## Metadata - Author: [[Orgyen Chowang]] - Full Title: Our Pristine Mind - Category: #books ## Highlights - The difficulty in understanding illusoriness has nothing to do with what is true or not. Instead, it has to do with what is familiar to us. The unfamiliar is difficult, while the familiar is easy. When we become familiar with the experience that things are illusions, it is no longer difficult. Our ability to understand just depends on which experience is more familiar. ([Location 1449](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=1449)) - To summarize, then, Pristine Mind realization has three aspects: Perceiving the natural state of mind; perceiving that all thoughts and emotions are mental events; and perceiving that all mental events are illusory. These three realizations are the key to unlocking enlightenment, liberation, peace of mind, and both conditional and unconditional happiness. ([Location 1454](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=1454)) - Any pattern of mental events that we repeat and become familiar with will become a predominant pattern in our life. Why? Because we feed that pattern and recharge it with our attention. That is why it has power. It is not because that pattern is real. It is just because we think it is real and respond accordingly. ([Location 1473](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=1473)) - OUR MEDITATION must be driven by all three aspects of realization: who we are, who we are not, and the illusory nature of mental events. ([Location 1487](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=1487)) - If we do not know that our mind is naturally pristine, then any calm, clear, or positive experiences or any sense of well-being we have are only temporary. So long as we still identify our self as the fundamentally negative, restless, or agitated ordinary mind, then our calmness or clarity is only momentary. We feel calm or clear for a few moments and then it disappears because we still identify that polluted, ordinary mind as who we are. Whatever calmness, clarity, spaciousness, tranquillity, or inner peace we experience are all temporary because we view those experiences as just moments arising against the backdrop of a complicated polluted mind. When we become more familiar with our Pristine Mind, then we know that who we really are is calm, clear, and boundless, and it is our negative experiences that become the momentary ones. ([Location 1941](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=1941)) - we need to remember, contemplate, and ponder the four fundamental facts we discussed in part one—the rare and precious opportunity of human birth; the changeable nature of existence; the consequences of our actions; and the discomforts of existence. ([Location 2052](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2052)) - The wider the gap between mental events becomes, the closer we are to enlightenment. Creativity originates within this open gap. Once our mind is pristine, open, and boundless, we can express our originality spontaneously and naturally, unbound by our culture or belief systems. ([Location 2067](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2067)) - Meditation is the best method for working with our mind. It is not a harsh treatment. Everything heals very naturally. And it is pleasurable, too. Meditation is like swimming. Some people enjoy swimming in the water; meditators enjoy swimming in Pristine Mind. ([Location 2081](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2081)) - There are only two choices for our mind. Either we are becoming caught up in our distorted mind or we are becoming familiar with our Pristine Mind. The terms samsara and nirvana refer to these choices. Samsara is becoming completely caught up in our mental events. Nirvana is becoming familiar with and aware of our Pristine Mind. ([Location 2101](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2101)) - A COMPLETE PATH to enlightenment relies on three principles: realization, meditation, and a good heart. ([Location 2302](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2302)) - A “good heart” is more than a single quality. There are four components or qualities of a good heart: love, compassion, joy, and impartiality. These are sometimes called the four boundless attitudes. ([Location 2351](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2351)) - True love is the sincere wish for others to have happiness and the conditions necessary for complete and enduring happiness. ([Location 2414](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2414)) - If we have great compassion, we also have a broad mind. A broad mind means we see beyond the immediate circumstances, beyond the present moment in time. We understand the possibilities for change even when they may not be apparent to us in the moment. Because of this, we do not give up on others easily. We stay committed. We see the big picture without fixating on one immediately frustrating aspect of the situation. ([Location 2583](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2583)) - In a world of complicated minds swirling with mental events, there are always people who, misguided by the deceptive nature of samsara, seek happiness in ways that create problems for others. We do not have to constantly react to such people. A far more effective way to respond in such a situation is to not get caught up in reacting nor be triggered by the emotions we encounter in others. Even if we do have a reaction, it is important to be able to let it go. We do not need to always react, react, react. There are so many people with complicated minds in this world. To always be reacting to them is exhausting. Most important, it is unnecessary and takes us further and further away from the experience of our Pristine Mind. ([Location 2588](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2588)) - With the most perfect state of mind, we can experience the highest form of a good life. Our joy is limitless and enduring. That perfect state of mind is the combination of Pristine Mind and a good heart. They go together. ([Location 2817](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2817)) - The three principles we have now discussed—realization, meditation, and a good heart—are necessary for us to live in this world fully and authentically. They are essential for our life to be complete and integrated. They become especially necessary at the moment of death and beyond. ([Location 2826](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2826)) - Without these three principles, our mind is chaotic, homeless, and buffeted about by habits, belief systems, and ordinary thoughts. ([Location 2829](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2829)) - Enlightenment is essentially the complete, permanent absence of distorted mind, thus letting us experience the deep and abiding inner state that lies beneath mental events. Our mind becomes completely pristine without any negative thoughts or emotions that cause suffering. Our mind becomes completely healthy and perfect. This is the true meaning of enlightenment. ([Location 2871](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B01FT23ER4&location=2871))