Quick access to all the articles so far about (1) the Buddhist practice of relying upon a Spiritual Guide in general and (2) my own Spiritual Guide, Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, in particular.
Celebrating a great Buddhist Master
Geshe Kelsang had a very close relationship with his own Spiritual Guide, Trijang Rinpoche, who requested him to come to the West and approved of his adapting the presentation of the teachings for an entirely new audience. In this way the New Kadampa Tradition came into existence. Centuries-worth of authentic liberating teachings are available in a form that modern-day people can actually practice without having to abandon their modern lifestyles or retire to a mountain cave.
A Spiritual Guide
We are here because we want new ideas. We know that if we always think what we’ve always thought, we will always feel what we’ve always felt. We want different outcomes for ourself, for our family, for our communities. We look at the tarnished history of our world, and the suffering and the injustices, and we want something different. That is going to require different ideas, new ideas, new ways of thinking.
When the student is ready, the teacher appears
Our Spiritual Guide “… is any spiritual teacher who sincerely leads us into spiritual paths by giving correct instructions.”
This can be anyone – from East or West, lay or ordained, male or female etc, black, white, or green with pink spots. It doesn’t matter who they are as long as they are able to guide us along the spiritual path because they’ve been there themselves, always showing us an inspiring example of what is possible. That is our Spiritual Guide, that person.
A light in the darkness
“There is not much reason to worry. With respect to the difficult situations that are appearing to us, we do not know whether they are good or bad. So, we should make our own life peaceful and happy through putting Dharma into practice. This is our job. We can solve our problems through the practice of Dharma. Everything is uncertain. This is samsara’s nature of impure life. So we ourself should be an example. We can solve our problems, we should maintain a peaceful and happy mind all the time through putting Dharma into practice.” ~ Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, 2020
Modern-day Kadampas
The New Kadampa Tradition started small and English and homogenous, because you have to start somewhere and England was a very good choice; but as the years have flowed by I have watched with awe as Geshe-la has been finding more ways to include and promote women, lay people, children, LGBTQ, people of color, and so on and so forth. Not to mention adapting to countries and cultures all over the world, East and West, over 1200 Centers in 40 countries and counting.
Living Buddha
Would it be pretty amazing to have our very own living Buddha to ourselves?! Someone who wants to lead us all the way to enlightenment? Someone who looks reassuringly normal on one level — whom we can see, communicate with, and learn from directly — but who is at heart an enlightened being who comes bearing the blessings and teachings of all enlightened beings?
Trust in the infinite
Through my own small experience, therefore, I can understand that there are countless beings who have these kinds of experiences of wisdom and compassion, just far far deeper and more stable, and that they are trying to reach us. Whenever we taste our own potential to become more and more like them, we can develop the believing, admiring, and wishing faith that allows us to trust them enough to show us how.
Seeing the divine in everyone
Venerable Geshe-la is a reliable wealth of wisdom for how to solve our daily problems and find lasting peace and joy. As the author of 22 books on all of Buddha’s teachings, the spiritual architect of 5 World Peace Temples, and the visionary behind 1400+ Kadampa Centers and branches around the world, he is showing his students what it means to think big—and how to correctly imagine a previously unbelievable reality of pure happiness.
What if Buddha was around today?
The first question is probably why would I want to rely upon a Spiritual Guide? The great Indian Buddhist Master Padampa Sangye (who I’m guessing taught in a place called Tingri) said: “O People of Tingri, the Spiritual Guide will lead you wherever you wish to go.”
So where is that exactly? If we don’t mind staying in samsara forever, including in the lower realms, we don’t need an enlightened teacher to show us the way out. But:
“If we wish for a human rebirth our Spiritual Guide will lead us there, if we wish for liberation he will lead us there, if we wish to be reborn in a Pure Land he will lead us there, and if we wish to attain enlightenment he will lead us there. No one is kinder than our Spiritual Guide.”
I am always with you
On Saturday September 17th 2022, Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche passed very peacefully into the clear light.
“I always remain with you. Dying is just this physical body; in reality this [touching body] doesn’t belong to me. This body belongs to my parents, it gets sick, it dies, it suffers; it is not me. I have deep knowledge of this. My body that I always see does not exist; I have deep knowledge of this. So even if this body dies I will not. I am always with you.”