B. Alan Wallace, 02 May 2016
In this morning’s teaching Alan elaborates on the notion that rigpa is right where we are looking when observing the mind. But do we see it? We are looking right at it but not seeing it clearly due to the thick layers of obscurations. However, one crucial theme that pervades all levels of observing the mind, from the coarse to the most subtle, is the non-duality of luminosity and emptiness (seltong in Tibetan). Alan explains that we can see it already at our level of practice. As we observe our mind carefully we can see that it is clear (clarity and luminosity being synonymous) in the sense of being clear of materiality. Alan remarks that this is also corroborated by the fact that consciousness cannot be measured by any scientific means. In our practice we can also see the second facet of consciousness: cognisance. Being aware, knowing - this is something we experience more indubitably than anything in our practice. So in this context, at this level of practice, clarity means empty of materiality while cognisance corresponds to knowing, seeing clearly. Now imagine - says Alan - that you have come to the culmination of the practice of shamatha and you are resting in the substrate consciousness. What you experience is the fourth type of mindfulness - self-illuminating mindfulness. Now you can really experience luminosity! At the same time you are aware of the sheer vacuity of the substrate and of the luminosity of the substrate consciousness. Then - continues Alan - imagine that you take dharmata as your vehicle onto the path, you become an arya bodhisattva and you have an unmediated non-conceptual realisation of shunyata, of emptiness. Now that’s emptiness! But you are still aware of something else, too. You are also aware of being aware - of awareness itself. Hence, you are simultaneously experiencing emptiness and luminosity of your awareness and these are non-dual. Finally, imagine that you take rigpa onto the path and with pointing out instructions you cut through conditioned consciousness. Now you lucidly apprehend the emptiness of all phenomena. You realise dharmadhatu from the perspective of rigpa, of dharmakaya. It is the same emptiness you saw as arya bodhisattva, but instead of realising it with a subtle mind which is still conditioned, you realise it with rigpa which is unconditioned and primordial. That’s the true union of luminosity and emptiness. Having taken us through the entire sequence, Alan once again emphasises that although now our minds are obscured we can still see both luminosity and emptiness, but as if looking through three layers of clouds. Alan concludes this part of the session by citing the famous line from the Heart Sutra “form is emptiness, emptiness is form” (explaining that in this context form corresponds to luminosity).
The meditation is on shamatha without a sign (awareness of awareness, directing awareness into space). It is a guided meditation with Padmasambhava’s instructions from the book “Natural Liberation”.
Meditation starts at 18:18
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Spring 2016 - 58 - Non-Duality of Luminosity and Emptiness
Olaso.
So we return once again to Padmasambhava’s very simple instructions, his pointing out instructions: “Observe your mind”. As if it’s that simple. And in a way of course, it is. But I’ve mentioned - and I’ll return to this analogy now, of looking right where rigpa is, right where your own Buddha nature is (pristine awareness) and then the question can be asked, are you seeing it or not? Because you’re looking right at it. But of course, we often look right at something. This happens to me and other people. I’m looking for my keys, I’m looking right at them I don’t see them. Right? Then my wife comes in… [laughter] I often ask her, you know when I’m looking for something, I often ask her to help me find it, because it happens. I’m looking right at it, and don’t see it you know. And so but, there it’s not only keys it’s also the key to your soul. [laughter] Looking at it but not seeing it but maybe that’s a bit harsh. Maybe you’re looking at it and you just don’t see it clearly and that’s where the metaphor of multiple layers of obscurations that we gradually dispel. On the one hand, just by sheer persistence, but on the other hand, by using skillful means.
