Conversations With My Guru Chapter 3: Buddha's Teachings as Medicine

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Conversations With My Guru
Chapter 3 Buddha's Teachings as Medicine
Link https//www.thekchencholing.org/blog/convers
ations-with-my-guru- 13/post/conversations-with-m
y-guru-68 Chapter 3 Buddhas teachings as
medicine It is 1999. The digits on the clock
reads 8.10pm. The phone rings. A familiar voice
drifts out from the phone. Why are you not
attending teaching? It is Singha Rinpoche. He
does not sound pleased. I make up some lame
excuse and he brushes it off. "Come now, he
says. My spouse and I arrive and try to sneak in
unnoticed. It is extremely difficult as there
are less than a dozen students and the room is
small. Lama (thats what we called him then)
his face is unsmiling and clearly very annoyed.
He says nothing and we all look uncomfortable.
Unlike the usual times, he sits on the floor this
time and not on the sofa (teaching throne). At
that time Lama had just begun to teach, so each
student had agreed that we would make a monthly
offering to him. We were in effect his
sponsors. This did not influence him, because
for about an hour that evening, we all received
the most severe scolding any of us had
experienced in some time (we were all older than
him by at least 10 years). However, what he said
left a deep impression - he told us we were
taking the Buddhadharma and our precious human
life for granted. We were ignorant in not
realizing we could die at any time so we behaved
like we could live forever, not cherishing the
fact that we were receiving something even more
valuable than all the
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precious metals on Earth. We were receiving
dharma teachings. I asked Rinpoche recently why
at that time, in 1999, he had never seemed
concerned about the fact that the students he
was reprimanding might leave or stop making
offerings. He said the thought never crossed his
mind. It was important for him that he not give
up on us and he had to be brave and care - and
get through to us. And if scolding was the
means, he would do that. Regrettably, the
partings did happen. Over the years students and
disciples left, mistaking the scolding to be
really that and not realizing the care and love
behind it. If ever, you feel you are being
scolded by Rinpoche, please try your best to
view that as a blessing, a gesture of caring, a
medicine that will benefit perhaps bitter but
beneficial.
Tenzin 26 Sep 2021