4 Coming up for Air

Coming up for Air

The first of the 'four thoughts to turn the mind to practice' is contemplation on the inestimable value of human rebirth. This is why it is called 'precious human rebirth'. We cannot take it for granted that we are human – even though we have the outer appearance of a human being. There are particular qualities which we need to recognise and understand, in order to elevate the characteristics of our 'gross human-ness' to the qualities which designate the precious human rebirth.In this teaching we discover that there are many inhuman ways in which we as ostensible humans think and behave. There are inhuman patterns to which humans can succumb whilst still retaining the outer physical human form. Of the six realms of existence, the human realm is the most efficacious for developing practice and gaining realisation – yet often, the human realm is is not our native perceptual environment.The inhuman ways in which we might think and behave are found in the other five realms of existence. The six realms are the god realm, jealous god realm, human realm, animal realm, hungry ghost realm, and the hell realm. Ngak'chang Rinpoche describes them as follows:

"Gods live in an artificially idealised state where they endure distended existences. Jealous gods also live in affluent displeasure. They are envious of the gods and therefore aggressively competitive. The animal realm is characterised by perceptual limitation and absence of humour. Hungry ghosts continually crave in such a way as to negate the possibility of satisfaction. The hell realm is characterised by unremitting suffering (dMyal ba). 'dMyal' is usually translated as 'hell' but this word needs to be understood according to Buddhism rather than to Judaeo-Christian epistemology.”

The teachings on the precious human rebirth emphasise that to be human and have the opportunities of the human realm is rare and valuable, so we must not waste it. It is so rare and difficult to find that our likelihood of achieving a precious human

rebirth a second time is compared to the experience of a turtle, swimming in a vast ocean. The chance of us gaining another human rebirth is as likely as this turtle placing its head through a wooden yoke floating on the surface of the ocean as it comes up for air.I first came across these teachings early in my interest in Dharma. I heard that I had probably spent aeons in the lower suffering realms of physical existence prior to this life, and that it was unlikely that I would be born human again in my next life, or even in many, many lives to come. I knew that the motivation of the teaching was to inspire me to start practising earnestly and immediately. I was to understand that I only had this one life and one chance to experience being human. After all, none of us know when we will die and lose this precious opportunity. Unfortunately however, the thought of one life and one chance created too much pressure for me and was the cause of despondency rather than inspiration. I felt that there was little I could achieve in one life, so was there any real point in trying? If aeons of time, and many lives, were going to pass before I had this opportunity again, then surely whatever I might accomplish in this life was going to be lost? This thought – that was intended to turn my mind to practice – threw me instead into dejection and apathy. Might I not as well just have fun before the inevitable suffering of the lower realms began again? I was also concerned that an archaic Indo-Tibetan view was being imposed upon me. It produced a similar emotional response of rejection in me, to that which I had experienced when hearing that the Christian God created the world in six days.Such was my initial misunderstanding of the teaching on the preciousness of the perfect human rebirth. Fortunately however, I found inspiration in other aspects of Dharma and continued to listen and practice. Eventually I came across the Dzogchen view of the realms of being. I came to realise that the issue was not whether I had the apparent physical form of a human being, but whether my moment-by-moment perception and experience was human.

The six realms of existence are often taught as separate physical realities – actual spheres of material existence. Rig’dzin Chenpo Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche was the first Tibetan Lama in the West to introduce the Dzogchen perspective of the six realms as perceptual contexts, in his book Cutting through Spiritual Materialism published in 1973. The genius of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche's approach lay in his recognition that the most appropriate means of teaching Dharma was to combine the basic practice of Silent Sitting with the views of Mahamudra and Dzogchen. The Dzogchen perspective on the six realms describes them as characteristics of particular mind-moments. We can look upon them as glimpses of the manner in which we exist in attitude and behaviour based upon our distorted view and emotional response1.1 Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche also related the realms to the elements and our emotions. This adds another depth of subtlety, and makes the teaching even more relevant to our human condition. This approach is presented in his book Transcending Madness.Human realm beings have the capacity to observe their own processes of discrimination and to laugh at their own need to philosophise. A sense of humour is a key characteristic of the human realm. A human realm being is able to view the limitations they place upon themselves with humour. Ngak'chang Rinpoche says of the human realm:

“The human realm is characterised by humour. The capacity for humour is crucial to spiritual development – because without it we take ourselves and our 'selves' too seriously. By humour, I mean the capacity to laugh at oneself and one’s situation. The humour which finds mirth in the misfortune of others is of a bestial level – and by that I mean no disrespect to animals, as they are often imbued with nobler characteristic than many of the overtly homo sapiens genus. Humour is that which feels the space of a situation. Space has to exist for incongruity to allow playfulness. If there is no space, then real humour cannot exist. Real humour is innately open to compassion and wisdom, whereas distorted humour

serves merely to entrench us in dualistic concretisations. The crude amusement which finds glee in the mockery on the basis of racial, sexual, or religious differences, is a prime indicator of the absence of the precious human rebirth.”

