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Death of a great Rimpoche in Sichuan Province of China

033 good evening everybody and welcome here tonight not only of those of you who are here on the thing but those who are also connected on the telephone so welcome everybody. I do not know how many groups have been connected here tonight but last Tuesday from Ann Arbor they’re almost like twelve groups been connected I don’t know how many they do we have no way of knowing right so who ever been connected everybody welcome here tonight. And I also have to apologize last Thursday I couldn’t make it here because of that funny little cold and flu which everybody seems to get so I have that too so couldn’t make it and very sorry so that’s why we are meeting tonight and also we also going to schedule the next Thursday as it is I don’t want to be disrupted so we will be meeting next Thursday as well according to the schedule I don’t want to change it so that’s how we are going to function. Before I do any of those continuous talk on that thing just before I left this morning from Michigan somebody called up and said that on the Internet there is information saying (?) Rimpoche one of the best Rimpoche available in Tibet today (?) Rimpoche passed away so I heard that perhaps many of you don’t know who (?) Rimpoche really is but he is the he is the only person not the only person but he is one of the best teacher available in the (ando?) area and he is also the tradition which is Tsongkhapa’s tradition and many teachers outside Tibet been going back to Tibet in the Sichuan province in China to obtain teaching from him a few years ago he gave the Kalichakra initiation where his local area is that is the Sichuan province and six hundred thousand people attended it is not thirty or forty or fifty thousand it is six hundred thousand. And so it’s sort of even they couldn’t meet any places so what they did is they took one of those valleys and put loudspeakers on those hilltops and so they did that Kalichakra in that way and then they’re very scared of telling the Chinese there are six hundred thousand people so the Chinese government ask the report of attendance and they said there must be about two hundred thousand to two hundred fifty thousand people so that’s what they said must be so they thought they had about four hundred to five hundred thousand and there’s a Norwegian group of people who happens to be there who have some kind of machine which shows the populations and they reported six hundred thousand over so then the Chinese ask them how come you said two hundred fifty thousand only in this foreign report says six hundred what is the reality and they said we didn’t count (Rimpoche laughs)512

That’s true they didn’t count (Rimpoche laughs) so he has done great many things and I’m sure all the bad news is normally true so I’m presuming that so we just simply would like to pray what ever his wishes might be it may be come completely fulfilled. And as it is it is very sad in Tibet not only the Tibet autonomous region but also the Eastern Tibet side and also then down there in the Sichuan province where this Ando area is and it’s really very weak the Buddhism is already extremely weak and still the Ando area is much better than central Tibet from what I understand the Eastern Tibet is still much better than central Tibet and that is the Tibet autonomous region and then you go to Ando area it’s even better than the Eastern Tibet but (?) Rimpoche had been one of the deep person there really the figure I’m sure that there be lot more younger incarnate lamas there will be try to fulfill fill his shoe but like you know somehow six hundred thousand people coming in remote area in Tibet is not that easy it is not somehow in the middle of New York or the middle of London or the middle of Tokyo or somewhere in Bombay or something where the population is not is a very remote area. So where six hundred thousand people comes in and spends about a month there you know like puts tents up and with all difficulties it’s a very great contribution but so I would like to share that with you first and then we will proceed to whatever we are doing I think we are talking in the Ganden La Gyema combined with the Foundation of the Perfection’s756

Finished the Ganden La Gyema shifting to Foundation of Perfection

So we have now done the I think except (?) system more or less we have done the Ganden La Gyema portion of it it is done already now we should be shifting to the Foundation of the Perfections so those of you have the book available with you look in the book it will make a big difference and those who don’t have it, do we have any more copies available I try to share it is there anybody who doesn’t have a copy quite a lot of you I don’t know how come you don’t have it you should have a copy you you you should have a copy no yeah how come you don’t have a copy

audience: I have one

Rimpoche: yeah you do not only you have one but you have a couple (audience laughs) try to share it you know but then give it back okay don’t take it home okay presumably so now there is three ladies over here who don’t have a copy now two or three can share anyway so if you look it in there even if you don’t have a copy then it is okay now the three young men over there don’t have a copy you can share with there you’ve got something if you get on the middle then all three can look together if you don’t punch each other and then what you’re really looking is a very short period anyway so the verse goes in Tibetan (he speaks Tibetan) how does that go in that English can you read it loud

audience: following the kind master the foundation of all perfection is the very root and basis of the path empower me to see this clearly and to make every effort to follow well

