PACIFIC WORLD - The Institute of Buddhist Studies

Studstill: Cybernetic Approach to Dzogchen 349The nature of these preliminaries can only be touched upon here.Briefly, all Tibetan Buddhist practice is founded on an understanding of thepervasiveness of suffering (the First Noble Truth) and a concomitantattitude of renunciation toward all things in the world. The practicesassociated with this are generally sustained contemplations on suffering inall its variegated and wide-ranging forms, not only in this human realm,but also in the other five realms of existence into which a sentient being maybe born. By establishing an evaluative orientation of pervasiveunsatisfactoriness, an attitude of renunciation helps to disengage attentionfrom the ordinary concerns of the ego and thereby pacifies the mind byweakening the attachments that formerly preoccupied it. Associated withthis practice is reflection on the inexorable law of karma (the cause-effectrelationship between one’s present thoughts and actions and one’s futurecircumstances), designed to encourage ethical (i.e., ego-subverting ) behavior(or else face the consequence of possible rebirth in one of the manydifferent hell realms).Having realized some degree of renunciation, further preliminariesare specifically associated with the Mahåyåna and take various forms.Perhaps the most important involves the cultivation of compassion and analtruistic motivation for enlightenment (bodhicitta). A common practicefor generating bodhicitta begins with the premise that all beings have beenone’s mother in a previous lifetime. With this in mind, one reflects on all ofone’s “mothers” in their present conditions of suffering. By sustainedmeditation on this “fact,” strong feelings of compassion arise toward allbeings followed by the desire to relieve their suffering. This desire thenbecomes one’s motive for striving for enlightenment, since enlightenmentis a state of power and omniscience best suited to help others. Included hereare practices associated with the bodhisattva path: basic virtues such asgiving, patience, etc. (the påramitås) as well as other thematized contemplationswhich seem to encourage compassion by cultivating attitudes andbehaviors that counter any tendency to protect a self. For example, in anycircumstance in which one would be inclined to assume a defensiveposture, bodhisattva practice requires action or attitudes directly counterto one’s natural inclinations. According to Ngulchu Thogme, “if, in themidst of a large gathering, someone exposes your hidden faults in aninsulting way, perceive him as your spiritual teacher and bow to himrespectfully.” 175 More generally, one imaginatively seeks to embrace thesuffering of others rather than erect protective boundaries against it, basedon the insight that it is the very tendency to protect the self against suffering(and the dualism inherent in that posture) that is the basis of suffering.Essentially, this attitude functions to uproot deep-seated conditional associationsof acceptance and rejection that drive the egocentric processes ofordinary mind.