One quality that is indispensable is the authentic guru lineage. As the great Sakyapa master Drakpa Gyaltsen said, a guru without lineage has no blessing. Lineage establishes a pedigree of sorts and is an absolutely necessary component of the path. Lineage is a history; it provides authentication. Where there is a lineage, there is a […]
Many gurus claim they are straight shooters: they say what they think without inhibition or filters. But if they dish it out, they should be able to take it. They should embody tolerance. But most of the time, critical gurus don’t tolerate criticism very well. One way to check is to watch how the guru […]
Though essentially unnecessary, the rank of a lama does serve a purpose. Institutions and titles can provide a measure of safety. Just like it might be safer to go to a popular restaurant because it has been written up in guidebooks, popular lamas come with many personal endorsements. Then again, the system is not foolproof; […]
A mature practitioner will usually have a far purer perception of others than a beginner. The more enlightened qualities a practitioner acquires, the humbler he will become; the more time he spends with his guru, the greater his devotion; and the more he hears and contemplates the dharma, the quicker his pride and arrogance will […]
You could say that when Nagarjuna explains the Prajnaparamita, he concentrates more on its empty aspect, whereas when Maitreya explains the same thing he concentrates more on the “-ness” aspect. This “-ness” is buddhanature. You might wonder why the Buddha taught in the sutras that all phenomena are like clouds—unstable, naturally illusory, and empty. Why […]
It’s usually safer to go with a guru who is not interested in fame. There is a chance that some gurus might be madly designing and printing pamphlets and buttons for the sake of all sentient beings. Not all lamas who are zealously promoting themselves and sitting on the highest thrones have an ulterior motive; […]
Buddhanature is pure and free from all kinds of compounded phenomena, right from the beginning. The ultimate true nature is always devoid of anything compounded, so it is said that defilements, karma, and their full ripening are like a cloud, etc. (Uttaratantra Shastra, Stanza 158) Therefore, buddhanature is free from the three kinds of emotions: […]
The Mahayana path is like peeling layers of skin and finally finding out that there’s no seed inside. We have to obtain liberation from the skins, but this is difficult to do — we love our skins. When we’re children, a sand castle is very important to us. Then when we’re sixteen, a skateboard is […]
Boredom is bound to creep in, often just as you approach the final stretch, and if you then switch to a different path, although the new practice may be inspiring for a few days or even weeks, in terms of spiritual progress you will have slipped right back to square one. Ironically, before long you […]
A guru should be open to accepting cultural and habitual differences. For example, if the guru is Tibetan, he or she should be able to value a sincere hippie Australian student’s offering of a treasured seashell as wholeheartedly as a Chinese student’s offering of a kilo of pure gold. An open-minded guru should be able […]
You have the freedom to analyze, and you are encouraged to do so, but at some point you have to enter into this world of decidedness. This takes bravery. It’s very scary, because analyzing is like a handrail: it’s a support; it creates security. The rational mind justifies things, and it makes you feel comfortable. […]
The fault doesn’t necessarily always exist externally. If the analyzer is bound by hope and fear, more likely he or she will find endless faults. No one, not even the Buddha himself, can please everyone. His own cousin Devadata was disgusted by the Buddha. He spent all his life basically criticizing the Buddha’s deeds. Even […]
Idolizing and supplicating the outer guru should not be done at the expense of losing touch with the inner guru. We are not supplicating an almighty, independent creator. The whole purpose of the outer guru is to fish out the inner guru, to teach us how to tap into the space between past thoughts and […]
Some disciples treat their gurus like movie stars. They go around wearing necklaces with the guru’s photo, or they hang the guru’s picture on their wall. Some kind of fall in love with the guru, but it’s more like an infatuation, the way others fall for their therapists. It becomes very personal and can easily […]
One of the great blights suffered by modern people is a lack of self-esteem or healthy sense of self. It leads some new students to ask if taking on the suffering of others in tonglen practice might cause them to lose confidence in themselves. Quite the opposite is true. The attitude we cultivate as bodhisattvas […]
We must keep in mind that the goal is not just understanding simplicity. Far from it. A good guru will mock a yogi who displays even the most advanced comprehension. A yogi should not be satisfied with mere understanding; a yogi must aspire to experience the truth. But a brave guru will even disregard the […]
There are three types of devotion: rational devotion, irrational devotion, and beyond rational and irrational devotion. Saraha, the guru of the great Nagarjuna, defined devotion as trust in cause, condition, and effect — trust in the nature, the game, and the play of karma. This type of devotion is rational devotion. Irrational devotion, though, has […]
In order to purify the defilements, the teachings and blessings have to penetrate. The most accessible way for the blessings to penetrate is through hearing, so ordinary people are encouraged to listen to teachings. To this end, a guru who can provide accurate practical information is very important, even if he or she isn’t your […]
Practitioners sometimes endure long periods when their practice appears to have no effect on what seem to be particularly stubborn obstacles, and as a result assume their practice is not working. But they are wrong. With hindsight, they come to realise that the “obstacle” they so desperately wanted to eradicate was actually the best thing […]
Approaching the Dharma without devotion is like landing on an island of golden pebbles yet having no hands with which to gather them. Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