Rimpoche: (he speaks Tibetan) the qualities of the individual let me tell you that’s all you need to look at it I think I’m only going to talk only on that tonight that verse okay so but you know when you have the copy when you look at it you remember what we were talking about it1124

Guru topics

What we are really talking tonight is the guru business the word guru guru business and it is important the question rises really is a guru necessary that is the question is guru necessary. We are talking about those of us who are in the spiritual path who would like to have some accomplishment for ourselves in our life something we would like to achieve rather than the material gain or professional achievement something that we would like to do the Buddhist call it to become a Buddha is the ultimate spiritual goal the others will have a different goals but anyway the question of the guru it is in English the translation whatever we are reading is called kind master they use the word master whatever the reason may be goes on in the translator’s head maybe he thought guru is such a dangerous word so better not use it or the translator thought or you know whatever the thought maybe it may be true the guru has been a very controversial issue as far as this country is concerned (Rimpoche discusses more copies three) so the issue is guru so the question rises is guru necessary and what is meant and I’m talking I am right now saying the guru has been a very controversial subject in this country especially late fifties early sixties and sixties and seventies it’s very true the sixties have you know I always said had open a tremendously in the United States tremendously and so many gurus has been appeared in the sixties so many of them Hindu Buddhist Tibetan non-Tibetan so many of them and many of them become very controversial very controversial no doubt you know better than I do right so so there were hesitation for people like me and my period I got in the United States by the late eighties and my period it was a big hesitation of talking about the guru and the subject of guru itself a big hesitation1628

Because of the controversial they’re having tremendous controversial with all this gurus you know it all these swamis Chittinanda Mukdananda and all of those you know and even Rajaneesh Bagawan its not the change in all sorts of them right oh sure all right so anyway all of them had a tremendous amount of controversy. And then these even (?) Rimpoche who had been a great teacher also had a controversy about anything. So that’s why a person like me in my period time a very hesitated to talk about the guru because you never know where that’s going to lead to is that going to help people or going to create a huge trouble for the individual the individual because you know the issues the doubts and all kind of things everything can rise so they may be very doubtful so I try to avoid talking completely for a long time but can you completely avoid talking no you can’t because every point whatever the Buddhist tradition we know or for that matter almost all Eastern religion and it comes up not only comes up but comes up almost first important point not only a first important point but it is called root of all development root of all development so it is extremely important so can you completely avoid talking? Dealing about that no you cannot if we are talking only about the philosophy or we are talking about the intellectual point of Buddha’s experience you could but if you are talking about the benefiting the individual uplifting the individual establishing fundamental principle and proper foundation within the individual to grow the quality you cannot avoid we have to talk about it because it is the link it is the point something which you cannot avoid. So particularly you know particularly if you look in Vajrayana this is a very very important point like three yanas yanas means vehicles vehicles that the deliver the individual for liberation so Buddha Buddhism sort of divide into three categories that of Theravaden yana or traditionally called Hinayana and people who follow the Hinayana tradition they don’t like it to call that because the word hina is a small narrow so they don’t like them called narrow vehicle so they changed the name into Theravadan Yana and now they don’t even like the Theravadan thing and actually I think it is Jack Kornfield called me and saying would you call them the elders way and he choosed to call it Elders way so all right whatever you call it I said fine no problem elders way or Theravadan Yana originally called Hinayana in that level and the Mahayana or Bodhisattva way Bodhisattva path or Vajrayana it’s not the three different vehicles but three sort of categories actually Mahayana and Vajrayana or Vajrayana is Mahayana so actually really when you traditionally originally when you talk about the three yanas they talk about the (?) Yana the (?) Yana and the Mahayana really that’s the way it is and somehow in America since the nineteen sixties books written everybody talk about it everybody sort of accepted three Yana means Hinayana Mahayana Vajrayana you know somehow I don’t know how did they get it there but it is there but from the individual practitioners point of view that’s how you can count nothing wrong with that that’s okay from the Buddhist philosophical point of view that’s not the way to count three yanas but that is how they do so doesn’t matter so there’s no reason for us to argue with that pointless argument. Talking about the pointless argument there must be pointless argument going on very soon with the McCain and Bush (Rimpoche laughs) anyway that is just a joke here supposed to be entertainment so that’s no point but then the point to really rises let’s say the guru business how does this three different categories have different way of looking at it2332

