Good Teachers

~ By Ajahn Jayasāro ~

I have been blessed with some wonderful teachers in my life. By observing them I have come to some conclusions as to the qualities of a good teacher. Here are a few of them.

Good teachers never forget the debt of gratitude they owe to their own teachers.

Good teachers teach in a way that is sensitive to time and place and person and group.

Good teachers practise what they preach.

Good teachers do not show off their knowledge for the sake of it. They dispense teachings that will be of most benefit to their students in the same way that doctors dispense medicine to their patients.

Good teachers do not demand blind obedience or loyalty. They are genuinely open to feedback and create the conditions under which students feel able to offer that feedback.

Good teachers do not desire personal devotion although they are often the object of it. They do not facilitate such devotion, do not praise it, and if should occur they are careful not to take pleasure in it. They are not possessive of their students. Under no circumstances do they take inappropriate advantage of a students’ devotion to them.

Good teachers do not raise themselves up by putting down other teachers, traditions or meditation techniques. They do not promote the view: ‘Only we are right, everyone else is wrong’, ‘Only we have the profound teachings, everyone else’s is shallow.’

Good teachers give us the confidence and means to teach ourselves, and finally become independent of them.

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"Food for the Heart", a series of Dhamma teachings handwritten weekly is posted on the Buddhadāsa Indapañño Archives page with Ajahn's kind permission.

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For other teachings by Ven. Ajahn Jayasāro, please visit the Panyaprateep Foundation website.