methods of practices that are lacking the basic view. They never know where these are coming from, neither do they know where these will lead to?"

"A characteristic of the Tibetans is that they like to go after many lamas and to receive many initiations, this is one of the reasons why Tibetans are so superstitious. Even though the Indians may also have a lot of superstitions, but basically they are more prone to the intellect."

"For those who give initiations, it is necessary for the person to have received the same initiations from his/her guru, and that he/she must have practiced that particular yidam or tantric practice of that initiation - these are absolutely necessary conditions! Because the continuity of the enlightenment, or the continuity of the realization of the initiation must first appear in the Guru in order that the initiation can be effective.

For example, if you want to pour a cup of water for someone, it must be that the water tap which is connected through the pipes to the source of water must all have waters. If the water tap is out of order, or that the pipes are not connecting properly, then even when the well is so full of water, you just cannot get a drop of water from the water tap.

So this kind of connection of the "non-discontinuity" is the most important element in both the giving and the receiving of initiations. But nowadays, many gurus do not have this kind of connection, most probably because either that they have never practiced this particular yidam, or that they have never received such an initiation before.

Before you and your guru establish a relationship, such as in receiving his/her initiation, undoubtedly you must first check his/her qualifications and certifications. If you put your respect or trust upon those who have titles of Rinpoches, tulkus or lamas, or to those who are reputable ones, it might bring you a lot of troubles. Some call themselves Rinpoches, but in fact they are not; and even though there are some who are Rinpoches, they might not have the qualifications to give initiations to others." Question: "How can we actualize the practice of patience and wisdom in our daily life?"

Rinpoche answered: "This is quite a difficult thing to do, and you are asking a wrong person. Anyway, there are two statements that might help, and those who care about this should drop this down quickly.

'The outward appearance is deceiving; and what shows on the surface may not be the true nature of things.'

'To be considerate, look at things from others' viewpoints.'

This might help a little bit to improve your patience and wisdom, but basically I cannot do it myself. I repeat this point so many times just to hope that you will not have high expectations on me. I have been trained to give teachings for seventeen years, and so I can give teachings fluently. But please never come to me and ask to be my student. I love myself so much that I will not tell you the truth, and naturally I am not qualified to become others' guru."

Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, in his many years of spreading the teachings, has never been easy on himself. He is always demanding on himself and often goes for strict retreats on his own practices. He seldom gives initiations to his students, but instead he likes to give a lot of teachings in order to open up the wisdom within each and everyone of his students. Only after that, for sometime, will he begin to lead and guide his students for further short term retreats. His style in the propagation of the Dharma is firm and solid, like the ground, and he does not like to boost about anything, let alone his own publicity.

Furthermore, he almost never want to give initiations for a large audience just in order to receive offerings or donations. In this way, he has established a very clean, refreshing, yet strong and firm impression of himself for others, and thus has set up a very good example for Dharma practitioners of the younger generation.

In order to train Buddhist personnels for both teachings and practices, Rinpoche has established Buddhist universities and retreat centres. The Dzongsar Monastery in Eastern Tibet, and several branch institutes in India, Sikkim and Bhutan are under his direction and guidance. These institutes provide complete Buddhist education, which usually spans a period of nine years. Similarly, Rinpoche has founded retreat centres in Sikkim, Bhutan and Canada where both ordained and lay practitioners can undertake retreats.

Rinpoche does not like to establish Dharma centres. However, with the inspiration of His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, together with the strong wishes of his students, Rinpoche -- CONTINUE --