44. Looking for new teachers
People practicing the Dhamma at present are of two sorts. The first are those who, when they learn the principles of the practice or receive advice from a teacher and get on the path, are intent on trying to follow that path to the utmost of their ability. The other sort are those who—even though they’ve received good advice from their teacher and have learned the correct principles of the practice—aren’t sincerely intent. Their efforts are lax. At the same time, they like to go out looking for other teachers at other centers. Wherever they hear there’s a good center, there they go. Meditators of this sort are many.
Luang Pu once advised his students,
“When you go to a lot of centers and study with a lot of teachers, your practice won’t get results, for when you go to a lot of centers, it’s as if you go back to the beginning over and over again. You don’t gain any sure principles in your practice. Sometimes you get uncertain and bewildered. Your mind isn’t solid. Your practice degenerates and doesn’t progress.”