So in the Theravadan tradition the gurus are they look as a Buddha as a Buddha they give respect as they give to Buddha as a Buddha and that’s why you notice in the Theravadan tradition where ever there monk one monk they will not necessarily they refer like monk like as we do but there are one or two monks that comes around and they referred them as spiritual master and they give equivalent respect to the Buddha so you see the practitioners will go down and put a foot on knee and bow down and do all that individually so that is the reason to why its background coming from they should be treating as a Buddha. And in the Mahayana Yana not only as a Buddha but a real Buddha and in Vajrayana it is inseparable that of a Buddha so inseparable so it is become very important but on the other hand the question of guru is extremely complicated and it is a big thing if you’re going to talk if you are going to deal with the subject of guru we can talk months really there so many things so many details in there and we do in the West we do have a very superficial knowledge of a guru what we call it guru devotional practice very very superficial knowledge extremely superficial and that’s why very complicated things comes up2548

We can read even in our Buddhist magazines so you can have that controversial subject keep on going coming up and going you know so it is a very complicated subject to me personally since I do not have all the time to talk to you so the answer what I know is the question to is a guru necessary the answer is yes very definitely very definitely yes without the guru one cannot really and properly establish well and that’s why so many individuals who have put so much time and efforts for years and did not make any headway anywhere and are still running around like a chicken that has no head chicken with without head chicken that head cut off you are running around because that’s what happens that point really is this is the point so it is necessary so can any person who claims to be a guru can that be your guru no very definitely no more the advertisement more the publicity and the more the self proclamation it is a sign of weakness to that individual the quality of the individual must be perceived by individuals who are interested they must perceive and not you project. You know if it’s a commercial goods then you have to advertise if you don’t advertise you don’t sell it so you’ve been unsuccessful so who loses the manufacturer the seller the dealer the shop the agent whatever right? So the spiritual thing is not for sale so why you blow your own horn you don’t if you don’t sell it who loses not you as a matter of fact you gain for that matter but whoever did not buy they lose its not you who loses why should you advertise for the spiritual thing so the more the advertisement it is I raise more caution I raise more caution because it is such a funny thing here because there is a tremendous room for anybody to exploit anything and exploitation of everything life wealth time so then the controversies that we have like sexual exploitation all of those are possible because we don’t know it we are not clear what it is so that’s why everything becomes possible and on top of that this advertisements come up and these advertisements add on the confusion which already there because it’s important but don’t know exactly what it is and then the advertisement on top of it is very confusing in good old Tibet there is no advertisement maybe there’s not a newspaper even maybe there is much later in the fifties but nobody advertise and particularly gurus don’t advertise there for sure no brochures for guru that’s really true nothing in Tibet and how does one individual find ones guru so the individual he or herself observes the individual person and then go buy it it is the you the individual it is me you know is me the individual person that chooses my guru it is never the guru choose you guru may or may not accept you that’s different but the first choice who makes the choice I make choice I choose that person to be one of my gurus and whether that person will accept or not accept it is that person’s individual right he can say he can reject you she can reject you say I’m too busy or don’t have time or I do not have interest maybe later we can try any excuse the good old Tibetan system they won’t say I am too busy they don’t say I don’t have time they will say maybe we can try later or something you know maybe later maybe next time you know something like that excuse that’s how it goes rejected they are not going to say I don’t want you you know they don’t tell you but that they have a right otherwise who chooses you individual practitioner approaches that other person can I attend your teaching can I follow you can I learn from you the other person will not say come here and sit down and I will teach you very very exceptional cases may be one in a million maybe but then on the other hand everybody think I’m the one in a million and somebody tells you so it is not it is really not so that is one important point where people confuse here number one number two the quality of the guru guru is not choosing whether the guru’s popular or unpopular not on the basis of that the guru has not been choosing on the basis of whether that guru is handsome or ugly or whatever you know it’s not done on that not at all then on what basis you are choosing the guru because guru is perhaps the only role model you have in your spiritual path your role model the role model here is not the question of how he or she dresses or walks or talks but how he or she handles the problems over here you have to be very careful the problems how they handle so you’re taking the example of that handling your problems I’m not talking about economic problems I’m not talking about business problems I’m talking about spiritual problems you know this spiritual gurus are spiritual guide and it is spiritual role model it is not a business or professional consultant not even a psychological consultant it’s not the psychological thing may come up more less quite a lot but definitely not a business consultant there will be gray (?) on the psychological point because the gurus are normally consultant to dealing with our negative emotions the negative emotions are like anger attachment and hatred so there may be gray area with the psychological points that maybe but certainly not with the business not with the your professional life not with your sexual problems or family problems it’s not3753

