Three levels of the Bön Practice

For the past ten years, Alberto and I have been immersing ourselves in the indigenous Tibetan spiritual tradition known as Bön. Now we are in India visiting their main monastery and nunnery in exile and filming a documentary about their teachings—which have a lot of similarities with Tibetan Buddhism since there has been much synergy among the two.

While waiting for this film to be ready, I can share how the Bön offer their wisdom from three distinctive levels: the sutras, the tantras and Dzogchen.

The sutras are sacred scriptures that emphasize ethical conduct and virtuous behavior.  For example, one of the texts explains the law of karma and its relation to Cause and Effect. It says that positive actions result in favorable circumstances, while negative actions lead to suffering. This sutra also discusses how to purify negative karma through confession, repentance, and the cultivation of virtuous deeds.

At the tantric level the teachings turn more esoteric with a focus on transforming all experiences, even those related to desire and attachment, into the spiritual path. Through practices like mantra recitation, deity visualization, ritual offerings, and methodical breathing, the emotional poisons are transformed into wisdom. The tantric practitioner does not renounce the world but uses it as a vehicle for awakening to the true nature of reality.

Meanwhile, the Dzogchen level invites us to realize the true essence of our mind in its pure and most primordial nature. Dzogchen’s offers a contemplative practice without an aim to construct any particular state of mind, instead encourages the practitioner to simply rest in a natural state of awareness. Thoughts and emotions are seen as self-arising and self-liberating within the spaciousness of the unaltered mind itself inherent to every human being.

To understand how to approach reality from this three levels Bön teachers share the following metaphor. When encountering poison, at the sutra level you avoid the poison, like staying away from drama. From the level of tantra, you engage the poison and transform it into nectar. For example, you can practice transforming pride into equanimity. And from the level of Dzogchen, poison and nectar have the same taste since both arise from and dissolve into the primordial nature of the mind, just like waves cropping up and then disappearing into the ocean.

Now I can give you a personal example of how I relate to this three levels. When I feel sick or weak, I retreat at home and avoid stress as much as possible. If I know myself capable of changing a situation for the better then I engage into the activities that create the change. Lastly, regardless of these two different approaches, I cultivate the Dzogchen practice of resting in the pristine nature of mind. In this way I am reminded that ‘this’ too should pass which helps me to experience life with greater lightness.

How do you resonate with these three levels?

Blessings!

Marcela Lobos