Practicing the Great Perfection

A collection of essential instructions on the practice of Dzogchen, or The Great Perfection, from one of the great early 20th century Buddhist masters.

Shechen Gyaltsap (1871-1926) was widely recognized as one of the greatest meditation masters and most compassionate bodhisattvas in the history of Tibetan Buddhism. He lived a life of complete devotion and commitment to monastic discipline and study, and became the root teacher of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, who said of Shechen Gyaltsap's teachings that they were "worth more than all the gold in the entire world."

This collection, intended for the advanced Buddhist practitioner who has received initiation from a qualified master, provides the essential instructions of Dzogchen, or Great Perfection, practice. Written with a clear simplicity that belies their profundity, the teachings give practical and pointed advice on how students should meditate and behave in ordinary life. The work begins with an extensive reflection on the problem of self-clinging and the analytical meditation designed to uproot it, and proceeds to more specific instructions for the mind practice itself.

SHECHEN GYALTSAP (1871-1926), the fourth Shechen Gyaltsab (Gyaltsab IV), also known as Gyurme Pema Namgyal, was one of Jamgon Mipham Rinpoche's closest disciples and was the root lama of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. He was recognized at a very young age to possess the qualities of a bodhisattva, and went on to become a devoted scholar, monastic, and teacher. He was known for his warmth and simplicity, and was referred to by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche as Kadrinchen, "the one who was most kind."