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As one begins the process of a bodhicitta practice, it is important to have a teacher for the ritual of taking the bodhisattva vow. In ''The Compendium of Training'' (''Śikṣāsamuccaya''), Śantideva highly recommends having a teacher bestow the bodhisattva vow in person, as such a presence would strengthen the process of taking the vow and also subsequently help observe the precepts carefully. If one cannot find or access a teacher who can administer the vows, one can either take the vow in the presence of holy shrines and objects or by visualizing the buddhas and bodhisattvas before oneself. However, this is more difficult for a beginner, particularly when carrying out the ritual according to the Vast Praxis tradition, in which the process of granting the vow for the engaged bodhicitta is mainly composed of reading out the lines for oath-taking by a preceptor or officiant. Thus, having a teacher is important for the process of taking the bodhisattva vow, but the role of the teacher extends beyond the initial ritual of taking the vow and spans the entire journey to perfect enlightenment. | As one begins the process of a bodhicitta practice, it is important to have a teacher for the ritual of taking the bodhisattva vow. In ''The Compendium of Training'' (''Śikṣāsamuccaya''), Śantideva highly recommends having a teacher bestow the bodhisattva vow in person, as such a presence would strengthen the process of taking the vow and also subsequently help observe the precepts carefully. If one cannot find or access a teacher who can administer the vows, one can either take the vow in the presence of holy shrines and objects or by visualizing the buddhas and bodhisattvas before oneself. However, this is more difficult for a beginner, particularly when carrying out the ritual according to the Vast Praxis tradition, in which the process of granting the vow for the engaged bodhicitta is mainly composed of reading out the lines for oath-taking by a preceptor or officiant. Thus, having a teacher is important for the process of taking the bodhisattva vow, but the role of the teacher extends beyond the initial ritual of taking the vow and spans the entire journey to perfect enlightenment. | ||
As one greatly benefits from the presence and guidance of a teacher, one can have many teachers, as did Sudhana, the son of a merchant whose story is told in ''The Stem Array Sūtra''. Instructed by Mañjuśrī, Sudhana travels from place to place seeking 110 teachers before he arrives in the presence of Maitreya. Like the case of Sudhana, the teachers guide the student on the spiritual path throughout the entire journey, and the student must follow the teacher with great devotion and trust. In ''The Stem Array Sūtra'', the young man Śrīsambhava and the girl Śrīmati give Sudhana a long discourse on the benefit of following a teacher and the manner in which one must follow a teacher. They advise Sudhana to see himself as a sick person, the teacher as a doctor, the teachings as medicine, and the adoption of the teachings into practice as the treatment leading to the cure.<ref>''Buddhāvataṃsakanāmamahāvaipulyasūtrāt gaṇḍavyūhasūtraḥ paṭalaḥ'' (''Shin tu rgyas pa chen po'i mdo sangs rgyas phal po che zhes bya ba las sdong pos brgyan pa'i le'u ste bzhi bcu rtsa''), in Derge Kangyur, | As one greatly benefits from the presence and guidance of a teacher, one can have many teachers, as did Sudhana, the son of a merchant whose story is told in ''The Stem Array Sūtra''. Instructed by Mañjuśrī, Sudhana travels from place to place seeking 110 teachers before he arrives in the presence of Maitreya. Like the case of Sudhana, the teachers guide the student on the spiritual path throughout the entire journey, and the student must follow the teacher with great devotion and trust. In ''The Stem Array Sūtra'', the young man Śrīsambhava and the girl Śrīmati give Sudhana a long discourse on the benefit of following a teacher and the manner in which one must follow a teacher. They advise Sudhana to see himself as a sick person, the teacher as a doctor, the teachings as medicine, and the adoption of the teachings into practice as the treatment leading to the cure.<ref>''Buddhāvataṃsakanāmamahāvaipulyasūtrāt gaṇḍavyūhasūtraḥ paṭalaḥ'' (''Shin tu rgyas pa chen po'i mdo sangs rgyas phal po che zhes bya ba las sdong pos brgyan pa'i le'u ste bzhi bcu rtsa''), in Derge Kangyur, D44, phal chen, vol. 38, a, fol. 287a, http://purl.bdrc.io/resource/WA0RK0044-45.</ref> This is one of the most powerful similes to illustrate one’s relationship with a teacher. | ||
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