【亲近善知识 Relying on The Excellent Teacher】摄彼等义亲近善知识 A summary of the meaning of relying on the teacher P3
【摄彼等义】
【尔时亦如伽喀巴云：「依尊重时，恐有所失。」】
怎么依靠呢？这个祖师告诉我们清清楚楚，你依靠他的时候，那是战兢惕厉，就怕有一点点做得不对，这个是需要。说到这里，我也觉得我们在座的同学当中，在座同学处处，可以做为我的老师，刚才说的固然是，其他的处处也是。有一天我在房间里面，听见那个电话响了，我就拿起电话来，一看那个电话不是我，找别人的，马上有一位同学：「啊，找哪一个？」他本来在那儿自己用功，听见了以后……。啊！我觉得真是我的善知识。尽管我，实在是谈不到什么，可是在那个地方，也只是像那个什么录音带一样，把那个我老师告诉我的，告诉你们一遍，但是他心目当中就很认真地这样。啊，我觉得这是我的善知识!是说明什么？说明真正的依善知识的相，就是他处处地方一心一意地。我看见古来很多那种大德们，他的的确确，就像是所谓的孝子心一样，他一天到晚想，这个善知识怎么样，他怎么样去承事他，就怕一点点的、小小的错误的地方失着。
来源 SOURCE：
日常师父法语 22A 19’38”手抄稿第三册 P190L7
22A 19’38” Vol 3 of Master Jih-Chang’s Discourse P190L7
English Lamrim Vol 1, P91
【A summary of the meaning of the previous five parts】
Moreover, it is as Chay-ga-wa said, "When relying on the guru, there is the chance that you might give up your guru."
How do you rely? This master tells us very clearly. When you rely on the guru, you need to be cautious and alert, afraid that you have done anything slightly wrong. This is necessary. Speaking of this, I also feel that amongst all students here, everyone can serve as my teacher in many instances. Not just for what I have said earlier, but also in many other instances. One day I was in the room, I heard the telephone ring, and picked it up. I realized that the phone call wasn’t for me, but for someone else. A student immediately asked me, "Ah, who is it for?" He was doing self-studying, but when he heard me... Ah! I really feel that he is my excellent teacher. Even for myself, I really can't be considered [as an excellent teacher]. And here, I can only function like a tape recorder, to tell you once what my teacher has told me. However, in the student's mind, he took it very seriously. Ah, I really felt that he was an excellent teacher to me! What does this explain? This explains that when we truly rely on the excellent teacher, we devote our attention on him at all times. I’ve seen many of the past masters, they indeed practice the so-called the attitude of a dutiful child. Day and night, they will constantly think about how their excellent teachers are and how to serve them. They're afraid of making any slight or small mistake.
