Concentrate particularly on Guru Yoga, the entrance-way for blessings, and make it the very foundation of your practice. That is the essential point. —Adzom Drukpa in Lamplight On Your Path
TEACHING is the heart of all three jewels—buddha, dharma, and sangha. Buddha teaches, the dharma is the teaching itself, and those to whom it is taught are sangha. Every part of this interaction involves relationship, most especially between teachers and students. The teachings take us to a reality that is vast as space and as intimate as our own heart. Our relationship with a teacher helps us access both.
I write about this as someone extremely fortunate in my relationships with Buddhist teachers. I have had, and still have, close, lasting relationships with renowned Geluk, Nyingma, and Bon teachers from Tibet, and have also been very impacted by one Theravada teacher.
Any one of these relationships would have been enough to light up a lifetime. They were kind and caring, never in the least untoward. I appreciate what good fortune this was, given the many violations of trust that have come to light across our traditions. Speaking to that challenge is vital, and I am grateful for the many wise ones who are thinking or writing about this with grace and intelligence.
