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Listening skillsThe Three Defects of the Pot Judy Adler-Morris Not to listen is to be like a pot turned upside down. Not to be able to retain what you hear is to be like a pot with a hole in it. To mix negative emotions with what you hear is to be like a pot with poison in it. The upside-down pot. When you are listening to the teachings, listen to what is being said and do not let yourself be distracted by anything else. Otherwise you will be like an upside-down pot on which liquid is being poured. Although you are physically present, you do not hear a word of the teaching. The pot with a hole in it. If you just listen without remembering anything that you hear or understand, you will be like a pot with a leak: however much liquid is poured into it, nothing can stay. No matter how many teachings you hear, you can never assimilate them or put them into practice. The pot containing poison. If you listen to the teachings with the wrong attitude, such as the desire to become great or famous, or a mind full of the five poisons, the Dharma will not only fail to help your mind; it will also be changed into something that is not Dharma at all, like nectar poured into a pot containing poison. This is why the Indian sage, Padampa Sangye, said: Listen to the teachings like a deer listening to music; Contemplate them like a northern nomad shearing sheep; Meditate on them like a dumb person savoring food; Practice them like a hungry yak eating grass; Reach their result, like the sun coming out from behind the clouds. After you have listened properly to a teaching in this way, it is then also important to retain the meaning of what has been said without ever forgetting it, and to continually put it into practice. For, as the Great Sage himself said: I have shown you the methods That lead to liberation. But you should know That liberation depends upon yourself. The teacher gives the disciple instructions… It is up to the disciple to remember those instructions, forgetting nothing; to put them into practice; and to realize them. …If you remember the teachings but mix them with your negative emotions, they will never be the pure Dharma. …Rid yourself of every wrong thought concerning the teacher and the Dharma, do not criticize or abuse your spiritual brothers and companions, be free of pride and contempt, abandon all bad thoughts. For all of these cause lower rebirths. From “The Words of My Perfect Teacher” by Patrul Rinpoche ISBN 1-57062-412-7 About the Author Judy Adler is the first American designated Feng Shui Master by Master Joseph Yu, founder of the Feng Shui Research Center in Ontario. She has been practicing and teaching Feng Shui professionally since 1993. Although she resides in the Austin, Texas area, she provides services for clients internationally. She can be reached at Judy@FSRC.net |