QUESTION
Venerable Robina,
How would one find out one’s primary yidam, one’s main deity (the one that will help me achieve enlightenment)? Could you help me with this process? It has been on my mind recently.
Thanks for your continued guidance. I always appreciate your Something to Think About posts. They help me stay connected to your teachings on a daily basis.
ANSWER
As for your yidam, D: as you practice you will learn to know which buddhas you feel close to. So pray daily to the Guru Buddha to guide you to recognize your main deity.
R
QUESTION
Venerable Robina,
Thank you for your guidance. According to the FPMT website choosing a yidam is closely linked to receiving proper guidance from a qualified lama. Both my lamas, Lama Zopa and Geshe X have died. Geshe X shared that he was told that he was the reincarnation of a high lama on three separate occasions.
This was a huge blow for me, and I have been a little confused about what to do. Does this mean I need to find a new lama? I do the prayer for the swift return of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and include Geshe X, but it will take time before I hopefully meet them again for their guidance. I would really appreciate your advice.
Again, thank you for your time.
With love and respect,
D
ANSWER
First, D: Everything you say is true.
But, second, read again what I said: “As for your yidam, D: as you practice you will learn to know which buddhas you feel close to. So pray daily to the Guru Buddha to guide you to recognize your main deity.”
This advice does not contradict.
Third, do you have no other lamas? And what do you think “lama” means?
R
QUESTION
Venerable Robina,
I will pray daily to the Guru Buddha to guide me in recognizing my main deity.
I did meet one lama on a plane on my way to my first in-person teaching with Lama Zopa. I also have connected briefly with Lama Ösel via Instagram. Lama Yeshe’s teachings have been very helpful in my development.
A lama is a spiritual guide who embodies the teachings and guides students on the path of practice.
Are we supposed to have a lama in the physical sense, or can they teach us from the spiritual side of existence? I am confused about the process. I was fortunate that friends suggested I go meet Lama Zopa. They were instrumental in my connection with Lama Zopa.
Thank you,
D
ANSWER
So you have no other lamas, other teachers, who’ve helped you in this life?
QUESTION
Venerable Robina,
I do not have any other lamas. Right now you are my only teacher.
D
ANSWER
We can have many teachers/spiritual mentors/gurus/lamas, D.
Have you taken any empowerments?
ANSWER
Venerable Robina,
After your last couple of emails, I started reflecting more on my lamas. I cannot believe I left out His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Yes, I have taken empowerments.
I guess I am looking for a personal connection with a lama. My connection with Lama Zopa and Geshe X was so powerful and inspiring that I genuinely miss the personal connection. I am not sure if I will ever meet His Holiness. I can only wish for it.
Is there a lama you could recommend?
Thank you for your guidance,
D
ANSWER
Good, D.
So, all the people you have received bodhisattva vows and tantric empowerments from are your lamas.
The person you received refuge and lay vows from: they are your lama too.
Which other teachers/lamas/gurus/spiritual mentors have you connected with? Whom have you received advice from? Whose advice over the years has helped you on your path?
What do you think “lama” means, D?
R
QUESTION
Venerable Robina,
I have been thinking a lot about your questions. It is becoming clearer what you are saying. I have had many teachers during this lifetime and past lifetimes. I have always considered my mom one of my first gurus in this life. She was very compassionate, loving, and always willing to help others.
Lama refers to a spiritual teacher or guru, someone who guides students along the path to enlightenment. The lama is not just an intellectual teacher but someone who embodies the teachings and wisdom of the lineage. Additionally, from what I have learned over the years, the lama can manifest not only in physical human form but also in other forms.
Please let me know if I am on the right track or if I am missing the point.
Sincerely,
D
ANSWER
Dear D,
Okay, back to your original question, about choosing your yidam, which brought up the topic of exactly who is a lama.
First, you tell me that Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Geshe X are your lamas. Then you said, “both my lamas have died.” Then you said, “I do not have any other lamas. Right now you are my only teacher.”
Then you explain that you have received vows and empowerments from others, so they are your lamas too. Why would we receive something as powerful as a tantric empowerment from someone we haven’t carefully checked up on, whose qualities we are not confident about? Of course, they must be our lamas.
In fact, then, you have several lamas: that word is synonymous with guru, spiritual teacher, spiritual mentor, teacher, etc.
So be clear in your mind, then, who you think is your “lama,” D; whom you rely upon; the ones you think about, the ones whose advice you ask for, the ones who give you advice, the ones you admire, the ones you want to become like.
Remember: you choose your gurus. A person is not a guru from their own side: they become our guru when we choose them.
One of the assumptions you also seem to have is that a lama is someone high: your explaining how Geshe X is said to be the reincarnation of a previous lama indicates that.
Certainly there can be the “high lamas” – no question. But the people we choose as our own lama can be anyone, even some small unknown person.
It’s good to recognize also who you consider to be your root guru, your main lama. Be clear about that.
Then, given that you have received tantric empowerments, one of your commitments is to see the guru as the Buddha. We need to practice this: this is the essence of cultivating guru devotion and thus receiving the blessings of the Guru Buddha.
Therefore you need to practice seeing all your lamas, your gurus, as buddhas. When you think of your gurus, you think they are buddhas; when you think of a buddha, you think they are your lama.
The other, crucial, thing that you need to understand is that just because some of your lamas are no longer in their human body doesn’t mean you can’t rely upon them. So, yes, in answer to your question, we can receive guidance in subtler ways, for sure.
The buddha mind, the dharmakaya, manifests in two types of bodies for the sake of sentient beings. The first is the nirmanakaya, or emanation body, which is the form of Shakyamuni Buddha back then and our present lamas now.
The other one is the sambhogakaya, or enjoyment body, which is the forms of the deities in tantra.
For sure, we need the emanation body so we can see them and hear their words. This is hugely important. As you say, we need that personal connection: so important for our minds.
But there are the enjoyment bodies. When we do our deity practices, we cultivate guru devotion by visualizing them as oneness with our lamas’ minds — our lamas manifest as the deity for our benefit. This is how we stay close to our lamas and receive blessings and inspiration from them.
The central point, too, is that we need to cultivate the view that all our lamas, our gurus, our teachers are all manifestations of the same buddha mind, the same dharmakaya.
The holy beings are there, dying to help us: the key to success is our practice of this attitude, this view. The more we can practice like this, the more our hearts will open, and the more easily we can receive guidance and blessings from them.
So: conclusion: get clear about who your lamas are, D. Again: you choose them: it’s a very conscious decision. And as Pabongka Rinpoche says, we need to choose our gurus very carefully because we will end up like them.
Please study Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Heart of the Path, published by Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive.
So: now you will understand the advice I gave you when you first asked the question about how to recognize your yidam: “As for your yidam, D: as you practice you will learn to know which buddhas you feel close to. So pray daily to the Guru Buddha to guide you to recognize your main deity.”
Love and prayers to you,
Robina