If it’s not Broken…

You hear people say things like the dharma should be updated to suit people of the 21st century because it was taught that the dharma should be imparted in ways that suit the student. Personally, I cannot agree that the dharma needs to be changed to suit modern people. I don’t think that is what is meant by the statement, ‘Teach according to the needs of the student.’

People like to interpret the meaning of that statement as, ‘Teach according to the wishes of the students.’ But is that likely to help them? Do you think the dharma should be changed to fit us or we should change to fit the dharma? Since the dharma teaches reality and how to realise reality, I think it is we who need to become aligned with the dharma, rather than the other way around. If we wish to change for the better, that is.

So what is meant by, ‘Teach according to the needs of the student’? It means the lama should know the mentality of the student, know what is most beneficial for the student and to instruct them accordingly.

So if saying unpleasant things and pointing out the student’s faults is most likely to help, the lama should do that. If they see that talking sweetly and gently to the student will most likely help them, they should do that.

If the lama avoids doing something that is helpful because it is counter to the wishes of the student and they are worried that they may fall out of favour with the students, there is nothing of the dharma in that way of thinking.

This is all presupposes that the lama and student have properly assessed each other first. A student should not follow a lama without having first confirmed that they are endowed with the necessary attributes of a lama. Likewise, the lama should not take on a student if they too lack the necessary attributes. If both sides have done their due diligence, the student should follow the lama with unwavering trust and devotion, and the lama should be willing to give even their life for the sake of the student.