The Teacher-Student Relationship

by : Jose Arvin Mesa Dogillo

(1) The one extreme is the idea that goes something like this: "Me teacher. You student. You do, think and act exactly as I command if you want to learn or be anything."
(2) The other extreme: "There are no teachers and no students for we are all teachers, and we are all students. One person is not above another and everyone's words have equal value."
Even though people in these two camps see each other as an agent of evil and opposite to themselves, the concept espoused by each has the same effect.
And what is that?
That effect is to turn the student into a non-thinking animal, or "beast," as it is called in the Book of Revelations.
THE ILLUSION OF EXTREME #1 There are many problems associated with Extreme One.
(1) No earthly teacher is flawless. Therefore, if you are limited to learning exactly according to the mindset of the teacher you will also inherit his flaws.
(2) This black and white method of teaching only allows for the dissemination of facts and not principles. It takes a thousand facts to create the understanding of one principle, but one principle can reveal an infinite number of facts. Therefore an enlightened teacher will stimulate understanding of principles.
For instance, the Keys of Knowledge are centered around principles and cannot be revealed as mere facts, or they will not be comprehended.
We will talk more about principles and facts in future books and writings.
(3) This method takes away freedom of thought. Instead of stimulating the student's own intuition by directing him toward his own soul, the teacher steals his thought process from him by demanding that he accept everything without question.
An example of an extreme failure of a student from this mindset is the religious fanatic who will kill himself and others with a bomb tied to his back so he can secure a place in heaven. Another example would be the Jim Jones group who committed mass suicide. Still another - the group that goes to the mountain top to be raptured (because their teacher set a certain date) only to discover that Jesus seemed to have changed his mind because they were just not good enough.
These are extreme examples, but all who follow the black and white teacher of the first extreme have their progress tied up to some degree in actions of a similar degree of ridiculousness.
THE ILLUSION OF EXTREME #2 This is the feel-good extreme, the seemingly safe extreme, the we-are-not-judging-each-other extreme. How could this extreme be negative if the intent is to establish equality?
Remember another extreme that tried to establish equality? It was and is called Communism. The ideal of equality sought in Communism has nothing wrong with it, but because it diffused individual thought, freedom and soul contact it turned into a great evil.
The great illusion of extreme #2 is that the basic ideal is good, but this ideal is attempted through illusion. True equality can only be achieved through true principles and freedom, not illusion.
The truth overlooked in extreme #2 is this: In the reality we are presently in, there are teachers and there are students. Even though there is an equality on the soul level we are very diverse on the physical, emotional and mental levels.
To understand this we must first define what a student and teacher is. The student and teacher are a symbol of the two basic energies of the universe which are represented as positive-negative; yin-yang; male-female; light-dark; hot-cold, and finally giving-receiving. These two energies flows or items are called the dualities. Wherever there is form there exists positive-negative, giving and receiving. Thus, in any relationship of two people one will be polarized as the teacher (giver) and the other as the student (the receiver).
Objection: In most relationships you are sometimes the teacher or giver, and other times the student and receiver. It seems egotistical to think of yourself as always the teacher.
Answer: All of us have within us the giving and receiving (positive-negative) principles, but we are talking about polarization here. If you are polarized as a male, this means you have more male energies within you than female. It does not mean that you do not have female energies available.
In a relationship, you both give and receive, but the giving and receiving is NEVER equal in this world. If you are giving more than receiving, then by default you become the teacher in the relationship. Because this statement is true and truth must be recognized to escape from this veil of illusion, then this student-teacher relationship must be recognized before true equality can even be dreamed of.
Let us take the relationship I have with Rick, the initiator of the Keys of Knowledge list. Overall I am polarized as his teacher, but the true teacher will always be open to receiving from the student when the opportunity permits. Rick gave me that opportunity by presenting the idea of a discussion group. Now if I saw that this was a bad idea I would have remained in the teaching position and taught him why it was a bad idea, but because I could find no reason to object I became obligated to become the student for a time and let him carry the ball and let him teach me. As long as the direction he was going registers well with my soul I am obligated as a disciple of truth to follow.
The highest of the Masters who have overcome physical death would see themselves polarized as a teacher in a relationship with any of us, yet they still recognize that we can do certain things better than they can. For example, most of us in the human kingdom understand that we are of much higher intelligence overall than any animal. No animal, for instance, would have any concept about building an automobile or spacecraft as man has done. But on the other hand, a human can never build a beaver damn as well as a beaver. Beavers already have the knowledge to build them better and faster than we can.
The relationship of the God Kingdom to man is similar in correspondence to the human kingdom and the animal. The attention of the Masters is set on many lofty ideas that man does not even comprehend, yet there are many things in the human world that man is more capable of performing well than is the Highest of Masters.
This is the main reason we do not see more of them, as the more directly they become involved by doing for us what we can do for ourselves, the more things get screwed up.
