SOGYAL Rimpoché is the lama of the RIGPA association

Here, Sogyal Rinpoche presents meditation as a practice that reveals inner peace. He evokes the blessings we feel when we get in touch with the nature of our mind.

The Buddha's teaching is vast. The Word of the Buddha" alone comprises over a hundred volumes. What's more, the commentaries and treatises of the great Indian scholars comprise over two hundred volumes, not counting all the works of the great Tibetan masters.

And yet, the Buddha's teaching can be synthesized in a very profound way. I remember the words of my master Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche:
The Buddha's teaching is both "vast" and "profound": "Vast" is the approach of the scholar, the pandit, and "profound" is the approach of the yogi.

When the Buddha was asked to summarize his teaching, he said
"Commit no negative action
Cultivate a treasure of virtues
Tame this mind of ours
This is the teaching of all Buddhas."

"Commit no negative action" means abandoning all harmful and negative actions that cause suffering for others as well as ourselves.
"Cultivating a treasure trove of virtues" consists in adopting the positive and beneficial actions that are the cause of happiness, for others as well as for ourselves.

However, the most important thing is to "tame this mind of ours".
That's why masters such as Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche have often said that this phrase alone sums up the essence of the Buddha's teachings.

Because if we can realize the true nature of our mind, this is the essential point of the teaching and of our entire existence.
The mind is the root of all things, responsible for suffering and happiness, Samsara and Nirvana. In Tibetan teachings, mind is called "the king who is the origin of all things - kun jé gyalpo - the universal principle that orders everything. As the great master Padmasambhava said

"Do not seek to cut the root of phenomena, but rather seek to cut the root of the mind".
That's why I'm so inspired by the Buddha's words:
"We are what we think, and all that we are rises from our thoughts. With our thoughts, we create the world".
Speak and act with a pure mind and happiness will follow. "If only we could remember this, keep it in our hearts and keep our hearts and minds pure, happiness would truly follow. All the Buddha's teachings aim to tame this mind of ours and preserve a pure heart and mind.

This begins with the practice of meditation. We allow all our turbulent thoughts and emotions to settle quietly in a state of great natural peace. As Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche puts it:
"Let rest in the great natural peace
This exhausted mind, relentlessly beaten by karma and neurotic thoughts,
Like the relentless fury of waves breaking
In the infinite ocean of samsara.
Let it rest in the great peace of nature. "

So how do thoughts and emotions settle? If you leave a glass of muddy water to stand, without shaking it, the earth particles gradually settle to the bottom, allowing the water's natural clarity to manifest itself.
Similarly, in meditation, we let our thoughts and emotions settle into a state of natural ease.
There's a wonderful quote from one of the greatest masters of the past, which was a revelation to me when I first heard it, as these two phrases revealed the nature of the mind and how to dwell in it - which is the practice of meditation. In Tibetan, it's very beautiful, almost musical chou ma nyok na dang, sem ma chu na de. Which means roughly:
"Water, If you don't agitate it, will become clear; the mind, left unaltered, will find its own natural peace. "

What's remarkable about this instruction is its emphasis on the natural aspect of the mind, which simply allows it to be, unaltered and unchanged.

Our real problem is manipulation, fabrication and excessive thinking. A master used to say that the root cause of all our mental problems was this excess of thoughts. As the Buddha said: "With our thoughts, we create the world. "But if we keep our mind pure and let it rest quietly in its natural state, what happens then, when we practice, is quite extraordinary.
In the Buddhist path, the first practice of meditation is "shamatha", in Tibetan shiné, "to dwell peacefully" or "tranquility meditation". When we begin, it's a practice of mindfulness.

Shamata can be practiced on an object, a support or without an object. Sometimes we use a representation of the Buddha as an object, or, as is the case in all schools of Buddhism, we observe the breath, lightly and attentively.
Our problem is that our mind is always distracted. When distracted, the mind creates endless thoughts. There's nothing it doesn't think about, nothing it doesn't do. If we only observe it, we'll realize how lacking in discernment we are, how we let all kinds of thoughts invade us and lead us astray.

This has become the worst of all our bad habits. We have no discipline, no way of focusing our attention on the thoughts of all kinds that come to us; whatever rises up, we let ourselves be carried away in a whirlwind of illusions, and we take them so seriously that we end up not only believing in them but identifying with them.

Of course, we don't have to suppress our thoughts and emotions, or wallow in them. Our problem is that we've let ourselves think too much, and the result is mental and physical illness.
Many Tibetan doctors have observed an upsurge in disorders in the modern world caused by disturbances of prana, the inner air. All are caused by an excess of agitation, worry, anxiety and thoughts, added to the pace of life and aggression that dominate our lives.