Though if you read the textbooks they will tell you consult everything to the guru and follow exactly what the guru tells you they will tell you that a number of times but we are all human beings human beings they give you two examples a number of you have met there is a great spiritual teacher called (?) Rimpoche who lives in Germany who came here and met the Jewel Heart people in New York a couple of times so (?) Rimpoche has two children one son and one daughter the name of the son is (?) it is a very unusual Tibetans name these days sort of (?) which is really taking out early Tibetan kings in the seventh century is taking out of that name (?) If you know the Tibetan language it is extremely rich and sort of fantastic name it is poetry it has poetry it has a lot of meaning it has a lot of historical thing and it has beautiful name there so (?) Rimpoche is very close to (?) Rimpoche and of course very close with his Holiness the Dalai Lama so I thought he had asked either Dalai Lama (?) Rimpoche for this name and they have giving so I just sort of asked is that his Holiness give you or is it (?) Rimpoche he said oh no I didn’t consult any one of them he said and I said why if I had consult one of them they’ll be benzin something or dinzin something so I don’t want that so many so he said I got to give this name myself and then I showed them this is what I’m going to give and then they said oh very nice (Rimpoche laughs) so he said I didn’t ask them to give because they would give you some usual this or that you know so because the Dalai Lama is denzin gyatso personal name so the names given by his Holiness is all Denzin so all this period all this century you know whatever this period goes and there will be a hundreds and thousands of Denzins going to be and that is the tradition of the Tibetan tradition so like that so you don’t consult everything so you have to know how to deal with it and it is very important to deal the right way so what I’m talking about it so that’s it it is the spiritual guide the spiritual role model so what you do is you have to put the person under observation for a long time and see if you came in counter with that sort of problem and how that person is going to handle it and if that person the way he handles is the best way so these are the points of consideration point where we make corrections or choices when I’m talking to you and you you know my thought went somewhere else I just said a few words blah blah blah (?) My thoughts went in its funny you know my thoughts went in to Singapore that was about ten years ago no I think it is the late 80's the nineteen eighties it’s the same year where these Chinese had a problem with students nineteen eighty nine and I was in Singapore and staying with a friend at their house it’s a business guy business couple and he told me a couple of times he wanted to buy a big house house house is sitting there no there is somewhere else there is another house so he told me should I buy that house or what you think and I didn’t I said oh yeah I would think about it I said I’d check or something I didn’t do it I stood there that year I stayed there for over a month in his house one week gone two week on then he asked again I said oh well I would check about it so again postponed it and then one day so somewhere you know just before lunch some midday somewhere normally he goes for work he deals the money exchange so he goes in the morning you don’t see him at all till night or he may pick me up and have a lunch or something but he pulled up like ten thirty so I said oh no he now has to make a decision by this house so what am I going to do what am I going to tell him so then he came up and he said he said I told you about this house you know there are like two of the people making offers and we have to make a decision right now so would you please come so I said okay I went and I saw the house very nice house up-and-down then you know I don’t know what to tell him now I have no answer nothing so whether he should he buy or not buy so I begin to thought thoughts well if it is () Rimpoche is here what would he say and there was a step going up stairs so that’s what my thought went there in the steps going upstairs and (?) Rimpoche used to have an attendant which has some a little head a little bit up like that so couple of American friends know him call him some egghead guy egghead guy so while I’m walking one step sort of a half a hallucination half a real I saw him there and he told me (?) Rimpoche said if he buy this house there will be no unnecessary problems like illness or trouble or either or spirit wise our geometry wise or any other wise there will be no problem and as far as the business is concerned and he said that’s not your concern sort of half hallucination and half real but then I realized I have an answer4620

