Dzogchen (, "Great Perfection" or "Great Completion"), also known as atiyoga (utmost yoga), is a tradition of teachings in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism aimed at discovering and continuing in the ultimate ground of existence. The primordial ground (gzhi, "basis") is said to have the qualities of purity (i.e. emptiness), spontaneity (lhun grub, associated with luminous clarity) and compassion (thugs rje). The goal of Dzogchen is knowledge of this basis, this knowledge is called rigpa (Skt. vidyā). There are numerous spiritual practices taught in the various Dzogchen systems for recognizing rigpa.
Dzogchen developed in the Tibetan Empire period and the Era of Fragmentation (9th-11th centuries) and continues to be practiced today both in Tibet and around the world. It is a central teaching of the Yundrung Bon tradition as well as in the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. In these traditions, Dzogchen is the highest and most definitive path of the nine vehicles to liberation. Dzogchen is also practiced (to a lesser extent) in other Tibetan Buddhist schools, such as the Kagyu, Sakya and the Gelug schools.
Traditional histories
Nyingma tradition
According to the traditional Nyingma account of the origin of Dzogchen, Dzogchen ultimately originates with the awakened mind of the first Buddha Samantabhadra, the first Buddha to reach awakening and simultaneously a symbol for our own awakened nature, the Dharmakāya. This event happened countless eons ago, before our own universe formed. The millions of manifestations of Samantabhadra teach throughout trillions of world systems, including in ours.
Samantabhadra manifests as the Sambhoghakaya Buddha (called Vajrasattva, or sometimes Vairocana Jñanasaghara) in the Sambhoghakaya Buddhafield of Ghanavyūhakaniṣṭha, which is the supreme buddhafield out of which all Buddhas and buddhafields emanate and where Vairocana teaches Dzogchen to bodhisattvas. Traditional Dzogchen sources add that Dzogchen is taught by the nirmanakayas, i.e. the emanations of the Sambhoghakaya Buddha. They mention that Dzogchen is taught in thirteen world systems as well as on our own world system.
Twelve Buddhas
The teaching of Dzogchen in our universe is attributed to 12 nirmāṇakāya buddhas (emanations of Vajradhara) which took various forms in different realms. Each appeared at specific times and to specific gatherings of beings and revealed particular Dzogchen teachings to them. These 12 Dzogchen Buddhas are as follows: