“The Four Types of Friends According to the Buddha”

[Muriel]

http://www.trulybuddha.com/the-four-types-of-friends-according-to-the-buddha/

Four types of friends are the helper, the enduring friend, the mentor, and the compassionate friend. They are all good-hearted people whom one should always have around oneself because these friends will help one no matter what.

I thought the Dalai Lama could be teacher and friend simultaneously who can help me, guard my own secrets closely, restrain me from wrongdoing, and prevent others from speaking ill of me. However, now that I’ve known Him as a religious model who has put a ban on Dorje Shugden just because such religion doesn’t follow Him, I don’t know if I can still call Him a friend. He is still a great teacher who preaches about Buddhism and life lessons. I feel that it is the Dorje Shugden practitioners’ duties to spread the word about some negative sides of Him, so that the world can encourage Him to become a better friend and teacher.

[eyesoftara]

Sophie, I agree with you that the Dalai Lama's actions has done tremendous harm to practitioners of of the Protector. But at the same time I cannot doubt that the Dalai Lama is Chenrezig the Buddha of Great Compassion. I take what is happening and respond in 2 ways.

To lift the ban, we cannot spread negativity about a holy being as it can cause heavy negative karma. What I will do instead is to spread the practice. I hope this strategy will overwhelm the karma that is the cause of the ban and for the Dalai Lama to lift the ban. Secondly, I try to make sense of the reason for the ban, given, on one side we have the Protector who is one with Manjushri and on the other side Chenrezig. Can the Buddhas be against each other? If not, why? I conclude that all that is happening is from our side. Their actions are pure and it is the humans that are deluded and the events of this ban is pure but it is our reactions (including the CTA) that is deluded. Let's keep some sanity here and help to alleviate the suffering of the practitioners by working to lift the ban.  Spread the practice. I suspect this is the intention of the Buddhas.