Humans realm beings observe the limitations of fixing to particular opinions and stances. To dwell in the human realm means that we are able to discriminate, and have some choice about the decisions we make. We have the space to discover that in fact our response, the way we see things, is a choice. The human realm has the potential for lightness and a sense of humour about discrimination, but there is also sufficient intensity to keep us from losing focus altogether.The human realm being has a logical reasoning mind oriented towards creating happiness and pleasure. They have a critical attitude, seeing others as imperfect, whilst striving to achieve perfection themselves, however they may define it. Humans are highly discriminating, selective, and fussy, with an ability to gather knowledge and to learn from it. They continually assess their own situation against that of others. They have the capacity to intellectualise about what they would like to emulate in others, and to be critical of those who do not live up to their concept of a good life. Their intellect results in an endless stream of discursive thought: busy with ideas, plans, and dreams. They are constantly searching, judging, and evaluating their situation. These ideas and interpretations are then adopted as philosophies. Beings of similar philosophies group together and applaud each other, whilst deriding groups with differing philosophies. Every idea, ideal and conceptual construct can be organised into a basis for opinion and lifestyle.Human perception has a particular pattern of compulsion. Desire is a primary manifestation – we consume and move on to the next object of desire. Human perception continually judges whether or not something is desirable. There is a burning need to belong, to feel part of what is going on, to feel assured of our existence through liking what other people like.

Human realm beings discriminate about what is desirable and actively engage with their objects of desire. However they are fickle and can easily change direction, moving on to a new hobby, new yearning to own a particular thing, new philosophy of who they are and what is important. Human realm beings have a great capacity for generosity and indiscriminate compassion. They can be spontaneously kind and actively work to help others. The compulsive energy of desire can be transformed into the non-dual energy of active compassion. This is the great potential of the human realm.The human realm is the most favourable for engaging in spiritual practice, because there is just enough discomfort to make us question our existence and wonder about the nature of reality, but there is also enough comfort that our minds are not totally absorbed in seeking a shred of happiness. The speed of action and reaction is sufficient in the human realm for beings to focus and engage in developing practice; whilst not so fast that it is impossible to gain an alternative perspective. There is not the automatic, immediate response that is found in a hellish realm, whilst spaciousness and self-absorption are not so great that purpose and growth becomes lost, as in a god realm. The human realm beings’ ability to discriminate, to juxtapose concepts and be amused or startled by the result, offers the possibility of exploding the confines of referential view. The human ability to make leaps of perception enables them to effectively engage with spiritual practice. The hell, hungry ghost and animal realms are both too full of suffering and too lacking in self-awareness to encourage spiritual practice. The beings of the god realms and jealous god realms are too preoccupied and self-absorbed to engage in spiritual practice. Everything is too easy for them to consider practice, or they consider themselves as realised beings already.From a linear perspective, the 'highest’ are the god realms, and the 'lowest’ are the hell realms. Moving down the realms, the speed of perception and response becomes faster and faster, and experience becomes

increasingly claustrophobic. In the perceptual space of a god realm, time moves extremely slowly. When something is perceived it hovers and response gradually arises. There is plenty of space for consideration, but this spaciousness is not useful for spiritual development and awareness, because it is the spaciousness of self-referentiality. Everything exists within its own sphere of being. There is no possibility of gaining another perspective on perception because it all exists within the context of myself-in-the-god-realm. At the other extreme, in the constricting perception of a hell realm, beings experience perception and response as simultaneous. There is absolutely no space. There is no possibility of glimpsing another view because the speed and violence of response is so immediate and overwhelming.The realms are self-perpetuating, because we tend to continue to create the causes for whatever perceptual state we find ourselves in. We maintain this state until the point of exhaustion and we have to let go. At this point of relaxation it is possible to move from the restraints of one perceptual realm into another one, or to relax into realisation. However, once we start to feel uncomfortable with the emptiness of the unfamiliar, there is a strong tendency to re-create our former state. We are always drawn to the safety of the familiar.It may be useful to look at an example. If I am annoyed about something that has happened I may go over it again and again in my mind. I will ruminate and regurgitate what happened and the emotions experienced. I will run through things that were said, and things I wished I had said. I may mentally enact various versions of the event where I come up with more impressive speeches and put myself on top of the situation. This can continue for hours, days or even years. I may never re-establish friendly relations with the person involved in the incident because I will not let go of my anger and hurt. There is a sense of permanence and definition that I crave through maintaining this cause for anger. I hold on to the form of the anger because I see it as preferable to the emptiness of letting it dissolve. By continually reviving

the perceptual realm of my emotion, I give myself a sense of definition which – although uncomfortable – feels better and safer than letting it go. The emptiness of letting it go, of not knowing who I am anymore in that spacious moment, is too threatening, so I retract back into the familiar.By continually reliving the experience and justifying my emotion, I maintain the cause of dwelling in the realm of my anger and pain. Eventually, however, the perceptual state will exhaust itself and I will let go of my repeated regurgitation. Then I can discover myself in a different state of being – in a different realm. Exhaustion enables me to escape from the perceptual realm of my anger, even if this relaxation is temporary. At this point I may find myself in a happy frame of mind, or a regretful frame of mind. The cause for existing in that realm of anger has been relinquished. Unfortunately my dualistic view causes me to actually feel more comfortable with the definition of anger through regurgitation, than with the lack of definition of freedom from anger. ‘When I feel emotion I am a substantial being feeling anger. I know who I am. When I let the anger go I have no definition, no reference point for my existence.’ If the urge to re-establish form through emotion proves irresistible, I return to the definition of myself as the person who is angry. I wilfully resurrect the emotion and conceptual content of the situation to re-enact the scene one more time so that once again I feel my existence to be more solid.Perceptual realms are also self-conditioning in the sense of our expectations of the world. If my own reality is anger, I will tend to expect others to be angry as well. I have to fear others’ anger and aggression because I know all about my own perceptual state of anger and aggression. I feel I have to express my own aggression before others have the chance to express their’s. In this way we create our own universe. We create the kind of world we want to live in through our expectations. We will justify our responses and hold to our self-righteous indignation, but this narrow justification undermines the possibility of liberation.

