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The Truth About Dzogchen Nobody Tells Beginners | Marcia Binder-Schmidt

Study Buddhism

22,478 views

"Dzogchen has been marketed extremely well" — and that's exactly the problem. Marcia Binder-Schmidt dismantles the myth that the Great Perfection is only for superior practitioners who "do nothing," and lays out what real Dzogchen practice requires: the four mind changings, a strong foundation, daily practice, and Guru Yoga as the true heart of the path. Honest, practical guidance for anyone drawn to Tibetan Buddhism and the Nyingma tradition.

0:00 The Dzogchen "Marketing" Myth
1:20 The Teacher, Rigpa & the Pointing-Out Instruction
2:36 Why You Can't Skip the Grades
4:04 The Four Mind Changings
5:26 The Six Realms as States of Mind
7:15 Building a Daily Practice
8:36 Guru Yoga: The Heart of Dzogchen
9:45 A Daily Practice for Busy People
11:03 How to Find the Right Teacher Today
12:38 Knowing Yourself, Prayer & Study
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20 Comments

@studybuddhism Creator 3 months ago Pinned

"It's not a feel-good path." That line really struck with me when she said it, and stayed with me well after the interview.
Honest question: which part of the foundation do you find hardest to keep up with? The four mind changings, the daily practice, or just being honest with yourself about whether you're actually progressing?
Next week: Dzogchen vs Mahamudra explained 🔔

@Norbu421 3 months ago

Marcia and her ex-husband, Erik Pema Kunsang are living treasures, they have contributed so much to Dharma in so many different ways. Boundless gratitude!

@ricardperezfree 3 months ago

This is a very needed clarification. Dzogchen is often presented as if it means “just recognize awareness and do nothing,” but this makes people skip the foundation that actually makes recognition stable. The real path includes ethics, bodhichitta, impermanence, karma, daily practice, devotion, and honest self observation. This is exactly why the 8 levels of attention are useful: they show that direct recognition is not separate from gradual training. First attention has to become stable, kind, sincere, and less caught in egoic fantasy. Then the “nothing to do” teaching can become living realization, not spiritual bypassing. 😁🙏

@dorjisung 3 months ago

Thank you la for such clarity, especially in an era of spiritual materialism. 🙏🌷

@MantisMShrimp 2 weeks ago

''Although my view is as vast as the open sky, my attention to action/karma is as delicate as the mustard seed.'' - Guru Rinpoche Padmasambhava.

@MickManningly 3 months ago

The lady knows her stuff !

@p.johanneshoyer9905 2 weeks ago

Thank you for this much needed clarification.
This self, the me, I, is distorting almost everything he gets hold in his attempt to survive.
That ALL the stages of the path are nessecary, complement one another falls often under the table to uplift, enhance, this little me that wants to be so huge.
As Shri Singa made Padmasambhava studying all stages before he gave him teachings, it had a reason.
May we be able to study, reflect and practice, to our best abilities, in his spirit.

@timtim8011 2 weeks ago

Thank you for this teaching. I don't know who is saying "in Dzogchen, there's nothing to do." I've never heard that.

@Silentpools 2 months ago

Thank you for this video. I have been regularly meditating without a teacher now for nearly seven years. In that time I have only missed one day. I realise this is not a very long time and I accept that I am really just starting out. I used to read a lot but I am more selective now as I find that meditation quietly reveals certain teachings. I have been exploring emptiness as my meditation seems to have led me there and this I feel has been an important step. I understand that I need a teacher now and I was looking at books today and I saw your name so finding this video was very fortuitous. I thought your advice was honest, forthright and helpful. Actually deciding on a teacher or school to approach isn't easy but I feel that the 'circle of uncertainty' presented by this decision is narrowing. Thank you and I wish you well.

@WanderingYogis 3 months ago

Wonderful!!! 🙏🏻💎💎💎

@scottmatt6169 2 months ago

Awareness Awarness Awareness
Without developing your awareness with vipassana or similar meditation and understanding nonduality one cannot practice Dzogchen
It’s not about endless words

@philmcdonald6088 3 months ago

book recommend: THE BASIC SPACE OF PHENOMENA by longchen rabjam (pdf).

@profweigand 2 weeks ago

Ashtavakra said: “In the sage there is neither violence nor mercy, arrogance nor humility, anxiety nor wonder. His wordly life has been exhausted. He has transcended his role as a person.”

Let go of all your words, your concepts, and your ideas about progress. Just let yourself be the rigpa you so much enjoy “seeking.” The cosmic chuckle is that it is that easy.

@ОлегАгрызков 3 months ago

🙏

@antoonmeerman 3 months ago

Thank you for this interesting talk and explanation. Dzogchen certainly seems to be the pinnacle of Buddhist practice, although I have no direct experience of it myself. What I find especially encouraging is Marcia Binder-Schmidt's advice on how to assess our progress: by looking at whether we are giving up negative actions, becoming kinder, more loving, and more caring towards others.

My own practice is not Dzogchen, at least not yet, but I am grateful to see that it is slowly producing the very qualities she suggests we look for as signs of genuine progress.

@parry3231 3 months ago

Our own soul's knowledge with love and harmony in peacefulness and nurturing through kindness and caring. 🪷🦋🕊🌱
We all are interintwined energetically and are sacred entities that are pieces of the same puzzle 🧩
Every single moment is a new beginning 🌈👐🕉🪺🦋
Presence with generosity of heart and unlocking of our minds with love and harmony in peacefulness and compassion.

@mindlessmindwatch7807 3 months ago

Iam allso on this path👃

@williamkinney2803 3 months ago

As a complete "beginner" (first heard the word today), I am 2:03 the way into this video, and it is already imcomprehensible to me.

@BenTrem42 4 weeks ago (edited)

5:36 - "Hell realms" ... are hungry ghosts denizens of that domain? (I'm thinking drug addiction.)

I've recently pivoted towards #NeuroPhenomenology ... abhidharma meets squishy brain science ... and have focussed on the state that is so near "no mindful free-will here" ... terribly chilling, to experience clearly as though "driven" and "reactive" but not intentional!

TD!
--KC: