Then he opened his eyes and said. The student is ready - the teacher is ready for him
He saw himself at a crossroads. To his right, a short man with a backpack over his shoulders approached him. Then he became aware of himself as an observer of these two people, one of whom was himself. Both were no longer young, and gray hair silvered not only their temples, but also their heads. One of them was ruddy-cheeked and moderately well-fed and still full of energy, with lively, cheerful, although a little tired, eyes. The other, who was himself, looked like an ascetic, with intense, anxious eyes and tightly compressed lips. Behind each of them was a huge backpack. On the backpack of the man who approached from the right was written in oily pink paint: ALL I CARRY WITH MY ME.
ALL
BUSTLE
vanity
It looked like the backpack of the second was much heavier than the first and probably had rubbed his shoulders for a long time, but it was apparently impossible to change anything for him.
Hello, buddy! - welcomed the first second. The second nodded silently and was about to continue on his way, but stopped, as the first offered to take a break and have a bite to eat.
Yes, perhaps it's time to take a break, - the second one said wearily and, freeing his shoulders from the straps of the backpack, dropped it to the ground like an unbearable and long-boring burden. Then, wiping the droplets of sweat on his forehead with his sleeve, he wearily sat down on a large stone lying in the grass.
The first deftly freed himself from his backpack, carefully placed it next to the equally bulky burden of his random oncoming one, and squared his back and shoulders.
Well, now you can eat, otherwise in the morning there wasn’t a poppy seed or a drop of dew in your mouth, - and he began to pull out a stick of sausage from his bottomless bag, several sandwiches wrapped in wax paper, a thermos, apparently with hot tea, and lastly he took out an open bottle of red wine and spread it all out on a large paper napkin spread on the grass. Then, turning to his unexpected friend, he offered to dine with him.
Thank you, but I have my own food for today's lunch and I don't want to break the rules I've set for myself. The fact is that seeing the futility of our short life, I decided to give up attachments to her and everything that tempted my mind and my heart and, of course, my stomach, I left at home. I took only bread and water with me.
What is it, you have a bag full of bread and water? - the first traveler asked in surprise, eating sandwiches on both cheeks and washing them down with hot sweet tea.
No, why, there are more important things in my backpack than ordinary products. There I have the principles of a new life. These principles are completely different from those that guide modern humanity - do not live for fleeting joy, because it is a lie; not to be attached to everything that surrounds us and on which we, in this regard, are constantly dependent; not be a slave to your habits and conventions of the world around you; to be above everything that can capture us and narrow our consciousness. To the latter I include sex, passions of every kind, human love, and all sorts of other imperfections of the human race. In other words, I want to get rid of everything worldly in order to get on the spiritual path. And therefore my path is the path of a loner, since few can dare such a feat.
But listen, mate! Are you sure that your heroic rejection of all human imperfections will lead you on the path leading to perfection? I can imagine how difficult it is to resist all sorts of temptations in our lives that we meet at every turn.
Everything you say is true, but you can't even imagine a hundredth part of what a person who aspires to spirituality has to overcome. In order to acquire the Divine, it is necessary to completely free my soul from worldly desires and attachments, and the efforts that I make to this give rise to pride and hope in me. I constantly remember that only those who are called by God become on the spiritual path. Just now you invited me to share your meal with you. Of course, you did it from the bottom of your heart, because you did not know that such an offer was a temptation for a hungry person, but God is always present in me, who will not allow me to be captured by everything that does not correspond to my chosen spiritual path. Remember the words of Christ: Torah to the one through whom the temptation comes. Therefore, I want to wish you: do not tempt people with anything worldly. Remember the words of Christ.
With these words, an ascetic-looking man took out of his backpack a crust of black bread and a flask of cold water to satisfy your hunger and thirst.
During a short rest, the first traveler, spreading his arms and legs, stretched out on his back and silently looked with narrowed eyes at the cloudless blue sky, while the second, leaning back against his backpack, closed his eyes and began to repeat something monotonously and incomprehensibly. Some time later, he suddenly rose resolutely, put his shoulder bag on his overworked shoulders, busily adjusting its straps, and was about to leave, when the first traveler called out to him:
Or maybe we will go together, everything will be more fun, and the path will be less dangerous. We can always help each other.
The second traveler stopped and, turning half a turn to his random oncoming one, said resolutely: “The holy scripture says: “Blessed is the man who does not go to the advice of the ungodly and does not stand in the way of sinners.” And it is also said there: “. ..the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. "As you can see, we have different paths." And, bent under the weight of his principles, he quickly walked away...
Several years passed, and once in other lands they unexpectedly met again. The hair on their heads was already completely gray, their gait became less easy, but, oddly enough, their backpacks became even more voluminous and heavy. They met at a fork in the paths, which merged into one wide, well-trodden road.
Well, we met again, - the first traveler smiled benevolently. - Apparently, the goal to which we are going is the same for you and for me.
Don't be silly, Our roads cannot have the same purpose.
The second traveler stopped, looked irritably at his casual acquaintance and turned aside, onto a path barely visible in the grass leading to snow-covered mountains.
A few more years passed. The second traveler, on whose backpack was written: "ALL VANE OF VANITIES", overcame many mountain passes, crossed many rivers and streams and even swam across one sea and finally reached the end of his journey. In front of him were huge gates, on both sides of which a high stone wall. Many paths and roads led to the gate, along which people approached from all sides. They all carried a heavy burden behind their backs, with which they seemed to have fused into one. Their heads were lowered low and they seemed to see nothing but the ground under their feet. Soon a huge silent gray crowd gathered at the gate. They all stood and waited for something, catching their breath after a hard and long journey. And then the second traveler, unexpectedly among other people, saw his old acquaintance, whom they had already met several times before. “I did something wrong on my way,” he thought anxiously. “I should have been released, but my burden remained as heavy as it was before ..,.”
Then a heavy bell rang out, and the massive wide gates slowly and noiselessly opened. St. Peter, looking into a huge and thick book, let some of them through and pushed aside others, who, sadly lowering their heads, stepped aside. It was the turn of the monk. Saint Peter looked into his eyes, and the monk realized that his previous assessment of his life was completely wrong, that he was full of selfishness and all kinds of shortcomings. And he realized that he was not worthy to enter the gates wide open. A smile of compassion appeared on the face of Saint Peter. He nodded his head, and the monk, lowering his eyes and feeling remorse for daring to approach the gate leading to paradise, not being ready for it, went to those whose earthly fate was not yet over...
Then there was a cloudy formless haze and a barely conscious state of being. There was a perception that some kind of force was carrying him higher and higher, and the previously cloudy gray space became lighter and lighter. Then came the awareness of his individuality, but he did not yet know who he was. Then came the awakening, and he realized who he was, but did not yet remember where he was. He lay on his back with his eyes closed and struggled to remember himself. He did not feel his body, which was still asleep, but the vague shadows of memories disturbed and awakened him. Unexpectedly for himself, he remembered the events of the dream he had just passed, which before the smallest details was reality. This memory was like a flash of light that made his body fully wake up. The monk opened his eyes and saw himself in a cave in the mountains, sitting on a straw mat. It was early morning outside the cave. There was a feeling of expectation inside - he knew that someone should come to him today. After deep sleep memories were viscous and slow, it was necessary to make efforts so that vague images could clear up in the reality of memory. I remembered - a woman from a village located at the foot of a mountain was supposed to come. Once a week she came to him to receive his blessing and listen to his instructions. But that will be later. The monk's memories became more and more mobile and vivid.
I'm doing something wrong, he thought. - Not in vain I dreamed of this. Or maybe these are again diabolical temptations with which he wants to convince me of the futility of my efforts to spiritual path? Yes, this is true, - the monk thought, convincing and at the same time reassuring himself. He remembered his childhood when his parents blessed him for monastic service. A zealous attitude towards monastic life won him a special disposition as the abbot of the monastery, and by the age of thirty he was already in the rank of hieromonk. Of course, he was pleased with the respectful attitude of simple monks towards him, but he tried not to pay attention to the sprouts of vanity that imperceptibly grew in his heart. He tried to be constant in his pursuit of Divine truth. At thirty-three years old, at the age of Christ, he decided to retire in order to live only by prayers and taming his desires and inner temptations, for which he received the blessing of the abbot of the monastery. And since then, for the second year, and in the winter in the cold, and in the summer in the heat, he almost did not leave his gloomy dwelling. Food was brought to him from the monastery, but often it remained untouched, because in his deep immersion in prayer, he often did not notice that his body needed food...
Years passed, the monk felt that his constant prayers, fasting and penance, which he imposed on himself, lead to nothing. Moreover, he realized that the more he strives for purification and spiritual transformation, the more often temptations seize him. His mind seemed to be divided into two parts. One of them persistently strove to fulfill everything necessary for life in God, and the other part, completely beyond his control, created in his imagination all sorts of temptations of worldly life, which he had left. The devil whispered to him that none of his efforts would be enough to achieve holiness, that all the past years were wasted for him in vain. And then, hardened by his mortal nature, he imposed on himself an even more cruel penance, but each of his efforts to change something led to the fact that the devil's temptations were more and more insistent. A Lately started visiting him obsessive thought that spiritual work was not at all his destiny and it would be better if he left his monasticism and went into the world. And at the same time, he felt he couldn't do it.
But one day he felt satisfaction in his perseverance in the pursuit of a holy life. He realized that in reality there was no other way for him, and all his doubts and sufferings were nothing more than the temptation of the devil. And realizing this, he devoted himself with even greater zeal to fasting and prayer. So that his aspirations would not be hindered, he asked that food be brought to him only twice a week and, in order to be farther from worldly temptations, he began to dig a cave for himself in this mountain, much higher than the previous one. He understood that now it would be more difficult for his brethren, monks, and even the laity, who, having heard about his holy life, sometimes came to him to hear from him a holy word and receive a blessing...
A few more years of deep loneliness, fasting and prayer passed, a few more years of enduring and unrelenting temptation, and one day he heard a voice inside himself that commanded him, for even greater pacification of the flesh and immersion in the service of God, to create for himself a dwelling in grief, in in a place that was almost inaccessible to people. So that from this place he could see all the frailty of human nature and perceive the Divine voice, not clouded by worldly passions and unbelief. Now every day he climbed up a narrow, barely noticeable path to a rock that rose completely impregnable from the greenery of mountain forests, and cut steps in it, so that later, at the end of his ascent, cut down a new dwelling in the rock for himself. He already knew that it would be near the pine tree clinging to the ledge of the rock. And the higher the monk climbed, cutting into the rock, the greater was his zeal in work. The palms of his hands were rough and bleeding in places, his legs were bruised and bruised, but his eyes burned feverishly. He knew that his work was destined for him by God himself, and when it was completed, he would achieve what he had been striving for all his life. It was especially hard for him in winter, when the frosty wind burned his bare hands and feet. His face was weathered and his eyes, reddened from nightly vigils and prayers, watered. And one day during prayer, when the whole world was sleeping, and after hard work, he was sitting on his mat, worn out from long use, covered with an old woolen blanket, he heard soft steps approaching the entrance to his cave. Then these footsteps ceased and a tall human figure appeared in the dull gray entrance, around which a light orange light streamed. At first, the monk was frightened and began to intensively repeat the Jesus Prayer, but then he calmed down when he saw that neither the holy cross that he had placed on the stranger, nor the prayer had any effect on him, and instead he heard a soft and gentle voice that calmed him , saying that he was the messenger of God and brought him good news from the Almighty. The monk prostrated himself on the stone floor of the cave, repeating thanksgiving to God. And when the stranger picked him up and pressed him to his chest, tears rolled down the monk's cheeks in an uncontrollable stream.
God sees your zeal and hears your prayers. He sent me to you to give you the other side of the truth that you have neglected in your zeal. How can you reject what you don't know? And, rejecting the outer world with all its temptations, will you wrest all its temptations from within yourself? You must understand that the words that you read or hear do not yet carry knowledge, because you can get true knowledge only through experience. But you have no experience, because your life since childhood was devoted to serving in the monastery, how can you reject something that you really do not know? Your inner temptations, which continue to trouble you even now, are only shadows of real temptations. What can you do with shadows when they always remain elusive? With your fasts and prayers, you constantly turn your face towards God, but your imperfections, which are perceived as shadows, despite your desire to overcome them, constantly remain with you. In order to earn holiness before God, it is necessary to free oneself from one's imperfections.
My lord, I have no acquisitiveness, desire for power, I am not attached to material wealth, Since childhood, I do not know what anger, rancor, despondency are, I do not know what jealousy and envy are. All that remains in me is the relentless pursuit of Divine love and unity with Him...
