Reading the Lama’s Mind

Whether we come to have a good understanding of the dharma or not is determined by how well we are able to understand the intention of the lama who is teaching us.

In truth, what we are trying to learn in the dharma is nothing other than the intention and view of the lama. It seems many people are unaware of this, they think they can learn the dharma by picking up a text and studying what it says, and that their study has little to do with the Lama. For many it doesn’t even matter if they do not see the lama to be a decent person, as long as their explanations of the texts reveal new and interesting ideas. Basically, many people relate to lamas and dharma teachers as they do to a school teacher.

Patrul Rinpoche lays out the correct way to progress in the dharma in his Words of My Perfect Teacher: “First, you should be skilled at scrutinising the lama. Second, you should be skilled at following the lama. And third, you should be skilled at emulating the lama’s view and behaviour.”

It doesn’t say we need to be skilled at emulating the texts. Since what we are trying to learn is the qualities of the Lama’s mind, we need to know the lama’s thoughts, their way of thinking. That alone will decide whether we become good dharma practitioners, and whether we come to have a good understanding of the dharma or not.