The only thing we need is peace. That's why we find that simply sitting for a few moments, breathing in and out, letting thoughts and emotions settle quietly, can be a wonderful way to take a break.
When we allow ourselves to become inattentive and distracted, when we overthink, when we lose ourselves in thought, when we give rise to mental problems and anxiety, the antidote to apply is mindfulness.

The discipline of shamatha practice consists in constantly bringing the mind back to the breath. If you're distracted, the instant you realize it, simply bring your mind back to the breath. Nothing else is necessary. Even asking "How could I have let myself get distracted" is yet another distraction.

The simplicity of attention, which constantly brings the mind back to the breath, will gradually soothe it. When you try to put a child to bed, he'll want to play with you, and if you let him, he'll get more and more agitated and never be able to fall asleep. You need to take him in your arms, stay with him, attentive and quiet, and he'll eventually calm down. The same goes for the mind, however restless it may be: bring it back again and again to the simplicity of the breath.

Gradually, the mind will settle, it will settle into itself.
At first, of course, you may feel a little self-conscious. You think that when you observe the breath, there are three separate things: the act of breathing, the breather and the breath.

But little by little, as the practice is perfected and our mind settles, the act of breathing, the breath and the breather become one, and eventually, it's as if you've become the breath.
The masters always stress the importance of not focusing too much when practicing "calm rest" concentration. That's why they advise you to give about twenty-five percent of your attention to the breath.

But as you can see, attention alone is not enough. When you're observing the breath, after a few minutes you'll find yourself in the middle of a soccer match, or playing the lead role in your own film. This is why twenty-five percent will be devoted to a sustained and continuous awareness that supervises and verifies that you are always attentive to the breath. The remaining fifty percent of attention will be left in spacious relaxation.

Of course, this division of attention doesn't have to be so precise, as long as all three elements - attention, clear awareness and spacious relaxation - are present.
Being spacious is truly a wonderful thing.

Sometimes, just being spacious is enough to calm the mind. This spacious quality is the very spirit of meditation; it is also the basic generosity of meditation. In shamatha practice, when we can combine this spacious relaxation with focused attention on the breath, the mind gradually settles.

As it settles, something extraordinary happens: all the fragmented aspects of yourself settle, and you find wholeness. Negativity and aggression, pain, suffering and frustration are finally defused. You experience a sense of peace, spacious relaxation and freedom. And from this comes a profound tranquility.

As we perfect this practice and become one with the breath, the breath itself, as the object of our practice, eventually dissolves and we find ourselves suspended in the present moment.
We arrive at a state centered in a single point, which is the fruit and goal of shamatha.

Remaining in the present moment, in tranquility, is an excellent achievement, but to return to the example of the glass of muddy water, if you don't shake it, the particles of dirt will settle and everything will become clear. However, the soil particles are still there, at the very bottom; the day you shake it, the soil particles will rise to the surface.

As long as we strive for stillness, we can enjoy peace and rest, but whenever our mind is somewhat disturbed, misleading thoughts will arise again.

Remaining in the present moment of shamatha will not allow us to evolve, and will not lead us to awakening or liberation. Consciousness of the present moment becomes a subtle object, and the mind that rests in the present moment a subtle subject.

As long as we remain in the realm of subject and object, the mind is still part of the ordinary conceptual world of samsara.
But with the practice of shamatha, our mind has regained a state of peace and stability. Just as the image in a camera becomes sharper as you focus, the single-pointed attention of shamatha allows the clarity of the mind to manifest itself further.
As obscurations are gradually eliminated and the ego and its tendency to grasp begin to dissolve, the "clear view" or "deep view" of vipashyana , in Tibetan lhak tong, is revealed.

At this precise moment, we no longer need to anchor ourselves in the present moment, and we can go beyond ourselves, into the wisdom that realizes the non-ego. This is what will defeat illusion and free us from samsara.

Let's consider the impact of this on the way we manage thoughts and emotions. To begin with, lacking security and stability, we are scattered and invaded by our thoughts.
That's why in mindfulness practice, we focus on one object, the breath.

But whatever thoughts arise, they always and only come from our mind, as naturally as rays come from the sun and waves from the ocean.

We are now in the state of "calm rest", things are rising, though they have never been separate from us, and we are different. There's no longer any need to fear losing our balance or being distracted, no longer any need to hinder what's rising, now that the openness of deep sight has been revealed.

We have become like a rock, facing winds and tides, and no longer, as before, the feather swept to and fro by the slightest breath.
All we have to do is keep our consciousness clear.

When a thought arises in this state of immobility, if we can recognize it with this clear awareness, it will return to dissolve in the nature of the mind.

