Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche,
Tibetan Physician and Meditation Teacher
Finding a Teacher: The Wisdom of Discernment
Excerpted from Luminous Mind: Meditation & Mind Fitness (Conari Press)
See review posted at: http://www.tcm-ca.com/reviews/1318.html
Also in our book ~ Living in Balance ~ available from http://cafepress.com/livinginbalance
The most effective way to learn anything is to study with someone who has already mastered it. Meditation is certainly no exception. Our mind can be compared to a remarkable musical instrument that is capable of generating the sweetest of music, yet often it is often poorly tuned and plagued with chaotic and noisy sounds. If we sincerely wish to learn to play beautiful music, we must study with a master who knows the instrument inside and out. In order to develop a clear, calm, joyful, and loving mind, we need the guidance of someone who thoroughly understands how the mind works and how it can be transformed. . . someone whose own heart is truly open.
How do you find a qualified teacher? It is not always so easy. The qualities to look for in a teacher include compassion, knowledge and insight, morality, sincerity and skill, both in teaching and in the way they live their life. From your own side, you should have confidence in your teacher and be able to communicate well with him or her. However, don’t set out on a frantic guru hunt! Take it easy. It may be a matter of years before you meet the person who can answer your questions and be this special friend and teacher for you.
Meanwhile, you can practice meditations such as those described here and seek the advice of any meditators whose qualities you admire. Learn to trust your own intuitive wisdom, your own inner guru, to tell you whether you are heading toward or away from your goal.
Because it’s so important, and fraught with so many potential pitfalls, the subject of finding a teacher deserves a special subset of guidelines of its own. A classic Buddhist teaching advises the spiritual seeker to:
“First rely on the principle, not on the person. Second, rely on the spirit, not the letter. Third, rely on wisdom, not conditioning. And fourth, rely on complete teaching, not incomplete teaching.”
There are many perils on the path of meditation and spiritual growth. Keep your eyes open and your discerning wisdom keen. There are teachers and traditions that are rare and precious beyond belief. If you are fortunate enough to be able to spend time with them, your life will be truly enriched. And, there are teachers and traditions that quite honestly, we don’t send people to. How do you know if you are pursuing an authentic spiritual path, or have met a good teacher?
Watch for impeccable ethical and moral integrity; service to others; compassion; respect for discipline; personal accountability of both leaders and community members; faith; embodiment; groundedness; respect; joyfulness; fellowship with, or at least tolerance for, people of different faiths; an inspiring lineage of practitioners whose lives have been enriched; a community of kindred souls that inspires your respect and admiration; love; celebration; humanity; respect for silence as well as questions; an honoring of the mythical and the mystical; a path of clear reasoning that welcomes debate; a balance of prayer, contemplation, study, and service in practice.
If you find that you are the type who is easily confused or bewildered by exploring many paths or studying with many teachers, it may be wise to simplify your spiritual pursuits. If diversity overwhelms you, do research until you find a path that is spiritually satisfying for you, and then through study, practice, and contemplation, go deeply into the heart of that path.
If you are by nature a weaver and synthesizer, your temperament may better suit you to seek inspiration from study and practice with a diversity of different traditions. Seek to find the common heart and core around which they come together, and appreciate how each contributes to deepening your wisdom and love, and to strengthening your faith.
If you are a mature practitioner with a clear sense of your path and tradition, there is little to fear and much to gain through encounters with other traditions. These will likely serve to only clarify and deepen your faith and insight. Keep an open heart, an open mind, and seek for a path that works for you.
Spiritual communities, though potential havens, can also become escapes for the socially challenged. And teachers from other cultures, though masters in their spiritual disciplines, may lack the experience they need within their new culture to give realistic council to their students–and sometimes get distracted as they encounter the enticements of the West.
We wholeheartedly encourage you to keep your eyes wide open. Open-minded skepticism will help you to find a healthy balance between over critical cynicism that may miss the real thing, and gullible naiveté that is easily duped into signing up for misleading or dangerous pursuits.
Over the years, in search of a deeper understanding, our work, travels, and research have lead us to encounter many different spiritual paths. Having also encountered many of the perils of the path–and having worked clinically with some of the casualties–we offer the following list of cautionary guidelines to check out before you “sign up” with a spiritual teacher or group. Though it is possible you may find some of the following warning signs on an authentic path, they are often associated with less trustworthy situations. It is always wise to observe the integrity of people’s behavior carefully, and ask yourself these three essential questions:
• Does what I hear make sense to me?
• Does it conform to the golden rule?
• What is the intention? Is it to harm or to help? Is it for limited self-interest–“self” improvement–or service for the good of the whole and benefit to many for generations to come?
If you are looking for a spiritually healthy path, beware if you encounter any of the following “red flags”:
• Teachers or circles of practitioners on your journey who are out of integrity, or who don’t practice what they preach.
• Scenes where questions are not welcomed or answered in straightforward ways, or where raising concerns about conduct or ethical violations is frowned upon–especially if you are told you are being too judgmental when you do raise honest concerns.
• Anyone who claims that they can give “it” to you, especially for a price.
• Anyone who claims to be the only teacher or path that can deliver the goods.
• If the price of admission excludes people who are truly sincere.
• If you are expected to purchase lots of expensive merchandise or paraphernalia to get on board.
• Slick, extravagant trappings or heavily marketed, empire-building enterprises.
• Discrimination or attempts to turn your heart against others.
• Hidden agendas.
• Fanatical, narrow-minded sects.
• A heavily authoritarian, paternalistic, sexist, or militaristic scene.
• Practices that work with intense energy manipulation or heavy breathing practices without having first established a strong foundation in ethics and personal grounding.
• Teachers, paths, or seminars that seem ungrounded, make outrageous claims, use coercion tactics, or hustle you to get others to sign up.
Be discerning if you encounter people who seem to display unusual or extraordinary powers. People easily confuse psychic sensitivity with spiritual maturity, deluding themselves and others. Channeling, clairvoyance, or other entertaining displays may have little to do with anything spiritual. If teachers claim to be channeling disembodied beings, enjoy the show, and see if there are any messages of value to you. When in doubt use common sense and, if you stay around, carefully observe the ethical integrity and behavior of your traveling companions. Because some teachers misrepresent themselves, claiming spiritual authorizations, realizations, or backgrounds that are downright lies, you may want to check references or question their authenticity. If the biography of a spiritual teacher heavily emphasizes their attainments in past lives, (maybe, but who knows?) we suggest that you stay focused on the integrity of the one you can see sitting in front of you.
Excerpted from Joel & Michelle Levey’s book, Luminous Mind: Meditation & Mind Fitness (Conari Press)