16th Karmapa   17th Karmapa   Shamar Rinpoche   Tsechu Rinpoche   Lama Ole

In Vajrayana, the Diamond Way, one's development depends almost entirely on one's openness to a teacher. This is Buddhism's highest level of teaching through which one may most quickly develop mind's inherent Buddha nature. It is the way of identification, whose methods are accessible solely by receiving a living enlightened transmission from an authentic teacher.

The Diamond Way traces its origins to the Buddha himself whose line of transmission has been kept in an unbroken lineage until today. Far from leading to fettered dependence, the Diamond Way methods take us to beyond personal states of absolute freedom and joy. The goal of Buddhism is a fully independent and maturely functioning individual.

Such emphasis is given to the teacher at this level, that he is actually viewed as more important than the Buddha himself. However, it should be pointed out that, in the Diamond Way the teacher is not to be perceived as a man or person, but as a mirror reflecting our enlightened nature.

Indeed, meeting the outer teacher should lead to a reliance on the inner teacher, our own guiding insight. From there one will gradually evolve to trust in the secret teacher - spontaneous and intuitive knowledge, co-emergent wisdom itself.