It’s a common problem to confuse a teacher with a technician when you’re trying to follow the path of truth.
Teaching some techniques is not the same thing as being a true teacher. A teacher doesn’t teach you techniques; a teacher transforms you. You probably won’t learn what you want to learn from a teacher, but you may learn that your desires are delusions. A teacher doesn’t teach you techniques; a teacher liberates you from your delusions. You learn what you didn’t have the chance to learn before, and you transform into something you didn’t even know existed. The driving force and the expectations of a teacher cannot be comprehended by the student. A teacher learns not to expect, and they even endanger their chances of excelling in their art. A teacher is like a mother who expends herself by dedicating herself fully to her child. Not only that, they willingly accept the risk of not being appreciated. For that, a teacher is more like a mother than a father. They do most of the work, yet they’re the most criticized, the most complained about, and the most scowled at.
It’s not easy to find a teacher. All I know is that the teacher comes when the student is ready and leaves when the student is ripe.
