And in The Heart-Essence of Vimalamitra, Longchenpa says,
Buddha will never be attained on the paths of the nine graduated approaches by engaging in their view, meditation, and conduct. Why not? Because in the views of the nine approaches, there is only intellectual conjecture that is sometimes convincing and sometimes not, but which can never induce the naked essence.
In this context, Pema Rigtsal explains, This pure presence is primordially free of conceptual elaboration and is the contemplation of the minds of all the buddhas. Putting any effort into purifying it or adulterating it by concepts tends to conceal its nature and is counterproductive. We need to abandon all effort, along with deductive reasoning and speculative concepts.
Shamata meditation technique is not exempt from this blanket rejection of all contrived meditation methods:
During formal contemplation, gross happiness and sadness will not arise, but when we get up from shamata, the joy or the pain will come as before. Just as we contain a heap of dust by sitting down slowly on it, but upon our getting up, the dust arises in clouds, in the concentrated absorption of child’s play, gross thoughts are stopped for a while, and we seem to experience happiness, but when we arise from the concentration, we find that more gross thoughts intrude than before.
Shamata, concentrated absorption, does not induce recognition of the nature of mind, but it can provide a relative calm in which to appreciate the profound refinements of cultural Vajrayana. Indeed no cause or condition can make manifest the realization of pure awareness as the ground from which all causal phenomena arise.
Keith Dowman commenting upon Tulku Pema Rigtsal's text

Jax bio


Bio
From time to time l am asked if I have any actual training in the traditional Dzogchen lineages. I then each time put together a short "bio" regarding my Dzogchen background. For those curious to know:
I have all lineage teachings, lung and practice instructions for Dzogchen Semde, Longde and Mangagde including Yangti from Namkhai Norbu in 1985-1988. I was his private chef for a time and spent much personal time alone with him. He gave me permission to teach Dzogchen Semde. I also received the Dzogchen trekchod and thogal instructions of Shardza Rinpoche directly from the Bon Menri Lopon. I also received the thogal transmission for the Yeshe Lama through Dudjum Rinpoche's lineage. I also received the essential Mahamudra teachings in a practice retreat from the lineage of the Dalai Lama. In 1978 while in Nepal Sabchyu Rinpoche performed the initial empowerment for generation stage practice for the Karma Kagyu personally for me. I received many more transmissions both from Kagyu and Nyingma for gTumo yoga. I received and practiced the tantric sadhanas of Vajrayogini and the Siamukha tradition of Ayo Khandro as well as a Chod practice tradition of Machig Labdron. I received personal instruction from Trungpa Rinpoche in 1979 and others including Kalu Rinpoche and Lama Wangdor in the 80's. I attended a retreat with Dr. Trogawa Rinpoche regarding Tibetan medicine in relation to Dzogchen.
I have been leading retreats all over Europe, North and Central America for almost ten years with hundreds of past attendees.

Who are You?
At the level of your deepest Buddha Nature, you are projecting each moment of conscious experience as perceptions and their meaning. You are PROJECTING this moment of consciousness, NOT perceiving it.
Each moment of consciousness includes a projected "perceiver" of what you are projecting. First you, as a Buddha, project your mandala display (your world) followed by projecting a "perceiver" of it, a micro-second later.
This is like at night where you as the dream character, look at the dream landscape and sense it preceded you and was already there. But in fact the subconscious projects the dream landscape and "you" looking at it in the same moment, but with the sense that the landscape preceded "you".
It's the same in our daytime life; to the projected "perceiver" as "me", it always seems that what it sees was "already" there. The magic is in the slight time lag
as to how the "perceiver" always arrives late to his own party! It looks like the party was already happening by the time he walks in the door.
So in summary; your deepest creative Buddha Nature projects a sensory and inner world of experience that is then perceived by a secondary consciousness that is projected as a "perceiver" a micro-second later. It's that secondary consciousness that is who you believe you are are; and it feels like "me". But it's actually a dependently originated "me" generated by conditioning, mental self-images, memories and imagination.
The movie projector is projecting the 3D movie up on the screen along with the character who seems to be immersed in the images while experiencing and interacting with all that appears. That's the self as the "me" that "you" seem to be. It ceases to exist the moment the projector stops projecting.
It's that imagined "who" projection that I am referring to when I am pointing out that your "me" doesn't exist other than as a mental construction or projection. That's why I annoyingly always ask "who?" is practicing or trying to stabilize a state etc.
Because here, the projector stopped projecting long enough that it became obvious that there was no real "me" in here, that I relentlessly try to share the same. It's only that imaginary "me" who suffers in its projected role. It's structural constituents are only fictional thoughts.
That means "you" have no karma, no defects, no actual location, no life, no death and no existence, except as projected in the imaginary story of "you".

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emptiness is not an experience. Emptiness is where "you" disappear. As a baby you had no self-image or sense of personal identity. It arises around 15-24 months. It's just a bunch of thoughts about identity that then becomes a chronic thought. The "me" identity can just suddenly cease being projected by the subconscious.

Sorry, I would like to understand: Is there 'you' in Buddhahood? Thanks.

No.

Suffering
"What is more, suffering cannot exist apart from any thought of it—it must depend upon the thought of the suffering in order to exist. Without the concept of suffering, there is no suffering in the slightest."
Khenpo Tsulstrim Gyatso

Whatever you look at, you see only the Diamond Mirror Emptiness Dharmakaya, a Single Consciousness appearing to Itself as Itself. There are no parts. There are just fictional thoughts occuring in impersonal, Knowing Emptiness. There are no entities. An empty mirror remains the same before, during or after reflections appear.

KOCOURMIKES: Whatever you look at, you see only the Diamond Mirror Emptiness Dharmakaya, a Single Consciousness appearing to Itself as Itself. There are no parts.

An empty mirror remains the same before, during or after reflections appear.

there are no entities

There is only a Single Consciousness appearing to Itself as Itself. There are no parts!


There are just fictional thoughts occuring in impersonal, Knowing Emptiness

"In his Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Conduct, the bodhisattva Shantideva teaches:
Then wanderers, these dreamlike beings, what are they? If analyzed, they’re like a banana tree— (hollow,empty)
Sentient beings who wander in samsara are like sentient beings who appear in dreams. Once we analyze, we find that they are like banana trees—when you look at a banana tree, it seems solid, but once you peel away the layers of its bark, you do not find any core. The bodies of sentient beings are the same—they appear to be solid, truly existent things, but we can apply the analysis of composite entities that we have undertaken in this chapter to sentient beings’ bodies as well and find that they are not truly existent after all, that they have no real substance, because they do not really arise, abide, or cease. Thus, sentient beings are illusory appearances."
Khenpo Tsulstrim Gyatso

There are no parts

There is only a Single Consciousness appearing to Itself as Itself

There are no parts

There is only a Single Consciousness appearing to Itself as Itself. There are no parts

! There are just fictional thoughts occuring in impersonal, Knowing Emptiness

There is only a Single Consciousness appearing to Itself as Itself. There are no parts

There is only a Single Consciousness appearing to Itself as Itself. There are no parts! There are just fictional thoughts occuring in impersonal, Knowing Emptiness.
FULL STOP!!!⛔️

There are just fictional thoughts occuring in impersonal, Knowing Emptiness.
FULL STOP!!!⛔️

Tsultrim Gyatso:
"From the palace of Dzogchen – appearing emptiness,
I look back into my mind.
And what I see is “clinging to me”.
And I suddenly remember that there is no self in what I think is me or I think is mine.
And there’s a reason why I remember this, it's because none of the body/mind are a self and because there is no self apart from them.
I know for sure that from the very start
there has never been any self at all."