Patrul Rinpoche’s Discourse on the Root Guru,
with Commentary by Lama Tsering Phuntsok
Patrul Rinpoche to a certain venerable monk
This passage is from a letter written by Patrul Rinpoche to a certain monk. As for who the venerable monk is, we don’t know.
Patrul Rinpoche was a very renowned teacher at his time. During that era, people tended to chase after famous individuals. This monk was also in pursuit of a well-known teacher, rather than a truly wise one. His mindset was incorrect; he was looking for a master with fame not realization. Because of this, Patrul Rinpoche wrote this letter to him.
The content of this letter seems quite relevant to how people in Taiwan practice Dharma today, so I decided to translate it.
I have encountered the Dharma since my youth
Patrul Rinpoche said: “I have encountered the Dharma since my childhood, and upon taking refuge, I began my studies, reading many sutras, vinaya, and abhidharma texts.
However, due to my vile nature, bad temper, pettiness, and jealousy, I possess an assortment of all the three and five poisons. Although I have taken many vows, it only caused me to have more broken vows.
Though I have diligently practiced my whole life, my mind has not even attained the samadhi of the desire realm, let alone discipline, concentration, or wisdom.”
Patrul Rinpoche had read many scriptures and could give whole sets of both the exoteric and esoteric teachings. He wrote well and spoke eloquently, presenting things in a clear and logical manner. However, he thought all these were of no real use.
He considered these talents as manifestations of demonic activities. Why? Because of fame and profit!
Once fame and fortune come into play, they are like demons that obstruct your Dharma practice.
Some people advised Patrul Rinpoche, saying: “You shouldn’t be so eccentric and crazy. Dress well, build a nice temple, sit on a golden throne, and even if you don’t speak, many people will believe in you, and you can attract many disciples.
Once they believe in you, both you and your disciples will become rich!
(At that time, Patrul Rinpoche had nothing and wore tattered clothes, using a piece of sheepskin with many holes as his robe.)
Moreover, not only would the followers of the Nyingma school believe in you, even the followers of the Sarma schools and other sects would as well.
Just make yourself available for people to see when the time comes.
If you cannot give them a teaching, at least let them see you from afar or give them some brief instructions or oral transmission.
By doing this, you can benefit more sentient beings, live leisurely, lack nothing to wear or live in, and be very happy!”
I am also well aware that such activities could bring me both leisure…
Patrul Rinpoche responded: “It is not that I am unaware of these things.” But the treatise “The Way of the Bodhisattva” states: “Oh, I am rich and well respected; lots of people take delight in me. If I hold on to this pride, I will surely encounter fear after death!”
Simply put, once there is the eight winds concern, attachment begins. Only those who are highly esteemed and respected have the chance to be affected by the eight worldly winds.
Nowadays, many people want to be highly respected and become great masters or elders, after practicing dharma for a few years, don’t they?
But if the eight winds continue to blow, what will happen at the time of death? “I will surely encounter fear after death!” Fear for what? Going to hell.
Therefore, Patrul Rinpoche was a bit hesitant to become a scammer and also did not dare to consider himself as what people proclaimed him to be— a mahasiddha, a seasoned practitioner, a venerable monk, or a revered elder.
Because claiming mastery in this or that when one has nothing to offer is called “lying about one’s level.”
For a monastic, claiming to have attained arhatship without actually having reached it; claiming to have mind-reading power without having it; saying that they can see ghosts and can control them when they actually can’t; or claiming that “I have a close relationship with bodhisattvas who frequently visit me for tea” while having never seen a bodhisattva; saying that “ghosts often help me gather firewood and start fires” — these kinds of statements are considered “lying about one’s level.”
Uttering such words causes a monk or a noun to lose their ordination, as “lying about one’s level” is one of the four root downfalls.
Although I have a little knowledge of the Dharma
Patrul Rinpoche admitted he had no real spiritual attainment, only scholarly knowledge.
He said: “Having just a little knowledge, but no realization at all, such as myself, amazes one comparable only to the group of six monks (*) in the past. Even if someone comes to pay respects or seek blessings, there won’t be any benefit gained from me.”
Nowadays, a lot of Taiwanese people love to have their heads touched by great venerable monks from Tibet, but head touching doesn’t do anything!
The more you get a pat on the head, the harder your head becomes. The more great monks and masters you meet, the more cunning you become, and your Dharma practice becomes less sincere. The result is useless!
This is why Patrul Rinpoche absolutely rejected this approach. He said: “Don’t come to see me, and don’t ask me to touch your head.”