So that’s the role model you look that’s the role model I’m sharing that much with you sort of that’s the role model you look and though this is now the last minute there are three other people going in there they both try to make an offer they tried to make a decision right there that minute so I have to have something to tell him what to do because he’s totally looking at me so instead I went up the steps went in three or four rooms and then I said well if you buy I don’t think you will have much problems as far as the business concerned or the value is concerned I know nothing about it so that’s what I told him (Rimpoche laughs) so things like it’s a role model that makes (silence on tape) important point the most important point is normally how would you deal with the anger how would you deal with the attachment how would you deal with jealousy how would you clear your ignorance and that role model you looking for so it is not that somebody who you can worship it’s not that somebody it’s not really it’s not that somebody who you can worship it’s not that somebody who will tell you exactly what to do so that you don’t have to take any responsibilities not that that’s definitely Americans have that big problem where you don’t want to deal with it so you go and ask somebody else and they tell you yes no yes no all kinds of things and then you said so-and-so said so so what the person probably did not even hear half particularly if you have to interpret the interpreters might have said half thing what you said that is also wrong so the answer what you’re going to get is ninety percent incorrect anyway so why do you do that that may be the psychics job that may be the job of the astrologer and that may be the job of fortunetellers or soothsayers not the spiritual master. So like what I said about this house business it probably a fortune teller or astrologist job but then it is landed on your lap so you have to deal with it so that happens this is over lapping here and there but when you’re really looking for the role model of a guru that’s what you are looking for one then if you really look traditionally they give you like ten different qualities the person to be qualified to be a spiritual guru should be ten qualities the ten qualities is a well behaved person number one well behaved in the sense well-controlled their negative emotions the person is not under the control of negative emotions but negative emotions are under the control of that person person has better quality than you do more learned than you are because you want to learn from that person so what you’re going to learn if he doesn’t know anything more than you do nothing more to learn right? So this is important point the negative emotions under their control rather than them themselves under the negative emotions control. I’m going to point it out the important points because it’s allowed fifty percent discount anyway ten qualities they give you fifty percent discount so so this is important points and they more learned than you are so what you going to learn from that person and there are a number of things these days and people say well from my personal intuition blah blah blah there may be a great beings who can really sort of take it out and read the Akashic record or take it out from a person’s intuition or something but ninety percent of those are phony. Ninety percent of those are phony ten percent sure yes but ninety percent are phony so it is must be more learned than you and they have a better quality than you do it is very interesting I was talking last Tuesday too in Ann Arbor if you look at it this Buddhist path that Buddha shared with us it is totally based on the Buddha’s personal experience which was put to test by thousands of followers they tested that and found when you apply the same way the Buddha and applied it works and you get the same results no matter whether you’re a man woman or whatever you might be and this is called reliable reliable solid grounded path I’m talking about that quality to the spiritual master5402

I’m talking about that knowledge it is not simply half hallucination half asleep half drunk, half high personal intuition why do we have to rely on such a thing when you have a solid tested experience of the Buddha followed by thousands of them with an unbroken lineage and their experience is recorded in the books form So many books so many teachings all of them are there their statements they are recorded it is very scientific only it is not treated as scientific because these people are not Caucasians if it’s a white male this very scientific it is a scientific document but it’s not it happens to be the Indian and Asian and Tibetan Chinese Japanese who knows and so that’s why its not becoming very (Rimpoche laughs) yeah I don’t know anyway so it is it is very solid that’s what I think it’s very solid and while you’re having such a solid thing there and why you have to go and some kind of little funny half hallucinating thing why I mean it is so silly to me because this is very solid extremely the thousands of people been experienced one after another they recorded. So that’s the quality of the spiritual master you look for whether that person really has that quality of dealing with the negative emotions and ways and means of handling the knowledge of ways and means of handling negative emotions Mandala that’s one of the qualities that’s what you look for and then the person should be enthusiastic a little bit if that’s not enthusiastic then it’s a problem rich in the source means this part like you know the Buddha experienced that so-and-so did this so-and-so did that they had this difficulty they had (tried?) this solution that worked that didn’t work all of those are the sources where they draw their information they should be rich in that and then one who understood what you were talking about it and there are a lot of people who read a lot of books and then make very nice beautiful speeches but you have no idea what you’re talking about it actually very often you see it these days very often they talk about something very profound but that person has no idea what you’re talking about it but there’s a lot of nice words because they’re collected from the different books5825