So I’d like to just now briefly highlight one really crucial thing that pervades, I think equally pervades, all of these layers - in different ways - all of these layers from your ordinary consciousness of the present. Remember? Ordinary consciousness of the present. Padmasambhava said that is Rigpa, all the way to the full unveiled, non-mediated, non-conceptual realization of Rigpa. And the term is very simple in Tibetan it’s called sel tong, sel tong. So, short, simple. And we have to use many more some syllables. Clarity and emptiness (and you know clarity means luminosity) and the non-duality of sel tong - sel tong zung juk [spelling?] - the union of luminosity and emptiness. So this is something that is not distant. It’s something you’re already familiar with and you can ascertain in the very next session if you’ve not done so already. It’s not hard. And that is, as we simply observe this ordinary consciousness - so we’re not expecting something elevated, something “Oh, maybe I’m not there yet” - no, it’s the one you already have right now - that you’ll see if you observe carefully, that it is clear in the sense of being clear of any type of materiality that is empty. Devoid of any type of materiality. It has no physical attributes whatsoever and you can see that, right? And in the corroboration comes by the fact that, still with all of the incredible sophistication of modern technology including in the cognitive sciences, there is no way of measuring - objectively measuring - consciousness. It has no physical attributes, so how can they possibly measure it? So there’s two very compelling arrays of reasons or evidence to suggest that consciousness is clear in the sense of being immaterial.
(3:14) Oh, but now we have the other aspect, the other facet of the definition of consciousness: it’s clear and it’s cognizant, it’s knowing, it’s knowing right? And you know that. Right now you know that you know you’re knowing. It’s not a mystery. You know, in fact it may be and I think it is, your most indubitable knowing. You cannot be persuaded by reasoning or evidence that you’re not conscious. You know more firmly than anything else or more indubitably, incontrovertibly. And so that knowing is itself a type of clarity or luminosity and so we can say in that one [tibetan]. [Tibetan] rigpa. Clarity and cognizance are the two definitions, the two defining characteristics of consciousness. The clarity here in this context can actually refer to the emptiness of materiality, because it is. And the cognizance can actually refer to the clarity, the luminosity of consciousness itself. The simple point being that as you are aware of being conscious right now, you can see that it’s empty of materiality and it’s filled with the light of knowing, right? And that’s already, that’s already sel tong [spelling?]. So, are you getting it? Because, well I’m not going to give away the plot. We’re going to go from the beginning of the book to the end. But there it is sel tong [spelling?] on page one. You know? And it’s not difficult to ascertain, right? So we go there.
(4:37) Now let’s keep on going. Let’s look ahead. Let’s imagine you’ve taken your mind onto the road and traveled the journey to Shamatha. You’ve taken the mind onto the path. You come to the culmination of the path and you’ve dissolved your mind. It’s kind of like a vehicle gets smaller and smaller until finally it’s gone when you get to your destination. And that is your mind itself, your coarse mind, your psyche. And so now imagine that you’re now just resting in subtle mind, subtle continuum of mental consciousness, also known as the Bhavanga and the substrate consciousness and there, you’ve come to the four types of mindfulness that gradually arise on this path of Shamatha. The fourth one being self-illuminating mindfulness. And so, that’s where you’ve inverted your awareness in upon itself and you come right into the very nucleus, the very nature, of the luminosity of consciousness. You’ve come to it’s, kind of its nucleus, right? So there’s your luminosity, it’s self illuminating mindfulness. So that is the luminosity of the substrate consciousness, which illuminates all other appearances in Samsara. But of course your awareness, when you’re just resting there in Shamatha, your awareness is not… it’s called substrate consciousness. It’s called substrate consciousness, which means you are (when you’re resting in the substrate consciousness) you are aware of the substrate. That’s why it’s called substrate consciousness. And so that substrate will that’s sheer vacuity. That’s space. And you’re simultaneously and non-dually aware of the space, the emptiness, of the substrate while also being aware of the sheer luminosity of your own substrate consciousness. So one whole layer of obscuration of luminosity and emptiness has been unveiled. You’re seeing it now… it would be one of these things like, “I thought I had it, but now I’ve really got it. On day one when I started practicing awareness of awareness, I kind of got it that it’s empty of materiality and it’s clear in the sense of knowing, clearly knowing. But now that I’ve achieved shamatha, woah! Now I see what those words mean. This is clarity.” You know? It’s kind of like - I know it’s incredibly corny, but I like corny - Crocodile Dundini… no, Crocodile Dundee [laughter]. Dundini! The Italian version! Crocodile Dundini, "you call this, you think that’s a knife? This is a knife! [laughter]. I enjoyed that. You think that’s luminosity? This is luminosity. You thought that was emptiness? This is emptiness. You know, like “Whoa”. Order of magnitude deeper.