A simple example of self-perpetuation is the litterbug. The person who drops litter is making the statement that they wish to live in a littered world. It is impossible to separate the act of dropping litter from the existence of a world in which there is litter. Not all the litter in the world is created by one litterbug, but if every individual in the world decided never to create litter, there simply would no longer be any. It is because we feel 'it's not in my neighbourhood . . .’ or 'it’s only one little sweet wrapper . . .’ or 'there are people who need the paid employment of clearing up litter . . .’ or whatever justification, that the problem of litter exists.In a similar way the realms create their own reality. It is only when doubt in that reality arises (or the possibility of a different reality is seen, or exhaustion from maintaining the reality sets in) that it is possible to move into a different perceptual realm. When we dwell in the perception of the god realm we are not interested in the problems of others, because everything is perfect and easy in our self-referential world. We cannot understand how things could be unpleasant or difficult. Gods are self-absorbed. Everything in their realm is beautiful and glossy, and appears to be an extension of their own glossy beauty. They may regard themselves as realised beings because they experience everything as beautiful and satisfactory. Their absorption, however, is self-referential and is therefore devoid of precision, sparkle, presence, and clarity. They fail to realise that they are still enmeshed in duality and that it is possible to experience unpleasantness. The god realm is characterised by roominess rather than spaciousness. The potential for the non-dual energy of ubiquitous intelligence and all-encompassing awareness is distorted, as Ngak'chang Rinpoche says: ". . . by absorption in self-referential velleities* in which languid** non-struggle poses as perfection.” They are relaxed in a state of dull confidence and dull knowing. Engaging with the form quality of space as definition, they ignore the emptiness quality of space as lack of definition.

* velleity – volition at its lowest level, a mere wish or inclination, a very weak or slight impulse of the will; a mere fancy that does not lead to action** languid – lacking energy or vitality; weak; showing little or no spirit or animation; listless; lacking vigor or force; slow; dreamy and inactiveNgak'chang Rinpoche pointed out that:

“. . . God perception cannot understand why every being does not simply share their distended relaxation. Gods are like the monistic 'god-realised' guru who tells devotees 'Come to my position' when asked about the nature of realisation. When the devotees do not comprehend this answer the guru just smiles benevolently and repeats 'It is so simple – just come to my position.' It is a position of rarefied complacency in which sublime ignorance and rhapsodic arrogance drift like candyfloss clouds against a two dimensional sky.”

God perception cannot understand the struggle experienced by the beings of the other realms. The gods may be aware of unhappiness but cannot comprehend its cause or how to help, other than to say: ‘Try not to struggle so much.’ In god perception, everything is so smooth and silky that there is no energy and no humour. There is no humour in the god realm because there is no perception of difference – or none that causes friction of any kind. There is no irony. Nothing is ludicrous apart from the almost infinite ludicrousness of the god realm itself – and to that recognition the gods are utterly immune. 'Easy listening' music plays for ever and they never tire of it because it fails to re-define anything.In the god realm success comes easily. Success for the gods consists of always being surrounded by people telling them how clever and beautiful they are. We say, 'You were so wonderful in that film, so perfect,' and each one replies: 'I know'.The relaxed yet vapid* splendour of god perception is a huge hindrance to spiritual practice because the inhabitants of the god realm can see no reason to change the way they are. Everything is perfect already,

so ‘Why would I need to engage with practice?’ God perception is protracted, but eventually the perceptual predisposition which led to it will exhaust itself.* vapid – lacking liveliness, animation, or interest; dull. Lacking taste, zest, or flavor; flatNgak'chang Rinpoche says of the span of time in which the gods exist:

"It is not that the gods necessarily exist for aeons – it is more that the sense of time is indefinite. For time to seem to pass, events need to unfold and changes need to occur. Lacking any sense of difference or of movement – the sense of time in the god realm is necessarily prostrated in terms of experience. It is a period of time in which nothing of any consequence occurs and in which adjacent phenomena have only marginal impact."