Art of Presentation is important Guru skill

It is like a dry academic information so one should be knowing what you are talking about one who had experience and one who had developed himself that is what it really means the intellectual knowledge is not the most important but intellectual knowledge based on personal experience is most important do you see that difference did you see that difference? intellectual knowledge based on your personal experience is important intellectual knowledge is not important okay that’s a big difference and then one should have the art of presentation the art of presentation if you don’t have the art of presentation then it doesn’t work it doesn’t work art of presentation is very nice think of the Japanese food they may have this much daikon radish right but they shred it in such a way and make it fluffy and you know big plate and then in the middle of that tiny little daikon radish and maybe one or two pieces of carrot mixed in that looks very beautiful if you really look at that much rather put this much daikon radish and this much carrot but made it in such a way it is one would like to eat it but if someone just chopped a huge daikon radish and put in there and did the same thing but oh my god what is this you don’t want to eat the art presentation is absolutely important. I was watching the Democratic debate last night between Gore and Bradley the two are talking the same thing (Rimpoche laughs) it is just the same thing the only difference is who is taller there is no difference right who is taller but then if you look at it and Gore had a way of telling the same thing but somehow he had a different way of presenting and people get it his message picks up and Bradley is saying the same thing but somehow you know it doesn’t get through so if you look at the McCain and Bush only the campaign finance reform that’s the difference but otherwise again the same thing but how McCain goes you know the measures gets everybody picks that up Bush is just bushing there so it is difficult so art of presentation is important for a spiritual master too. How many I got there only seven now and then the person must be very compassionate if you have an uncompassionate person you are in big trouble and the person should be caring a caring compassionate person otherwise big trouble and one who can take a little hardship so otherwise you have a little cold or cough you don’t show up right so that’s not work yes one who has to have a little endurance so must be about nine or ten dan says so anyway the first three nothing can be compromised the rest of them you can give a little discount here and there because you’re not going to find anybody perfect anywhere never going to find it that’s what it is so these are the qualities you look for that person and then you are the judge and you have to make a choice not that person I used to say anybody calls you says hey I’m your guru I had that in jewel heart for a while some people calls in the middle of the night and says you know I’m your guru blah blah blah and they do that they make long distance calls and try to tell you so what I say is anybody tells you I’m your guru run away five hundred miles don’t even look back. Let them hear the whistle blowing go five hundred miles so that’s what you have to do so it is you are the one who makes the choice not them not them they have a right of refusal definitely very definitely so these are the criteria and on that basis you choose but there’s another question what about these gurus that appear in dreams gurus that I feel is with me guru’s that I can hear in my voice again I’m going to say the same thing there may be an exceptional cases but ninety nine point .nine percent you are better off not deal with those we are very interesting very funny people if you look in the tradition of teachers they do not rely on that like Tsongkhapa take Tsongkhapa founder of the Gelupa the yellow hat sect thirteen forty seven to fourteen ninety Tsongkhapa had a vision of thirty five different Buddhas on the peak of the mountain and he just doesn’t run there he ignored them he goes out of his cave and do his business when he does business he sees those buddhas there he does his business and he goes away he ignores them because you know like what we do today if we have a little hallucination wow great we go for that right a little bit of high you go for that fantastic how many people told me I have seen the stars so I’ve seen the clear light nothing10749

When you talk you know I’ll tell you this when these people tells me anybody tells me individually you know what can I say oh nice oh nice what else how can I say oh you’re terrible it is nothing people won’t like it so it is simply say oh nice oh nice10809

First observe guru before selecting but don’t over do it

And I try to run away from the conversation as fast as could but in the group I can say it because it is not addressing any individual so this is a nice way nice opportunity so that’s what we do today but the person like Tsongkhapa when the thirty five Buddhas appeared on the mountaintop tried to talk to him he ignored them totally until he get a solid human being messenger from his teacher telling him these are the real do not ignore them until then he ignored them completely and then when he begin to have a conversations with them he only asked questions that you know the answer so that you know what they’re telling you is right or wrong that’s how person like Tsongkhapa went through otherwise we have a tremendous problem to separate our hallucination and the vision and plus if you smoke a couple of joints and then it’ll be a big difference (Rimpoche laughs) or if you take a couple of if you took some alcohol or something it may be different so this is the reliability and un reliability point you are better off to make it solid the reliability point accountable if it is a human being it is accountable it is responsible and if it is not a human being he’ll not even account somebody came and told me but where is it I don’t know so that’s a big problem it’s not that I’m denying this no spirit and this and that there is but there is equal number of good and bad and the chances of a meeting coming across with the really great ones are very little so therefore it is better to rely on solid human being accountable responsible rather than something strange and this has been going on very much in the United States though the sixties have brought great openness but also opened all of them too you know it’s great in one hand but on the other hand it has to be accountable responsible that is necessary so that’s why we are better off with a living human being rather than rely on a voice. I still have a number of people who tells me you told me this morning blah blah blah blah blah didn’t you tell me I say I don’t know but I recognize your voice even you know that is you told me okay well not that I know what else can you say I can’t say you have been hallucinating you can’t tell that person right so some people goes that some are good some are bad so it is best thing is not to rely on that so what else I’m talking so these are the basic qualities and then remember the decision is you are the one who make you have to be the decision-maker nobody else push you or (?) You or no one should make decision for you because this is important it is your fundamental root of your spiritual development so the root of all development guru devotional practice that’s what they tell you traditional teachings will tell you root of all development guru devotional practice why is this the root because this is the linkage the linkage between the enlightened society and ourselves is the guru. Traditional teachers will give you example the enlightened society is like the solar energy sunrise the guru is like a magnifying glass and we are like whatever the dust or the dried grass or whatever so in order to catch fire on that dry grass you need the magnifying glass which will focus so that’s why it’s the root of all development it is the bridge between the enlightened society and ourselves it is very important and that’s the reason why the guru becomes your supreme field of merit that is because of that reason it is so important and mind you after little while you have to see that person is inseparable with that of truly enlightened Buddha inseparable so that’s why so important and it is you must make a decision by yourself and don’t be quick to judge take your time don’t take all the time or you won’t have time to do anything but take a lot of time in the eleven hundreds Chinese emperor invited (?) Lama from Tibet from such a tradition (?) So he arrived in Chinese capital then the emperor says well I have to observe you so whether you are fit to be my guru or not so you will be under observation and he put him under observation for twelve years and after twelve years the court’s decision came and he is fit to be so the emperor shows up one-day and we have checked you very carefully so we have found you perfectly suitable so I’m here by to appoint .you as the emperor guru and he says well you have observed me for twelve years now it is my turn to observe you whether you’re going to be fit to be disciple or not for another twelve years and in between that he died so than they picked it up his nephew without any observations straightaway who accompany himself straightaway that’s called (?) So if you read the Sino-Tibetan history all of those interesting things they tell you 11704

