Blazing Splendor

Sashin's notes

These are the memoirs of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, known as the greatest Dzogchen master of our times, put together by his students.

I had first heard of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche in Sam Harris' book Waking Up. He was Sam's main teacher and the person who bestowed upon him the Dzogchen pointing out instruction, which revealed to him the nature of his mind.

"The instruction was, without question, the most important thing I have ever been explicitly taught by another human being"

Sam Harris, from chapter 4 of Waking Up

He is also the father of who I consider my teacher, Mingyur Rinpoche. To get a feel for the style of teaching that Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche gives, have a read of this memory of Mingyur Rinpoche.

The word that describes my image of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche before anything else is humility. Despite this book supposedly being his own memoirs, from cover-to-cover he almost does nothing but speak highly of the teachers and friends he had come across throughout his life. Sprinkled in between the stories are pith advice and profound spiritual instruction on every page.

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the subject matter.