Extracted from the book by Elías Capriles Dzogchen Buddhism

Origin of the three mentioned paths,

meaning of the Refuge
and the role of the teacher

For the Mahayana, the Vajrayana, and the Atiyana, there are three aspects of Buddhahood:

the dharmakaya or mental aspect,

the sambhogakaya or energetic aspect (associated with the voice)

and the nirmanakaya or material aspect.

The dharmakaya or enlightened mind is the same in all Buddhas; what differentiates some Buddhas
the sambhogakaya and the nirmanakaya, which when considered together constitute the
rupakaya or "form aspect".
The teachings of the path of renunciation or sutrayana are closely related to the level
material of our existence, which is easier to understand than the level of energy or than the level
from the mind. In fact, it was Gautama Siddhartha, the Shakyamuni Buddha, who, as nirmanakaya or
illuminated individual material, transmitted the teachings of the three dharmachakras, basis of the path of
renunciation constituted by the sutrayana or vehicle of the sutra —which, as we have seen,
it encompasses the entirety of Hinayana (Shravaka-yana and Pratyekabuddhayana) and the entirety of
Mahayana (gradual and abrupt).
One of the key concepts of this path is that of Refuge, which emerged in Hinayana, but ended up
extending to all Buddhist paths. In the face of the inherent insecurity of life, or in the face of the
passenger problems that constantly occur in it, all human beings long for
find a stable refuge. The most naive take refuge in lovers, idols (religious,
politicians, of thought, of pop culture, etc.), ideologies, groups, admirers, and so on
successively. Now, it is not difficult to notice that these shelters, instead of providing solace
against insecurity, what they do is exacerbate it: if I take refuge in my partner, I will increase the
insecurity associated with the possibility that she may appreciate or love someone else more than me; if she
I take on ideologies, exposing myself to the possibility that they may fail, be refuted, or demonstrate their flaws.

are abandoned by the masses —and something similar happens with the entirety of objects
mundanes of refuge—. There are those who take refuge in spiritual states produced and therefore
passengers, but, as we have seen, they offer nothing more than a solace for a passenger that, after all,
time will be succeeded by the shock of having to face undesirable experiences again.

Thus, the only perfectly stable, lasting, and unchanging refuge consists in the
definitive and irreversible establishment of the state of Enlightenment, since as long as the individual is
in that state nothing can affect you: your experience of total fullness and perfection cannot
be interrupted by anything, since neither pain, nor loneliness, nor illness, nor old age, nor the
death, nor any other circumstance can alter that immutable condition which, being
beyond dualism, it is beyond rejection (and therefore the pain that emanates from it) and
of acceptance (and therefore the pleasure that derives from it), beyond life and death, beyond
of hope and fear, beyond the masterful control of one's own actions and of the
auto-interference.
This condition is known as 'Absolute Shelter'.
It is as part of the method aimed at reaching this absolute Refuge, which constitutes the only
True, stable, and unchanging refuge, which in the hinayana (and in general in the entirety of the path of
(renunciation) takes a relative Refuge: (1) in the Buddha as the individual who has attained the
true and absolute Refuge and insofar as nirmanakaya which constituted the source of the
teachings of this path; (2) in the dharma or Buddhism and dzogchen 67
teaching of Buddha as a way to practice to achieve that true and absolute Refuge, and (3) in the
sangha or the community of practitioners as the true helpers of the practice oriented to
reach the true and absolute Refuge.

The oldest form of Buddhist teaching is constituted by the path of renunciation and, in form
writing, particularly by the hinayana. In general, in the path of renunciation there is neither the figure
from the guru as an unquestionable authority nor the practice of "physical" yoga. In particular, regarding
to the relationship with the person from whom instruction is received, each vehicle of the avenue of renunciation

establish your own rules.

Thus, in the Hinayana, everyone must learn without limits from their kalyâna mitta or 'noble friends.'
friends" of older age; in particular, in a Buddhist cloister, each novice chooses from among the monks.
of legal age, one who instructs him in the dharma, whom he will designate as acharya, and another who will ...

communicate the discipline rules, to whom will be referred to as upadhyâya.162 However, in

In neither case does the novice receiving instruction have a commitment to their instructor.
of absolute obedience (which will be discussed at the appropriate time) that, on the way of
transformation, would have a disciple with his tantric guru.
Also in gradual Mahayana, everyone must learn limitlessly from their kalyanamitra.

above in relation to Hinayana.

Now then, in instant mahayana —that is, ch'an or zen— the relationship of the disciple with
the master has a different aspect than in Hinayana and in gradual Mahayana, for the
the acharya of the instant path has practically the same authority as the guru of the path of
transformation.

Over time, Vajrayana or Buddhist Tantrism also emerged — both external and internal — with its
different vehicles. It is because the teachings of this path are more related to the level of the
energy,164 which is not as palpable as the material, that 158In the path of renunciation the Refuge is
divide, then, into absolute and relative: the former is the state of Enlightenment, and the latter is the triple
jewel (triratna), constituted by the Buddha, the dharma, and the sangha, which can be understood in a sense
external, internal or secret.

In the external sense, the Buddha is Shakyamuni, the dharma is the set of his teachings and the
Sangha is the group of monks and nuns.

In the internal sense (specifically associated with Mahayana), the Buddha is the state of Enlightenment.
or anyone who has obtained it, the dharma is the methods to directly access the experience
of the indivisibility of emptiness (or wisdom) and compassion, and the sangha is constituted by the
superior bodhisattvas (arya bodhisattva): those who have reached or surpassed the third path (the
of Vision) and the corresponding first level (the "joyful").

Finally, in the secret sense, the Buddha is the dharmakaya, the dharma is the sambhogakaya and the
the sangha is the nirmanakaya.

Only this last one constitutes the true, absolute Refuge in which nothing can harm us or
negatively affect us.

The Pali Canon, the doctrinal basis of Hinayana in general, was compiled before the canon
Sanskrit, doctrinal basis of Mahayana; however, according to Mahayana, the Buddha Shakyamuni
he would have preached in life the teachings of this vehicle, which, as an oral tradition, do not
they would then be subsequent to the Hinayana.
This term is pali; its Sanskrit equivalent is kalyanamitra.
This word, which is Sanskrit, was used in the Hinayana communities of Northern India;
since the monastic institution always belongs to the hinayana, it was also used, and it
it is still used in the monastic communities of Mahayana.
162 This term is Sanskrit; its Pali equivalent is upajjhayo.
As has already been seen, this word, which is Sanskrit, has its Pali equivalent, which is kalyâna.
mitta.
This refers to the level of energy in the sense that the term is used when discussing.
of body, energy or voice, and mind; not in the one that has when speaking of essence or ngowo (ngo-bo),
nature or rangshín (rang-bzhin) and energy or tukllé (thugs-rje). As will be seen in the second part
from this book, according to the teaching of atiyana-dzogchén, the tukllé energy manifests in three ways.
different ways, known as form dang (gdangs) of manifestation of energy,
form rolpa (rol-pa) of manifestation of energy and form tsel (rtsal) of manifestation of the
energy; in terms of these three forms of manifestation of energy, the level at which here
it alludes to being related to the
Buddhism and Dzogchen 68
These teachings are more difficult to understand than those of the path of renunciation and that, in con-

sequence, it is considered that its practice requires greater capacity. Closely related to it
the fact that, unlike the teachings of the sutra, which were
transmitted directly by the Buddha Shakyamuni in his physical dimension, the tantric teachings
they were communicated through manifestations of pure vision, at a level that is not concrete
the material. For example, when discussing the origin of Kalachakra tantra (which, as we saw, is
a non-dual anuttarayogatantra from the 'new' or sarmapa tradition and a mahayogatantra from the
in the 'ancient' tradition or Ñingmapa, it is said that Buddha Shakyamuni transformed into Kalachakra.
transmitted the corresponding teaching through that manifestation. Although it was about the
Buddha Shakyamuni, who was a monk, the manifestation he produced for the occasion had the form of
Kalachakra, which is found in îab-îum165 (that is, in sexual union with his partner). As noted by the
Master Namkhai Norbu, the fact that a monk has manifested in this way can
it may seem like a contradiction, but it is not, since it was not about something material or concrete, but about a

manifestation, in the dimension of our energy, 166 of the true nature of the elements and
its functions —which responded to our karmic potentialities.