With a quiet gesture of the hand, the stranger, shining with a golden-orange light, stopped the speech of the monk, which suddenly poured out of his mouth in an unstoppable stream.
Your words say only one thing, that you are not free from the greatest pride that has settled in your heart. Each person contains all the good and all the evil in the world. All your virtues that you have just listed are just a screen behind which your shortcomings are hidden. You do not know the tricks of the human mind, which knows how to hide a lie, exposing it as the truth. If you strive for the truth, then your mind will find many facts confirming the success of your aspirations. The mind is that part of ourselves that constantly adapts to our desires, justifying them. In reality, the mind seeks only its own satisfaction. You are there, in the monastery, leaving the world to wallow in sins, striving for your own salvation. Isn't this egoism? You who pray, asking God to forgive mankind its sins and guide it on the true path, thereby act as mediators between the world and God. But are you pure enough for God to entrust this work to you? Don't you monks think that you are like the blind leading the blind? How can you instruct the laity who come to you when they themselves are as imperfect as those who seek your protection. But they are more truthful, because they do not hide their sins, while you, by putting masks of holiness on your faces, instruct them in righteousness. Don't you think that besides all other sins, the sin of hypocrisy has flourished in you? I have come to you to open your eyes to yourself and help you get on the path of truth. You still have time.
You must go into the world to gain experience that brings knowledge. And all the temptations that will strive from all sides to enter into yourself, you must experience, understand and present to God as part of your imperfection. You must remember that God is pleased not with those who strive to devote their lives to fasting and prayer, but by those who work diligently in His field.
And suddenly the monk felt that he was falling into an abyss of darkness filled with wild laughter. In the next moment, he realized that, gently pressing him to his chest, a bright creature was carrying him in the sky, and tears of joy and love watered his face. Then again falling into the abyss of suffering and darkness. He seemed to split in two, because he was at the same time falling into the abyss and ascending into heaven. And to his horror, he realized that both the darkness of hell and the light of heaven had become equally attractive to him, that they were simultaneous and inseparable. He was torn apart, finding no support anywhere. Everything he knew before was of no importance now. He realized that he was following a false path towards his goal, but he could not realize where the roots of this lie were.
Spiritual work does not consist in suppressing the temptations of the surrounding world. No human life and human will is enough to resist the lower nature. She is immeasurably more powerful than him. All the temptations of this world are given to man so that he can realize their response within himself. In each person, that part of his being that belongs to the external world responds to external temptations. You must perceive these parts with a calm mind. And your calm vision of them will be the force that transforms in you what belongs to the lower nature. Your longing to save your soul from the suffering of hell is like a frantic floundering in deep waters seas in which you sink deeper and deeper. Everything that happens on earth is done for the sake of the evolution of consciousness, and try so that your consciousness is not captured and remains detached from internal consonances with the temptations of the material world. These harmonies will become more and more subtle, but your vigilance and receptivity must increase as you deepen your work within yourself. You must be not only a witness to internal states, but at the same time, by a gentle effort of will, push them away. The position of a witness will help you to be detached and not caught up in the painful temptations of human nature. When in your inner work you will need to take the next step, I will come to you again ... Now open your eyes, because a person is coming to you who needs your help.
“When the student is ready, the teacher comes.” Each person in his life has many teachers, and each of them comes to a person when he is ready to meet him. The internal state of a person attracts everything in the external world that corresponds to this state in terms of the level of vibrations. Therefore, under certain conditions, a person could attract to himself those circumstances that are necessary for him, controlling his internal states.
If in the outside world a person shows a certain physical activity in order to realize his desires, then in spiritual practice directed efforts lead to nothing. In order to achieve something, it is necessary to become internally consonant with it. In fact, the efforts that a person makes to realize something, for example, some kind of his desire, are always accompanied by certain internal states, but a person does not consider them determinative, but secondary, a consequence of his activity, or external circumstances. So, internal states of the layman are almost always opposed to his goals, which greatly interferes with the achievement of the goal.
Any harmonious interactions of people are the result of the consonance of those who interact. A person makes discoveries, penetrates into the depths of matter, only because one day he becomes in tune with what is revealed to him. Consonance can be illustrated by the following parable. The teacher sent all the people who came to him in order to gain knowledge to a cave monastery, carved into the rocks many centuries ago. At present, this monastery was empty and was used as a museum, which was eagerly visited by all kinds of visiting tourists. The curator of the museum never showed tourists the round hall of this monastery, although people's rumors spread the most contradictory rumors about it and, therefore, some of the people suffering from excessive curiosity persistently asked the curator of the museum to show them this mysterious round hall.
