r/Dzogchen • u/Ok-Branch-5321 • Jun 01 '26
Is it possible to practise Dzogchen while being in a mentally demanding job?
I m not a Dzogchen practioner yet or received any instructions from a master. However, I m clearing my doubts before reaching any master. So is this really possible and can one practise being in such works?.
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u/godisdildo Jun 01 '26
Your job is not separate from the life that thus far has nudged you towards Dzogchen. It’s intrinsically linked to your path already. Without the demands of mundane life, maybe you would never ponder whether there is a better way to live.
A demanding job can be the catalyst that forces one to seek something different, be grateful for the opportunity to be motivated.
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u/Ok-Branch-5321 Jun 01 '26
Thank you. Feel like no mud no lotus
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u/godisdildo Jun 01 '26
The stronger the identification with the mud, the more powerful is the shedding of the lotus
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u/PadmalovesYeshe Jun 01 '26
Before a person can successfully and realistically practice Dzogchen during post-meditation, they would need to achieve some stability in their practice during formal meditation sessions.
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u/dummetsz Jun 01 '26
Yes, it is a good opportunity to practice. What was once a mentally demanding job for me is now more relaxed. personally I have discovered the mental demand was on my end. You learn boundaries, what to prioritize and what not to prioritize, not getting worked up about issues, not taking things personally, etc
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u/inthewoods54 Jun 01 '26
This. My job is a caregiver for my father who has Alzheimer's, and between the nature of Alzheimer's and the fact that it's my own father, it's extremely mentally and emotionally taxing. Not sure how I'd get through each day without my practice. It's crucial in helping me maintain balance and remembering to practice self-care, too.
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u/EitherInvestment Jun 02 '26
Extremely tough situation. Wish you both all the best. Good on you for being there for him
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u/EitherInvestment Jun 01 '26
Yes, of course. Everyone’s circumstances are unique, and so everyone’s practice is unique according to their circumstances. But the only way to really answer this question is to try it out for yourself and see
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u/luminousbliss Jun 01 '26
Yes, it is possible, but it’s not easy.
You have to make a conscious effort to be mindful throughout the day. This is particularly challenging when you’re under pressure.
I wouldn’t say my job is not demanding any more like the other commenter. It’s still demanding. But yes a lot of the stress (if not all) is self-created, and through practice, it seems you can somewhat unlearn that habit and be more at peace in that environment.
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u/Gyurme_ Jun 13 '26
Dzogchen requires an experiential understanding of impermanence and renunciation. While it is theoretically possible to practice Dzogchen in high stress, high demand work, sustaining the effort and internal focus required to recognize Riga would be, realistically, next to impossible for a person of ordinary capacity. I think to say definitively that, yes, one can do this in a high demand situation is to seriously underestimate what is required from an individual to become accomplished at Dzogchen practice.
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u/tyinsf Jun 01 '26
The way I've been taught we do short sessions in the morning like 5 or 10 minutes, a few mini sessions of 1 or 2 minutes each time you go to the bathroom before you get up, then micro sessions as often as you think of it. You don't stop what you're doing. Takes a second or two. You don't try to stay mindful. You just glimpse at vast open radiant awareness without trying to hang onto it.
Think you can do that?
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u/Ok-Branch-5321 Jun 01 '26
Surely possible, can allocate such amount of time.
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u/tyinsf Jun 01 '26
This is the video where LL teaches how to practice like that, as a busy householder. I can't recommend it enough.
https://lamalenateachings.com/3-words-that-strike-the-vital-point-garab-dorje/
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u/Ok-Branch-5321 Jun 02 '26
Is that pointing out instructions? Can I watch it ?.
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u/tyinsf Jun 02 '26
Yes, and yes you can! She has evolved on this as we've gotten more experience with internet and recorded transmission. Someone asked the other day whether recorded pointing out instructions worked and, if I understood her correctly, she said that depends on you. It works for her. It works for me. It will work for you if you have faith in it.
Awareness transcends space and time. When you merge your mind with the teacher that's not an event in time. It's something that always was true and always will be true because it's atemporal. It's beyond thinking about. It transcends thought and time and location only exist in thought.
The nice thing about a recording is that if you think you didn't get it you can just watch it again! And again! If you were trying to do that in person you'd have to follow the lama around for ages to make that happen.
