Perception, or revelation, varies according to the capability of one’s own mind. A mind dulled by obstacles and obscurations can go to a holy place, hear a holy teaching, even bow to a holy one—and walk away unaffected. The mind that is quickened and ready can come and drink, perhaps not understanding what it has drunk, but at least knowing that this is true nourishment. The mind that is truly realized can perceive that upon every atom there are Buddhas beyond counting; that one’s own Root Teacher is the Dharmakaya Buddha come at last; that Guru Rinpoche is the emanation of pure compassion who made all of this possible; and that He has entered, in many forms, into all levels of cyclic existence. Such a mind can understand that every sound is the voice of the Precious Guru, that every breath of air is the movement of His teachings.
Any revelation that purifies the mind of duality and delusion, bringing forth the nectar of compassion from deep within you is the Precious Guru appearing once again. Any path such as Vajrayana, which leads to enlightenment in a definable, reliable way—is itself the appearance of the Precious Guru. If you achieve realization in this lifetime, that is Guru Rinpoche. If you hear a teaching, which brings enlightenment closer, that is Guru Rinpoche. If compassion is born in your heart so that you will spend your life practicing and praying for others and discovering within yourself all-pervading compassion, that is Guru Rinpoche. He is the Guru of compassion, the Guru of boundless light, the Guru of great love, the Guru of supreme medicine. He is the voice, the body, the mind, the heart, and the very embodiment of the all-pervading, compassionate nature of Dharmakaya. He continues to appear in a form that is accessible and real in every culture. He simply is. He is present within you now. Even as you read this, you can feel His presence. You can see Him in every part of your life. Strive at every moment to birth Him in your mind and heart. Pray never to be separate from the Three Precious Jewels and always, in every breath of air, to encounter the Precious Guru.
If you sincerely wish to end suffering in this and all other worlds, sincerely wish to root out the causes of suffering in your own mind, the Guru is active within you. In that sincere wish, He is calling you. Because of that sincerity, you will see Him. You will see Him even physically, for you will surely find an excellent and perfect Teacher. As Guru Rinpoche said, “I will come as your Teacher.” If your heart is pure and sincere, the Guru will appear before you.
In Vajrayana, even if your teacher is not enlightened, you can attain realization through pure faith, provided you seek only that which will cleanse all non-virtue from your mind, which will reveal the true, uncontrived face of Dharmakaya as your own face, and if you deeply wish to end the suffering of all sentient beings. Then your Teacher, even unrealized, will act upon you as Nirmanakaya Buddha. If with pure intention you accomplish your part of the bargain, you will find that your teacher is in fact Nirmanakaya Buddha. Your job is only to keep your heart pure. If you do not practice, if you deceive yourself in your practice, if you do not practice sincerely, or if you practice for the wrong reasons, not only have you accomplished nothing but you are only fooling yourself, for you will never see that precious face.
What is available to you now is the realization of the Precious Guru. He is the medicine for all ills, the end of suffering. He appears on this earth by the virtue of primordial nature and uncontrived mind. His virtue and nature are such that they are constantly revealed. They are all-pervasive. That is the truth of the Precious Guru. He appears upon the earth time and time again, in whatever form the karma of beings requires. He is food and drink, available the moment you feel hunger and thirst. He brings you the path to supreme enlightenment. He abides in all aspects of that path: the Teacher, the Sangha, and the Dharma. You cannot cut Him out of your mind, but you can ignore Him. Yet even after that, the moment you turn around, He is there.
I hope that this is helpful to you. If it can inspire even a little devotion in your heart and mind, it is worthwhile. Great devotion is necessary on this path, but we are too stiff most of the time. Do you remember the story of Jesus washing the feet of his disciples? That was an act of devotion, the perfect act of a Bodhisattva. We should all serve each other. We should care for others more than we care for ourselves. Devotion is the softener of hearts. It causes pride to be purified. It washes away the stiffness that accompanies egocentricity. Pure devotion itself can be a cause for realization. We should all engage in such holy activity, embodying the Precious Guru. Then, washing the feet of all sentient beings, we will finally understand our own true face.
A red Cardinal sits on a snowy Pine bough, all fluffed up, right outside my window, looking in. Bet he’s cold. When I see nature in it beauty and suffering, I think of the Bodhicitta. How pith. How essential. There is no Enlightenment without it.
Often we see Dharma students discuss, pontificate, and indulge in masturbatory mental games. What a foolish waste of time. To give rise to Bodhicitta even if there is no knowledge of Sutras, Tantras, to offer one prayer, one crust of bread, one mantra is so precious…To save the life of or bring comfort to one sentient being is so much better than to love to hear yourself talk about Dharma.
