Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse

THE OUTER GURU: AS BUDDHA AS IT GETS 

In the Vajrayana, the guru has three aspects: the outer guru, the inner guru, and the secret guru. It’s important to be clear about these before entering a path that uses the guru as a method for awakening. The great Sakyapa master Könchok Lhundrup explained that the outer guru is the physical person you can see and communicate with, from whom you can receive verbal and symbolic teachings and instructions. The outer guru is “as Buddha as it gets.” The inner guru is the nature of your mind—in other words, a mind that is not thinking of a “thing” but is simply cognizant and undeniably present. And the secret guru is the emptiness of all phenomena.

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The Guru Drinks Bourbon? 

Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse

 Edited by Amira Ben-Yehuda Shambhala Boulder