Thoughts and emotions become like the waves of the ocean, rising up and returning to melt into immensity.
We become like the ocean itself, vast, spacious and calm. There's nothing left for us to do but maintain this clear awareness.
Of course, what rises may destabilize a beginner, bringing back old habits.

The moment that what is rising is seen as separate from us, we lose ourselves. At this crucial moment, before what rises becomes a thought, we absolutely must maintain our clear awareness. We need to watch over our clear awareness, as a natural reminder that keeps us coming back and without which we would be swept away.

What I'm describing here is a process known as stillness, movement and clear awareness (né gyn rig sum), whose meaning deepens as we reach deeper and deeper stages of realization.
As we progress, and let what rises dissolve and release in the light of our clear awareness, it only strengthens and prolongs stillness, just as waves and eddies embellish the ocean.

Through the pure awareness of clear sight and the wisdom that realizes the non-ego, we gain access to the nature of mind. As we progress, we will gain profound insights into the nature of reality and of ourselves; indeed, as subject-object duality dissolves, we reach the state of non-duality.

When we achieve this, we experience a state of profound peace. Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche often spoke of the great natural peace - rang shyin shyiwa chenpo - the profound peace of the mind's nature, the peace of Madhyamika, Mahamudra and Dzogpachenpo. As the Buddha said,
"nirvana is true peace.

When we reach this peace of mind's nature, we discover a vast expanse, a great openness: the clouds have evaporated, revealing an infinite, open sky.

Cloud-like thoughts and emotions have dissolved through the practice of meditation, revealing the sky-like nature of our mind.In this sky shines the sun of our Buddha nature, our bodhicitta, the heart of enlightenment.
The sun possesses two wonderful qualities: warmth and light. Its bright light is similar to wisdom, and its warmth to love and compassion.

If you ask, "What is the Buddha mind? "It's simply this: wisdom and compassion.
And as the teachings say, we all have Buddha-nature, we're all Buddhas in the making. The purified mind becomes wisdom and the purified heart becomes love and compassion. If you purify your thoughts, this pure intelligence, untainted by ignorance, is wisdom. When emotions are purified, they rise to compassion.

Thus, through this practice, we can apprehend the profound purity of the nature of mind, that great peace of which the Buddha spoke at his awakening over two and a half thousand years ago under the Bodhi tree, in what is now Bodhgaya. His first words were:
Deep peace, natural simplicity, uncomposed luminosity".
With these words," Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche often said, "the Buddha proclaimed the core of his awakening, which is the state of Dzogpachenpo, the Great Perfection.

It is this profound peace that we seek to attain through practice. In fact, "taming this mind of ours" is perfectly accomplished when we realize it.

See how, when love inspires and moves us, we find ourselves absolutely helpless. Similarly, when we realize the nature of mind through this practice, it defuses and dissolves ordinary thoughts and emotions.

Then immense compassion and love radiate through us, just as the sun lavishes its warmth on us.
As soon as we connect with the purity of our inherent nature, our Buddha nature, our fundamental goodness - our good heart - is revealed. Tenderness, compassion and love simply emanate from us. So you're completely in touch with yourself, but also with others. You feel a true unity. There's no longer any separation between you and others. There's even no separation between different aspects of yourself.

Too often, barriers and problems are of our own making. We are at war with ourselves. Through this practice, the ego's grip loosens and our tendency to grasp evaporates. In this way, the conflict, suffering and pain of fragmentation and inner struggle disappear.
For the first time, we can fundamentally forgive ourselves.
At the same time, expectations, fears and anxieties vanish, and with them all those feelings of blockage and closure, that sense of not being in touch with ourselves and others, of being cut off from our own feelings, which prevents us from accessing happiness.

What this practice can bring us is incredible, and when I hear these teachings of the Buddha, transmitted by the great masters, when I feel their truth in my own heart, through the modest practice I know, I feel their immense blessing.
The extraordinary thing is that you can actually experience the truth contained in the teachings. It's not something based on belief or faith; you can savor it and understand it for yourself.

What happens when you experience it?

You feel immense love and compassion, and are overwhelmed with gratitude. Your dearest wish is to share this truth and help beings everywhere to free themselves from their suffering and possess that ultimate happiness, that great natural peace, the peace of the Buddha.
Whenever you experience this peace in your meditation, however modestly, pray from the depths of your heart, as we do in this bodhicitta practice taken from the preliminaries of the Dzogchen Longchen Nyingthik:
Hypnotized by the sheer variety of perceptions
like illusory reflections of the moon in water
Beings wander endlessly, lost in the vicious circles of samsara.
To enable them to find comfort and well-being in the luminosity and space that penetrate all the true nature of their spirit,
I engender immeasurable love, compassion, joy and
the immeasurable love, compassion, joy and equanimity of the awakening mind, the heart of bodhicitta.

