The Quintessence of the View

Drawing Out the Quintessence of the View

by Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö

In devotion, I bow before the guru of my own mind,
Who reveals the meaning of the indivisibility of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa.
Although the full range of explanations is extensive,
The essence of the private instruction for disciples,[1]
Boiled down to its key points, is as follows:
This very mind which serves as the basis
For the proliferation of various thoughts and perceptions,
When it is left as it is, unaltered,
Is the indivisible union of clarity and emptiness,
Lucid, clear, without thought and inexpressible.
Understand how upon this innate awareness,
Which is indefinable and without basis of designation,
The indivisibility of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa is complete.
Sustain, without distraction or grasping, this radiant clarity,
Which is and always has been perfectly pure.
This is the fundamental core of the ultimate practice.
It maintains the vital force of the four empowerments.
And it brings accomplishment within this very lifetime.

Written in Darjeeling on the twenty-fifth day of Saga Dawa during the Earth Dog year.[2]

| Translated by Adam Pearcey with the generous support of the Khyentse Foundation and Tertön Sogyal Trust, 2021.

Source: 'Jam dbyangs chos kyi blo gros. "lta ba'i yang snying bcud phyung" in ’Jam dbyangs chos kyi blo gros kyi gsung ’bum. 12 vols. Bir: Khyentse Labrang, 2012. W1KG12986 8: 445–446