Eventually doubt about their self-definition as all-knowing beings will arise. When doubt about the permanence of their perfection arises, the idea of a need to act in some way to protract it also arises. This hint of struggle to maintain god perception is self-defeating and the defeat is immediate. As soon as a god struggles the god becomes a 'jealous god' – because jealous gods are defined as those who struggle to be gods. The slightest smell of failure is sensed in the air, and the other gods distance themselves from the one who is suddenly struggling. The rumour of failing ability and tarnished splendour spreads rapidly. Those who bask in the eiderdown glory of perfection drift away, as they do not know how to associate with failure. Having lost our fellow deities we struggle even more to find perfection again. We have lost the confidence of knowing that all we need to do is relax. We have lost the god realm. The suffering of this loss and inability to regain it is acutely intense.The self-absorption of the god realm is experienced when we are so concerned with our own life and success that we become oblivious to the needs of others. If we notice someone is unhappy or someone tells us of a problem, we simply say ‘Relax and it will be fine.’ We mistake the ease of our circumstances for

wisdom. We assume that we are comfortable because we have discovered the secret of successfully manipulating samsara. We expect our comfort to be definitive and permanent. In the god realm I am so used to everything being easy and smooth that I cannot imagine myself in another being’s situation. My world is so enclosed and revolves so totally around my own needs and wishes, that I assume everyone else’s world is the same. Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche describes this as ‘a kind of self-hypnosis, a natural state of concentration which blocks out of the mind everything that might be irritating or undesirable.’2 An example of a god-realm response is the superlatively naïve comment of Marie Antoinette. When told that the peasants had no bread to eat, she is reported as responding: ‘Let them eat cake.’2 Chögyam Trungpa, Transcending Madness; Part II, Chapter 2, Realm of the gods.In the perceptual realm of the jealous god there is a little more speed and energy. The state of relaxed self-absorption is not so complete. There is a degree of struggle and intensity, and things happen a little faster. The energy of the jealous god has the potential to accomplish whatever is attempted, but dualistic view distorts this energy so that its flow is impeded and there is a lack of confidence in the possibility of attaining one’s goal. Their neurosis is creative enthusiasm and activity – the jealous gods are actively ambitious – but they lack potency and commitment. Their need to always check that everything is going in the right direction pollutes the non-dual potential of their energy. Their dualistic view results in a nervous frenzy of continual observation and assessment. They have to be sure that they are keeping an eye on all aspects of their situation. This frenetic activity cramps and constricts the flow of energy that could accomplish whatever it set out to achieve.The jealous gods associate with the god realms and yearn to be there. The perceptual state of a jealous god is one of ambition, of recognising the goal of god-ness but experiencing the actuality of dissatisfaction. The jealous gods recognise their capacity to be godlike, and

feels that they simply have to work at it hard enough to achieve the smooth and glossy ease of a god. It is incomprehensible to them that relaxation is the key to the god realm. They insist that they must struggle and manoeuvre. In the jealous god realm I am so focused on where I would like to be, and checking that no one else is getting there before me, that I are not able to appreciate tmy own situation. It is this struggle that keeps me from entering the god realm. If I could only relax, I would discover I have already arrived where I wished so much to be. But the more I struggle to attain the god realm, the further away from it I find myself.When I dwell in the perceptual realm of a jealous god, I see others' unhappiness as somewhere I am glad not to be, or as a means to get to where I do want to be. I become a jealous god when my perception is dominated by continually checking and judging everyone else’s situation against my own. I delight if others are not keeping up with me and worry if they appear to be gaining on me. Alternatively I attach to a god being and hope that their shiny gloss will somehow rub off on me. I borrow their power and exist in the protection of their shadow. This is the sphere of middle management – people who are not quite at the top of the tree – or of the inner sanctum of the Buddhist centre. They have a clear idea of where they are aiming and measure everything against this. This is the realm of the rising executive who hardly knows his children and rarely spends time with his wife because he is so intent on getting to the top of his profession. He assumes his family is content because they have a large and beautiful home, all the material possessions they could desire, and the children go to the best schools. He is unaware of his family’s unhappiness until he comes home late from work one day to find a note from his wife saying she has left him.The energy of ambition of the jealous gods is particularly useless with respect to spiritual practice. Jealous gods do not seek to liberate themselves from samsara because they believe that they can make it work. They have seen the gods make it work, so they believe that they can make it work – if only they could

become gods. In this realm I believe in the process of manipulation and struggle and I commit myself to it. I have no intention of letting it go. It may require eventual success and the experience of this as hollow, for a jealous god to let go of this realm.The animal realm is a serious scenario – humourless and lacking in the ability to entertain ambivalence. This is the nose-to-the-grindstone realm, with its continual urge to make everything as stolidly secure as possible. Animal realm beings are not free. They are bound by the limitations they place upon themselves and are bound by their submission to limitations placed upon them by others. They are constricted by an inability to gain a perspective on the instinctive nature of their behaviour. There is a quality of rigidity and fixity in this realm – of obduracy and stubbornness. Animal realm reliability gives rise to narrow minded arrogance. Animal realm perception ignores the limitations inherent in pursuing a course of action with blinkered determination and narrow sense of purpose. There is aversion to change or to entertaining alternative points of view. Animal perception skill in executing manoeuvres may appear intelligent and clear, but is primarily instinctual and habituated. There is a rigidity and inflexibility of view and purpose which restricts intelligence. Animal perception lacks the capacity to observe itself – it cannot see situations as a range of subjective propositions, and therefore cannot step outside itself to effect change.We sink into the animal realm when we justify stubbornness and inflexibility – wilfully refusing to allow change and growth. In this realm we decide that what we have is what we want, and as Khandro Déchen says: ". . . we settle into self re-assuring routines of vegetative yet orderly bestiality." Dinner has to be on the table at a certain time each day. I always watch my favourite television programme. It is essential that I am wearing the current fashion, and always appear in public in the appropriate style of makeup, clothing and accessories of my herd. I always frequent the same pub after the football match. I always go on to the same

restaurant for the same hottest curry, and then vomit in more or less the same place on the way home.Ngak'chang Rinpoche says of the animal realm in this respect:

