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A friend sent me these snippets from a couple of articles that quote the Dalai Lama and his stance on teachers and the standards against which they should be measured. And how to handle a teacher that abuses their power.

The following quotes are from the article "Toward A New Spiritual Ethic," by Kate Wheeler; March/April 1994 edition of Nexus.

"At a symposium with 22 Western Buddhist teachers, the Dalai Lama had strong words for teachers who abuse their power—and students who give theirs away."

"A teacher who behaves unethically or asks students to do so can be judged as lacking in ultimate insight, His Holiness said. ‘As far as my own understanding goes, the two claims—that you are not subject to precepts and you are free—these are the result of incorrect understanding.’ No behavior is free from consequences. For this reason, true wisdom always includes compassion, the understanding that all things and beings are interconnected with (and vulnerable to) each other."

"’Even though one’s realization may be higher than the high beings,’ His Holiness said, ‘one’s behavior should conform to the human way of life.’"

"When teachers break the precepts, behaving in ways that are clearly damaging to themselves and others, students must face the situation, even though this can be challenging. ‘Criticize openly,’ His Holiness declared. ‘That’s the only way.’ If there is incontrovertible evidence of wrongdoing, teachers should be confronted with it. They should be allowed to admit their wrongs, make amends, and undergo a rehabilitation process. If a teacher won’t respond, students should publish the situation in a newspaper, not omitting the teacher’s name," His Holiness said. "The fact that the teacher may have done many other good things should not keep us silent."

The following quote is from the article "Small ‘cottage cults’ drawing more converts in United States," by Richard Read in the Oregonian, Sunday, July 15, 2001:

"The Dalai Lama, the high lama of Tibetan Buddhism, advises potential converts to check a guru's qualifications carefully and to view a teacher as a spiritual brother or sister. ‘The best thing is,’ the Dalai Lama said in an interview last February, ‘whenever exploitation, sexual abuse or money abuse happens, make them public.’"

Thanks for sending these to me. It's interesting to me because he can also be viewed as a 'teacher' so, in essence, he is saying to hold him to the standards of "the human way of life" also. I don't really know anything about this guy, but that's a good sign!