Although the practice of guru yoga is not to be found in the vehicle of characteristics, following a spiritual teacher is taught as the root of the path in all the higher and lower vehicles. As it says in Letter to a Friend:

The spiritual friend in whom to place your trust

Will have perfected pure conduct, said the Buddha.

So follow noble beings, for there are many indeed

Who relied upon the buddhas and gained peace.[1]

Following a teacher correctly is taught to be an utterly pure form of conduct. Its benefits are evident from history.

Well then, you might think, what kind of teacher should one follow? The Ornament to the Sutra Section says:

One should follow a spiritual teacher who is disciplined, peaceful, serene,

Endowed with special qualities, diligent, rich in scriptural learning,

Highly realized concerning the nature of reality, skilled in speaking,

The embodiment of love, and indefatigable.[2]

This outlines ten qualifications. The meaning of this is as follows:

• Through the higher training in discipline, his faculties will be disciplined.
• Through the higher training in meditation, his mind will remain peaceful.
• Through the higher training in wisdom, his destructive emotions will be completely pacified.
• He will possess greater qualities than his students.
• He will be diligent and enthusiastic in benefitting others.
• He will be rich in knowledge of the three collections of scriptures.[3]
• He will possess the wisdom of realizing the natural state of reality.
• He will be skilled in communicating the Dharma to others.
• His motivation will be pure, since he is loving and has no concern for respect or material possessions.
• He will be indefatigable, never tired by the hardships involved in teaching Dharma.

In a similar vein, the Introduction to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life says:

Never, even at the cost of my life,

Will I forsake my spiritual teacher,

Who is learned in the Mahayana,

And supreme in the bodhisattva’s discipline.[4]

As this says, we must follow a noble spiritual teacher who is learned in the meaning of the Mahayana teachings and who upholds the discipline of the bodhisattvas, cherishing him as dearer even than our own life. The same text describes how to follow the teacher:

I must train in following my teacher,

As described in the life of Shri Sambhava.[5]

When the boy Shri Sambhava and the girl Shrimati taught the bodhisattva’s discipline to Sudhana at the gateway to the city of Sumanamukha, they explained, in elaborate detail and with clear logic, how to follow a spiritual teacher. They said:

Son of noble family, spiritual teachers are like mothers, giving birth to the family of buddhas; they are like fathers, accomplishing vast benefit; they are like nurses, protecting us from all harmful deeds; they are like mentors, leading us to understand the bodhisattvas’ training; they are like guides, leading us along the path of the paramitas; they are like doctors, curing the disease of the destructive emotions; they are like snow-capped mountains, nurturing the herbs of wisdom; they are like brave warriors, protecting us from all fears; they are like ferrymen, ferrying us across the great river of samsara; spiritual teachers are like oarsmen, rowing us to the jewel island of omniscient wisdom.

 

Therefore, son of noble family, with these ideas constantly in mind, you must honour your spiritual teacher. With a mind like the earth, bear all burdens without ever tiring; like a diamond, your will unbreakable; like a mountain range, unperturbed by any suffering; like a servant, doing whatever is called for; like an apprentice, never disobeying an instruction; like a common slave, never refusing to carry out any task; like a nurse, not upset by any destructive emotions; like a sweeper, abandoning all pride and sense of superiority; like a vehicle, carrying any load; like a mountain, unmoving; like a dog, not getting angry; like a bull with broken horns, free from all arrogance; with a mind like a wise son, looking up at the face of the spiritual teacher; you must honour the spiritual teacher with your mind like a youthful prince, acting without transgressing the commands of the Dharma-king.

 

Son of noble family, think of yourself as someone who is sick, of your spiritual teacher as a doctor, of his instructions as medicine, and of diligent practice as the healing process. Think of yourself as a traveller, of your spiritual teacher as a guide, of his instructions as the path, and of diligent practice as travelling smoothly. Think of yourself as a passenger crossing to the other shore, of your spiritual teacher as a ferryman, of his teachings as a ford, and of diligent practice as a boat. Think of yourself as a farmer, of your spiritual teacher as a lord of nagas, of his teachings as rain, and of diligent practice as the harvest. Think of yourself as impoverished, of your spiritual teacher as a benefactor, of his instructions as wealth, and of diligent practice as overcoming your poverty. Think of yourself as an apprentice, of your spiritual teacher as a mentor, of his instructions as the craft, and of diligent practice as gaining mastery. Think of yourself as someone frightened, of your spiritual teacher as a brave warrior, of his instructions as weapons, and of diligent practice as vanquishing all adversaries. Think of yourself as a merchant, of your spiritual teacher as the captain of a ship, of his instructions as treasure, and of diligent practice as collecting the treasure. Think of yourself as a good son, of your spiritual teacher as your parents, of his instructions as the family business, and of diligent practice as its perpetuation. Son of noble family, think of yourself as a prince, of your spiritual teacher as the Dharma-king and his ministers, of his instructions as the laws of the kingdom, and of diligent practice as putting on the crown of a wise king, with its ornaments and insignia, and overseeing the city of a king of Dharma.