"Without undue prejudice and at the risk of making a gross generalisation, it could be said that one of the closest definitions of the animal realm can be found in spectator sport. Naturally one can enjoy observing the skills of many sporting activities as a human being – but one only needs to observe the aggression which arises in this context to see how the animal realm mentality marks it territory and defends its definitions. Team identification is all that is required to beat a person to death on the basis that they are wearing a scarf of another colour. Khandro Déchen and I have never found it possible to teach anyone with an overactive addiction to spectator sports – and we have noticed that such people generally have no interest in spirituality unless it is connected with association with 'the one true way'. Fundamentalism, sectarianism, puritanism, homophobia, totalitarianism, institutionalisation, and sanctimonious political correctness are all indicators of animal realm mentality – because they all ascribe to the increasing concretisation of their view."

Our lives may be dominated by some particular focus. This could be collecting Fine Art or stamps, playing golf or football, the gossip about celebrities, train spotting, white supremacy, or religion. The need to amass experience or collect material objects is part of the neurosis of this realm. We may become an authoritative expert in our field. There is a wish to amass objects and experience to establish a sense of substantiality. This is not to say that there is anything wrong in liking routine and regularity, or enjoying a visit to the pub, particular television programmes, enjoying fashion, or with engaging in the hobby of collecting. The problem is when we use these as reference points which define us and make us feel substantial. We close our minds to change and feel threatened by difference. We seek the sameness of habit and only feel comfortable with what is familiar. We find alternative approaches and points of

view threatening. I can believe that I am secure because I own more Star Trek memorabilia than my rival collector – in fact I am the only person in the world to own a model of Captain Kirk in a red shirt instead of a yellow one! The structure and focus of our life may be innocent and innocuous, or it could cause us to become an aggressive fundamentalist and abuse those who do not share our view. In animal realm perception we find security and substantiality in the definitions we weave around ourselves and we cannot cope with any threat to that definition, or with the differences of others’ definitions.It is extremely difficult to move towards spiritual practice from this mindset. Practice inevitably excites change. The whole thrust of Dharma is that it is a path that will transform our experience and behaviour. Animal realm perception cannot cope with the thought of change and transformation. If an interest in teachings and practice arises, it will be rejected as soon as it presents a challenge to the animal's cosy nest. Dharma requires too much energy, too expansive a challenge for animal perception to engage with it. We fail to see the point of practice. We are comfortable within the small space we have established for ourselves. Why risk this with spiritual practice? Why bother?The second of the lower realms is that of the yidags (yi dvags/ preta) or hungry ghosts. This kind of being craves satisfaction but never achieves it. They struggle to manipulate the process of samsara similarly to the jealous gods, but hungry ghosts fail to experience any success. They are always hungry, for mental and physical nourishment. They are caricaturised as having huge mouths and bellies and long thin necks, a symbolic representation of the needy-greedy experience of this realm. Hungry ghosts eat ravenously but are unable to swallow what they eat. Alternatively whatever they swallow becomes burning oil or poison. Nothing they consume provides nutritional benefit or relief from hunger. Hungry ghost perception cannot experience anything as wholesome or valuable. When the hungry ghost offering is made during the

tsog’khorlo ceremony3, the food is placed in a dirty cracked bowl, and left in a unhygienic location – such as on the ground or by the outside toilet. Symbolically this is the only way it is possible for these beings to see the offering as desirable. Hungry ghost appreciation is characteristically distorted in terms of the all-pervading hunger that dominates their existence. They continually consume, but are never satisfied. They have to constantly move on to the next object of their yearning.3 Tsog (tshogs kyi ’khor lo / ganachakra). A ceremony performed twice in the lunar month in which practitioners gather together to share and offer food, and perform symbolic practices of visualisation, song, chant, and dance.Ngak'chang Rinpoche says of the hungry ghost realm:

"This is the realm of the of the Vajrayana student who sees Vajrayana as a means of compensating for their unassuageable neediness. They see Vajrayana as an emporium of commodities which will give them the power and prestige they lack. They chase empowerments and Dzogchen transmission but never gain any benefit from what they imagine they receive. One sees hungry ghost at every centre in every country. They are the ones who vaunt* their knowledge at the expense of others, thinking that their information makes them more important – more to be admired. The problem is that the more they know the less it means to them in terms of how it changes their lives and their perception. There is always more to consume and it is never enough. There is always something more special and more secret which might provide the admiration and self importance they crave. They seek further and further detail without comprehending the nature of the detail and therefore everything they learn merely cripples them further."

* vaunt – v. to speak boastfully (of); brag (about)Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche says of this realm that we are 'fascinated with being hungry rather than with satisfying hunger'4 which echoes Ngak'chang Rinpoche's description of the Western Vajrayana ghosts who haunt the world of Vajrayana without entering it.

