[vaalmerruutel]

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipit...n.html#iti-091
This was said by the Blessed One, said by the Arahant, so I have heard:
"Even if a monk, taking hold of my outer cloak, were to follow right behind Me, placing his feet in My footsteps,
yet if he were to be greedy for sensual pleasures, strong in his passions, malevolent in mind, corrupt in his resolves,

his mindfulness muddled, unalert, uncentered, his mind scattered, & his faculties uncontrolled, then he would be far from Me, and I from him.

Why is that? Because he does not see the Dhamma. Not seeing the Dhamma, he does not see Me.

"But even if a monk were to live one hundred leagues away, yet if he were to have no greed for sensual objects, were not strong in his passions, not malevolent in mind, uncorrupt in his resolves, his mindfulness established, alert,

centered, his mind at singleness, & his faculties well-restrained, then he would be near to Me, and I to him. Why is that? Because he sees the Dhamma. Seeing the Dhamma, he sees Me." Rinpoche and a student were conversing about another teacher, whose good qualities Rinpoche was praising.

Student: Rinpoche, Geshe-la helped me a lot. He gave me very good advice on guru devotion.

Rinpoche: Really, what was it?

Student: He told me, “Even you are not physically near your guru all the time, if you feel close and have devotion, you will constantly receive his blessings. To feel close, you must constantly remember his kindness.”

Rinpoche: I think that’s from his own experience. I don’t think that came from a text.

Student: Also, I told him that I only wanted to practice guru devotion. I didn’t want to meditate on anything else, and I asked if that was all right. He said, “If you put guru devotion on one side of a scale and all the other topics of the lam-rim on the other side, guru devotion will always weigh more.”

Rinpoche: Really? He said that?
One time a student asked His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche about this.
I think she was feeling sad because of not being close to Lama Yeshe.

Then His Holiness gave this analogy: If you plant a flower, as long as it’s not covered by stones and there are no obstructions, then even though the sun is very far away, the flower will receive everything it needs to grow.

Student: Yes, Rinpoche. It makes sense.

Rinpoche: I think what Geshe-la told you is expressing his own experience.
If your mind is good, you always feel close to the guru.

If you make a mistake and do something wrong, then even though you are physically close, you feel kind of distant. It is like that. On Guru Devotion

On 'celebrity gurus and celebrity disciples'?
Take a bow, the night is over,
This masquerade is getting older,
Lights are low, the curtains down,
There's no one here...