Your wish is that all beings find peace and happiness in the true nature of their mind. I believe that in the twenty-first century, what so many people are looking for is the truth within themselves. Everyone seems to be asking the question "Who am I?" and yearning to realize their authentic being, beyond the egotic self.

Through this practice, you can begin to experience your true nature, and when you do, your greatest desire is that others come to the same understanding. Because you know that this understanding not only shows us who we really are, but also frees us from ourselves.

To have such a practice is, it seems to me, of the utmost importance. We all want peace, we all long to feel good, to be a good human being, to have a warm heart and to be kind. But we often don't know how to get there. Too many things occupy our minds, and our hearts seem permanently closed. We're not free, and immersed in all this confusion, pain and suffering, we can easily lose hope and sink into distress.

However, when we hear the wisdom and compassion present in these teachings and understand that they begin to open the eye of wisdom, to open our hearts and minds to our true nature and the nature of all things, we are filled with joy, inspiration and hope.

Through practice, we may have a small experience of this peace, but without being able to dwell in it continually. We fall back into our habits and ordinary thought patterns that were ready to re-emerge.

This is the moment to be more vigilant than ever, to constantly remind ourselves that this mind is like a crystal, clear and pure. Just as a crystal takes on the color of the support on which it is placed, the mind identifies itself with whatever occupies it, if we let it. The mind itself is completely open, beyond choice and duality. It can be both good and bad.

As the Buddha said, "with our thoughts we create the world". We are the architects of our world, whether it's a source of pleasure or suffering: a world of karmic phenomena, shaped by our thoughts and actions.
However, once you've tasted a little of this peace, once you've had this glimpse, you'll want to make a firm resolve not to fall back into your habits.

In Buddhist confessional practice, where negativity and wrong actions are recognized and purified, we speak of the "four powers":
the power of presence, i.e. the presence of the Buddhas ;
the power of regret, which we feel at the thought of having caused harm;
the power of resolution, which is the commitment never to do it again ;
and the power of method, which is the practice, whatever it may be, that we do to purify negativity.
In fact, in Dzogchen practice, we confess all our negativity in Dharmadatou, the all-pervading space of the nature of mind. All our negative thoughts are purified in the purity of our inherent nature, and their darkness is dispelled by this clarity. By confessing, we resolve never again to fall into the darkness of negativity, and to keep our hearts and minds pure.

Now we understand better than ever that
"We are what we think.
Everything that rises, rises from our thoughts.
With our thoughts, we create the world.
Speak or act with an impure mind and suffering will follow.
Speak or act with a pure mind and happiness will follow..."

However, when you reach through meditation the state of goodness of mind nature, everything you say is goodness, everything you see is goodness, everything you touch is goodness, because you are goodness itself. You are naturally pure, and this can only manifest itself through everything you do, think or say.

When I think of Jamyang Khyentse Chôkyi Lodrô, Dudjom Rinpoche, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche and all the great masters, I ask myself: "How can they be like this? How is it possible that, whatever they do, it's always a benefit to beings? "
The answer is: because they remain in this state of goodness. That's how they inspire us and give us hope.
When ordinary people like us see His Holiness the Dalai Lama, we regain hope in humanity. Realizing that there is such a good human being inspires us, because we understand that we too can become a truly good human being, like him.
Great practitioners, men and women alike, personify this goodness. Everything they do is beneficial, because they continually remain in this state, thanks to the discipline of maintaining purity of mind. they are never perverted. Always pure, they act moved by this goodness, and they remain firmly in it.

At times, one feels truly in touch with oneself, with others and with the whole universe, and experiences profound inner peace. Anyone lucky enough to have a small experience of this inner peace should immediately resolve to maintain it, not only for their own sake, but for the sake of the whole world.

When you're in this state, the extraordinary thing is that even if you don't do much, your very being is a benefit to others. As long as you preserve the goodness and purity of your mind and heart, your motivation and your being.
Whether we are good or bad in appearance, we can receive their blessings. Whatever we may be is only temporary; all our illusions can be purified because our fundamental nature is goodness.

Clouds may darken the sky, but we simply have to look beyond them to realize the existence of an infinite sky that has never been touched by clouds.

In Dzogchen, we often use the example of the mirror. Our true nature is like a mirror: it reflects all kinds of things, but - and this is the wonderful thing - the reflections never sully the mirror. Whatever our way of being, our true nature remains pure and immaculate.
It is said that we all have Buddha nature, and this is true. Buddhas themselves cannot make it better, and we sentient beings, with all our confusion and negativity, cannot corrupt it.

This means that nothing can touch it; it is immutable; it is uncreated; it is our true nature, it cannot be defiled or diminished. It is immutable goodness.