The lightning bolt of compassion

The lightning bolt of compassion

When we speak of the Friend of good in the Dzogchen tradition, we’re talking first and foremost about the guide or master, the person who, as part of an authentic lineage, has walked the path before us and is therefore able to guide us. This is one of the key points of this tradition. For how can we make the journey without a guide? Like an apprentice following the teachings of a master craftsman, the Great Perfection requires direct transmission “from person to person”, whether to share its essence or its forms, such as body postures, symbolic gestures or chants. This is what a Friend of good does: sharing the Great Perfection.

There are many, many different ways of sharing. It depends, of course, on the Friend of good, but also on the student and his or her cognitive and emotional biases, on the place where the two protagonists meet, on the moment when this meeting takes place, and of course on what is being transmitted. A lot of conditions, therefore… for a great benefit! But don’t forget: it doesn’t have to be in a Tibetan temple, with the shimmering gold of statues, the smell of butter lamps and the smoke of incense; it works just as well in a Japanese restaurant at lunchtime, between the noise of the kitchens and a steaming bowl of ramen.

“The Friend of good has the fundamental ability to share this view. He is both the space of the sky that envelops us and the rays of the sun that touch us.”

How do you share primordial knowledge, the natural, radiant expression of the empty essence of reality? There’s no point in just reading it, so go and pass it on!

And yet…

It all begins with the View. A central element in Dzogchen culture, that says there is nothing else to be achieved. This view is the fundamental absence of any conceptual view, the naturally empty view of the nature of reality. Everything is encompassed and pervaded by this View. It’s a bit like looking out into the pure atmosphere on a sunny morning after a stormy night. There’s a spontaneous freshness, a powerful, imperceptible vibration that seems to come from the sky itself and penetrates us just as well.

The Friend of good has the fundamental ability to share this view. He is both the space of the sky that envelops us and the rays of the sun that touch us. Having completed the path, he knows that the path is illusory, and that all attainment is illusory. The bliss of primordial evidence radiates naturally, imbued with the love of the Friend of good for all beings. And this is a real treasur for the student… although it does hold some surprises, as you will see!