In our belief, in our teaching structure, we have this belief that the essence of all the Three Jewels, of all the Buddhas and Bodhisattva and essence of all the blessings, the resources of all the blessings is like a treasure, and also including the one who give me the true introduction to recognize my true face. And that is beyond any comparison. And that is the Lama, that is the instructor, that is the guru. Therefore, with great respect, please empower me with your blessings. So that’s the first four lines of (the second chapter of the meditation text) written by previous Kalu Rinpoche.
So let me explain this one a little bit to you. You know when we come to the Tibetan Buddhism, we have this belief and we were told to believe that: ‘Oh! You have to see your guru as a Buddha’. Have you heard about that? You see, that is the problem. Nobody can see somebody as a Buddha. Even the Buddha Shakyamuni his own brother did not see the Buddha Sakyamuni as a Buddha. And you expect that anybody that you met, that you see, can be considered as a Buddha? That is like, you met somebody, and you’ll say to that person: ‘Ah! I love you!’ But you have no love from your heart. Basically, you’re lying to that person, you’re lying to yourself.
Like this one, is a statement of the realized being. Statement of the realized being, and the development structure that has to be established from the individual, is two different thing. Is it clear?
Like myself, born in a religious family, in a religious country, grown up in a monastery, educated in a monastery, right? I have all the option, and I had all the option. And I’m brought up in that world and I’m still in that world. What happens is that in the beginning when you meet a master, the first step is that, ‘Oh, I know everything. He knows nothing. Or she does not know, she had no idea. He has no idea. I know everything.’ You have this the hot temperature of an ego playing with your heart all the time. ‘I know everything. ’You know, the two kiloes of your ego hanging around in your chest, like running around, ‘I know everything’.
And then, slowly, as you do retreat, you practice, then you see the master as ‘Oh he has some point.’ Slowly.
And then after that, as you continue to receive some teachings, then you see, ‘Ah, this master is really a realized being’. Not yet Bodhisattva, Ok? Realized being. And then as you continue with your yoga practice, with your deity practice, with your meditation practice, then you see, ‘Ah! all these teachings that I received from this individual, by the result of that, and the result of my accumulation, I find inner peace. I find sense of quietness. I find sense of content. ’ You know, Buddha Shakyamuni said, ‘Avoid all the wrongdoing, and then accumulate all the positivity. And then make sure that you are content and that is the true Buddha way.’ That’s what Buddha said. Avoid all the wrongdoing, accumulate all the righteousness, positivity, make sure that you are content and be the protector of your mind and that is the true Buddhist. Then you start to have some kind of a strong connection. And then after that slowly, as you continue that more further, and then you see, ‘Ah, this master is a truly a living Buddha! Because in the past I did not have the opportunity to see the Buddha. But I had the opportunity that, because of this great individual, the Buddha’s teachings to be repeated to me, and myself to practice. And I really respect him as an equal to the Buddha. ’And then you have this sense of openness. And then you can say, I see my guru as a Buddha. But before that, don’t say that, don’t think like that. Otherwise, you will normalize everything and then you’ll become lazy.
Walk with your capacity gradually. That is really important. Don’t overestimate yourself with the ego. That is my personal experience. It didn’t come in one year. It didn’t come in few months. It comes after years, three years of experience of retreat, three years and nine months, and after that again seeing my master.
The definition of the guru, it’s like Situ Rinpoche, my guru. He listens to you when you’re having the most terrible time. He’s listening to you, when you’re having a very good time. Whether you’re in a bad situation, whether you’re in a good situation, his expression is always the same. The way he wants to support you is very genuine and equal at all times. And that is the definition of the guru. And that is the definition of the true connection. And that’s something that you have to find slowly, like I said in San Paulo , I said ‘Practice first, guru will come to you.
You trying to find a guru with extremely expensive flying ticket, running around the world and going with all the holy places, doesn’t work. It’s very simple. Practice first with the meditation, find a little bit of inner peace, find a little bit of small, simple realization. And when you have that kind of a clear understanding of ‘Oh, with the instruction of the Buddha, I have achieved this much. I think I need to get a bit further instruction’, then you start your journey.
Because many people, they are running around the world, saying that ‘I need to find a guru!’ It doesn’t work like that. You practice first, which you can, with Shamata, meditation. And that’s what His Holiness Dalai Lama said all the time. You know, focus on meditation, focus on meditation. It’s not something that I’m starting some kind of a revolutionary idea. You know, you practice first with the foundation, and then the guru will come to you by itself.
Like Milarepa, he had done something terrible things, and then with immense suffering of realizing of the samsara and then he found Marpa Lotsawa, and then had tremendous devotion gradually, example like that you know.
Meditation teachings based on the text written by previous Kalu Rinpoche
Kalu Rinpoche
May 2019, Brazil
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