Lamas

Lamas are the primary teachers of the Aro lineage.

Aro Lamas teach as married couples or individually. Teaching as couples expresses both the non-celibate character of Vajrayana, and the Aro teachings on romantic love as a central practice.

The Aro Lineage Lamas are Ngak’chang Rinpoche and Khandro Déchen.

The other Lamas are:
Ngala Nor’dzin Pamo and Ngala ’ö-Dzin Tridral
Ngala Rig’dzin Dorje
Lama Shardröl Du-nyam Wangmo
Lama Bar-ché Dorje

The Aro Lamas teach publicly – but most of their time is devoted to teaching personal apprentices and supervising the teachings given by their ordained students.

The rôle of Lamas in Tantric Buddhism is not as well-understood in the West as the teaching mode found in Sutric Buddhism. A Sutric teacher functions as a ‘spiritual friend’ – one who provides conceptual understanding and encouragement in practise. A spiritual friend is qualified by having accomplished the path of renunciation: knowledge of doctrine, compassion, and experience of emptiness. The behaviour and demeanour of a Sutric teacher are always logically comprehensible in terms of Sutra. This mode of behaviour is also displayed by ordained Aro teachers who are not Lamas.

A Tantric Lama is qualified by having accomplished the path of transformation. According to Tantra, it is only possible to proceed under the close supervision of such a teacher. Tantra is taught through personal interaction rather than simply giving information. With a Lama, it is more important to listen to the style or poetry of expression in terms of their speech, rather than paying attention to exactly what is being said. It is more valuable to see how the Lama is than to watch each action deliberately. The way a teacup is picked up, or nose scratched, may—in context—be a profound teaching on personal transformation – but it is the context rather than the specific isolated movement.

The way a Tantric Lama teaches may at times be entirely incomprehensible – although what is transmitted is a direct understanding of the inexpressible nature of reality.