My discovery from Best Buddhist Writing: 2008 (see this blog entry) was Ridgzin Shikpo (Michael Hookham) who began his practice in the 1950s.
In 1965, Shikpo met his principle teacher, Chogyam Trungpa Rimpoche, and received detailed instruction from him on the preliminary and main practice of the Dzogchen tradition. Shikpo’s emphasis is on presenting Dzogchen’s teaching in English using methods and language appropriate to Western students.
Never Turn Away is a practical book that I had to read slowly almost like a book of essays. Shikpo’s words ring with authenticity as he emphasizes the practice of openness and awareness to see the significance of our ordinary experiences. Even if we don’t know what to do or how to handle the situation, Shikpo advises us to simply turn toward the situation. The teachings of this book have a strong emphasis on working with direct experience.
Never Turn Away is divided into four sections:
1. Understanding openness through meditation and the truth of suffering
2. Mandala principles and the cause of suffering
3. Collapse of confusion and the cessation of suffering
4. Pursuit of truth and the truth of the path
All four sections are broken down and fit together with superb editing. These sections are full of techniques to help us understand out practice. Also, I found Shikpo’s full account of basic formless meditation to be most helpfully presented.
Never Turn Away does not feel contrived; It is genuine and open as Shikpo gives us his clues for facing the present.
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