Rainbow Painting (Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche)
A Less-Than-Mediocre “Tweener” Text
[My 2-star review of “Rainbow Painting: A Collection of Miscellaneous Aspects of Development and Completion” by Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche.]
I initially read “Rainbow Painting” about fifteen years ago, when I seriously began to study Dzogchen. I thought it was a mediocre text then, but now, after having re-read it in order to review it, I think it’s a less-than-mediocre text, not close to being good enough to warrant a berth on the Spiritual Reading List I provide in the books I write.
In the books Preface, “Rainbow Painting” is described as “more for the seasoned Dharma student.” But in my estimation, the book, while too advanced for beginners, lacks the depth and detail to benefit experienced Dzogchen practitioners. Hence, it’s kind of a “tweener” text that, while an agreeable read, is not an impressive one.
“Rainbow Painting” suffers from the same malady that plagues many Tibetan Buddhist texts: hokum. For example, we are told by author Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche (1920-1976) that Padmasambhava, appointed by Shakyamuni to teach Vajrayana, “arrived in this world without a father or mother, appearing in the center of a lotus-blossom,” and that “he lived in India for more than a thousand years, and remained in Tibet for 55 years before depating from this world.” Elsewhere, Rinpoche writes: “That is why the great masters who attained accomplishment could walk on water, pass through solid rock and remain unharmed by flames. Padmasambhava was burned at the stake several times, but remained unscorched.” Still elsewhere, Rinpoche writes: “Next, consider the many causes of death and the few circumstances for staying alive. There are 404 kinds of diseases, 80,000 kinds of attacks from evil spirits, and many other obstacles for life as well.” If you buy hokum like this, then you’ll appreciate this book.
Perhaps the most glaring problem with this book is the disconnect between its title and its content. The title implies that the book provides useful instructions on attaining a rainbow body, but it doesn’t. The author provides stories about those who attained rainbow bodies, but I give these stories as much creedance as I do the mythology associated with Padmasambhava. Anyone who deeply studies Dzogchen knows that in order to attain a rainbow body, one must practice “Togal,” but though this book mentions togal a number of times, it doesn’t provide any Togal instructions.
Like most of the Tibetan “gurus” I’ve read, the author is a muddled, murky, and philosophically challenged thinker. If I wasn’t an expert in Dzogchen, Eastern mysticism, and Objectivist epistemology, my head would be spinning from trying to make sense of some of the material in this poorly written (or poorly translated) text. For example, the author tells us all “sense objects are mere perceptions, and therefore do not exist. Whatever appears due to causes and conditions is ultimately nothing but a moment of mere perception.” This is pure poppycock. The chair you feel your butt sitting on right now is not just a perception; it will continue to exist whether or not you perceive its existence. The author also tells us, “We cannot separate emptiness and cognizance because they are a unity.” Unbeknownst to the author, the empty space in my coffee cup is not cognizant. Although pure awareness is formless, it is not emptiness; and emptiness (a non-existent) is not “conscious awareness,” which is a better term than “cognizance” which the author (or the translator) uses throughout the text.
Definitions are makeshift for most of the Tibetan ‘gurus,’ so it’s difficult to figure out what anything really means. For example, Rinpoche writes, “The most subtle level is to gain stability in the practices of Trekcho and Togal. Togal is the manifest aspect in which the bodies of the deities actually arise, while Trekcho is the empty aspect.”
Unbeknownst to Rinpoche, Trekcho means “cutting, or breaking, through, and pertains to the practice of direct and immediate awareness, which cuts through “spiritual materialism” to reach the “Other Side,” radiant Spirit, the Sambhogakaya. “Treckho” is not the empty aspect of anything. Togal means “leaping over,” or directly connecting to Spirit, the Sambhogakaya, and channeling its Clear-Light Energy. In no way can Togal be construed as “the manifest aspects in which the bodies of the deities actually arise.”
Rinpoche writes, “Although everything is said to be empty, the awakened state is not empty of kayas and wisdoms.” This is a contradiction. Everything cannot be said to be empty if the awakened state is not empty. Then elsewhere Rinpoche writes, “You begin with the samadhi of suchness, which is great emptiness.” How does “great emptiness” differ from ordinary awareness? Rinpoche doesn’t say. If there are levels of emptiness--great and ordinary--then emptiness is hardly empty. Moreover, suchness, or being-ness, though formless, is not emptiness (a non-existent); it is Awareness (Dharmakaya) united with Clear-Light-Energy (Sambhogakaya) embodied and expressed through an Initiated yogi (Nirmanakaya).
I’ve presented just a few examples of the poor writing/translation and second-rate philosophy in this book; know that the entire text is teeming with more of the same. I know that Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche was a respected and beloved Dzogchen lama, but after reading (and then re-reading) this text, I have little interest in checking out further writings of his.
I would like to give this text three stars, because it does contain some worthwhile Dzogchen tips, but because it is repetitive, hokum-filled, poorly written, philosophically weak, and fails to provide togal instructions for attaining a rainbow body, I can only give it two.
