“There is a great deal of suffering in our world. Everyone experiences sickness, aging, and death, and we face many emotional difficulties as well. We see a lot evidence of this in our own lives, and in the lives of those close to us. With a good heart, we should pray that everyone becomes free from suffering, and enjoys peace, happiness, and great realization. We should continuously cultivate bodhichitta, and work to increase our desire and ability to help others. With this foundation, our Dzogchen practice will become deep, profound, and expansive.

Pure perception is also very important. Another word for pure perception is ‘devotion.’ At the beginning of the Seven Chapter Prayer, Guru Padmasambhava said that Vajrayana is the path for those with devotion, and it’s true. Without devotion, there is no Vajrayana. Devotion begins with joy, appreciation, and respect for ourselves, our circumstances, and our environment. As we allow these beautiful feelings to spread in every direction, we begin to see that the entire universe is a manifestation of the “five perfections:” (1) the perfect teacher, (2) perfect teaching, (3) perfect audience, (4) perfect place, and(5) perfect time. The five perfections are not some sort of dogma— they’re not something that we wish to see, or that we impose on our experience. The five perfections have always naturally been here. Now at last, we see them.

The path of realizing the five perfections begins where we are. Many beautiful causes and conditions have come together to bring us to where we are now. We embody and are surrounded by so much that is good. The more we acknowledge and expand the goodness within and around us, the more we can transcend and ultimately dissolve all negativity and trouble. There’s a saying in the West: “The grass is always greener on the other side.” If we think this, we’re being unfair to ourselves—our grass is already very green! We should respect, honor, and celebrate ourselves and everyone in our lives. And as we deepen our appreciation, let’s open our hearts and minds even further to include everyone and everything. If we practice like this, we’ll become great yogis and yoginis.”

Venerable Khenpo Rinpoches
The Beauty of Awakened Mind Dzogchen Lineage of the Great Master Shigpo Dudtsi (pg 170-171)
www.padmasambhava.org/chiso/books-by-khenpo-rinpoches/beauty-of-awakened-mind-dzogchen-lineage-of-shigpo-dudtsi