because then the (?) Picked it up without any observation at all immediately after he passed away he said hey now you’re the one you’re the only one or something so that’s how it happened so don’t sort of over spend time but don’t be quick to make a judgment because this is very important you know the Tibetan teachers will normally tell you even the dogs will if you throw food at the dog the dogs will smell it and then eat or throw it away unless the dogs totally relies and believes you then whatever you throw the dog it’ll eat but if the stranger the dog will smell it and whether it’s edible or not edible and then make a decision so it is important to be better than dog so have to make your own decision and by using those criterias knowing those criteria observing the person and making decision if you don’t do it just like whatever have happened in the sixties and so everybody follow everything you know so how many Hare Rams and Hare Krishna we used to have right everywhere every airport every place all this and also the Bhagwan Rajaneesh’s orange thing you know so that sort of if you take it like that swing and then no doubt you’ll have controversy at end no wonder where you at all those problems will come up later because the first you did not do any observation at all 11901

Energy healer in Texas and why you don’t chase

So and then later you have all the problems and so these problems are not very good these problems create trouble for yourself in your spiritual journey it is a huge obstacle it is not a simple obstacle it is a huge obstacle and not only created obstacle for you it’ll create obstacle for all your circle and all your associates it is a big problem so how to avoid that problem is right from the beginning to be observant and then don’t be so quick to make a decision and don’t take the whole twelve years to do it but don’t be so quick to make the decision and many of you are going to be spiritual teachers no doubt about it many of you are going to be so what is your personal point of view selling yourself is not the end it is not your purpose helping others is your goal your purpose but you help whatever you can it is important don’t go out of your boundary in other words there is no point we have to create additional Jehovah witnesses you know what I mean you don’t have to that’s not your job that’s not your duty that’s not helping you must know where to draw the line when somebody is not interested don’t push it don’t push it it is so important not to push it what I do in jewel heart people comes in people goes out we don’t bother particularly those who been very core group people if they’re not there we make one phone call find out if there’s really something wrong what that’s it it’s all the individual’s choice wherever they go should never chase person you know how I learned that? Very interesting in Tibet we don’t have this problem I was in Texas in nineteen eighty seven I am associated that time in Texas with a crazy guy claims he is a healer he heals people true but he’s absolutely crazy guy absolutely crazy guy so he had a couple of nice Tibetan families with him so then those days whenever people come to get his healings he charged seven hundred and fifty dollars whether he get healed or doesn’t get healed whatever it is the medical doctor standing there and examining checking blood pressure doing this and doing that and then they pull that guys people into somebody’s living room and he keep a huge lecture yelling screaming totally yelling at those people those patients and then they’ll take them in the little room and he will wear monks robe and do all funny things and then go Haaah or something he gives one sort of what he calls energy shot you know sort of it does makes a difference to the patient I do know a couple of people who are on the kidney dialyses