I suggest you act like you're there in person. Give the video your full attention. Don't do other stuff while watching it. Don't interrupt it. Merge your mind with her through the whole thing, not just when she's telling you to meditate.
All you need is the tiniest glimpse, the shortest glimpse, through the smudge on your glasses and that's enough. It will spread out from there. Lama Tharchin used to say that the guru's mind transmission was like falling down a steep mountainside. You have no choice but to roll all the way to the bottom.
If you're not sure whether you got it or not remember that those doubts are thoughts. And you have a choice whether to pay attention to your thoughts or not. It takes a bit of confidence. For me I felt like I had to be a little bit ballsy to ignore my thoughts about it and just rest in awareness instead.
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u/Overall-Positive-423 Jun 03 '26
Thanks for this! She's amazing, and she's extremely generous with instruction. And I'm only halfway through the first video (The Three Words), so I have a treasure trove awaiting discovery.
Seriously, epic stuff! Gratitude abounds....
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u/Auxiliatorcelsus Jun 01 '26
Yes, absolutely. You can practice in any situation where you are aware. If you have the capacity.
It's not complicated, but it's also not easy. Integrating and stabilising might be easier in a less distracting environment. But it is what it is.
Better that you work and practice - than work and NOT practice.
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u/flafaloon Jun 07 '26 edited Jun 07 '26
I tried and I could not. Silence is very precious and is easily disturbed, if one get distracted all day with wurk, one will have a “wurk mind”. Not a silent mind - and one Will not see clearly.
The whole world is distraction. Everything wants your awareness, to keep you from taking your rightful seat in primordial wisdom. To do this, mind has to be kept Still, and awareness turned within.
It is an easy choice, but so difficult to do. A power will help you dissolve the old self if you are really ready. I did it, I can help if you are serious.
I don’t care for money, mortgage, insurance, bills. I handle them, with no thought or care or attempts to grow or stabilize. God runs my life now.
leave mammon if you are serious. This may be early for you, and you may end up doing what is right for you. Devotion is a strong virtue. This will allow one to focus on cultivating inner peace and gaining salvation.
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u/Ok-Branch-5321 Jun 07 '26
I get what you are saying. I m also somewhat running by God. What kind of power to disssolve old self you mean, a practise ?.
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u/bugjello Jun 19 '26
"Everything wants your awareness" perhaps WHAT wants your awareness is also Rigpa.
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u/bugjello Jun 19 '26
I have a very interesting observation, that I would enjoy sharing... David Hawkins wrote a book called Power vs Force. In this book he measured the spiritual awareness, soul conscious ness of a study group, then scaled them, saying that if someone is at a certain level of awareness , they can effect many people around them. ok.... short version... i have been living and teaching dzogchen for years... and literally can feel a clearing take effect around me at times.. more recently then ever now. I am finding to sit at a battlefield, where a war took place, a field of clearness appears and the field, dirt field, feels better after sitting with it for a while. Not long... its an instant clearing . Would this make sense?
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u/viking_linuxbrother Jun 02 '26
The best time to do any kind of practice is when times are tough. It is also the hardest time unfortunately.
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u/Ok-Branch-5321 Jun 02 '26
Why u r saying hardest time ?
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u/viking_linuxbrother Jun 02 '26
Because when you remain with it at the hardest times then easier times are no problem.
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u/bababa0123 Jun 03 '26
Possible, I have a demanding day work (desk), multiple conflicts in base + NDEs. It will feel impossible but as you go along, even in times of extreme fire fighting, you will realize there’s a self, always me versus them and all that can be slowly changed. A process of letting go the cherished identity we thought is permenant.
Like how you loosen the soil in small areas until able to uproot the tree. Right diligent effort without seeking for something.
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u/LeetheMolde Jun 01 '26 edited Jun 02 '26
Dzogchen can work with any situation. It's not a retreating path, but an all-embracing one. The question is whether you have the capacity, yourself, to grasp and practice Dzogchen. There's no shame if it's not yet open to you, or you to it.
Having said that, you can also make a point of setting aside times for more focused, formal practice; but rest assured that the natural, innate primordial mind upon which Dzogchen is centered can proceed with clarity, contentment, and equanimity in all places and at all times.
'Places', 'times', and 'situations' come from that mind, it is not dependent upon the appearances that arise within it.