Within the Nyingma tradition, meditation unfolds as a broad spectrum, beginning with foundational practices and culminating in the most subtle contemplations of the nature of mind. At the base are calm abiding (śamatha) and insight (vipaśyanā), which stabilize attention and cultivate clear seeing. These practices may involve mindfulness of the breath or body, as well as analytic contemplation of impermanence, emptiness, and compassion. They are often supported by preliminary practices (ngöndro), such as prostrations with refuge and bodhicitta, Vajrasattva mantra recitation for purification, mandala offerings, and guru yoga. Such preliminaries are not merely preparatory rituals but meditations of body, speech, and mind that shape the practitioner’s orientation toward awakening.

Building upon this foundation, Nyingma places strong emphasis on tantric methods, especially deity yoga. In the generation stage (kyerim), one visualizes oneself as a buddha or bodhisattva, recites mantras, and engages with mandala imagery to transform perception and cultivate enlightened qualities. The completion stage (dzogrim) turns attention to the subtle body, working with energies, channels, and vital essences to deepen realization of emptiness and innate wisdom. These Mahayoga and Anuyoga practices, with their focus on visualization and subtle energies, form the tantric heart of the tradition and serve as a bridge between conceptual practice and direct, non-conceptual awareness.

Most distinctive in Nyingma is the emphasis on Atiyoga, or Dzogchen, often regarded as the pinnacle of its meditative path. Dzogchen centers on direct recognition of the natural state of mind, rigpa, and resting in that awareness without contrivance. Within this, practices such as Trekchö (“cutting through”) focus on recognizing and remaining in primordial purity, while Tögal (“direct crossing” or “leap over”) involves visionary methods that reveal spontaneous presence and the illusory nature of phenomena. These are supported by guru yoga and devotional practices, in which the guru is viewed as inseparable from awakened mind, allowing blessings to ripen and stabilize realization. Taken together, the Nyingma approach spans from structured concentration and analytic inquiry to sophisticated tantric visualization and, finally, to the direct, effortless presence characteristic of Dzogchen.