In particular, according to 'ancient' Buddhism or Nyingma, the teachings of Vajrayana or Tantrism

Buddhist teachings would have been transmitted by the sambhogakaya Vajrasattva, representation of pure vision.
what embodies the energy of the great adepts or mahasiddhas.
Indeed, the tantras of the 'ancients' or Nyingmapa were mainly transmitted by adepts of the
land of Öddiyana, corresponding to the Kabul valley in present-day Afghanistan and/or to the Swat valley in
the current Pakistan.
What determines whether a teaching is Buddhist or not is not that its original form was or
not directly taught by Shakyamuni; it is well known that in different sutras of the way of
Renunciation or the great bodhisattvas or the great arhats, and not Shakyamuni, who
they dictate the teachings.

They are dictated by the power of Buddha and, consequently, they are considered as the word of Buddha.
Something similar happened in the case of the mahasiddha of Öddiyana who revealed the tantra: if they
They received and transmitted through the power of the trikaya of the Buddha, these texts are teachings.
Buddhists.

As we have seen, in the path of renunciation one takes Refuge in the Buddha (in the external sense)
identified with Shakyamuni), the dharma or Buddhist teaching, and the sangha or community of
practitioners, for the teachings in question come from the nirmanakaya Shakyamuni, who...
consider as the supreme embodiment of the state we want to achieve. We have just seen that the
teachings of the path of transformation do not come from the nirmanakaya Shakyamuni, but from the
sambhogakaya, which revealed and transmitted to different mahasiddha and tantric gurus, and which we
we receive them from our teachers in human form, who have achieved the realization of the state
what teachings are communicated and who, through tantric empowerment, transfers them to us
the power of said state.

the rölpa energy (rol-pa); on the other hand, the material level would correspond to the tsel energy (rtsal) and the

mental level to dang energy (gdangs).

165 Yab-yum.
166 Although here the word 'energy' also refers to the meaning given to it when
it talks about body, energy or voice, and mind, in this particular case the term refers to
more specifically to the rölpa (rol-pa) form of manifestation of the energy aspect or thukllé
(thugs-rje) from the base. As noted in footnote 164, the next part of this book will explain
in greater detail the three forms of manifestation of energy or tukllé, which are dang (gdangs),
rölpa (rol-pa) and tsel (rtsal).
In the case of the fire element, everyone will agree that, at the level of the physical world in
general, this is represented by everything that is in an incandescent state. At the level of
our own physical body, this element corresponds to the heat of our body, which is
it manifests as long as we are alive and our organism functions normally.

In contrast, in the dimension of the true nature of the elements, corresponding to the
energy, the element fire is nothing more than the color red.

168See note 164.

Buddhism and Dzogchen 69

This means that the state we wish to achieve is the state of the master, and that its attainment
it totally depends on this last one; in fact, in tantrism it is said that before there existed the
master there didn't even exist the name of Buddha, and it is said that realization depends on the
master. In particular, the effect of the transmission we receive from the master depends on the way
as we perceive him: if we perceive him as a Buddha, we can attain the realization of a
Buda.169 This implies that in this vehicle we have the commitment or tantric samaya to perceive the
master in a pure way, and that the realization depends on the degree to which we manage to maintain this

commitment.
We saw that in the path of renunciation, one takes refuge in the Buddha and externally identifies with the Buddha.

with Shakyamuni as the individual who has attained the true and absolute Refuge, which is what
that in this way it is aspired to obtain, and in as much as nirmanakaya which constituted the source of the
teachings of this path; similarly, in the path of transformation one takes Refuge in the
master (guru or lama)170 because this is the source of the transmission and the eventual realization of
disciple, and because it is the state of Refuge of this one that is desired to be reached.

Likewise, just as in the path of renunciation one takes refuge in the dharma, which externally
identify with the teachings given by Shakyamuni, as a path to practice to achieve the
true and absolute Refuge, on the path of transformation one takes Refuge in the 'deity of
"meditation" (deva, devata, ishta devata or îidam)171 because the methods of practice that it teaches the
tantric master as a way to access the true and absolute Refuge are the deities of
meditation.