(7:32) But of course you’re not finished. Now you hop onto the wagon, you take Dharmata, you put Dharmata as your vehicle. You put Dharmata onto the path, right? That’s the next stage. Where you’re exploring the nature of emptiness of your own mind and all of the phenomenon and let’s imagine you just carry that right on through until you have a nice, let’s say an unmediated - why not? - an unmediated, non-conceptual, non-dual realization of dharmata, of dharmadhatu, of shunyata, emptiness.
(8:08) Now as we will see starting this well soon, when we get back to Penchen Rinpoche’s text on the Vipashyana and exploring the nature of emptiness, that in this tradition that he’s explaining with great clarity, emptiness is a simple negation. It’s a sheer absence, a simple absence of inherent existence of anything, of everything, including emptiness itself. Emptiness itself is empty of inherent nature, otherwise it would be a nihilistic extreme that would consume everything else. So let’s imagine now that you’ve become… you’re a Bodhisattva, so you’re an Arya Bodhisattva, you’re having a non-conceptual, non-dual realization of emptiness, right? And that emptiness is sheer absence of inherent nature - that’s what you’re observing, right? Non-conceptually. Are you aware at the same time of anything else? Just imagine this. And I can say your senses have completely imploded. The conceptual designation has gone totally flat. This is a completely, absolutely, non-conceptual mode of meditative equipoise in which you are resting in your unmediated realization of emptiness, right? As a sheer absence of inherent nature. Are you aware of anything else at that time? Hmmm?
Audience: Definitely. Awareness.
Alan: Yeah. You’re still aware of being aware. You’re still aware of being aware. Right? It’s built into any type of cognition. If I’m aware of Glen, I’m also aware of being aware of Glen right? Now, that awareness with which you are aware of emptiness, is it affirmative or is it a negation?
Audience: Affirmative.
Alan: Affirmative, yeah! It has qualities. It’s consciousness, for heaven sakes. It’s not an absence of something, it’s a presence of consciousness. Whether you’re realizing it with a subtle continuum of mental consciousness, which would be the, how do you say, the bodhisattva path, the sutrayana path, but sure is absolutely affirmative. And so you are simultaneously experiencing the emptiness which is emptiness and the luminosity of your own awareness and these are non-dual. Sel tong [spelling?]. None duality of emptiness and luminosity. The object is sheer emptiness, but the subject with with your apprehending that object is luminous. It’s clear, bright and there’s a non-dual - they say that when you realize emptiness, in that fashion, it’s like pouring one glass of water into another glass of water. Which means you simply cannot distinguish them anymore. It’s like you’ve poured the glass of water of the luminosity of your awareness into the glass of water of emptiness and now they are completely non-dual, right? And I mean absolutely non-dual, right? No conceptual distinction whatsoever, while you’re resting in meditative equipoise. And so, you call that luminosity? This is luminosity. You call that emptiness? That little piddling a little emptiness of the substrate? That’s a mere vacuity. This is emptiness. And now you see for the first time, “Woah, now I get it. Now I really get it,” right? But you’re not finished yet. You’re on the path of Dzogchen.
(11:23) So now you’re going to take - on your path - you’re going to take rigpa onto the path. Rigpa’s going to be your vehicle, right? Because you don’t want to simply be an Arya Bodhisattva, merely. You want to become a Vidyadhara. You want to realize emptiness with the very subtle mind, right? As you do in stage of completion practice, right? It’s the same mind according to His Holiness and others. This very subtle mind, this primordial mind of clear light, that you actualize, you manifest in the stage of completion practice and with which you realize emptiness. That is the same dimension of consciousness that is pointed out in which you realize in Dzogchen - in bona fide Dzogchen practice. And so imagine then, you’ve cut through the conditioned consciousness (now I’m speaking Dzogchen now it’s Dzogchen context). Dzogchen context, the pointing out instructions are to cut through conditioned consciousness, which is within time. You’re cutting through that, right, with your pointing out instructions and very similar to being in a non-lucid dream where you even (in the non-lucid dream) you may be aware of the emptiness of inherent nature of all the phenomenon in the dream and still not know you’re dreaming, you’re simply you’re aware, “boy, everything is dreamlike, it’s dreamlike, nothing exists objectively from its own side, nothing exists subjectively from its own side, all of these are mere empty appearances”, and you may still not know you’re dreaming. And then somebody comes along, Padmasambhava, and says, “Hey, this is a dream!” [claps] and “Phat!” and then woah, now you get it. And suddenly your access has shifted, so you’re not only realizing that all phenomena in a dream are empty of inherent nature, you’re now viewing them from the perspective of being awake. Ahh, sounds like Buddha mind. You’re lucid. Now you’re lucidly apprehending, rather than non-lucidly apprehending the emptiness of all phenomena within the dream. You are lucidly apprehending all phenomena within the dream, and of course if you’d been lucid earlier you would have already realized that they are empty, because you can’t be in a lucid dream and still think things are really out there. If you are, you’re just not lucid.
