Carpe Diem Theme Week 1 episode 6: The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying Insight 5 The Teacher isn't holy too

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's my pleasure to present to you a new episode of our first Theme Week here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai. In this first Theme Week we are exploring and discovering the beauty of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying written by Sogyal Rinpoche.
Today our 5th Insight is the prompt. This episode is titled "The Teacher Isn't Holy Too". It's an Insight which I hadn't expected, but after reading and re-reading it I think it's true.

just one leaf
struggles with the wind
like Basho

© Chèvrefeuille

Introduction

Some of you have called me "Master" or "Sensei", I feel honored that you see me as your master, but I am just a humble guy, who happens to love haiku and is (damn) good in writing them. I am grateful for the love and kindness you sprinkle on me and have sprinkled on me during our existence, but I am still that guy who launched a daily haiku meme to promote his love for haiku ... I am just your humble host.

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), my master

The Teacher isn't holy too

Over the years several spiritual teachers became entangled in not such nice situations. Rinpoche also was one of them. He is / was a great spiritual teacher, but he also fell for the desires of the flesh. Well the mind is strong, but the flesh is weak.
In the case of a spiritual teacher "the flesh is weak" impairs all their beautiful and spiritual words if enlightenment finally ends between the sheets of the master, the teacher. Yes ... the flesh is weak.

A spiritual teacher is just a human like you and me and not a god. For spiritual teachers also counts the idea of "nothing human is them strange". And if you cannot find the ultimate truth and wisdom in the teachings of a spiritual teacher than stay close to yourself ... you are a spiritual teacher yourself ...

As I wrote above ... several of you have called me "master" and I thank you for that, but I am just a humble guy who fell in love with haiku more than 25 years ago. I am glad that I have found haiku and that I could evolve to a well known haiku poet with his own haiku family, but I am only grateful to be of help to improve your haiku writing skills.

Basho was a real haiku master, but he also said: "Now you have learned the rules, you have to forget them immediately and just enjoy the writing / composing of haiku". In this we can see that Basho was a humble man, full of compassion. He was glad to be of help, but told his disciples to explore their world and their creativity. Basho was just the "living manual" and his disciples could interpret that manual in their own way.

That's what I love to say to you too: "Look around in your world, experience the beauty of nature and be creative in your own way. I am only your "living manual".

My response

I bow my head
in front of Basho's statue
whispering "thank you"

© Chèvrefeuille

This episode of our first Theme Week is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until February 23rd at noon (CET). I will (try to) publish our last episode of this first Theme Week, Insight 6 balance is not always necessary, later on.