And just as in the path of renunciation, one takes refuge in the sangha or the community of practitioners.

as the true helpers of the practice aimed at attaining the true and absolute Refuge,
on the path of transformation, refuge is taken in the dakini (khandro), who, along with the
guardians or dharmapala and the vajra brothers and sisters, are in it the true helpers of
the practice.173
On the path of transformation, the teacher is the guru or the vajracharya (“vajra master”), to whom one
he attributes an unquestionable authority; he dictates to his disciples what
It is said that if the student perceives the teacher as a Buddha, they will be able to achieve realization of a
Buddha; if you perceive him as a vidyadhara or rigdzin (rig-’dzin) you will obtain the qualities of a vidyadhara or

rigdzin; if he perceives it as a mahasiddha, he will be able to obtain that of a mahasiddha; if he perceives it as

a siddha, he will be able to obtain the one of a siddha; if he perceives him as a yogi, he will be able to obtain the one of a yogi;

if he perceives him as a bodhisattva, he will be able to obtain the one of a bodhisattva - and if he perceives him as a

dog or like a demon will be able to obtain that of a dog or that of a demon, respectively.
170bLa-ma.
171Yi-dam.
172mKha’-’gro.
173 With respect to this relationship between the Refuge of the renunciation path and the Refuge of the path of
transformation, cf. Norbu, Namkhai (translation into Italian in manuscript and from this language into English
also in manuscript, 1993), The Precious Vase. As noted in a previous note, this book
broadly addresses the same topics as: Norbu, Namkhai (Italian 1993, Spanish 1994),
The pitcher that fulfills wishes. Mérida, Editorial Reflejos.

It should be noted that the Refuge explained in this paragraph corresponds to the external level of
Refuge in the path of transformation. The internal level in this path would be constituted by the Refuge.
in the true nature of each of the three aspects of the vajra body: that of the channels [in
Sanskrit nadi; in Tibetan tsa (rtsa), the currents of energy or "winds" [in Sanskrit, vayu]
the prana; in Tibetan, lung (rlung) and that of the seed-essence/primordial energy [in Sanskrit, bindu
(seed-essence) or kundalini (primordial energy or bioenergetic flow); in Tibetan thigle (thig-
Finally, the secret level would correspond to the Refuge in the dharmakaya, the sambhogakaya and the
nirmanakaya, but understood now at the deepest level that these three terms have in the
transformational pathway.

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they must do, and they must consider him with the utmost respect and keep him in a clearly defined position
superior to the own (which does not mean that they should consider it as intrinsically superior to
they must see him as the embodiment of the state that they consider supreme and that,
precisely through the transmissions and teachings they receive from him or her, they themselves
they wish to achieve). Similarly, on this path, the practice of 'physical' yoga is of the utmost
importance, as it is essential for many of the practices of the stadium of
perfection (although, as will be seen in the second part of the book, the 'physical yoga' that is practiced in
this path is very different from what most people in the West know, which is hatha yoga

Finally, the atiyana-dzogchén is more related to the level of the mind, which is still
less evident than that of energy and, therefore, even more difficult to understand — being, in
consequence, the one that requires the greatest capacity—. This vehicle, which according to Tibetan Buddhism
and in particular according to the 'ancient' or Nyingma tradition, constitutes the supreme teaching of
Buddhism was transmitted by the dharmakaya Samantabhadra, symbol of the Enlightened mind.
Although no one attributes these teachings directly to Shakyamuni, no serious Tibetan master...
would dare to affirm that they do not constitute a Buddhist path —or even the supreme path of
Buddhism—. On one hand, a teaching that, like atiyana-dzogchén, does not belong to the level
concrete material, to be a Buddhist one should not have been taught at the concrete material level
the nirmanakaya of Shakyamuni. On the other hand, just as there is a type of teaching from Buddha that

arises when he empowers the bodhisattvas to announce it, and another that arises when the Buddha
power to the arhants (both contained in Buddhist sutras and considered as direct teachings
from the Buddha), there is still another type of Buddhist teaching that is transmitted through prophecy: Shakyamuni