(13:39) So now let’s imagine you cut through the substrate consciousness, cut through the subtle mind and now you are realizing dharmadhatu, which is dharmata, which is emptiness, which is nirvana. You’re realizing that not from the platform of a subtle mind - the conditioned mind - but rather from the perspective of rigpa, primordial consciousness, or Dharmakaya, right? Well, the emptiness you are realizing is the same emptiness as says before. There’s no higher or lower, coarser or subtler emptiness. It is what it is and that’s already realized. But now, instead of realizing it with that subtle mind, which is conditioned so there’s an asymmetry there, the emptiness of which you are aware is unconditioned, uncaused, unborn, unceasing. But your consciousness of it on that bodhisattva path, your consciousness, your realization of it is with a subtle continuum of mind, which is conditioned, which is impermanent, which does arrive from moment to moment. So there’s an asymmetry there. The impermanent mind is realizing permanent, unborn, unceasing emptiness, right? But now you cut through that conditioned consciousness to rigpa, which is in the fourth time, beyond the three times of past, present, and future and beyond existence and nonexistence, beyond, beyond all conceptual frameworks and you’re realizing emptiness from that luminosity. Well this is the clear light mind. This is the primordial light mind of clear light. This is the light of lights, this is the source of all light. This is that which illuminates all of Samsara and Nirvana, right? And you say, “you think that’s luminosity? This is luminosity.” The emptiness is the same and of course it’s non-dual, but the point here is it’s primordially non-dual. That Dharmakaya didn’t arise when you first realized it. It’s the ground dharmakaya, it’s is the path dharmakaya, it’s the fruitional dharmakaya. The dharmakaya is always there. Rigpa’s always there and it’s always primordially non-dual from Dharmadatu, and so there’s the culmination of sel tong [tibetan], the union of luminosity and emptiness. It’s the luminosity of rigpa and the emptiness of dharmadhatu. And you’re seeing that on the first day, right? When he just said “oh, ordinary consciousness of the present. Got it!” Good. You’re realizing rigpa and dharmadhatu or maybe through 3 layers of clouds, maybe. It’s just how charitable you’re feeling, right? If you want to be tough think, “give me a break. You’re realizing clarity and nonmateriality of the ordinary, stupid, delusional, samsaric mind, that’s what you’re realizing, stupid.” [Laughter] You want to be a bit tough, you know, that’s true. You want to be more charitable well, you’ve just taken the first step in Dzogchen and that’s what Padmasambhava said do, do that.
(16:53) So there’s the theme. It runs everywhere, you’re going to see it everywhere. The non-duality of luminosity and emptiness. And everywhere means like for example the Heart Sutra. Form is emptiness, emptiness is form, what do you think that form is? Expression of luminosity, what else? And emptiness is emptiness. Form is emptiness, emptiness is form. Apart from form there is no emptiness, apart from emptiness there is no form. Luminosity and emptiness is everywhere. You can’t get away from it. The emptiness of dharmakaya, the form of the Rupakaya, luminosity, the displays of the Rupakaya, Samboghakaya, Nirmanakaya. And the emptiness of Dharmakaya. It’s everywhere. Everywhere you look, and the one who looks, is all just union of luminosity and emptiness. Of course I don’t know what I’m talking about but this sounds really good [laughter]. I can talk the talk can’t I? I’m pretty good, [laughs]. Big faker.
Olaso. Let’s sit and let’s practice. Or lie down and practice. If you want to lie down on the job, you can.
[18:25] (Meditation begins).
