Skillful Form – Understanding the Principles of View, Path and Result
If our ideas regarding non-duality, and the ultimate nature of reality remain just ideas, then its not very useful, it must become the reality itself!
When looking and examining a spiritual path how can we understand its approach and path? Whatever spiritual path we consider to enter, it is important to understand how it looks at the world, at reality, because the outlook is the basis of the path. From that outlook arises the understanding of what it is that we are trying to reach as a final result. Otherwise what is it all about? If we do not have this understanding its very likely that we will just wander lost in vague ideas, and no actual experience arises.
From that perspective, having understood the ‘outlook’ or view, then it becomes possible to understand the path and the result. These points are usually expressed as: The view, the practice, the conduct and the result.
The view basically means how we look at the world and reality from the point of view of this spiritual path.
The result is of course what we are aiming to reach.
The practice constitutes the exact application of spiritual practice based on the view so that we move towards the result.
The conduct refers to the ways in which the path is integrated into life.
If we look at the Buddhist spiritual traditions in general we will find many different ways to understand and express these four aspects depending on the different levels of teaching and depth of understanding. However, regardless of these differences there are some common main points that represent the essence of this path and that all practitioners should understand clearly.
The View
The view, or the way we look at reality, is the most important point, because if our view of reality is very distant from the way things really are, no matter what kind of practice we do it becomes very difficult to reach any direct experience of the ultimate nature of reality. There are many ways, at different levels of depth and subtlety, to express the Buddha’s view, but in general as it says in the Lankavatara Sutra: “As all things are unreal, there is neither defilement nor purity; things are not as they are seen, nor are they otherwise”;
This in short means that the ordinary perception of reality as things really existing, substantial and made of separate things, like the world, phenomena and beings, is not correct. The dualistic and biased way of seeing things as good and bad, pure and impure also is incorrect and based on delusion. Just as a rainbow appears clearly in the sky, and yet there is no substance or real existence as a ‘thing’ in the rainbow, in the same way all phenomena appear but lack true, independent and substantial existence. From the point of view Mahayana Buddhism it could be said that the view is the inseparability of emptiness and luminosity.
Buddha Nature
The nature of reality is expressed by the term Buddha-nature, the pure and luminous mind-heart of awakening, which is itself the ultimate reality. As it says in Tilopa’s verses:
Just as the bright and clear heart of the sun Cannot be obscured by the darkness of a thousand eons, The luminous heart of your own mind Cannot be obscured by this saṃsāra of [infinite] eons
And in the Uttaratantra it says:
The luminous nature of the mind
Is changeless, just like space.
It is not defiled by adventitious stains,
Such as desire, born from false imagination
and in Prajnapradiptika it says:
The essence of mind is natural luminosity. To put an end to this
[mind being ensnared by itself] means the freedom from adventitious
stains and the fundamental change of state
That is to say that the state of awakening, which is the cessation of all obscurations and ignorance, is not a state of nihilism, a mere and total negation, instead it is primordial wisdom, the pure luminous Ground of Being, endowed with the complete qualities of awakening, the fundamental Ground or Basis of reality itself which abides beyond all extremes of existence, non-existence both and neither. This is sometimes referred through the metaphor of the vast luminous sky. This should not be understood in such a way that the ‘personal self’ becomes something supreme and awakened, that is not the meaning. The personal self is illusory, empty of true existence. When all the defilements, including the illusion of the personal self are seen through and dissolved, it is then that the teachings speak of the ‘pure luminous heart of awakening’.
A way to summarize the distinctive feature that represents the Buddha’s view and is unique to Buddhism is through the four seals: 1) all compounded things are impermanent 2) all emotions are suffering 3) all phenomena are empty (they lack true independent existence) including the self of the individual 4) Nirvana is true peace and is freedom from extremes (extremes of: things truly exists, nothing at all exists, both or neither).
If we truly want to understand the Buddha’s teaching and view it is important to go deeply and understand each of these points fully with all that they imply. These four aspects are not some philosophical inventions or dogmas, they are markers that are in accordance with the way things really are. If our meditation and spiritual practice, and also our conduct in the world is informed and based on a clear understanding of the view, then our path leads to freedom, to the liberation from duality and confused ways with which we perceive reality. On the other hand, if we do not have a clear understanding of the view, and if this understanding of the view is not integrated into our mind, no matter what meditations or spiritual practices we do, they may bring some relative temporary well being, but it will be very difficult to go beyond confusion and duality.
