Spiritual Teachers

An overview of the different aims, expectations, cultural, spiritual and psychological factors that affect the relationship between students and their Dharma teachers.

When we receive inspiration, the uplifting transformation arises dependently on many causes and conditions.

Charok Lama discusses how to stay calm in a busy world, the Tibetan tulku system, and the importance of understanding the fact that death will certainly come to everyone.

As Buddhism takes root in the West, more Westerners are becoming spiritual teachers. Time-tested Dharma methods have provided solutions to culturally based problems that can arise.

Misunderstanding may arise from teachers or translators accidentally saying something incorrect.

The appropriate relationships with our teachers depend on our aim, our level of development.

The graded-path presentations nearly always include instructions on appropriate thoughts and actions for disciples in relationship to their mentors, whether on the sutra or the tantra level.

An overview of the intellectual, emotional, and devotional approaches to Dharma.

Guru-yoga is done with visualizations, where we imagine that our own qualities of body, speech, and mind become joined with the good qualities of our spiritual teacher and uplifted by them.

Alan Turner, Serkong Rinpoche’s “Westerner Yogi’s,” recollections of his relation with his teacher.