(18:58) Take refuge in the ultimate refuge, which is none other than your own pristine awareness. Now with the motivation of Bodhichitta, aspire to fully realize and to manifest the nature and potentials of your own Buddha nature.
(20:10) Upon the culmination of settling body, speech, and mind in the natural states, let your awareness rest right where it is, staying home, resting in its own place. With your eyes gently open in awareness, resting in the space in front of you without targeting any object. Just at rest.
And now we turn to the culminating phase of Padmasambhava’s instructions, his pith instructions on the practice of shamatha without a sign. Presented immediately before his instructions on engaging in the search for the mind. So upon resting your awareness right where it is, without an object, without doing anything, he gives this instruction:
Now alternately, tightly concentrate your consciousness wholly concentrating it without wavering and then gently release it, evenly resting it in openness.
Again concentrate and again release. In that way meditate with alternating constriction and release.
(24:05) At times, steadily direct your gaze up into the sky. Steadily focus your awareness with the desire to be without anything on which to meditate. So, a commentary for clarification: we’re not talking about your visual gaze, but the gaze of your mind. Focus your mental awareness directly above you, up into the sky, up into the space above you, as far as your awareness can reach, but without visualizing the sky, without visualizing your awareness, simply direct your awareness up into the space above you but with no target, with no object to fixate upon. Just direct your awareness up into objectless openness above.
Relax again. Let your awareness simply come to rest effortlessly in its own place.
At times steadily, unwaveringly direct your awareness into the space on your right. Out into space as far as your awareness can reach, expand the space of your awareness with no object, with no visualization.
And relax again.
Direct it to the left. Out into the space to your left as before.
And relax.
(30:15) And at times direct it downwards. Downwards into the open expanse of the space of the mind beneath you as far as your awareness can reach, with no object.
And relax.
During each session, rotate the gaze (or the focus of your awareness) around in those directions. Occasionally, inquire “what is that awareness of the one who is focusing the interest?” and let the awareness itself steadily observe itself.
At times, let your mind come to rest in the center of your heart and evenly leave it there. This implies letting the locus of your awareness distend right down into your heart chakra as if you’ve stepped into an elevator and descended downwards into the heart. And let your awareness rest there.
At times evenly focus it in the expanse of the sky and leave it there. Just release your awareness into space (an open expanse with no object) and leave it there.
(36:05) Thus, by shifting the gaze in various alternating ways, the mind settles in its natural state. As indications of this, if awareness remains evenly, lucidly, and steadily wherever it is placed, shamatha has arisen.
If awareness becomes muddled and without mindfulness that is the problem of laxity or dimness. So clear it up, inspire it, and shift your gaze.
If it becomes distracted and excited it is important that you lower your gaze and release your awareness. If samadhi arises in which there’s nothing of which you can say, “this is meditation and this is conceptualization”, this is the problem of oblivion so meditate with alternating concentration and release and recognize who is meditating. Recognize the flaws of shamatha and eliminate them right away.
Flawless shamatha is like an oil lamp that is unmoved by the wind. Wherever the awareness is placed, it is unwaveringly present, awareness is vividly clear without being sullied by laxity, lethargy or dullness. Wherever the awareness is directed, it is steady and sharply-pointed and unmoved by adventitious thoughts. It is straight.
(39:15) Thus, a flawless meditative state arises in one’s mind stream and until this happens it is important that the mind is settled in its natural state. Without genuine shamatha arising in one’s mindstream, even if pristine awareness is pointed out, it may become nothing more than an object of intellectual understanding and one is left simply giving lip service to the view and there is the danger that one may succumb to dogmatism. Thus, the root of all meditative states depends upon this. So do not be introduced to pristine awareness too soon, but practice until there occurs a fine experience of stillness.
[42:25] (Meditation Ends).
Olaso.
So, here (for those who are not in Tuscany with us right now) it’s grey and rainy and a bit chilly out there. So, outside there are obscurations. [laughter] They’re called clouds. But inside.. Oh ho! Luminosity and emptiness, only. So that’s all we have to do all day, just rest in the non-dual experience of luminosity and emptiness. That’s easy. Nothing more to do. That’s it. Enjoy your day.
Transcribed by Tasha Schumann
Revised by Rafael Carlos Giusti
Final edition by Rafael Carlos Giusti
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