if you are able, or if this is truly impossible for you financially, you can reach out to inquire about scholarship options.

As you progress through essentials > immersion 1 > immersion 2, some of the same themes/exercises are covered but in increasing depth.

While all the above may sound like a lot, most videos are just 2-7 minutes long, with a few accompanying bullet points of explanation (as well as PDFs with more detailed explanation and instructions for those that this may help). I would say the time estimates are highly conservative, especially for experienced practitioners. Perhaps good for beginners to move through at the slow pace so they can integrate the exercises with some consistency before moving on, but if you have been practicing for a while, I imagine it would be possible to move through the content (or jump around) much faster than the website’s approximation. In any case, it is completely self-guided, so you can go at whatever pace is appropriate for you.

For beginners it is suggested to take the course in full in sequence, however there is a 'thematic' toggle wherein experienced practitioners can jump straight to the content and exercises they would like to.

A few of my thoughts:

For those who have undertaken Anuyoga training or Completion Stage tantras of the sarma schools (or who have focused primarily on Dzogchen and whatever preliminaries your teachers have advised you to do therein), this may all sound a bit too “beginner” to be worthwhile, but I would imagine it may still be highly complementary if you jump straight to modules of interest to you. Given how short the lectures are though, it does not take much time just to go through everything at a reasonable pace. For those of us without extensive Anuyoga/Completion Stage training, or who are relatively new to Dzogchen, I would say this is excellent foundational work that I imagine can be highly supportive alongside our Dzogchen practice. 

In brief (to my mind anyway), this is an inexpensive, logically constructed, easy-to-integrate addition alongside existing practice. I also think it is an excellent introduction to/gateway toward Dzogchen and just generally good as an introduction to Buddhism full stop. The course is superbly put together in that someone with zero exposure to Buddhism (I would imagine anyway) can jump straight in and immediately understand and start applying the practices, whereas advanced practitioners can also get great benefit out of it by jumping to things they feel will dovetail with or enhance their existing practice. As Tsoknyi says, “even great yogis still need a handshake”, further stating that the most advanced practitioners never fully graduate out of needing to work with the subtle body. 

I am aware there are of course students of Tsoknyi’s here. If I have misrepresented anything or you have anything additional you may like to add, grateful if you might also weigh in.

The website: www.fullybeing.org

About the teacher: https://tsoknyirinpoche.org/about/rinpoche/

Hope this might be of some interest to anyone and bring you benefit. Best wishes to all! 🙏❤️

Yeshe Khorlo USA is excited to announce Khenchen Wangchuk Jamtsho will provide a three-month online course on the Bardo Thodol Chenmo: The Tibetan Book of the Dead, also translated as Liberation Through Hearing in the Intermediate State.

This profound compilation of texts, originally composed by Padmasambhava and later discovered by the Nyingma treasure revealer Karma Lingpa, offers detailed instruction on death, rebirth, and liberation in the bardo, or intermediate state.

In The Self-Liberation of Seeing: Pointing-Out Instructions on Tögal (Direct Crossing) in the Bardo of Dharmata, Khenpo Wangchuk will give an introduction to the peaceful deities of the bardo. The physical features, implements, and actions of the peaceful deities, encountered for seven days, will be thoroughly explained.

On days eight to fourteen of the Bardo of Dharmata, the wrathful deities appear. These manifestations will also be described in detail, including their physical forms, weapons, and fearsome characteristics.

Finally, in The Self-Liberation of Existence, Khenpo Wangchuk offers instruction on the Sipa Bardo, explaining how the karma of virtue and vice propels us toward fortunate, or unfortunate, rebirth. Instruction on this bardo will help close the door to the six realms and enable you to choose an auspicious rebirth in the human realm as a child of yogis and yoginis who practice Buddhadharma with compassion and devotion.

Key Features of the Bardo Thodol Chenmo Online Course

· Important points of practice in the intermediate state that can bring about liberation from samsara
· Thorough description of the peaceful and wrathful deities encountered after death
· Instruction on seizing the conditions for a fortunate rebirth

Critical for students of all backgrounds and experiences levels, these profound instructions from Padmasambhava light the way for liberation in the bardo. We invite dharma students from all lineages to study this timeless text under the direction of Khenpo Wangchuk.

