Student-teacher relationship.

The student-teacher relationship forms part of an ancient tradition that involves learning how to be present in the world and serves as the glue that holds communities together from generation to generation.

The teacher or mentor represents lived experience and holds a body of knowledge. The curious novice is someone on the threshold of life, waiting to step into a way of being in the world and contributing to the world in meaningful ways.

The role of the mentor is to recognize and awaken the innate potential of the student. Between the mentor and student there is a transmission of knowledge and a bestowal of blessings that deepen the inner life of the student and provide a ground for the inner work to be done. The mentor stirs the voice of the student, allowing them to find the words that they were previously unable to express or were just beyond their reach. The elder raises up the life-force, or lung-ta, of the novice, giving rise to greater presence and power. Power here isn't power over others, but the power of recognizing our inner wealth and resourcefulness.

In this way, the mentor lights up the path, inviting the student into the world in a deeper way. Like a candle in the darkness, the student learns how to tend their own flame while discovering that they can share their light with others and nothing is lost. The novice slowly learns to recognize their natural qualities and finds their own gifts, gifts that can be brought out into the world and shared with others.

The student at the threshold is required to take that first step to cross over to the other side. That moment marks taking a stand for that which is authentic and true. It signifies taking the responsibility and initiative necessary to traverse the path to its very end. The mentor is not there to save the disciple. The mentor asks the disciple to free themselves so that they can live in the world in a greater way. Between them, teacher and student, they reveal the nobility of the buddha heart amidst the struggles of living in the world.

In this way, the student-teacher relationship forms the very heart of the culture of awakening.

Honor.

Not much is sacred anymore.

Everyone appreciates values such as self-reliance, independence, hard work and kindness. We all value honesty, integrity and optimism, whether it is in our homes, at work or in our communities. As young adults we start to explore our values, what impact they have on our lives and which values we want to live by. Our values shift and change over time, depending on the shape of our lives and the relationships that we forge.

I was fortunate to encounter the Dharma when I was in my early twenties. During my formative years as an adult, I experienced and explored values such as honor, reverence and humility. I had the privilege of sitting at the feet of great spiritual teachers; teachers like my own root teacher Younge Khachab Rinpoche, the Dalai Lama, Kusum Lingpa and Lama Tharchin. I practiced a tradition that had a long lineage of reverence towards teachers like the Karmapa, Patrul Rinpoche, Longchen Rabjam, Padmasambhava and all the way back to the Buddha himself. I was able to explore what it meant to be humble in the presence of these teachers, but also recognize a powerful sense of self-worth and innate potential. 

Nowadays, everyone has the right to say what they want. Everyone can choose to have a voice. Everyone can choose to lay out a vision. No one wants to exclude anyone. No one is wrong. There is no authority to be found, authority is seen as anti-egalitarian.

When we don't honor anything then nothing is sacred. Without any sacred values in our life, there is no authority to be found. Without authority, we end up with chaos, indecisiveness, and a lack of action. Without honor, traditions wither and die, movements stagnate, and communities suffer.

Honor gives rise to other values. It gives birth to authentic reverence and humility, which themselves rely on values like integrity, determination, self-respect and service.

I'm glad to have honor as one of my core values. What, or who, do you honor?

Lit up.

The living practice tradition of the Buddha's teachings survives to this day because of two types of transmission- transmission of scripture and transmission of realization.

Transmission of scripture is the living transmission of the repository of Dharma from generation to generation. It is teaching, discussing and practicing the root and practice texts. The transmission of scripture should be wide spread and joyfully given to those who seek it out. 

The transmission of realization occurs between teacher and student. It is the lighting of a torch. Once lit, it burns just as bright and luminous as its source. The source doesn't lose anything, and the newly lit torch has nothing further to gain. 

This transmission of realization is the essence of the practice lineage (sgrub rgyud). It is the transmission of the awakened mind, the direct recognition of our innate buddha heart. In Dzogchen it is the direct realization of our own nature, rigpa as the natural great perfection. 

This lighting of the torch is not easy. It takes time, dedication, effort. It depends on a genuine connection, commitment and karma.

The source torch burns bright and without discrimination, but few torches can really be lit because they don't come prepared.  They are too loose, unkept, or waver once they get close.  Some, being lit, lack the merit to sustain the blaze and burnout. 

You should seek out the transmission of scripture widely and with great enthusiasm.  But for the transmission of realization, you need to get to work.

Secret.

གསང་བ་
Tibetan: Sangwa
English: Secret, hidden

Many of the Buddhas' teachings, especially those of the Vajrayana, are described as being secret.  Their are many lineages of esoteric teachings that descend from Tibet, many which are dying out as the tradition meets with a global culture and modern civilization. 

Many might ask, if the teachings are dying out, what is the point in keeping them secret?

We think of secrecy or hidden teachings in which the practitioners are sworn to silence, vowing not to disclose the practice.  That is our ordinary perception and understanding of these teachings, just talk about them and they will stay alive and spread, right?

But the teachings are actually secret because they they are beyond mere words.  They can be shown, witnessed or revealed, but they cannot be explained.

The teachings remain secret unless we commit ourselves to them, unless we become the working basis for the practice to unfold.  The act of working through the practice reveals that which is beyond description.

The life of the teachings then does not depend on simply sharing the teachings, it depends on people committing their lives to their practice.  Once we have received the blessings of the lineage, it is up to us to engage in the practice and develop it to its maturation.  

The practice tradition is the holder of the secret teachings and it is this tradition that we must strive to keep alive.