Simply Being
Dzogchen: the path of being right here
The purpose of the Simply Being website is to make freely available the fundamental teachings of Dzogchen and Tantra as transmitted in the Khordong lineage of the Nyingma or Ancient School of Tibetan Buddhism. Simply Being is the ground or basis of every occurrence; it is the unchanging awareness which reveals the ever-changing play of experience. This is dzogchen, the wholeness and completion within which we live. Dzogchen teachings recall us to this open purity which we have never left, yet habitually disregard.
Dzogchen teachings, the heart of the primordial buddha Samantabhadra, have been present in our world for many thousands of years, passed on in unbroken lineages in Tibet, and now spreading out in the world. The term ‘Dzogchen’ indicates the ‘Great Completion’. ‘Complete’ means without lack or excess which indicates that nothing needs to be done — it is as it is, and that is enough. What is complete? Our own intrinsic being.
How we actually are, however, is hidden from us by the partiality of our attention. We tend to focus on I/me/myself as someone who exists with specific qualities and entitlements within an ever-changing experiential field of possibilities. Our starting point is the fact of our inherent existence as someone, a someone who is different from everybody else. This unique essence of ‘me-ness’ seems to be apart from everything else. I am ‘me’ because I am not you — being ‘me’ is my exclusive defining state; only I am included in ‘me’.
With this as my basis I seek to obtain more of what I like and what supports me, and to avoid or limit what I do not like and what diminishes me. Given the ever-shifting patterning of the world we encounter, our need to survive and thrive keeps us busy managing our relation with events.
The view of Dzogchen offers a very different vision of our lived situation. Instead of starting with the assumption that ‘I exist as someone’, we relax our striving to hold onto our current version of ourselves, our imagined basis. We this we can rest in awareness of our actual basis, which is our presence within unborn openness. This presence is itself ungraspable as something. It is not an entity and not a possession. Our ungraspable openness is our direct non-dual awareness of our actual ground, the primordial purity which is undefended, unlimited, and the basis of all experience. Within this open presence there is the luminosity or lucidity of the ungraspable effortless display self-arising and self-vanishing. All occurrence is freely available as direct experience. However under the power of the delusion of duality we are easily misled by the hope that there are entities which can be grasped.
The teachings help us to see how the luminosity of becoming manifests as the illusory apparition of our appearance in the world of appearances. Meditation reveals this delusion for what it is and awakens us to our primordial integration. As this shines forth all the accumulations of tension, anxiety and assumptions that bind and restrict us are released without effort.
In this way each moment is open, effortless and unique. Each moment is our presence with all that is currently occurring. This is the undivided Great Completion free of all splitting and reification. This is our actuality. Yet it is obscured for us by our own self-referential beliefs and interpretations.
Thus the path of Dzogchen is not a path leading to somewhere else. It is the path of being right here, right on the point of emergence which is the ever-open here and now.
It is our hope that the teachings and texts available on this website will encourage you to strive less and relax in the always already present Great Completion that you are intrinsically within.
Photos
Various people have shared their photos to be used on the website. This includes Andrea Pieper, Chimed Jansen, Jan Szlagowski, Krishna, Marja Shramko, Marlis Scholz and Robbie Terris.
This is a continuation of a previous comment. I truly feel I was led to this book. And since this is very new to me I would wish to learn a little bit about it.
Thank you
I am interested in information concerning your activities, retreats and things like that. And I would like to get know John, his style of writing and talking makes sense to me. Perhaps he could teach me some things. Best regards Marko Aurikko
Dear Marko
you can read about James’ activities on the Events page on his website http://www.simplybeing.co.uk/events/ an d if something is happening near where you live you would be welcome to attend. You can also subscribe to the “New Postings” RSS feed on his home page and that will alert you when new material is uploaded.
I hope this helps.
Webmaster
Hello James
I couldn’t get to Macclesfield this time I heard from Anne it all went well
I have just had a hip replacement so I am learning to walk again !
I hope to come to Emerson College in the summer
Best wishes
Blair
07808812196
Dear all, My aunt is interested in your teachings of the year 2018
and 2019 and would like to get your CD because she is blind and need orientation please come back to me where and how we get the cd thank you with the best wishes Vanessa
Dear Vanessa
I see that you have just left a comment on James Low’s website.
We don’t have the recordings on CD however for each event, as well as listening to it live, there is the option to download the recording. If you did that for your aunt you could then save these downloaded files onto a device such as a memory stick or a CD or whatever she would find helpful. I imagine if your aunt has no sight that she makes use of various spoken instructions to navigate her computer requirements. When you save the files onto a device you could give them a name that would help her identify and select independently what she wanted to listen to .
There are also a number of video recordings which of course include sound and they also can be downloaded. That may be more tricky for you so, best start with the audios.
I hope this helps. Get back to me if you have more questions.
Here are inks below to all the audio recordings for 2018 (18 events) and for 2019 (so far only 1 event is available).
http://simplybeing.co.uk/category/2018/
http://simplybeing.co.uk/category/2019/
best wishes
Barbara (website enabler
Hello.
Would it be possible to know James’ schedule for the rest of the year? I cannot find it on this website. Or maybe somebody can tell me where to look? It would be very helpful.
Dear Marcin, I am sorry you cannot find James’ Events schedule on his webpage. It is at this location http://www.simplybeing.co.uk/events/
Barbara
Bom dia!
Gostaria de saber se o evento do dia 15/01/2020 tem algum custo? Obrigada!!
Hi,
Thank you for posting James videos. Today’s video was especially relevant and current. I would like to watch live on Zoom whenever he will be speaking next. Please let me know if this is possible. -Gavin in Colorado
Dear Gavin, Glad this was helpful. James does not have a mailing alert subscription list but do keep an eye on his website and perhaps use the RSS feed. Also you could join the facebook link on his home page? https://www.facebook.com/JamesLowDzogchen/
best wishes
Barbara
Thanks for your website
Glad you find it helpful, Renate.