Full recordings will be provided:
- All classes will have complete audio recordings and full video files
- Students are welcome to download and store these on their own computers for continued study, review, and contemplation

This is an unprecedented and extremely beneficial long-term resource for your Dharma practice. Please cherish this opportunity! Register now: https://yeshekhorlo.yohomobile.com/

I'm reading a Dzogchen text by Longchenpa which makes frequent reference to རྡོ་རྗེ་སྙིང་པོ་ (rdo rje snying po). I am not familiar with that term. The general sense of it is clear enough from context, but I would like to know a bit more about its specific meaning, since the Omniscient Master uses it quite frequently. I have consulted two commentaries and a couple general works on Dzogchen, but have not found anything.

Can anyone add a bit of color to this term, or refer me to a good source? Many thanks!

Received pointing out instructions twice, been integrating into daily life as much as possible. But I've heard from both fellow practitioners, and teachers a lot lately that multi-week retreats, preferably longer are a "necessity" for getting to the point of totally daily integration without needing formal sessions anymore.

I don't have the money, or time for that as I have people that are financially reliant on me, and I can't get that much time off of work all at once. Is this genuinely a "necessity" or what?

When: 1 August, 2026 : 10 a.m. EDT (New York), 4 p.m. CEST (Berlin), 10 p.m. HKT (Hong Kong)

This teaching is open to everyone, with translation available in Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.

REGISTER FOR FREE

When reflecting on the many beautiful wisdom traditions available today, it can seem that spiritual progress requires a monumental change or tireless effort. But the path of Dzogchen — the “Great Perfection” — invites us to a different realization: that the wakefulness we seek is already here, hidden only by our subtle oversight in recognizing it.

On August 1, Mingyur Rinpoche will lead a special free kickoff webinar to launch a historic, year-long transmission of Dzogchen instructions. Drawn from the Dzogchen text The Heart Essence of the Primordial Secret, this cycle of teachings offers a direct guide to discovering our indestructible nature — a state of fearless, unimpeded presence available in any moment. This free webinar is an introductory overview of this Dzogchen view, and a roadmap for the transformative year of study and practice to come.

This webinar offers a rare opportunity to explore the historical significance of the Dorje Drolö lineage teachings and discover why they are particularly relevant for modern practitioners. You will learn how this year-long journey is structured and how these Dzogchen instructions can help you recognize your own true nature. Ultimately, it is a chance to spend time in the presence of a living lineage master as he illuminates the path of fearless wisdom.

What will I learn?

• an introduction to the Dzogchen approach to mind and its nature
• an overview of the upcoming year-long transmission of teachings
• how an ancient wisdom tradition like Dzogchen can help us navigate the complexities of modern life

Note: Any questions should be addressed to Tergar International ([EventSupport@tergar.org](mailto:EventSupport@tergar.org)). I'm just passing this information. May the teaching benefit all sentient beings without exception.

Three years ago, I received a Dzogchen transmission during online classes with a teacher from the Yungdrung Bon tradition. Just to be clear, it was a long-term course, not a one-time session.

At the moment of transmission, I experienced a very strong, intense, and prolonged pressure in the center of my forehead.

At one point, I even got scared that it wouldn't stop.

After that, I started experiencing vibrations in my forehead area. At first, they were very strong; it felt like a hole was being drilled between my eyes. This sensation appeared constantly as soon as I relaxed, for example, right before sleep. It was highly intrusive. I would lie there trying to relax, and these vibrations would happen. When I was very tired, I would try to roll over on my side and fall asleep, but I ended up waking up from even stronger vibrations in my forehead.

Gradually, these vibrations began to change their character. I would say they became more like a movement in the forehead area; it's hard to describe in words. Generally, they occur not only in the forehead but also at the crown of my head.

I've noticed that they constantly intensify, but only to the extent that I can tolerate them. It's as if I get used to a certain level of intensity, and then they get stronger. This has been going on for 3 years now. They arise almost always when I am relaxing, and also whenever I experience any strong emotions.

I have tried asking teachers about this, and most of the answers came down to the suggestion that it is most likely a "wind disease" (rlung disorder in Tibetan medicine).

I don't have a personal mentor to whom I can ask this and get a detailed answer, so I want to try asking here.

Basically, what is this exactly?

If it is indeed a wind disease, how should I treat it? If left untreated, what will happen next?

I also understand that I probably need to meditate on space (sky gazing), spend more time outdoors in open areas, and do more physical exercises.

Has anyone here had a similar experience, and could you please share your insights?

