𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬

Chögyal Namkhai Norbu

Advice on Presence and Awareness

Even if 'practitioners' talk a great deal about Mahamudra and Dzogchen, all they are really doing is becoming more expert and refined in the ways of behaving of the eight worldly dharmas. This is a sure sign that a true compassion has not arisen in us, and the root of the matter is that there has never really arisen the presence of awareness.

So, without chattering about it, or getting caught up in trying to hide behind an elegant facade, one should try really and truly to cause the presence of awareness actually to arise in oneself, and then carry it into practice. This is the most important point of the practice of Dzogchen.

There is a Tibetan proverb about this, which says: 'Even if you've got eyes to see other people, you need a mirror to see yourself!' As this proverb implies, if one really wants a genuine compassion for others to arise in oneself, it is necessary to observe one's own defects, be aware of them, and mentally put yourself in other people's places to really discover what those persons' actual conditions might be.

The only way to succeed in this is to have the presence of awareness. Otherwise, even if one pretends to have great compassion, a situation will sooner or later arise which shows that compassion has never really been born in us at all.

Until a pure compassion does arise, there is no way to overcome one's limits and barriers. And it happens that many practitioners, as they progress in the practice, just end up thinking of themselves as being a 'divinity' and thinking of everyone else as being 'evil spirits'. Thus they are doing nothing other than increasing their own limits, developing attachment towards themselves, and hatred towards others.