4 Chögyam Trungpa, Transcending Madness; Part II, Chapter 6, Realm of the Hungry Ghosts.As a yidag, whatever experience comes my way in life I am never able to be receptive to it. All my opportunities are missed because I do not see them as opportunities. The job offer was fine, but the salary was not quite what it should be and the employer seemed antagonistic. My partner is a good person, I can see that – but they have such irritating habits. Hungry ghosts lack the capacity to actively appreciate. There is always a downside, always a 'but'. In this realm there is a feeling of isolation. I cannot trust that I am liked, or fully embrace liking others. I are unable to appreciate what I have, so I exist in continual poverty, desperate to fulfil the next perceived need. What I have is never good enough, but I also feel that I could never achieve anything better. Hungry ghost perception is completely coloured by perceptual poverty and isolation. We live in this realm a great deal of the time.It is not possible to engage with spiritual practice from within hungry ghost realm perception because all we always see are the drawbacks. We are consumed with doubt as to the efficacy of practice and therefore lack the capacity for sustained effort and involvement. We require instant gratification. If I do not gain profound experience from Dharma practice immediately, I give up and move on to something else – because nothing gains ascendancy over our imperative neediness as 'dharma ghosts'. There is always some shortcoming in the path with which I am involved. If I do gain experience quickly, I find it unfulfilling and uncomfortable. I decide Dharma is not good for me, and try to gain nourishment through telling everyone about my 'bad experience' in the hope that they will be impressed by my sincerity. I cannot take a long-term view in terms of developing on the path of growth and transformation. I cannot enter the sphere of devotion and so I fail to derive the inspiration which builds confidence. My Lama never quite understands me. The practice never completely suits me. There is always a more attractive prospect of practice somewhere else. I

lack the capacity to engage, embrace, and appreciate where I am.There was once a man who used to attend our meetings of the Cardiff Vajrayana Meditation Group. He was always critical of the way in which our meetings were conducted. He complained that we should set up our shrine room and organise ourselves the same way as another Buddhist group in Cardiff. He arrived late to every meeting and was generally disruptive. He would call at our home unannounced and demand individual attention. He would disappear for months and we would not see him at all, and then he would turn up again and behave in the same manner. We discovered by chance that he acted in exactly the same way at the meetings of other Buddhist groups in Cardiff. He would tell them that they should do things the same way as the Cardiff Vajrayana Meditation Group.The lowest and most violent of the realms are the hell realms, where psychosis is vividly and excruciatingly intense. Everything is perceived as hostile, which evokes an instantaneous response of aggression. The fear which is experienced immediately manifests as aggression. The speed of this realm is so violent that action and reaction appear to be simultaneous.Ngak'chang Rinpoche says of the hell realm:

"This is possibly not quite the situation to which John Lennon was referring when he sang about 'Instant Karma' but that describes hell well. Hell is where the self-defeating strategies of the five elements cycles so quickly that it become impossible to find respite. It becomes impossible to trust anything – and this is the one great hope. We cease to trust the samsaric patterns – but the slightest perceptual muscle movement provides feedback as instant agony. This total claustrophobic compression implodes into the utter exhaustion in which pain is accepted – and in that moment there is a chance. There is suddenly a difference between pain and respite for pain. A choiceless-choice emerges . . . "

It seems almost impossible for a hell being to rise from this realm, because to do so would require a moment of

space to enter the instantaneity of their existence. A split second of spacious reflection is required for the hell being to let go of fear and violence, and entertain the fleeting possibility of another state of being.We plummet into the hell realms when our experience of the world is dominated by fear of attack. Are those young men on the bus looking at me in a hostile manner? Everything is seen as deliberate and personal. If something goes wrong I believe it was directly intended for me – and things are always going wrong. I expect people to hurt me, and act aggressively towards them in the belief that this will prevent them getting the chance. In the hell realm my life is dominated by my aggressive attempts to avoid the expected aggression of others. When I do experience some happiness, hell perception means that I cannot trust it. I undermine it, perpetuating my hellish perception. Anger can be boiling and searing or it can be icy and penetrating, reflecting the symbolic representations of hot and cold hells.We cannot engage in spiritual practice when we are generating hell realm perception. Our entire being is consumed by fear and aggression – we are completely identified with it. If we find ourselves in the unlikely position of encountering Dharma, we see it as threatening. We respond to its teachings with hostility – we heckle the teacher and ask sharp questions in a rude or rambunctious manner. We see the practice of others as intimidating and scorn them. We find their kindly response irritating and offensive. When anyone treats us with gentleness it aggravates us. We are unable to move from our position of distrust and fear. We do not have the capacity to embrace spiritual practice.The beings of the three lower realms are unaware of others’ unhappiness and suffering because they are too involved with their own, or they view it as a threat. In the human realm however, we can see the unhappiness of others – we can care about it because we have the capacity to discriminate. We can say: 'I am better off than they are. I could help them.' Compassion can sparkle through. Our problem is that human realm