announces that at such and such moment, in such and such place, such and such type of Buddhist teaching will arise,

and consequently it is considered as direct teaching from the Buddha. In fact, Shakyamuni
he prophesied that a certain time after his parinirvana, a teaching would appear in Öddiyana
beyond cause and effect, which would be the most essential of all Buddhist teachings; in
consequence, it is believed that the Buddhist dzogchen taught in Öddiyana by the tönpa Garab
Dorlle174 is a teaching of Buddha. And, unlike the ones that the bodhisattvas and the arhants dictate.
in the sutras, since Garab Dorje is considered an emanation of the Buddha, this
teaching is not considered as dictated by 'empowerment', but rather as dictated directly by the
Buda.
Just as in the path of renunciation the source of the teachings was the Buddha (in the external sense
identified with Shakyamuni) and in the path of transformation was the master, and the true Refuge
was constituted by the respective states of these, on the path of self-liberation the source of the
teachings is our own state of rigpa or Truth,175
174dGa’-rab rDo-rje. The title 'tönpa' (ston-pa) is given to all the great masters who
they introduce or reintroduce into the physical world a teaching directed towards true Enlightenment;
for example, Shakyamuni, Shenrab Miwó, and Garab dorlle are all considered tönpa.
Dzogchen teaching designates the error-free state in which gnosis has become evident.
non-dual that constitutes the basis with the term rigpa (rig-pa), which corresponds to the Sanskrit vidya, and
that in this book I almost always translate as Truth (in the sense of absence of error or delusion).
Master Namkhai Norbu generally translates the same term as 'Knowledge', which
then it should be written with a capital letter in order to contrast its meaning with that of the word in
the common language [which corresponds to its etymology, since, as we saw, according to Paul Claudel the
knowledge (la connaissance) is the co-birth (la co-naissance) of the subject and the object, which
it implies the state characterized by dualism and error.

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what also constitutes the true Refuge. Like all Buddhist vehicles, the atiyana-
dzogchén has three aspects, which are the base, the path, and the fruit — each of which, in this
case, it has three aspects—. Regarding the 'way', among its three aspects the first
it is the tawa176 or Vision, which is none other than the already mentioned state of rigpa or Truth: this is the
equivalent of the Buddha on the path of renunciation and of the master on the path of transformation, and constitutes the

first element of the Refuge (it could not be correctly said "object of Refuge" because
it precisely concerns the condition that is free from the subject-object duality). Just as
on the path of renunciation the methods to practice were the dharma and on the path of transformation they were the

Goddess, on the path of self-liberation, the methods to practice are none other than the second.
aspect of the way, which is known as gompa177 or Contemplation, defined as
continue in the tawa or Vision": this continue in the non-dual state free of valuation
illusory absolutization is the equivalent of dharma on the path of renunciation and of îidam on the path of
transformation, and constitutes the second element of the Refuge. Finally, just as in the way of
resignation the true helpers of the practice were constituted by the sangha, which in the sen-
the external time was the community of monks and nuns, and in the path of transformation were the dakini,
together with the guardians or dharmapala and the vajra brothers and sisters, on the path of self-liberation
the true helper of the practice is the third aspect of the path, which is the chöpa178 or
Behavior, defined as 'acting from the gompa or Contemplation and, when not
let's use our own mistakes as momentum on the path": this is the equivalent of the sangha
on the path of renunciation and of the dakini in the path of transformation, and constitutes the third element of
Refuge.179
I decided to translate the terms vidya and rigpa as 'Truth' because - as has already been seen in the text