Why did he reject this? Because people’s motives were not pure—they all coveted something.
However, what is faith?
So, what is faith? Faith means putting your trust in the Three Jewels.
The foundation of faith is belief; without belief, there can be no faith.
Among the Three Jewels, the Buddha and Sangha both stem from the Dharma.
Initially, we place the Buddha first, but in reality, the Dharma holds the highest and most important place, so it should come first.
Therefore, we shouldn’t spend all our time looking at Buddha statues—we should spend more time reading the sutras.
People have a common flaw: they don’t take the sutras seriously.
When they see a Buddha statue, they immediately bow, but when they see a sutra, they should also bow in the same way.
Nowadays, people don’t want to listen to teachings, but they flock to attend empowerments. Why?
Because they don’t take the Dharma seriously. They only covet something from the deities.
People love empowerments but don’t like to listen to teachings. However, if you don’t understand the teachings, how can the blessings come in? This is why the Dharma is so important.
The jewel of Dharma is the Four Noble Truths—suffering, cause, cessation, and path—which are common to both the exoteric and esoteric teachings, as well as both the Mahayana and Hinayana schools.
What is the most essential of the Four Noble Truths? It’s cause and effect. Believing in cause and effect is called having faith.
Dharma practice requires you to observe the three poisons inwardly
“This person has been observed for a long time,” “This person was recommended” – if you hear somebody say these things about you and think that because of it you are practicing well or highly accomplished, then you are, in fact, fabricating your practice. You have no true Dharma practice.
Dharma practice is not about outward development, it’s about inward cultivation. Don’t use your eyes to look at others—use your mind to reflect on yourself.
Looking at others with your eyes isn’t Dharma practice; close your eyes and use your mind to see what you have done. As a result, all you will see is your own wicked nature.
We need to slowly grind out and correct those wicked natures.
Where do the problems come from? They’re all your own problems. So once you correct your own problems, everyone around you becomes a good neighbor.
Likewise, if you’re a bad person, your neighbors will naturally become bad people.
The master of Oddiyana said, “If the three poisons are completely eliminated, what is the need for the Dharma?”
Without the three poisons, what do you need the Dharma for? You can throw away the Dharma.
If you don’t know this point, you’ll keep seeking outside!
For example: drinking holy water, visiting sacred places, picking up a stone to worship at home, bringing home a sacred tree for protection, this seasoned practitioner is good, that monk is good, or this venerable monk is good, and so on…
Continuously seeking outside and hoping to get blessings only leads to madness and becoming a troublemaker. They have no other use than that.
Having deep faith in and praying to your guru
You must have deep faith in and pray to your guru. Many scriptures say: “Without the root guru, there is no liberation.”
What is the root guru who possesses the three kinds of kindness to you? The three kindnesses are having changed your body, speech, and mind for the better.
Having corrected your body means your conduct has become less reckless; having corrected your speech means your words have become less harsh; having corrected your mind means your heart is kind.
Whoever can help you achieve these improvements is called the root guru who possesses the three kinds of kindness to you.
Sometimes this also refers to the guru who gives you the empowerments, pith instructions, and guidance—this type of master is also called a guru with the three kindnesses.
In any case, as long as you have him in your life, you can have a positive outlook. The person who can make you change is called your root guru.
On the contrary, if you haven’t experienced transformation, that person is not your root guru but merely a whatever guru. Such gurus are all over the street and not that special.
Therefore, the root guru with the three kindnesses is not just some elder, a particular senior practitioner, or a His Holiness. The guru who has changed you for the better is your root guru.
In the generation stage of Vajrayana, the root guru is equal to the yidam, the principal deity, and should not be regarded as a member of the entourage. If you can have faith in this way, it should be a pretty good mindset.
The faith in your guru comes from your gratitude for your guru’s kindness towards you
Why should we have faith and gratitude toward the guru? When we say that the guru surpasses all Buddhas, we mean it in terms of his kindness towards us.
The Buddha and the guru are equally great, and there is no difference between them. However, the Buddha has not directly liberated me, while the guru has, so I should feel gratitude toward him.
From the perspective of your own benefits, who should you choose? the Buddha or the guru? Of course, you should choose the guru; it’s that simple.
Taiwanese people practice Dharma by prostrating to Master X and visiting His Holiness Y. They go visit all the masters and in the end, they call this “widely establishing good Dharmic connections”. Isn’t this a very snobbish and cheap display?
It is indeed a great thing to meet more gurus, but your mentalities are not so great.