It was to this hall that the teacher sent everyone who came to him to receive knowledge from him. The guardian was a friend of the teacher and knew for what purpose he sent people to him. The guardian led the thirsty for knowledge into a semi-dark hall, lit by several candles fixed in candlesticks near the walls of this hall. Together they stood in the center of the hall, and the keeper showed the man to the many doors leading to no one knows where. The door that the keeper showed first was wide and massive. Each following was more and more narrow. And the latter was so narrow that one person could hardly squeeze into it. The peculiarity of these doors was that they did not have door handles, and there were no keyholes in them, although all the doors were tightly and securely closed and not a single person using physical force could open them.
“There are fifty doors in this hall, except for the one through which we entered here,” the museum curator explained to the messengers from the teacher. The key to one of the doors is inside the person who would like to enter the world behind the door. There are fifty doors leading to fifty worlds, and a door will open before a person only when the world behind it and the person are in tune with each other. Therefore, the inner essence of a person is the key to any of the doors.
- But, consonance is always an attraction, an attraction that for a person can be irresistible, the curator of the museum said, and in order to prevent the irreparable from happening, for every doorway grill installed. Before there were cases when a person left through an open door and never returned. In fact, people are in tune with all the worlds that are behind these doors, but the door will open only when this harmony reaches its maximum. Therefore, only one door can open before a person in this hall. The Master sends the afflicted here only so that they can be convinced of what they are ready for and what they can claim. For a seeker, even a respected teacher will not be authoritative enough in assessing the student's readiness for the work that lies ahead of him. In the same hall, the student is practically convinced of what he is like and what path he has to go through.
Spiritual practice of any student, 
no matter what level of consciousness he is at, consists in raising the level of his inner sound. And only for this will the last, narrowest door open leading to the highest levels the light of consciousness, which will surpass all the attractions of this manifested material world. And since a person's meeting with the reality of this world takes place within himself, then on the way to his spiritual perfection, a person must surpass himself.
"When the student is ready, the teacher will come"
Truth, timeless.
And, nevertheless, the wish to the Teacher: “Student to you!” is unlikely to ever cease to be relevant. If you take a closer look, you understand that sometimes it is not easier for the Teacher to find a real student than for a potential student - the Teacher. Although purely mathematically this should not be - how many are the first and how many are the second in this world?
There are thousands and thousands of people who want to find a Teacher. I note - the desire is exactly that. Not “become a student”, but “find a Teacher”. The desire to get yourself something new and useful. Which will take you to another level. Which will make me a little more "special". In short, most often the appearance of the Teacher in life, if you look with the "armed eye", is presented as the acquisition of another fashionable gadget, with which we are all now rich. In addition to a smartphone, I will also have such a cool thing - a Spiritual Teacher. He will “teach” me in every possible way, I will be “in tradition” - and this, of course, will be great. I myself will be a student. What does that mean, by the way? Yes, God knows, to be honest. What's the difference - I will and I will. The main thing is that I will have a teacher ...
Who is a "student"? Where do we get information about what it, in principle, can be?
First, we were all students – at school. What does this word mean in the context of secondary education? Yes, practically nothing. They brought us - and we are learning. Some children have responsibility for the process - but almost always to their parents, not to themselves. With all due respect, this is not yet the age to deeply live full personal responsibility for one's own life. Remembering Dovlatov: “Heinrich Frantsevich, as for the pictures ... Please note that newborns are so-so. 4 months will have to wait. Previously, he is unlikely to look like a person. And who is not even 50 years old ... ". And many others - there is nothing similar, but gouging is much more manifested - "teach me, since you need it." And I, perhaps, will run away from a couple of lessons, I will drive in football. Such is "discipleship" in school. In general, a passive, dependent on other people, process in which real human responsibility for one's own choice cannot yet be shown. Even 11th graders, sorry.