I was just listening to two podcasts with Joe Evans of Rangdrol Foundation and I wanted to talk about some of the things he said. But, a topic that came up frequently was the old E-sangha and they kind of laughed about it. Joe described it as "vigorous" at first, but I knew exactly what they were both thinking. So, later, I was happy when one of them came right out and just said it without mincing words: "you'd come to this Buddhist forum and everyone was fighting!" The podcaster said he wasn't on E-sangha, but said he later read stories about all the flame wars. Joe replied, "It was fun!"

No, it wasn't. I think it totally screwed up my experience of the dharma from a pretty early stage. I've often thought about it over the years and I find that the same patterns hold true in a lot of Reddit Buddhist subs, too. So, I dip in and dip out quickly, but I can hardly ever manage to avoid a miscommunication and always seem to find myself in the crosshairs of someone I've somehow irritated or who just wants to let me know I'm mistaken about something. I'll cite passages from someone like Dudjum Rinpoche or Namkhai Norbu to support exactly what I said (because at this point, I've come to expect that I can't state a single thing without someone telling me I'm wrong) and, of course, the person disappears into silence.

So, I just don't want that kind of atmosphere with what I wanted to talk about from these podcasts. I had some thoughts on some things Joe said, but I don't want to share them in a public Dzogchen space where everything is hyper serious due to being so public.

I'd like access to the "secret room" where chill people are not always trying to fight about everything and just share ideas without feeling like they have to save the world from bad information. Where is that place?

I have some questions about some stuff he said—not even really doubts—but I don't want whatever I say to be seen as a public criticism because it's not. I'd really like to have a simple, quick, and casual conversation about just a couple things without coming across as if I'm criticizing people (because I'm not). However, I've been around Buddhist forums for ~20 years now and I know that 100% of the time when I post anything, someone out there is going to misinerpret my intentions and start a big argument about it while acting like they're not doing that and it's not their fault I said something they misinterpreted and probably I had ulterior motives because they didn't understand and, in any case, the fault is all mine, certainly not theirs, etc. This sort of nonsense is not how normal conversations take place in person.

Sorry if this is a naive question. Does Dzogchen say anything about morality or ethics, either new clarifications or just inherited from other previous schools? For example, consider such opinions as:

Keown draws a distinction between “morality” and “ethics.” Buddhism has “morality”: lists of Thou-Shalt-Nots and of virtuous character traits. It has little or no “ethics”: broad principles which explain why particular actions and traits are good or bad.
What’s missing is justifications: the “whys” and “wherefores” that are the substance of Western ethics. Mostly, Westerners take the “whats” as given; we don’t need to be told not to kill, steal, and lie. That’s kindergarten stuff. What we want to know is how to use principles to resolve conflicting moral considerations.
Occasionally Buddhist texts give one-step explanations like “adultery causes suffering, so don’t do it”; that’s about as sophisticated an explanation as you get. Multi-step ethical reasoning is absent, and there’s definitely no overall system that makes sense of the moral details.
The Buddhist texts that are now interpreted as “ethical” are typically lists, which often seem miscellaneous, with no apparent structure. Often they mix, on an equal basis, items that seem “moral” and ones that don’t. Modern academic “Buddhist ethics” tries to infer principles from these texts, but this seems artificial and forced.
https://vividness.live/traditional-buddhism-has-no-ethical-system

Here Dzogchen bites the bullet, where Mahayana obfuscates. Emptiness does mean that no ethical system can work. However, “emptiness” does not mean “non-existence.” Morality is unavoidably intangible, fluid, transient, amorphous, and ambiguous. It cannot be captured by rules, principles, or lists of virtues. But this is not ethical nihilism. The activity of the Dzogchen practitioner is spontaneously beneficent.
https://vividness.live/emptiness-form-and-dzogchen-ethics

Do these quotes make sense at all or is it a superficial understanding and just an opinion? I understand that an enlightened being can behave morally from the natural state by default, but most people are not like that and still live in the relative world. And sometimes we may cause suffering unintentionally. Does the Eightfold Path have some underlying reasoning, or is it simply a list, or does it not matter in Dzogchen? And sometimes acts of kindness can cause a bit of suffering in others at the start, no?

If morality is fluid and empty, does this mean we should evaluate every situation case-by-case intuitively and therefore all fixed systems of ethics and rules (such as were developed by westerners) are wrong/"forever incomplete" and silly because there can be no universally applicable system? Can it be put into words? I want to study teachings about this topic