been corrected the doctors who wear the these thick glasses are almost without glasses he does heal for sure but his character is so difficult you have no idea what he’s thinking no idea so there people are coming there who wanted to be healed but scared of him too because they hear that so what happened is two sort of elderly ladies were driving they have an appointment they’re scared they come in and drive and then they go away you know they drive on this main road so one of the Tibetan guys looking from inside saw this car going in and out so he thought that women were lost so he went in his car and followed them try to tell them this is the way. So they got scared they are coming to chase so they started driving away he started driving away it becomes finally a chasing business (Rimpoche laughs) so later I heard these people said an oriental guy came after and started chasing us so I learned since then you don’t chase so don’t chase people don’t if they’re going let them go if they’re coming back welcome them be very open so you people are many of you are going to be teachers most important thing is you must have something to teach without which you should not be you must be better than that other person who you’re going to teach otherwise you are not fit to be and don’t chase them and your motivation is a totally altruistic nothing else nothing else nothing else there should not be any agenda there should not be any what you call it manipulation should never should never ever be manipulate people these are the fundamental sort of vows that one has to commit if you are going to follow the Buddha’s path12637

Guru does not manipulate or allow himself to be manipulated

and going to share with other people no manipulation for what so ever and no consideration of financial consideration for whatsoever the person who give you a million dollar and the person who give you a nickel no difference this is so important otherwise otherwise you’ll be totally under even you don’t manipulate you’ll be under manipulations it doesn’t matter these are so important points so if somebody very wealthy gives you millions of dollars and say well if you don’t do this I’m out fine you never hesitate to let people go never ever hesitate that’s fine somehow we’ll figure out how to fund manage these are the important points from the guru’s point of view if you are going to be guru and then example like this you people are looking at me I’m looking down I have got the highest stage here chair (book it?) on the table next to the altar so I may think I’m great today wow okay that is ego never ever think that always remember impermanent always remember the moment you’re looking down there are three people looking up remember it’s impermanent everything changes impermanent these are the criteria if you going to be in addition to the most important you have something to say something to share something to guide so I talk too much so basically this is a very important point instead of talking from the philosophical point of view but I talk to you from practical point of view remember it is interesting you just say something people come and listen it is interesting if it’s a lecture it’s fine doesn’t matter if it’s teaching it’s not fine it does matter every single word you say makes a difference so you are responsible it does matter so therefore so the mind should only be interest of serving and helping people never insult anybody never insult anybody if it’s in Tibet they will tell you never say no but that won’t work in America so if you don’t agree just keep your mouth shut don’t say anything that’s the tradition in Tibet they tell you if you’re keeping shut that doesn’t mean you agree that means you actually did not agree in American tradition if you don’t say anything you agreed you know if you’re in a meeting (Rimpoche laughs) in Tibetan it’s the other way around if you don’t endorse first nicely it means you did not agree so anyway never be harsh always be kind compassionate never be manipulating sometimes you may have to be harsh to some people for their own benefit or to your personal benefit too sometimes you do so you have to have wisdom to be able to discriminate that these are the qualities that one has to process if one is going to be a spiritual master. But I talk too much? Anybody have any questions? Yes are you going to be a spiritual master?

Audience: I remember about five or six years after I met you I happened to be talking to Robert Thurman I wanted to join a school and find the teacher so I was interviewing him or something I said by the way I was looking for teacher can you recommend someone he said I recommend Gehlek Rimpoche and I said yes I know him he lives in Ann Arbor and I live in New York and he said well does there is this traditional Tibetan saying that it is good to find the guru who lives three mountains and two valleys away from you and tonight were talking about how like when you were talking about the guy in Texas oh we don’t have that problem in Tibet we are sort of saying in the fifties and sixties in America in particular the guru (?) since he said that it gave me the idea that probably there was always some traditional problems with guru relationships I’m assuming unless it meant something else13249

Rimpoche: Yes there is a saying in Tibetan (he speaks Tibetan) so means the guru and sun don’t go too close you’ll get burned (Rimpoche laughs) it is a Tibetan saying they have that. Yes Carol

Audience: OK why would you are saying the student picks the guru and observes the guru and then the guru can accept or reject the student why would a guru in light of some of the qualities and what the guru is trying to help people and be compassionate reject somebody is that common?

Rimpoche:very common yes it is nothing personal maybe there is no karmic connection maybe it’s not right maybe you know whatever it can be hundreds of different reasons I don’t think any good gurus will give up anybody because that’s broking their vow they won’t but it might not be a proper yet maybe not right time made whatever the reason may be

audience: you mean once they accept they won’t give up

Rimpoche: do they have to give in joking I don’t think (the tape goes silent) 13432