Secondly, many have at least heard about the most popular and published book in the world. About the Bible, i.e. And especially about the New Testament, about the Gospels. For there, as it is believed, is the basis of our "Orthodox culture." There is such a character - Jesus Christ. Whether we accept him as “the true God from the true God” or not is not so important now. But everyone understands that Christ is the Teacher. And he has students. And He teaches them. And they learn from him.
All Gospel events take place against this background. The men are sitting, fishing - He comes and says, they say, come with me, I will teach you. Those are like: “Well, why not go, let’s go, what’s the difference (and will the booze be free?)”. And these simple men become His disciples. We read, and from the text their discipleship appears quite clearly. What are they doing? They go with him everywhere. Where to help with the housework. Where they will work with oars. They listen to his stories all the time. They look at His miracles. They discuss with each other who “There” will sit closer to the Teacher, they even argue about it, and they turn to Him to resolve these disputes. Briefly speaking. Lead normal human life, except that " Like a rolling stone» constantly go from place to place, and together with an unusual Person. That, perhaps, is all the "discipleship" in the Gospels, if you look superficially. They were taken and dragged away. They went. They didn't mind.
And our mind absorbs all this. And when the time comes in our life to understand the need for some spiritual development– it is these patterns, these samskaras, that come to the surface in the first place. That apprenticeship is a rather passive process. What is most important, in general, is to “do not skip” unnecessarily. To be close to those (or those) who tell different useful things. That it is good because there will be like-minded friends, whether they are classmates, apostles, or gurubhais, all together is more fun ...
And there is nowhere, practically nowhere, easily and naturally, to take and gain a foothold in the head of the most important truth about discipleship. That the student must do what the teacher says. The student must Live as the Teacher teaches. Just being with Him is not enough. It is necessary to do what He teaches. And not on a case-by-case basis.
If we think that, say, in India, everything is different, then ... let's, for example, open the biography of Swami Rama. “In India, people listened to him because he was their Swamiji, a holy man, a sage from the Himalayas and a former Shankaracharya. The fact that he sometimes demonstrated his special yogic abilities also added weight to his words. But these demonstrations did not motivate listeners to practice what he taught them. Their original idea of 'Swamiji' was that he was a holy man who could and should be followed, and they were happy just to call themselves his disciples."
This is no less clearly manifested in Christian civilization. As soon as Christianity came out of the caves, where there were truly “two in My Name – and I am among them” and became part of the state and political process… what was left of the teachings of Christ? Who fulfills in life His teaching, what He taught? For whom is the New Testament not a part of "belonging to a culture", but a reference book for use in everyday life?
So, "East" or "West", "North" or "South" - a person remains a person. In general, a lazy creature. Who is very pleased and comfortable to associate himself with something more. But who especially does not want to strain to become so big - himself.
At the same time, the “search for the Teacher” in the outside world, in fact, is no different from the search for anything else. And it is a particular manifestation of a global human delusion - the idea that the source of happiness is in the outside world. For some, it's a bottle of wine. For someone - a Spiritual Teacher. The principle underlying this search does not change. My happiness is in the outside world and I have to find it. And when I find it, when I am I will get what I want - I will feel good. A glass of red will relax me. Or I will write on my resume page “I practice mega yoga in the tradition of Sri Swami Ananda.” There is no difference, in fact there is no difference.
We find the Teacher - and we are satisfied. Now He will give me deep spiritual experience. He will guide me unscathed through the minefield of samsara. He will give me liberation, enlightenment, lead me to Samadhi and open the door to Nirvana.
Shall we listen to the instructions of the Optina elders? “The Spiritual Father is like a pillar, it only points the way, and you have to go yourself. If the Spiritual Father will indicate, and his disciple himself will not move, then he will not go anywhere, but will rot near this pillar.”
So, the Teacher in our life is not the pleasure of having new toy and the inner peace of belonging to something bigger than myself. This is, first of all, the ultimate responsibility. In front of. In front of him. Before God. It is a vow to do. Do what He teaches. Each. God's. Day. There can be no exceptions. If the Teacher teaches meditation, it means that even if you got up at 6 am and returned home at 1 am, tired as a wolf, it has no power over you. You sit down and practice what Master has given you. If someone is not ready for this... The teacher will not come. It can appear purely outwardly in our lives. We can even receive "initiation" from Him. But the phrase "The teacher was found" does not mean that. And it means that I accepted Him in my heart, I trusted completely and began to do daily what He taught me. If this is not there, then maybe outwardly I have a Teacher - but this is only my own illusion. He is with me, but He is not in me. I have His photograph at home and regularly attend His disciple meetings. But if I don’t have Him in my heart and I don’t practice every day, I don’t have this Teacher. No.