Principal - this word allows for maintaining to some extent the etymological sense of the contrast that
they make the teachings between vidya and avidya, and between their Tibetan equivalents, rigpa (rig-pa)
and marigpa (ma-rig-pa): as noted in a previous note, avidya and marigpa are terms
composed of (1) a privative prefix (the Sanskrit a and the Tibetan ma) and (2) the terms vidya and
rigpa, which in the context of dzogchen teaching indicates the state in which it becomes evident the
true condition of the individual and the universe. The state designated by the terms avidya and
marigpa is, then, that in which the appearance of error produces illusory experiences that
they are mistakenly considered true, which constitutes the already mentioned 'non-Truth'.
176lTa-ba.
177sGom-pa.
178bender.
In general, dzogchen practitioners also perform a Refuge practice in the style of
tantric, visualizing in the space in front of them (or alternatively, above their own head), to
guru or lama (bla-ma) —and eventually, also to the deva, devata or yidam (yi-dam) and to the dakini or
Khandro (mkha’-’gro)—. In this case, the master is visualized in the form of the supreme.
master Garab Dorje, lord of all rigdzin, who -- as we have seen -- historically
constituted the source of the teachings of atiya-dzogchen in its Buddhist form by transmitting
directly the patenting of the primordial condition according to the teaching of the unique state that
transcends effort, the ati dzogpa chenpo, 'the total fullness and perfection (of the primordial state)';
besides the master himself in the form of Garab Dorlle, other masters can also be visualized, like this
like one or more deities or yidam and dakini or khandro. The difference between this practice and other practices

similar tantricas is that, in the case of dzogchen, it is not essential to visualize a tree of
Complete refuge —and above all, that here we consider the image of Garab Dorlle.
as the representation, not only of the master from whom we have received the dzogchen teachings, but
of unification of all the vajra masters we may have had, no matter what
school, tradition or lineage of transmission they belonged to—. Since in this case it is not
It is necessary to visualize a complete Refuge tree, the practice could be much more.
simple and being limited to Garab Dorlle as the central character —adding, if we wish,
deva or yidam that we use in our practice to the right of the master (from our
perspective, to your left) and the dakini or khandro that we use in our practice to your left
(from our perspective, to their right)—. [If preferred, the image of the own can be viewed]
master instead of Garab Dorlle, but this is less common, as it is more difficult
maintain the pure vision in front of a master whom we often see in a physical body similar to the
our, who in front of a master we have never encountered in this life and who has
assumed for us a legendary spiritual stature. In any case, if visualized as a figure
Central to the master himself, Garab Dorlle should be visualized above his head.
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The fact that, as has just been seen, on the path of self-liberation, the master in the broadest sense
genuine and profound of the term is the Vision or tawa of the practitioner himself, does not contradict what

mentioned above with respect to the supreme master Garab Dorje, lord of all the rigdzin,
historically constituted the source of the teachings of atiyana-dzogchen in its Buddhist form to the
to directly transmit the patent of the primordial condition according to the teaching of the unique state
that transcends effort, the ati dzogpa chenpo, 'the total fullness and perfection (of the state
primordial)". This does not imply that on this path the external teacher —who, like in the
Vajrayana or tantrism, has the rank of guru or vajracharya— is of primordial importance. Such
As the disciple must be aware that Garab Dorje is the supreme master who introduced to
our world the teachings that he or she practices, and make the practice of external guru-yoga with
your image, in the same way must comply with the instructions of the external teacher and provide him with

as a representation of our connection with the dzogchen lineage through our master. It is fitting
to point out that, as will be seen a little later in the main text of this first part of the book,
this connection occurs through the "distant" transmission kama (bka'-ma) or ringuiü kama (ring-
the transmission from Garab Dorje to our master through a long lineage
of masters in physical form, but in many cases it can also occur through the
terma transmission (gter-ma) or ringuiü terma (ring-brgyud gter-ma) which is "short" or ñeguiü (nye-
brgyud gter-ma) to the extent that it has passed from Padmasambhava directly to a tertön (gter-
) more or less recent - who could be our own master, or another tertön from whom
our teacher has received the transmission, directly or through a brief series of others
masters—.]
At the same time, in dzogchen, the internal refuge is constituted by the three aspects of the path.
which, as we have seen, are the Vision or tawa (lta-ba), the Contemplation or gompa (sgom-pa) and the
Behavior or chöpa (spyod-pa). These were the ones considered in the main text.
as constituting the Refuge of dzogchen, being those attributed to this vehicle by Namkhai
Norbu Rinpoche in the teachings of the training of the Santi Maha Sangha, precisely because
to the fact that they fit into the common structure of the explanation that - both in the teachings of
Santi Maha Sangha as in this book— is given with respect to the Refuge in the three ways: one
explanation that equates the first element of the Refuge with what constitutes the source of the
main methods of the practice, the second element of it with the main methods in
question, and its third element with those or those who help us carry out the practice.
Lastly, the secret Refuge might consist of the three aspects of the fruit, which are the
dharmakaya, the sambhogakaya, and the nirmanakaya, but here they must be understood in the sense
supreme that these terms have in the teaching of atiyana-dzogchén —that is, inasmuch as
correct capture of the forms of energy dang (gdangs), rölpa (rol-pa), and tsel (rtsal),
respectively, which in turn illustrate the essence or ngowo (ngo-bo), nature or
self-nature (rang-bzhin) and energy or awareness (thugs-rje) of the base.