beings turn discrimination into a philosophy, gathering together in groups of people who like to do the same thing or who share the same opinion. We tend to dislike or feel threatened by people who do not appreciate our occupation or opinion. But there is also the capacity for tolerance and interest in others’ likes and dislikes, opinions and occupations. This ability to be curious and discriminating gives rise to humour. When our habits and opinions are noticed or pointed out to us, we are able to laugh at ourselves. I may suddenly realise the hilarity of hundreds of people sitting in confined metal boxes in long lines waiting with increasing annoyance for the metal box in front of me to move. I may laugh out loud at the sheer madness of cycling with all my strength into a head-on wind of sleet and hardly moving an inch. I may be amused watching myself buy yet another domestic appliance that I believe will make my life easier and more comfortable.The physicality of being born human is not unusual. It is being human – in the sense of a precious human rebirth – that is rare. Even though we look human, we spend little of our time manifesting the potential of the precious human realm. We dwell more often in mind-moments which exhibit the characteristics of the other realms, especially the lower realms. Anger is a powerful and primitive emotion, so we may actually exist in hell realm states of mind for much of our time.Other factors which may hinder my ability to take advantage of the precious human rebirth (to embrace Dharma and become a practitioner) lie in the need to find myself in a location where Dharma can be encountered. I require the capacity of intellect to grasp the content of the teachings, and the time and opportunity to hear them. If I live in conditions of such abject poverty, that gathering food or water and eking out a living on the land, entirely consumes my time and energy, then I am unlikely to engage in spiritual practice. If I am unduly constrained through class, gender, or social position, I may be prevented from hearing teachings. If I live in a place that is torn with warfare or conflict, the teachings may be totally unavailable and there may be no opportunity for

spiritual practice. Alternatively, it may be that through my upbringing I have no interest at all in spiritual practice and development, and feel the only purpose of life is socially sanctioned self advancement. In circumstances such as these, the opportunity of being human is not available. I may be human in form, but I am not able to potentate the capacity of human rebirth.It is not the birth into a human body that is so excruciatingly rare. This is not the golden yoke the turtle is seeking. The rarity is arising as a being who is willing and able to take advantage of the opportunities and endowments offered by a human rebirth, by engaging in spiritual practice. To live with wholesome dedication to a path which develops wisdom and compassion is not so common. Dedicated and engaged practitioners of any spiritual path are greatly out-numbered by those who do not follow any religious discipline or who simply pay lip-service to one. Our desire to be part of the crowd and make our lives docile, so easily undermines honour and sincerity. We continually compromise sparkling, present vibrancy for the mediocrity of 'good enough'. To activate our potential as human, we must live our lives as warriors: fearless, without need of reward or recognition, honourably upholding the cause of kindness and awareness. This is the scarcity and preciousness of human rebirth.To be reading any book about Dharma is part of a success story. For interest to arise in looking with a discriminating mind at the nature of our condition, and the patterns of our perception, means that we are dwelling in the human realm. Every time I put aside: churning over the argument with my neighbour; my belief that the next fad, household appliance or partner will be the source of everlasting happiness; my addiction to the soap opera on the television; the compulsive checking of my status at work; the lazy, cosy certainty that my life is perfect and has nothing to do with anyone else's pain – every time I put these aside to pick up and read a book about spiritual practice . . . I am human.

Sincere and energetic interest in spiritual development is based on previous interest. Whether we believe this was practice in a previous life that has led us to wish to find teachings again in this life, or whether it is simply that we read a Dharma book before or attended a course and it changed us in some subtle way – how wonderful! This demonstrates that Dharma functions. It is of benefit. Interest leads us to connect to the source of spiritual view. Interest in spiritual practice leads us to look for connections with teachers, teachings, and practice – again and again in one life, or lifetime after lifetime. There can be no doubt that practice is valuable if we hold the wonder of this discovery in our hearts – that moments of human realm spiritual awareness encourage more moments of human interest in spiritual development. An interest in Dharma occurs because we have discovered the human realm at other times, and let go of the realms of the gods, jealous gods, animals, yidags and hell beings. If spiritual teachings touch us, it is unlikely that we are starting from zero. We can assume – as our ground – that we have the capacity to engage in practice and that it is improbable that we are starting from the very beginning. We have been human before and had an interest in spiritual practice before. We are attracted to the symbolism and energy of Dharma because in some way we recognise it.We can be inspired to practice knowing that moments of being human are based on our previous successful discovery of being human. We need not fear death – of the moment or of this life. We need not fear the loss of our precious human rebirth, or worry that we will not be able to attain another one. Recognising the human realm, we can marvel at the wonder of who we are and what we can be. We can see that this life, this body, these life circumstances are an opportunity to become realised. There is no need to feel overwhelmed by how often we fall back into lower-realm perception, because there are endless opportunities to awaken. We can be inspired to practise because we recognise honour and integrity and cultivate it in our lives. This is the result of engaging with the potential of the human realm. We can celebrate that we have the potential of a precious human rebirth, with the capacity, opportunity, and

interest to engage in practice once more. This is truly something to exalt and appreciate, and to feed with more spiritual practice.Being human means that we definitely have the capacity to realise non-duality, to understand the essence of Dharma – that form is emptiness and emptiness is form. Recognising that we have a precious human rebirth if we wish, we can engage in activity that continually returns us to this realisation. This is the power of the first of the four thoughts. This is our inspiration. When we recognise that our response has been instinctive and conditioned, rooted in fear or craving, then we are awake again – in that moment of recognition. When we see that we have hurt others and reacted from self-protection and justification, we have woken up – in that moment of recognition. Through recognition, awareness, the empty potential of Sky Mind, we can return to being human again and again. We are human.Questioner: Could you say a little more about how we perpetuate the realms we find ourselves in?Ngakma Nor'dzin: Well let’s return to the simple example – if I drop litter in the street I am making a statement that I think it is acceptable to live in a world where people drop litter. If I am aggressive towards people, I am making a statement that I wish to live in a world where people are bullies. When I do not bother to take back the extra five pounds the shop assistant gave us by mistake, I am saying that I am happy to live in a world where people are dishonest. We justify our decisions in many weird and wonderful ways. We may say 'It was such a dirty place anyway so my sweet wrapper did not make any difference'; 'That guy was such a nerd – it was his fault that he irritated me so much'; 'The shop is part of a huge chain. They can afford to lose a small sum.’ Such justification undermines a sense of honour and integrity and denies the possibility of liberation. It is opting for mediocrity and the easy way out.Q: It sounds as though there is no hope for beings in lower realms...