We can be physically close to Him—or very far away from Him. But even if we live next to Him, in an ashram or a monastery, then our main job as disciples is to practice. Meditate. Pray. Who got what, who cares what, for whom what works. Whether we are far away or close physically, it does not matter. If we practice, everything starts to change. Let's remember the Mahabharata and the story of Ekalavya? “Ekalavya is the hero of the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata, the son of Hiranyadhanus, the king of nishadhas, a young prince who wanted to become a student of Drona. Since the Nishadhas were a non-Aryan, barbarian tribe, Drona did not accept him as a student. Ekalavya, bowing his head at Drona's feet, retired into the forest. In the forest, without the knowledge or consent of Drona, Ekalavya fashioned a murti of his teacher from clay and, turning to him for advice, began to train in archery, while observing strict discipline. Soon, the purposeful Ekalavya acquired incredible speed in handling bow and arrows and turned into a skilled warrior, equal to Arjuna in skill and valor. (more can be read)
It is impossible to wait for the Teacher to come, for the Spiritual Mentor to appear. Even if He appears and shows us the way, how will we go if we have not tried to take a single step ourselves? You have to practice, something, but every day. Asanas, pranayama. Pray. Meditate - as we understand, as it turns out. Read texts, read Yoga Sutras, Bhagavad Gita, Gospel. Don't look outside. And build yourself from within. Build a foundation. And this is a rough, thankless job - and when beautiful house Everyone forgets about the foundation. Does this mean that you can build a house right away, on the sand? And hope he survives?
And then, then the Teacher will appear. If not in this life, then in the next. And what, actually, the difference when? will appear. 😉
Not criticism, but our flower of greetings, could we bring each other
Other hearts, like Temples of Light, learn to understand and love.
To believe that in every Heart we meet, the Truth sends us a lesson:
Not a friend, not an enemy, but only the Eternal Teacher, anyone who enters, even for a short time.
(M. Ozoliņa, Riga)
“In all your labors look to the root and deepen the good” John of Kronstadt
Each thought of Goodness and Beauty is already an arrow of Clear Light... Therefore, let us learn together to think about Goodness. Agree???
What is the relationship between teacher and student?
The most varied. There is no single model here.
True, if we ignore a specific Teacher and a specific student (which, in general, is correct, because each Teacher has his own Teacher, that one has his own, and so on ad infinitum) and focus on the generalized image of the Teacher with a capital letter, then what One can still try to identify the basic principles.
The students can obviously be divided into two groups.
The first is those that act next to the Teacher. Following the instructions of the Teacher, whom they see and hear directly, they work out the karma of obedience.
The second is those who act far from the Teacher, not seeing or hearing him directly. They work out the karma of initiative.
It is clear that the second karma is preferable, because it is believed that the disciple helps the Teacher to the greatest extent not when, when he lives and acts near Him, but when he has matured to complete self-control and can be sent alone into the thick of people, into the thick of their passions and sorrow.
And in this case, a person not only learns to be independent. It is believed that with proper spiritual orientation, inner vision and inner hearing are sharpened in it. Away from the Teacher, embarking on any business, preparing himself for a working state, the student must focus his thoughts on the Teacher, and also collect all his attention and fullness of feelings and thoughts only on what he is going to do. As you can see, this is not mysticism at all, but concentration and the utmost concentration of attention.
Some student rules exist.
They sound like this:
- Here are the three covenants of life and work:
1. Do not repeat, but repeat.
2. Go forward, but be mindful of others.
3. Do not doubt that the Teacher is nearby.
Doubt equals betrayal.
Some people take the word “apprenticeship” too literally, drawing in their imagination a school (certainly in a quiet, secluded place), almost student desks, a good mentor. Proximity to the Teacher is drawn by him as a kind of festive rest. And she, this closeness, is kept only by constant, intense everyday work, which, under the impulse of the Teacher, only becomes more intense.
The same thing is constantly being said: that in the matter of discipleship they do not stand still. If you have made someone a living example for yourself, if you have chosen someone as your Teacher, then be kind to keep up with Him. To lag behind the Teacher means to become enslaved in superstitions and prejudices. To prevent this from happening, again, complete and disinterested devotion to the work shared with the Teacher is required.