When I see this Dharma-babble amongst those who do only that and have no heart for Bodhicitta, I feel sick and sad. How pitiful! We are taught “Like going to a continent of Precious Jewels and coming away empty handed. How pitiful!” They miss the point.
What benefit is there in a good old boy’s Dharma club where you sit around and compliment each other’s meaningfulness? A joke- And an unfortunate display of the shallowness of one’s practice. Everyone sees the shame of it except for the “fool on the hill” shouting. What ego, what pride, what ignorance drives one to distort the Dharma and its true value that way? Self cherishing, at the expense of others.
Give me one honest follower with a good heart, respect, compassion, and willingness to learn new and grow. I will do anything for that one. Show me a dried up bitter heart without Bodhicitta, and a rigid mind claiming to know Dharma- ‘scuse me while I laugh. And those who do more proclaiming their own glory in as many religious costumes as they can collect? What is the use?
When I’m not teaching I wear American clothes. Jeans. If my students cannot see me as Primordial Nature, well- there’s work to do. Dharma is unelaborated, uncontrived, free of conceptualization just as it is. Quit talking and judging and heal the heart. Thrill me.
The lucky one is (s)he who has spiritual discrimination. A clear sign that one has made progress on the path. There’s so much empty jargon. Many people pass around their learned and personal wisdom, which indeed, is precious and to be respected. It’s progress! Spiritual discrimination is seeing the difference between that communal sharing and an accomplished and qualified Guru to follow. The entire spiritual community is strong, and growing, yearning, expressing, sharing, and loving! Hurray! Yet we must find a true Master.
I see the Lamas of Palyul, for instance. Taught and trained, profound and accomplished Lineage Masters, only here to enlighten us. These great Lamas live and die to liberate sentient beings from the sufferings of Samsara, return life after life for that alone. That is something different from the great ocean of seekers, thinkers, poets, philosophers that we meet online and in life.
In Vajrayana we hear: “Why cross the ocean of suffering in a ship captained by one who has not yet themselves made the journey?” Or “Why invest in a belief that has not produced even one fully Enlightened Buddha?” Or “why travel a path not yet even one century old, and one cannot see the result?” If a man creates his own path, should YOU follow? If we do not know the value of their path, not having seen the result, why go there? Why cross in a ship untested? Maybe it is flawed! So we are advised to practice method and follow Lineage tested and proven over centuries and traceable lifetimes.
I read a claim by a man that he had changed Yoga to make a way to get enlightened immediately. The man looked middle age. Big ego. It is so much better to share one’s insights freely, love each other, learn from each other, but discriminate on path and guru. Or else we just have a bunch of well meaning sweeties walking around in spiritual circles, blind leading blind. It is kinda silly, especially when there are Buddhas and Bodhisattvas taking rebirth consciously, solely for the sake of all beings. That’s cosmic Love!
Not just talking heads, yada yada. A Guru must provide method to attain, or what good are they? You can’t talk your way to Liberation! Sweet, loving, syrupy, flattering words are wonderful to see and taste. But are not the food of the Sublime Awakening!
If a “teacher” butters you up with flattery, pretty words, crazy promises, or says their blessing ALONE will Liberate-RUN! They are politicians! They flatter and cajole for their own egocentric reasons. You will yourself receive no benefit at all. Except for a swollen puffed up ego.
The path of results, of Liberation requires daily effort, practice, mindfulness, and compassion, constantly developing! A living path! A true path, like Vajrayana requires that you CHANGE. Utterly, completely- as we are awakening to Buddhahood. Old ways are abandoned. That old ego’s gotta go to make real progress! It ain’t for sissies. If one has been spiritual for 20 years and remains the same, there is no benefit.
Are you willing to change? Learn something new? Take a giant step that may -WILL rock your world? That is the student I value most. We cannot remain the same, in our comfort zone, no new intake, same old spiritual mumblings and hope to attain Buddhahood.
If you were my own sweet babe in my arms, I would not teach you different. There is a lot to buy and sell, but nourishment is RARE! Your true nature is the fundamental ground, Primordial Luminosity. You are Buddha! Do not throw yourself away! Awaken! AWAKEN to your Nature! Lord Buddha said as He left this world: “I have given you METHOD! Now work out your own Liberation!” And that is exactly how it is.
Gyaltrul Rinpoche, Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo and His Holiness Penor Rinpoche
