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It cannot be stressed too often that it is the truth of the teaching that is all-important, and never the personality of the teacher. This is why Buddha reminded us in the Four Reliances:
Rely on the message of the teacher, not on his personality;
Rely on the meaning, not just on the words;
Rely on the real meaning, not on the provisional one;
Rely on your wisdom mind, not on your ordinary, judgmental mind.
It is important to remember that the true teacher is the spokesman of the truth: its compassionate “wisdom display.” All the buddhas, masters, and prophets are the emanations of this truth, appearing in countless skillful, compassionate guises in order to guide us, through their teachings, back to our true nature.
Rely on the message of the teacher, not on his personality;
Rely on the meaning, not just on the words;
Rely on the real meaning, not on the provisional one;
Rely on your wisdom mind, not on your ordinary, judgmental mind.
It is important to remember that the true teacher is the spokesman of the truth: its compassionate “wisdom display.” All the buddhas, masters, and prophets are the emanations of this truth, appearing in countless skillful, compassionate guises in order to guide us, through their teachings, back to our true nature.
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1 Response to "The Four Reliances" 
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said this on 17 Nov 2008 8:45:39 AM PDT
I'm a "baby" Buddhist and just ran across the Four Reliances. Brilliant!...and just in the nick of time. The same day I read this, I had an encounter with an Imam an an interfaith activity. No disrespect to his sincerity or to Islam, but our discussion became an attept to prosletyze. I am moving away from Christianity, and I was thinking how this well-meaning man was attempting to replace one limiting orthodoxy for another. During his talk, the Four Reliances of kept running through my mind as a kind of shield. Thanks, Buddha!
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