Opening the Open Door

How do we recognise our buddha-nature, the awakened mind that is already here and now? This is a tricky question for us, not because it is a difficult thing to do but because there is a split opinion on whether it’s even possible. I’ll explain.

In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition of Dzogchen, the Great Perfection, the means to recognise our buddha-nature is through a ‘direct introduction’ or ‘pointing out’ of the ‘nature of mind’. What does this actually mean? It means that a Tibetan Lama uses one of a variety of methods to enable us to momentarily have an experience of non-dual awareness - which is the ‘nature of mind’. The idea is once we have had a glimpse it becomes possible through practice to build upon this, gradually extending the duration. However, the Tibetans believe that for this to happen a cluster of karmically created conditions must be present. On our side we need to have access - which goes without saying - and we also need the ability - which is not a given. As we know, nothing works for everyone. On the Lama’s side they need to have the ability to rest in non-dual awareness themselves - they call it rigpa - at least some of the time. And there is also the belief that they are a ‘conduit’ of the blessings of the lineage - which means there is a transmission of energy that is passed down from all those practitioners in the past who have become masters. This is a ‘special little push’ from outside just when we need it. And here comes the rub - without this transmission, the direct introduction to the nature of mind, rigpa, is not possible. It will not happen.

Now, while this may be true - that an energy is passed down - (and I do personally believe this). It would be a strange thing - and also an unhealthy thing - if the only way it was possible to gain access to non-dual awareness was through this one small and rather esoteric means. In the wrong hands it would come perilously close to the evangelical claims that heaven is only available to those that accept Jesus. However, fortunately this is not the case, there are other means:

One is offered by Loch Kelly - his first book was Shift into Freedom. He has devised many methods that enable us to have a glimpse and then consolidate resting in non-dual awareness. Again, these most certainly don’t work for all, but there is a plain assumption that they will work for some and the important thing is that he is not a Tibetan Lama and there is nothing about it not working without a transmission from a lineage. However, that said, Loch Kelly was given permission to teach this from a Tibetan Lama who comes from a very illustrious lineage of masters, particularly skilled in pointing out the nature of mind.

The second in Adyashanti. He, though trained in the Zen Buddhist tradition, is now what is called a non-dual teacher - which is a little confusing  because this includes many western teachers whose background is Advaita Vedanta, a school of Hinduism. Adyashanti is interesting because, as well as giving extremely simple and effective methods for recognising non-dual awareness, he also gives a very strong transmission, but without any particular mention of it.

The next takes us into the domain of Zen Buddhism proper - in this instance an American called Shinzen Young. He is important to me personally because it was his method of ‘doing nothing’ meditation (which is resting in non-dual awareness), that we as a group first experimented with. His method is free, widely available, and again given with the plain assumption that it will work for some of us.

Then there are what I think of as the sneaky ones. People such as Pema Chödrön who teach an apparently simple mindfulness of the breath but in such a way it is possible that it imperceptibly slides into rigpa. She says herself that the method she was first taught was just do nothing but because this is so incredibly hard, her teacher said, OK, do nothing on the in breath but concentrate a bit on the out.

And lastly there are all the other places - almost inevitably people who have been shown how to recognise and rest in non-dual awareness and are happy to share this essentially very simple thing with others. No big deal, no fuss, Youtube as the gate of initiation.

So where does this leave us. Finding an instruction that enables us to recognise our buddha-nature is not difficult - I have named just a few here but there are many, many more. Of these some believe - Dzogchen - that it requires a special initiation given by a practitioner of the tradition for it to ‘work’, but others do not. However, what does seem to be a common denominator is that is does require someone who has some experience of non-dual awareness to teach it - we could perhaps say transmit it - and this makes sense. You can’t teach something you know nothing of and you can’t learn something from someone who doesn’t know it.

NW. With a huge nod of gratitude to all those who have been my teachers.