It should be noted that, although the true Refuge of the atiyana-dzogchén is taken in the tawa, the
gompa and the chöpa, having the successive experiences of these three stages of the path, the practice of
Refuge through visualization in the tantric style (but in the way explained above)
carried out with supreme devotion is one of the most essential keys for effective progress in the
path. Furthermore, the realization directly depends on how our evolution unfolds.
relationship with the physical master from whom we received the transmission and, in particular, of the observation

of the moment with the teacher, both in terms of our perception of him, as well as in what
respects our way of relating to him or her. Although this observation of samaya and this
the evolution of the relationship with the teacher must be catalyzed by active practice, to a certain extent
they constitute a process that develops by itself, in which it goes
experientially understanding, progressively, the axial character of both elements, as
that is achieving an increasingly mature and stable realization.
180Rig-’dzin; in Sanskrit, vidyadhara. The root of this term, both in Sanskrit and Tibetan,
indicate the state of Truth or realization: in Tibetan, it is rig (root of the term rigpa); in
Sanskrit, she is vidya. The second element of the term in both languages means 'to hold' or,
more specifically in this case, "to possess": in Tibetan, it is ’dzin; in Sanskrit, it is
earth
In general, four main types of rigdzin (rig 'dzin rnam bzhi) are discussed, which are: the rigdzin
of maturation (rnam-smin rig-’dzin), the rigdzin of the enhancement of long life (tshe-dbang
Rig-dzin), the rigdzin of mahamudra or total symbol (phyag-chen rig-dzin) and the rigdzin of the
spontaneous self-perfection (lhun-grub rig-’dzin). Now, although there are different types of rigdzin,
The supreme rigdzins are those whose condition corresponds to the etymological meaning of the term.
rigdzin: the realizations that are established in the primordial state of being
Dzogchen teaching and the inner tantras. And the rigdzin of this type are, in terms of the zhitrö
(zhi khro), those who have accessed the simultaneous Presence of the peaceful and wrathful deities
(for which they are represented between the two in the practice of tantric visualization of the zhitrö).

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this is the utmost respect; however, through practice one must acquire sufficient familiarity
with the Vision or tawa and enough trust in it to end up completely becoming
autonomous and self-sufficient, so that, while traveling the path, his direct and immediate teacher
can become their own state of rigpa or Truth. (In fact, in the case of students
especially gifted or advanced, the external teacher could even offer them
instructions that do not correspond to the true sense of teaching, in order to determine whether
those have or have not acquired enough confidence in the Vision to "disobey it"; with this,
since many times snakes show themselves as such precisely when they try to
act like dragons, make them separate and show themselves as they are.181) Everything
this allows us to understand why it is said that the principle of the path of self-liberation is the
self-responsibility and not delegating one's own responsibility to the authority of others.
Regarding "physical" yoga, it should be noted that it does not constitute a main practice on the path of
self-liberation, is not included in the purest section of its teachings (known as ati-ati).
Now, in this regard, it can constitute an important secondary practice; in fact,
there are sections of the atiyana-dzogchén (such as ati-anu and ati-maha) that often
they incorporate forms of physical yoga that are more or less equivalent to those applied in the path of

transformation; the most essential difference regarding these is that in those the practitioner does not
it must be viewed as a deity.

The commitment and the precepts in the three paths