Seeing Clearly: Deity Yoga, Pure Phenomena, and Buddha Nature

May 31

Teachings of The Venerable Wangchen Rinpoche — Ser Cho Ling, May 24, 2025
Watch the full teaching on YouTube

In this potent session of the 25 Nyungne retreat, The Venerable Wangchen Rinpoche dives into the heart of Vajrayana practice: deity yoga as a path of pure perception and how our habitual views shape our experience of self and world.

Two Visualizations: Self and Front Deity

Rinpoche begins by addressing the core structure of deity yoga — the self-generation (visualizing oneself as the deity) and the front-generation (visualizing the deity before you). Both serve as “ultimate skillful means” for transforming impure perception into purified experience.

“One moment you're an ordinary being… then instantly, through visualization, you are a pure body. That is the power of the mind.”

While self-generation trains the practitioner in transforming their sense of identity, the front-generation trains perception of “others” as pure — cultivating pure phenomena in both subjective and objective experience.

The Power and Purpose of Visualization

A question is raised: if we visualize ourselves as Chenrezig and send out light to benefit beings, does this actually affect them? Rinpoche affirms that visualization is a training ground for realizing enlightened action — so long as it's held with understanding that even the deity is empty of inherent existence.

“You must understand the essence of Chenrezig is emptiness. If you grasp the form as truly existing, the practice becomes mistaken.”

This training, over time, reshapes the mind’s habits — replacing impure projections with luminous clarity, infused with compassion.

Post-Meditation Practice and Karma

One participant asks about the implications of seeing others as impure after formal practice ends. Rinpoche emphasizes that deity yoga is not confined to the cushion — post-meditation conduct must carry the same commitment to seeing all beings as embodiments of Buddha-nature.

“Whoever is bothering you — that is not who they really are. They are Buddha-nature. Anything else is incorrect understanding.”

He reminds us that though karma is involved in lapses of perception, the deeper solution lies in understanding the empty and luminous nature of all appearances — even those we habitually reject.

Understanding Phenomena: What Is "Other"?

A profound dialogue unfolds around the nature of self and other. Rinpoche explains that “phenomena” includes everything — from atomic particles to the omniscient mind of a Buddha.

“From the standpoint of emptiness, the essence of self and all arising phenomena is the same. That essence is emptiness.”

Pure and impure appearances are not fixed realities — they are reflections of our own mind’s habits. When we purify perception, we begin to interact with the world from the level of truth rather than delusion.

A Message for Practitioners

This teaching concludes with a deep encouragement: it is only through our own effort that we learn to see clearly. Teachers can point, but realization must come from within.