Q: What is samaya?
A: Samaya? What is samaya? Samaya, I don’t know what is samaya, maybe you can tell me, I have no idea.
No. Samaya is, there’s a samaya about what we put in terms of offering, in terms of preparation of the shrine, and how the shrine is prepared, and how the sanghas are together, and so on, so forth.
Of course we have all this classic understanding about the samaya, but the most important about the samaya is that you stay away from the sangha as far as possible, if that is possible. There is a Buddha and Bodhisattva, there’s that Three Jewels sangha, and then there’s that, our ordinary sangha. So most important what you need, is that you need to protect yourself. And way to protect yourself is you listen to the teachings, that what teacher has taught, whatever the teachings may be. And you follow the teachings, you practice it, and you do the retreat, and you come back, and you keep communication and the relation with the teacher simple as possible. I think that is the most important. Mingling around with the big sanghas here and there, of course if you want to be in this kind of a Buddhist festival, circus, mixed together, if you want that kind of atmosphere, go ahead, do what you want.
But if you really want to keep your samaya clean and proper, and then you just simply listen to the teachings from your teacher, receive the empowerment, and teachings, and ask for personal audience, ask for personal guidance, and then go back, do your retreat, do your practice, and that’s enough.
And then the samaya of continuity of your offering to the deities, and protectors and buddhas, and a continuity of that, and that’s the most important.
Kalu Rinpoche
FB Livestream – 24 January 2021
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