Patience

Ngak’chang Rinpoche was once travelling by car to a retreat with our disciple Naljorma Jig’mèd. They became embroiled in a lengthy traffic jam and she commented, I've never known anyone with such patience. To which Ngak’chang Rinpoche replied, Why do you say that? I think of myself as extremely impatient. Naljorma Jig’mèd responded, But you don’t seem to be in any anxiety about being late.

Rinpoche laughed at that point and pointed out, Well, I’m not impatient when there is nothing I can do to change a situation. If I thought we could get out of this jam by cutting across a field, then maybe you might witness impatience on my part.

Vajra-impatience is a parameter of the buddhakarma of destruction – but dualistic impatience is desperation – a frenetic kicking against limitations imposed by situations in which we feel insecure, fearful, out of touch, anxious, or lost.

Impatience is a means of seeking to control the momentum and direction at which circumstances unfold. The extent of impatience is commensurate with the degree to which reality refuses to cooperate with our dualistic derangement.

Patience—on the other hand—does not mean abdicating responsibility for attempting to move a circumstance or a person in a compassionately preferable direction. From the view of Vajrayana, patience or Zopa (bZod pa – kshanti paramita) does not mean acceptance, forbearance, and suffering. According to Vajrayana, patience involves intelligent open-minded striving, in which the situation is propelled at its optimal velocity – neither forcing it, nor failing in the attempt facilitate movement. Both apathy and coercion are the result of referentiality with regard to the pace at which visible success is apparent. Patience looks different according to circumstances.

Patience does not mean that Lamas would not push a person to achieve – if they knew that failure to encourage, coax, or cajole would mean stagnation in the student.

Any form of teaching or learning exposes our degree of intelligent open-minded endeavour with regard to that for which we strive. This process becomes visible if we take the example of teaching a child to play a musical instrument. To force the pace of the child’s learning can often result in a spectacular backfire, in which those involved in the situation lose all impetus to continue. If, however, we were not to encourage practice, the child would never develop the degree of self-discipline required to practise daily, and to achieve the results which provide continued motivation.

The practice of shi-nè involves the renunciation of attachment to form as a reference point. Through shi-nè we learn that we cannot force thought. We need to be completely purposelessly welcoming. Whatever thought arises simply moves in its own way. Any approach involving force results either in hilarity or frustration. One needs a sense of humour about one’s condition. One catches oneself trying to force meditation – repeatedly. All we can do, however, is watch ourselves in the process of trying, until trying wears itself out with trying in the open space of awareness. This is patience in terms of shi-nè – as we speak of it from the point of view of the Four Naljors of Dzogchen sem-dé.

Patience is required in terms of learning anything: shi-nè, horse riding, thangka painting, or marksmanship with a .500 Linebaugh. If you have found the right Lama, patience requires the implementation of their instructions. The Lama’s instructions need to be followed exactly, rather than according to our own ideas – either in terms of our supposed meagre limitations, or in terms of our inflated sense of ourselves as perfectly qualified.

The only factor which alters the nature of our pace – is practice. Genuine practice is imbued with intelligent open-minded striving. The Lama provides the fount of knowledge from which we can glean the practices in which we could most effectively engage.

Practice is energetic; so if we disengage from the lugubrious slough of apathy and concomitantly open-mindedly persevere, the vectoral velocity of our energy becomes suffused with the brilliant nature of our non-dual unfolding.

The Ten Paramitas

(Parol-tu Chinpa Çu – pha rol tu phyin pa drug phar bCu)

1.    Generosity (jinpa – sByin pa – dana paramita)
2.    Discipline [energy / morality] (tsultrim – tshul khrims – shila paramita)
3.    Patience (zopa – bZod pa – kshanti paramita)
4.    Diligence (tsöndrü – brTson ’grus – virya paramita)
5.    Openness [transcendental knowledge or insight] (samten – bSam gTan – dhyana paramita)
6.    Knowledge (shérab – shes rab – prajna paramita)
7.    Method – skilful means (thab – thabs – upaya paramita)
8.    Aspiration power (mönlam – sMon lam – pranidhana paramita)
9.    Strength (tob – sTobs – bala paramita)
10.  Primordial wisdom (yeshé – ye she – jnana paramita)