If you meet the Buddha…

Comment now » // January 10th, 2010

There is a quote in Buddhism that says, “If you meet the Buddha, kill the Buddha.” At its root, the quote has to do with embracing nothing, but additionally it has to do with not following any teacher other than your own experience.

When we go in search of meaning or truth or even enlightenment, I believe that what we are searching for is a deeper connection to ourselves. And yet often it happens that, paradoxically, without realizing we have done so, we give our selves away to others while on this search.

The cult leader/teacher that I followed so often told us, with her mouth, that we should always look inside ourselves for answers and for our connection to the divine. However, with her other messages, her actions, her sideways comments, her pronouncements, she taught us to do the exact opposite of this. Repeatedly she told us to “kill the Buddha” but even more often she instructed us to turn to her for all our answers. To rely only on her connection to the divine to guide our lives. To not listen to our hearts and minds if they contradicted what she was saying was best for us.

I try to make a habit now of killing the Buddhas in my life wherever I encounter them. Sometimes I forget and get swept up in someone else’s rhetoric, but even then eventually I will remember to stop and connect with myself and listen to the small, still voice in my heart that always knows the truth.

Following a teacher is far easier and much less effort, but I have learned the painful lesson that I am never as happy with myself or with the outcome when I do that.