Customer Reviews

Dzogchen: The Self-Perfected State

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As a newcomer to Dzogchen I find this book invaluable. Norbu Rinpoche articulates the ineffable. His emphasis on going beyond the limitations of any particular dogma or tradition is also so refreshing and, in my experience, unusual that I knew I was reading the words of a master. The book is inspiring. It made me want to put its teachings into practice. It's also highly practical and written to be completely clear. Norbu Rinpoche's unadorned, down-to-earth way of communicating sublime and subtle concepts is wonderful. His reputation is superb and this book is a good example of why he is so highly regarded as a master teacher. I cannot recommend it highly enough. It's just great.

I dunno. Maybe it is the innate complexity of the subject matter, maybe something is lost in translation from Tibetan to Italian and then to English, maybe its impossible to treat such a profound topic in 130 pages, or maybe it is just me -- but after reading this book I don't feel I know much more about Dzogchen than I did before.

Although this is the first book I have read about Dzogchen, over the last 17 years I have read hundreds of works on Buddhism (mostly Theravada and Zen but also some Tantra) and practiced in several monasteries in America and Japan. So I feel I should have gotten more out of this than I did.

The author is clearly sincere and knowledgeable about his topic, and the topic itself seemingly has much to offer, but I found this volume unable to answer the simple beginner's question: "what is Dzogchen?" The language seems highly ambiguous and contradictory in many places, the organization and presentation of the material is unclear, and the book is peppered with images that are not discussed and seemingly have no relationship to the text.

The book is not a total disaster. The author has some success in showing how Dzogchen differs from other aspects of Buddhism, and spends some time discussing "the base" or true nature of mind. But many more questions are raised than answered, at least in my mind. He also emphasizes the need for a teacher and direct experience. So maybe its simply that Dzogchen is too complex to be discussed in such a short, introductory format. At least I can say this book raised my interest, and I'll be seeking out more answers on this abstruse but fascinating corner of Buddhism.

This is one of the first books I had read on Dzogchen. I think it's a nice introduction and it includes some key concepts, but it's not as good as some of the author's other works--especially the advanced book entitled "The Supreme Source" which is most excellent. I also prefer "The Mirror" and "The Cycle of Day and Night." Norbu is, I think, recognized as one of today's Dzogchen Masters. However, this short book simply cannot and does not do the subject justice. I would also recommend the view of Tulku Urgyen and his sons Drubwang Tsokni and Chokyi Nyima who have published a number of fine Dzogchen works.

While the Dzogchen teachings are somewhat strange to Western eyes and ears, they are not impossible to comprehend with some effort. This book by Norbu helps enormously in the effort to take in this teaching which reaches across many traditions.

This book is excellent. It may be required some knowledge of the topics to better understand it, although this is not a demand. It is written in a very easy language easy to understand even for people that don't speak english as a mother language. It contains a helpful advice on how to confront daily live in a better way, although it comes from very ancient fonts of knowledge. The contents are still actualized, maybe because the basic problems of humanity are still the same (since the beginning).

Chogyal Namkhai Norbu is a true master of dzogchen. This book is an excellent overview of dzogchen and in CNN's style it gets to the point and really opens your eyes. The only caution I have is that there is a small amount of buddhist jargon that gets repeated throughout the book. If you are familiar with the terms you appreciate him using them, but if not just write them down (there aren't many) and you will have no problems.

This is an excellent book. It is a fascinating, well written introduction to Dzogchen which is found both in the ancient Bon religion of Tibet and in Nyingma Buddhism. The author makes the subject interesting and easy to understand.

This little book introduces dzogchen, as a system of awakening in the present moment that is independent of culture, religion or philosophy. (Yet it uses culture (Tibetan) and religion (Buddhist) to explain it...) It is a simple presentation (synopsis of a lifetime of learning and realization), and seems to hit the mark to me, but maybe to someone unfamiliar with the culture, religion and actual pointing-out instructions it may seem lacking. Such is the nature of deep truths - they are always right in front of us yet remain self-secret till we are ripe and ready.

I get the strong impression from Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche's teaching, in how he synthesizes these vast and profound traditional teachings and makes them simple, clear and concise, that he is a true master. These teachings of the vision of dzogchen form the pinnacle or fulfillment of spiritual realization - the 'Path of Self-Liberation', the lower ones being the sutra 'Path of Renunciation' and the tantra 'Path of Transformation', and Norbu Rinpoche introduces them in the context of general spiritual, and specific Buddhist, practices. This general introduction, Part One, makes up the first half of the book.

Part Two expounds on this with a translation of and commentary on Vairocana's (Tibetan translator who helped bring dzogchen into Tibet from India in the 8th century) pithy six line poem, "The Cuckoo of the State of Presence", summing up the 'base', 'path' and 'fruit' of dzogchen (the way of seeing, practicing and behaving respectively). The teachings here are diverse, giving historical and philosophical context as well as practical advice for daily practice. Norbu Rinpoche's style is relaxed and informal, brief and to the point, and is refreshingly free of the rigid and guarded approach commonly found in Tibetan Buddhism.

"The teachings are not just something sacred, to be found only in temples and scriptures, they are actually real understanding of the inherent state of all human experience" N.N.

Dzocgchen as such is profoundly simple, immediate and innately a part of each of our experiences. Natural and effortless, it is apparently too simple for us to appreciate without the direct pointing-out by a master, and our own direct experience. Such pointing out probably has to happen in person, from someone like this author, so there is only so much we can expect from such a text. What this text teaches us is that such a path truly exists, that it is alive and well, that intellectual understanding while probably unavoidable is not desirable or sufficient, and that it is up to us to take the next step.