NN: There is hope. The vast potential of a moment of pure compassion or sparkling awareness cannot be underestimated. This spark can arise at any moment in any realm. Each moment is an opportunity to explode the limitations of our existence. These opportunities are facilitated more easily in the human realm than any other, but this does not deny the possibility of movement in other realms. As Khandro Déchen once said: "There is a Buddha in every realm. A Buddha who works for the benefit of beings in those realms – even the perceptual states with the most intense suffering." Through understanding the qualities of the realms, we can recognise when we are dwelling in one of the other five realms, and decide to let it go and arise as human. It is slightly artificial to talk about the four thoughts in isolation from each other. An aspect of the practice is to also remember impermanence – the second of the four thoughts – so that we understand that we can always spontaneously dissolve greed, anger, compulsion, jealousy, or disinterest. We can allow the next mind-moment to be one of choosing expansive openness and compassion. We can allow the next mind-moment to be human. We can recognise disinterest, selfishness, inflexibility, poverty of spirit and fearful aggression, and decide to discriminate. We can choose not to dwell in these realms. We can invoke the potential of being human.Q; This teaching seems to depend on a belief in rebirth.NN: That is only true if you regard the realms as actual physical realities. To take rebirth does not necessarily mean having to die physically and be reborn physically. The realms are perceptual, and the teaching is relevant to a single life experience, as it fluctuates from moment to moment. We are continually dying to one realm and being reborn in another.Q: I’m surprised rebirth is not part of your presentation of this teaching.NN: Again this is because we cannot really separate the precious human rebirth teachings from the teachings on impermanence and death. You could say that the

realms are the form, and impermanence is the emptiness, of the two parts of the teaching.Q: Why didn't you present the impermanence and death teachings first then?NN: Because I felt it was important to follow the traditional format of most of the presentations I have studied, which puts the four thoughts in the order I give them here.Q2: When you find yourself in a realm, how long does it take for that perceptual state to exhaust itself? It sounded like it would be an awful long time in the god realm, yet success can be rather fleeting.NN: The time referred to here is perceptual time, rather than time you measure on a clock. Perceptual time is different in all the realms. I'm sure we've all had experiences of time appearing to move at a different speed in different circumstances. I remember being in a car crash once. I was coming down a main road and a car attempted to cross over it in front of me. They had misjudged the manoevre and I realised that I was going to hit them – that I could not brake in time to avoid them and that they were not going to get across before I hit them. I had time to assess that I couldn't serve to the right or left without causing more of a problem. All I could do was brake. Those few seconds of hard braking before I finally ploughed into the side of the car seemed to go into slow motion. I was able to experience the car skidding slightly as I braked so hard. I can remember the sensation of floating gently, almost dreamily towards them, whilst at the same time being fully aware of the seriousness of the situation. Everything happened slowly and silently until the sudden sound and shock of the impact.Q. Were you hurt?NN: No, fortunately I had reacted quickly enough that the impact was fairly mild and none of us were injured.So you see perceptual time is quite different to clock time. The patterns of a realm perpetuate themselves. The hell realm experience is fast and violent. The god realm experience is slow and expansive. Human realm

experience is fairly fast, but it does offer space to become aware.Q: It sounds like only the god realm beings get a good deal! [laughter]. Only they seem to experience any sense of their sphere being satisfying.NN: All the realms experience some form of satisfaction – satisfaction that my attack hurt the other person, satisfaction that I am real because I am hungry and there is something to crave, satisfaction that I have created a secure nest, satisfaction that I know who I am and fit into society, and satisfaction that my ambition is moving me up the ladder towards godhood. The satisfaction of the god realm is totally self-absorbed. However, in hurting the other person I also hurt myself. Perhaps I have a moment of realising that I am always hungry and never really satisfied. I may become suspicious of the substantiality and security of my little nest. I start to wonder why I limit myself by fitting into my chosen niche. The struggle of striving to reach the top finally exhausts me, or I suddenly have a moment of doubt about myself. Then there is the possibility of change, of movement. If we engage in activity that encourages that opening of view, then anything becomes possible, but usually we retract and consolidate. It doesn’t occur to the gods to be kind. They do not connect with other beings’ worlds. They do not have the concept of happiness or unhappiness – there is simply the self-referential complacency of themselves.Q: Why are there said to be more beings in the lower realms than the higher realms?NN: The process of movement is struggle and relaxation. If you struggle, you move down, if you relax, you move up. Generally we struggle because this is form. Relaxation is empty and this is what we run away from or try to ignore, so relaxation is more unusual.