Advanced Dzogchen Practice
When a practitioner meditates on the generation stage, they see all external phenomena and sentient beings as mandalas of the Buddha. After realizing emptiness through the completion stage, the mandala of the Buddha still exists, yet one understands that everything is not truly existent. This is the true meaning of practicing the completion stage.
Otherwise, even if one practices the generation stage very well and sees all external objects as mandalas of the Buddha, but has not yet realized emptiness, one clings to the mandala of the Buddha as real and to the purity of external objects. Therefore, one needs to rely on the practice of the completion stage to realize emptiness and sever attachment.
The completion stage can be divided into two types: the completion stage with form and the completion stage without form. The "completion stage without form" refers to the practice of directly realizing emptiness without relying on visualization or the cultivation of energy channels and subtle points. It mainly refers to Dzogchen.
When practicing Dzogchen, during meditation on the clear light of the mandala, the mandala naturally appears; this is the pure, unconstructed mandala. In practicing Dzogchen, without deliberately cultivating the generation stage, one naturally attains the sublime and perfect state.
Once the practice of the generation stage is fully matured, one automatically enters the practice of the completion stage; therefore, the generation stage is equivalent to the preliminary practice of the completion stage. Tantric practitioners typically focus on the generation stage during the accumulation stage; they only begin practicing the completion stage during the preliminary practice stage. Finally, when practitioners realize Dzogchen and abide in the state of Dzogchen, they can also perceive the Buddha's pure lands and mandalas—all of which are phenomena that arise automatically from the nature of mind.
The completion stage practice of Tantra involves visualizing "prana" (energy) entering the central channel, forcibly ceasing conscious activity, and subsequently revealing the true nature of mind. Dzogchen, however, does not rely on the cultivation of prana, channels, or bindus, nor on logical reasoning. With sufficient merit and wisdom, and through the blessings and instructions of the Vajra Guru, conscious activity naturally ceases, leading to the realization of emptiness.
From the perspective of "emptiness," at the stage of "conventional truth," everything is a real phenomenon. During the path of accumulation, emptiness remains at the theoretical level. During the path of application, one can only vaguely perceive emptiness. Only after realizing the "first bhumi" can one truly experience emptiness. Therefore, the stages of practice in the paths of accumulation, application, and seeing increasingly bring one closer to the true nature of mind; the state of purity gradually progresses from contrived to uncontrived, ultimately revealing the true Buddha-land. Finally, after all impurity and contrived purity disappear, only the pure land of the Buddha-land remains, which is the attainment of Buddhahood—the present Sambhogakaya of the Buddha.
Therefore, simply practicing the generation stage can only lead to conventional truth attainment. Only through the practice of the completion stage can one attain Buddhahood and achieve transcendental enlightenment.
The above are the key points for practicing the completion stage.