After this, the benefits of following a spiritual teacher are taught in detail. In summary, the text says:

Son of noble family, in short, it is like this. All the actions of the bodhisattvas, all the transcendent perfections, bhumis, doors of samadhi, attainment of the wisdom of higher perceptions, powers of unfailing memory, fearless eloquence, wisdom of dedication, boundless qualities, fulfilment of the bodhisattvas’ aspirations, and the attainment and perfection of all the qualities of buddhahood—all this depends on the spiritual teacher.

The text continues by saying that spiritual teachers are the source of all these qualities, that these qualities arise from them, and that spiritual teachers are their cause.

We must understand this, just as it is stated here so clearly, and then we must put it into practice.

To sum up, as it says in the Ornament:

Follow the spiritual teacher by showing respect,

By offering gifts, by service and by practice.

As this says, we follow the spiritual teacher by showing respect, through offering prostrations and so on; by offering gifts, such as Dharma robes; by serving him, washing his feet, and so on; and by practice, through taking to heart his instructions. Of these, the last is the most important.

The method for following a spiritual teacher that is taught in the texts of the Vajrayana is, as it says in the Fifty Stanzas on Following a Teacher[6], “the root of all paths, the source of all accomplishments, the entrance to all blessings, and the most important of all practices.”

What we call “guru yoga” is a method for becoming accustomed to following the teacher in this way, by using the skilful techniques of visualization, and as such it is an extraordinary feature of the secret mantra. Nevertheless, among the earlier masters of these pith instructions, some would bring their practice within the fold of the mantra vehicle, and perform this meditation as a preliminary to the session.

The way to do so is as follows.

In an inspiring place, far from the hustle and bustle of ordinary activity, seat yourself comfortably, either with your legs crossed, or just seated upright. Let go of all the thoughts whirling around in your mind—thoughts of overcoming rivals, helping friends, or amassing wealth. Meditate on taking refuge, arousing bodhichitta, cultivating the immeasurables and so on, as a preliminary. Then visualize your root teacher in the form of Avalokiteshvara, above your head in the space before you. Decide, with complete conviction, that he is the embodiment of all the gurus, yidam deities, buddhas, all the sacred Dharma, and all the sangha. Consider that, together with all others, you emanate bodies as numerous as the atoms in the universe, and perform practices for accumulating merit and purifying obscurations, and then merge your mind with his. Offer gifts that you have actually arranged as well as those created in your imagination, including your own body, possessions and sources of merit. Extending the scope of your visualization, offer the seven-point mandala offering, counting as you do so, a hundred times or more. Pray with strong faith and devotion. Feel confident that the teacher’s blessings have been invoked and that you receive the blessings of enlightened body, speech and mind. Develop the wish to purify your obscurations. Then consider that the teacher dissolves into you. This is all in accordance with the general approach.

In particular though, at the stage of prayer, you can pray that you are so infused with his blessings that love, compassion and bodhichitta arise in your mind. Pray too that adversity may be transformed into the path of awakening, and so on. Like this, you should pray emphatically for whatever you desire.

After the session, during all your actions, bring to mind the  kindness of yoru teacher. Avoid ordinary patterns of thought, and focus instead on enlightened qualities. Train in developing unshakeable faith. Without the slightest pretense or deception, serve and please your teacher, and aspire that you may never be separated. Then dedicate all the sources of your merit towards awakening.

In short, you must understand that the most important prayer to make before your teacher is for the two kinds of bodhichitta to arise in your mind, to remain and to increase further and further. At all times and in all situations, never part from a mind of fervent faith and devotion, thinking of nothing but the teacher. In order to develop such mindfulness recite verses such as this one, and reflect upon the meaning:

The rays of the sun carry tremendous heat,

Yet without a magnifying glass they won’t produce a flame.

Likewise, the buddhas transmit their blessings,

But without the teacher, we will not receive them.

Dispeller of all ills, source of everything desirable in samsara and nirvana,

You are the supreme and all-powerful sovereign, my genuine teacher,

To follow you devotedly, like Sadaprarudita and the youthful Sudhana,

Is indeed the most excellent of good fortune.