You just think that he is older, has more grease on his body (as people get older, there is more grease on their bodies), and has practiced longer, so he must have better kung fu, right?
Or maybe you think he’s from Tibet, so he must be more powerful (when Tibetan masters come to Taiwan, the grease from the butter still clings to their bodies, so they are more powerful). Isn’t this how you think? But how does this make anything greater or worse?
People like you should be called “fence-sitters” or “traitors”!
Nowadays, there are international students who bow to every guru they meet everywhere, but who truly recognizes you?
Some people like to boast: “I’ve met this His Holiness. I’ve met that HH. I know this Rinpoche.” But these His Holinesses and Rinpoches don’t even know who you are—isn’t that pitiful?
When a disciple asks the master whether he knows a certain person, and the master responds: “Oh yes, I know him well. He’s been studying with me for a long time,” this is what’s called a proper guru-disciple relationship, isn’t it?
You might say: “I’ve met all the His Holinesses and Rinpoches in Taiwan.” But when we ask these His Holinesses and Rinpoches, they don’t know you. So what’s the point? Don’t deceive yourself like that.
Simply attending teachings or receiving empowerments does not make someone your root guru—they are just a spiritual friend.
Master Atisha had many teachers
Master Atisha had many teachers. Whenever he spoke of other teachers, he would join his palms at his chest, but whenever he mentioned the great master Serlingpa (literally the master from Suvarnadvipa), he would immediately join his palms above his head, getting exceptionally emotional. Why?
He said: “Having met him, I gave rise to genuine compassion in my heart.” Because the Dharma entered his heart, he felt especially grateful to him.
“The great compassion of the guru can make the Dharma enter my heart.” This is called great kindness.
Has Shakyamuni Buddha made the Dharma enter your heart? Has Penor Rinpoche? Has Amitabha Buddha? Who has? It’s your master who is with you every day, isn’t it?
So all the credit goes to your guru! Otherwise, should the credit go to Shakyamuni Buddha?
If Shakyamuni Buddha and I were sitting here together, who would you choose? Clearly, you wouldn’t choose me!
Such a simple test of faith, and this is how it’s tested. Didn’t Master Marpa fail the test?
Nowadays when we prepare for empowerments, we need to decorate very solemnly: put up curtains, Buddha statues, and gold-plated and silver-plated offering cups.
But back then when Naropa gave the Chakrasamvara empowerment hiding in the mountains, he had nothing. How did he give the empowerment?
With a snap of his fingers, the entire array of ornaments on the mandala appeared. When he invited the deity, the deity Chakrasamvara appeared directly in front of his naked eyes.
Naropa slyly said: “Who are you going to get empowerment from today? With Him (the deity) or with me?”
Marpa thought: “I see you all the time. There’s nothing special. So of course it’s Him! I must ask Him for the empowerment!” And then Naropa took back the entire mandala with another snap of his fingers.
“Marpa, you got the pair. Go ahead and get the empowerment from Him!” This was how Marpa failed the test!
Later Marpa repented, kneeling and begging Naropa in tears.
The guru said: “I was only testing you. You thought Chakrasamvara was amazing up in the above, but I created “the above”. If I say I won’t give you the empowerment, not even the deity can say anything. I’ll just take everything back.”
We all know that the guru is the deity, and the deity is the guru. If you have knowledge, those who study Vajrayana would probably know.
Even if your mind doesn’t think this way, at least say it with your mouth: “They are equal.” This would suffice, wouldn’t it?
It is said: “To bring joy to a beggar, you should fill their bag with rice;”
Whoever fills a beggar’s bag with money benefits him the most. Terry Guo may have tens of billions in the bank, but it means nothing to the beggar.
So even if the Buddha has great merits and is powerful, they have no direct benefit to you!
No matter how much this master sucks, he has still taught you something—so you should be grateful.
Repaying your parents in filial piety is also due to your gratitude for their kindness, not due to their power and authority over you.
After this, there is nothing you won’t understand. Just read it yourself.
* P.S. The Group of Six Monks: This refers to the clique of six bad bhikkhus. During the Buddha’s time, there were six wicked monks who formed a clique, disregarded the monastic discipline, and committed many wrongdoings. Many of the Buddha’s monastic rules were established in response to the actions of these six bhikkhus.
Lama Tsering Phuntsok
Recorded by Disciple Yeshe Fan, Jinlong
Reviewed by Shengyo and Zhu Yuenu
2011/02/01
Patrul Rinpoche’s Discussions on the Root Guru
Chinese version 巴竹法王談根本上師【壽豐上師註】