[My 2-star review of “Rainbow Painting: A Collection of Miscellaneous Aspects of Development and Completion” by Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche.]
I initially read “Rainbow Painting” about fifteen years ago, when I seriously began to study Dzogchen. I thought it was a mediocre text then, but now, after having re-read it in order to review it, I think it’s a less-than-mediocre text, not close to being good enough to warrant a berth on the Spiritual Reading List I provide in the books I write.
In the books Preface, “Rainbow Painting” is described as “more for the seasoned Dharma student.” But in my estimation, the book, while too advanced for beginners, lacks the depth and detail to benefit experienced Dzogchen practitioners. Hence, it’s kind of a “tweener” text that, while an agreeable read, is not an impressive one.
“Rainbow Painting” suffers from the same malady that plagues many Tibetan Buddhist texts: hokum. For example, we are told by author Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche (1920-1976) that Padmasambhava, appointed by Shakyamuni to teach Vajrayana, “arrived in this world without a father or mother, appearing in the center of a lotus-blossom,” and that “he lived in India for more than a thousand years, and remained in Tibet for 55 years before depating from this world.” Elsewhere, Rinpoche writes: “That is why the great masters who attained accomplishment could walk on water, pass through solid rock and remain unharmed by flames. Padmasambhava was burned at the stake several times, but remained unscorched.” Still elsewhere, Rinpoche writes: “Next, consider the many causes of death and the few circumstances for staying alive. There are 404 kinds of diseases, 80,000 kinds of attacks from evil spirits, and many other obstacles for life as well.” If you buy hokum like this, then you’ll appreciate this book.
Perhaps the most glaring problem with this book is the disconnect between its title and its content. The title implies that the book provides useful instructions on attaining a rainbow body, but it doesn’t. The author provides stories about those who attained rainbow bodies, but I give these stories as much creedance as I do the mythology associated with Padmasambhava. Anyone who deeply studies Dzogchen knows that in order to attain a rainbow body, one must practice “Togal,” but though this book mentions togal a number of times, it doesn’t provide any Togal instructions.
Like most of the Tibetan “gurus” I’ve read, the author is a muddled, murky, and philosophically challenged thinker. If I wasn’t an expert in Dzogchen, Eastern mysticism, and Objectivist epistemology, my head would be spinning from trying to make sense of some of the material in this poorly written (or poorly translated) text. For example, the author tells us all “sense objects are mere perceptions, and therefore do not exist. Whatever appears due to causes and conditions is ultimately nothing but a moment of mere perception.” This is pure poppycock. The chair you feel your butt sitting on right now is not just a perception; it will continue to exist whether or not you perceive its existence. The author also tells us, “We cannot separate emptiness and cognizance because they are a unity.” Unbeknownst to the author, the empty space in my coffee cup is not cognizant. Although pure awareness is formless, it is not emptiness; and emptiness (a non-existent) is not “conscious awareness,” which is a better term than “cognizance” which the author (or the translator) uses throughout the text.
Definitions are makeshift for most of the Tibetan ‘gurus,’ so it’s difficult to figure out what anything really means. For example, Rinpoche writes, “The most subtle level is to gain stability in the practices of Trekcho and Togal. Togal is the manifest aspect in which the bodies of the deities actually arise, while Trekcho is the empty aspect.”
Unbeknownst to Rinpoche, Trekcho means “cutting, or breaking, through, and pertains to the practice of direct and immediate awareness, which cuts through “spiritual materialism” to reach the “Other Side,” radiant Spirit, the Sambhogakaya. “Treckho” is not the empty aspect of anything. Togal means “leaping over,” or directly connecting to Spirit, the Sambhogakaya, and channeling its Clear-Light Energy. In no way can Togal be construed as “the manifest aspects in which the bodies of the deities actually arise.”
Rinpoche writes, “Although everything is said to be empty, the awakened state is not empty of kayas and wisdoms.” This is a contradiction. Everything cannot be said to be empty if the awakened state is not empty. Then elsewhere Rinpoche writes, “You begin with the samadhi of suchness, which is great emptiness.” How does “great emptiness” differ from ordinary awareness? Rinpoche doesn’t say. If there are levels of emptiness--great and ordinary--then emptiness is hardly empty. Moreover, suchness, or being-ness, though formless, is not emptiness (a non-existent); it is Awareness (Dharmakaya) united with Clear-Light-Energy (Sambhogakaya) embodied and expressed through an Initiated yogi (Nirmanakaya).
I’ve presented just a few examples of the poor writing/translation and second-rate philosophy in this book; know that the entire text is teeming with more of the same. I know that Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche was a respected and beloved Dzogchen lama, but after reading (and then re-reading) this text, I have little interest in checking out further writings of his.
I would like to give this text three stars, because it does contain some worthwhile Dzogchen tips, but because it is repetitive, hokum-filled, poorly written, philosophically weak, and fails to provide togal instructions for attaining a rainbow body, I can only give it two.