The path to the Teacher seems to be wide open. And meetings with them are rare. It is believed that, among other things, another living prejudice prevents us - it is developed among beginners, but not only among them - the desire to see the Teacher in some kind of fabulous guise. The wise proverb is completely forgotten: "It is necessary and the ant will be the messenger."
So it turns out that some people dream all the time about the Teacher, about the path with him and life near Him. And when in one way or another they come to the path where they can meet the Teacher, they begin to deny this path, criticize it, something in it does not suit them. And it turns out that what was important to them was not the News that reached them, but the ant that brought it. Their attention is focused on the ant and on their own spiritual cleverness, which is nothing more than spiritual squalor.
The Himalayan Masters believe that no one can be raised to a higher level. One can only give everyone every opportunity to rise higher, serving him as a living example.
The spirit of man is ready, he has matured, and a new form of labor and activity is ready for him. Everything rests on the eternal law:
THE STUDENT IS READY - THE TEACHER IS READY FOR HIM.
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I was recently on the phone with an old friend of mine who had been out of touch for almost a decade.
She is going through a difficult period in her life, which includes selling her house and doing something she doesn't love. The most interesting thing is that I was going through a similar period the last time we talked to her. Thus, the sudden restoration of contact with her by telephone seemed not accidental. I shared with her what was once said to me when I was going through a crisis. These words changed my life at the time. They evoked the same reaction in her that I once had.
The power of a word heard at the right time
It made me think about how powerful words heard at the right time can change thinking in an instant.
"When the student is ready, the teacher will appear himself." - Lao Tzu
I shared my experience with her.. In 2008, like many others, I lost my job and worked odd jobs for nearly two years. I tried to keep my house. At that time, my mainstay and support was Lisa Gould, my friend and financial advisor. We often discussed various alternatives, but I literally clung to my home.
I clung to my usual life. I loved that house, it became a part of me. He gave my life a meaning that was driven by habits, upbringing, stories of the American dream, and the belief that home ownership is an integral part of being a successful adult. I felt like a failure who was unable to keep my own home.
Question
When I discussed this with Lisa, she said, "Why don't you set yourself up for success instead of defending against failure?"
“Wait what? Repeat, please,” I said in bewilderment.
"Why don't you set yourself up for success instead of defending against failure?"
I still remember where I was sitting when I heard those words. Something happened in my body. I felt the blood rush to my face. I started, as if I had a lot of opportunities. There was a shift in my thinking.
The reason it had such a profound effect on me at that moment is because I was ready to hear and accept those words. That is when the shift in thinking occurs. Until she told me this, I didn't notice what I was really doing, which was trying like crazy to protect myself from failure.
Failure Protection
It's like trying to stop the bleeding with a Band-Aid that doesn't hold. You are constantly in a state of shame and fear. “But what will other people say?” - you think and continue to wait for a catch. It is a painful vicious circle leading to death. You feel like a failure.
Since what you are focused on can expand, trying to protect yourself from failure focuses your attention on the impending failure.
Set for success
It involves assessing the present, anticipating the future, reducing losses and moving forward; there should be no shackles holding you back. It is the realization that your circumstances do not define you. What matters is the steps you take to deal with them. The mindset for success revolves around intent. When you intend to succeed, he will not keep you waiting.
Gary Sukav writes in his book "Residence of the Soul": You create reality with your own intentions". So, if your intention is to protect yourself from failure, then you will be in given state. If your intention is to always make choices that lead to fulfillment and success, then you will live in that state.
Then it radically changed everything in my life. Literally at that moment, my house turned into pillars, bricks and building mixture. Those words freed me from the emotions I had become so attached to. Emotions are what connected shame and fear of failure. In a success mindset, that was what set me free.
Was it hard? How to say. I needed to survive the sale of the house. Once that happened, I felt like I was freed from the chains that were holding me back in so many ways. When your thinking changes, so does your life.
I AMI often remind myself of Lisa's words and share them with those who need help. They benefit my life. I fully understood and accepted them. They have become my mantra – in work, in relationships, in everything.
Here is the full quote from Lao Tzu: “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear himself. When the student is really ready, the teacher will disappear.”. published .
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