A teacher feels responsible for
the student and though a student may not realise it, the teacher accompanies
them through their pain, because he’s been through it before.
He accompanies them and he feels that pain again and again. It’s
very emotional. The teacher may not show that emotion at the time,
indeed, because of his experience, he may seem cool or unaffected.
In some cases – depending upon their stage on the path –
a student may feel that the teacher is abandoning or ignoring them,
but one has to remember to recognise that sensitivity and the inherent
spiritual experience. One has to get to that level.
Students who are progressing well become aware and
realise in their heart the importance of having a teacher. They can
then relate to that teacher more intimately without talking about
daily affairs. They find that talking is not important any more, because
they can communicate with their teacher on a higher level.
For the teacher, the beginning and the end are
the same; it is a closed circle. Of course, for the student it is
very different because the student must complete the whole circle.
Over time, as the student progresses, they feel the teacher nearer
and nearer. But the teacher is not nearer and his love for the student
has not increased – rather, he was always near but the student
didn’t know it.
I recall from my own experience, when I joined my Master,
I was initially eager to talk about what was happening in my life,
and I did so, because it was a beginners step. And he, with patience,
entertained that. I talked about dreams and anything in life that
appeared unexplained and he was happy to deal with that.
But there came a time when I found that talking about
these personal matters, as I used to, wasn’t important any more.
Through experience, I came to realise that talking about these things
was halting me and wasting the precious time that I had with him.
When talking about personal matters, such as work, it become increasingly
apparent that he already knew about these things, even without me
talking to him – and it wasn’t required for me to talk
about them.
The relationship became more and more in-tune; just
sitting next to him and feeling his presence near me, that was enough
comfort – more than enough – without talking to him at
all. And sometimes, sitting in silence with him was more joyful than
a session talking with him. But that comes; hopefully it will happen
to all of you at some stage. You may find that both talking and silence
give you the same pleasure, and that will gradually grow with your
progress on the path.
