Hot for Teacher

Ok.. so the title is a bit misleading and titillating. (Marketing!) Its not HOT in a sexual sense but in the sense of looking for one's teacher can become HOT boredom to use the Shambhala lingo - a type of restless bored impatience.

The Shambhala center in Dallas I attended years ago had no teacher.  There were senior students but they were not in the position to teach.  The Marion Kanon Zen Center in Dallas I attended had a PhD teacher that was there but I rarely saw him (went to Wednesday night sitting) and there was no resonating vibe when I did meet with him.

Roshi Joan Halifax is the closest person I've come to as a teacher and the words she said on the few retreats I attended there resonate with me to this day.  Roshi is based at Upaya in Santa Fe (LOVE IT).  One night she was giving a talk during sesshin, (week long sitting, 5:30 AM to 10 PM, work practice a few hours, eating, a small break was all you got... lots of sitting).  She gave a talk on the Muji koan.

A monk asked Chao-Chou, "Does a dog have buddha nature or not"
Chao-Chou replies, "Mu"

Without going into the 10,000 things about koans and buddha nature the answer Mu is the koan.  Roshi Joan stated the answer as "Not that."  Whatever you think it is, about ANYTHING, ... its not that.  It cuts through all our conceptual ideas and opinions and views.  Not that.  A large bow to Roshi.

Here in Phoenix I went on a sesshin with Roshi John Tarrant.  Brilliant and charismatic, Roshi John is an excellent teacher and his book Bring me the Rhinoceros is an absolute delight.  But his focus is koan practice, like Mu, more than sitting and I'm honestly terrible at koans.   They're not solvable by scientific method!

The course I'm taking, Lamrim Chenmo, is taught by Geshe Tashi.  Well, his commentary on Lam Rim is what we listen to along with the reading of Tsongkhapa's epic.   There is some interaction with him because once per module you can submit questions and watch of video of his answers.  I have a wonderful tutor, Kay, who is the one who actually guides us and helps us along those steep mountain peaks of Tsongkhapa's logic.  But neither Kay or Geshe Tashi are really set up to be our "teacher."

Phoenix Shambhala Center also has no resident teacher.  We do have teachers that come in semi-regularly, but they are under the Sakyong, so they are not really set up to be the "teacher."  Its the Sakyong who is the head and hence head teacher of Shambhala.  But the teachers that come in have been lovely and have a good deal of wisdom.  But they are more friends that someone that you could say is my "teacher."

Being this dharma mutt with so many lineages flowing in my karmic brain (wow that was obtuse) its difficult to find any one teacher that I can say - YES.  There are many virtual teachers I love but none that is there to answer questions or debate me when I get off on some tangent.  I'm really spiritually commitment phobic.  Its an issue.  And then again.. its not that.

Gasho

Chad