The Practice
How can we then actualize the view and come to the direct discovery of the way things really are? Even though in the ultimate sense there is no impurity or imperfection anywhere, while we remain in delusion some relative spiritual practice seems to be needed in order to purify the mind and to discover our real condition. Fundamentally the practice is that which leads us beyond the dualist and confused ways in which we perceive ourselves and reality. In the Buddhist path there many approaches to practice, from the most relative and elaborated levels up to the most simple and direct. These many approaches are needed because not everyone enters the path in the same way and with the same individual situation. However, in essence the main point is to break free from illusory ways of knowing reality, to dissolve grasping to a self, and break down the veil of duality. Another way to understand practice is as the way with which we bring the understanding of the view into a practical experience, so we come to discover the ultimate view directly, beyond thought and concept. If our ideas regarding the ultimate nature of reality remain just ideas, then its not very useful, it must become the reality itself!
In general the practice can be said to be the union of the two aspects of shamata and vipasyana. Through the practice of shamata the mind is freed of grasping and rejection, it is freed of disturbing emotions and stops chasing after the objects of delusion, discovering peace. Through the practice of vipasyana the mind comes to know directly the luminous nature. The union of these two aspects of shamata and vipasyana brings the direct seeing of the empty, clear and luminous nature of mind itself. The exact meaning and practice of shamata and vipasyana varies, it depends on which type of approach is being applied, so in this way we can learn exactly how to practice based on the approach we are following.
Conduct
As we move about in the world, as spiritual practitioners aiming at awakening, how are we to orient our behavior in a way that supports our path and practice? As practitioners we understand that the path is a whole, a totality of experience and is not just limited to a short session of spiritual practice or study done once in a while. The way to integrate our path into all aspects of life is the aspect of conduct.
In general conduct can be summarized as: Not falling into extremes, acting according to causality, non-violence and compassion.
Not falling into extremes means that we act in the world without falling into extreme views regarding the existence of things. That means we understand that everything lacks true and independent existence. However, the conduct or way of behavior needs to follow the principle of cause and effect – that is – positive and virtuous actions lead to positive results and happiness. Negative and destructive actions lead to suffering and confusion. As we try to apply our path to free ourselves from deluded ways of knowing reality and suffering, we cultivate a feeling of compassion for all beings that are also in that situation, with the aspiration that all might come to discover their true nature and experience the happiness and peace of Buddhahood. In this way our conduct will not fall into extremes and becomes part of the totality of the path.
Result
The result that we aim for in the Buddhist, or Dzogchen, context is not some fabricated idea, a place or situation. The result is not an object that can be conceptualized, because if it was then it would be just another mind-made idea. The result is an ‘elimination’. It is the removal of all disturbing emotions and of all delusions that prevent the mind from knowing the true condition of reality. It is the collapse of duality, and of perceiving things in deluded ways. It is the removal of all suffering and of the illusory ‘I’ that is the subject of relative experience. The actual condition of ‘how it is’ once all these things dissolve and disappear, that ultimate condition, is impossible to describe or express, it is the fully awakened state. Even though in this explanation its presented as a ‘result’, which seems to imply there was a cause for this result, that is not the case. The term ‘result’ is only as perceived conventionally. The moon is always complete in its place, however from the surface, when we look it seems to change, to grow larger, and then decrease in size. In the same way, when using the term ‘result’ or ‘unfolding of realization’, those are only relative terms just like the perception of a waxing moon. In reality the true nature is always complete and perfect, this is the great natural perfection, and it is because of this that we speak of skillful means – something that seems to lead to a result when in reality the result is already the nature of how things are.
The Yanas
The explanation of the view, practice, conduct and result that was just described is only a general summary, which can be said to describe the Buddhist path in general. However it’s important to understand that within Buddhism there many different approaches, and each approach would explain these aspects in its own way. The different ways to present the view, practice, conduct and result, are not contradictory, but different levels or approaches of understanding. There are different ways to classify the approaches to awakening based on different levels of teachings from the Buddha, and each one is referred to as a Yana, or ‘way’. One such method to classify the different approaches is the division into nine yanas, or nine ways to attain enlightenment, which are: Shravakayana, Pratyekabuddhayana, Mahayana, Kryatantra-yana, upatantra-yana, yogatantra-yana, mahayogatantra-yana, anuyogatantra-yana and Atiyoga-yana. Each of these nine ways provides a complete path to total awakening, and would presents its own complete presentation of the View, Practice, Conduct and Result.
View, Path and Result from Dzogchen
In the case of Dzogchen, or Atiyoga-yana for example, in brief, these aspects could be explained as:
All phenomena of the relative world and of the ultimate, are of the nature of the inseparability of emptiness and intrinsic primordial wisdom. The primordially pure intrinsic wisdom of the mind itself is the View. That primordial awareness itself is the real nature of being and also the actual nature of reality.
The practice is to recognize the natural state of the mind and intrinsic awareness, free from fixations, allowing the spontaneous self-liberation of all thoughts and appearances.
The conduct is to act in the world without losing the natural state, free from fixation or grasping, and in harmony with the cause and effect.
The result is the complete realization of the intrinsic ultimate nature which was always perfect since the beginning, free from any obstacle.
by Aja.