The powers that be learned this painful lesson during Atlantis. During part of this period the Masters associated much more freely with humans and gave them much knowledge that they were not yet ready to handle. The result was that the entire civilization was destroyed and we had to start over again.
The Masters learned their lesson and this time have committed themselves to only helping us when we cannot help ourselves. They do assist behind the scenes but only work through our personal desires and free will.
The goal at present is to move certain groups in the human kingdom towards alignment with the kingdom of God so heaven and earth can be brought together. This will result in a truly beneficial interplay between the two kingdoms that will assist rather than destroy humanity.
Now getting back to the Teacher-Student principle, I will say this. It is extremely important that this concept be recognized because without it we will be polarized on one of the above extremes; the only way we will advance toward the soul in that case is through tremendous pain. Discovering where your right place is in a relationship creates a detour around the pain and progression toward the greater light.
In the true student-teacher relationship authority is only recognized because it is earned.
Let's say you want to learn Spanish and two teachers surface who say they can teach you. They both seem equally convincing, but the truth is that one of them knows the language well and the other one does not. If you accept either as an authority just because he or someone else tells you to, then you have a 50-50 chance of getting a bad teacher. What do you do? You test the teacher. Have him actually speak some Spanish. Give him several paragraphs from English and see if he can translate and then check out the translation for correctness. Finally, you will establish in your mind that one of them can truly teach you.
Once you have tested your teacher then you do not have to check up on him in every little detail; but when you have learned the basics and want to go to advanced Spanish, you do need to check again to see if he has anything more for you or if you need to move on to another teacher. This point is dangerous ground for the student, for sometimes his false ego will convince him that he knows Spanish as well or better than the teacher when in reality he may not. In this case the student often goes off to teach before he has learned all the lessons.
To be a good student takes as much wisdom as it does to be a good teacher. In the case of spiritual teachings, the ultimate test of truth is from the inner self. This inner self, through the medium of the Soul, contacts and registers the Holy Spirit, which is capable of verifying all true principles. In short, this process is called "soul contact." Soul contact has little to do with facts, except in important circumstances, but it has much to do with principles. For instance, your soul may not verify to you what an inhabitant of Sirius looks like or how many there are, but it will verify to you the principle of life and its existence elsewhere in the universe.
If a man or woman comes forth and presents or is presented as a spiritual teacher, you must not accept him or her (we'll say "him" for simplicity) just because a claim is made. You must test him.
How do you test him? Listen to his words and test them with your soul. If your soul says no then drop him immediately. If your soul says nothing then test some more until you receive an inner response. When you finally do receive an inner response does this mean you should now accept the teacher?
Maybe yes, maybe no - because there is a true soul contact and a false one. There are many people who are sincere seekers who have never in their life received a true soul contact and therefore mistake a high emotional feeling for soul. This can be very deceptive and can produce the type of person who may have anything from a harmless delusion to one who will destroy others for his master. If you are not sure you have ever received soul contact it means you have not - at least in fullness. When you do, you recognize it and know what has happened. It is like coming home.
On the other hand, not all who are sure they have received soul contact have received it. Some feel a high emotional energy and are sure they have touched the aura of God Himself, yet are completely deceived.
Only those who have received true soul contact can know a thing for sure and can recognize a true teacher from a false one. The only way to know if another has achieved soul contact is to achieve it yourself. One person who has received this contact can recognize another who has received it.
Question: If only a small number have soul contact and you're not positive if you have, are you doomed to be deceived?
No you are not. Soul contact is available to all who with pure intent seek after it. The seeker does not even have to be highly evolved to feel it. But if you are not sure if you have received it yet, here are some guidelines to keep you on the right course.
(1) Keep your intentions pure and seek the service of the whole above the service to the ego.
(2) Seek with sincerity to know more and to go higher.
(3) Let common sense rule above lower emotional feeling. If your teacher says that aliens are coming to pick you up on a certain date and then they don't arrive, that ought to tell you something. No matter what excuses he makes he was wrong and now all his teachings should be suspect. Maybe you should be teaching him.
(4) When any degree of soul contact is reached and you receive direction from the soul, keep following that instruction until more is given. If you do not, you may be cut off for a long period and wind up in an illusionary path. Always follow the highest you can perceive.
(5) Remember the words of the Master: "Straight is the gate and narrow is the way that leads to life and few there be who enter, but wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to death and many there be who go therein." The teachers of the wide gate are legion and are easy to find. The teachers who lead to the life of the soul are few, but fortunately can be verified by the soul.
As one who sees himself presenting true spiritual principles, I invite you to check with your souls about the writings that are to be presented here. As you read this and the many teachings to follow you are encouraged to always check with the still small voice that dwells within so you can verify the truth of all things presented.
"The matter of prime importance to each student is not the fact of a particular teacher's personality but the measure of truth for which he stands, and the student's power to discriminate between truth, partial truth, and falsity."