Monk chat: Questions about how to practice
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Qualities of a Spiritual Teacher 
Apr 13, 2022 Short videos from a Q&A session hosted by Empty Cloud Monastery in 2022.
Questions covered:
How can one cultivate compassion?
- Being compassionate requires inner strength, gained through hearing, thinking, and meditating
- Must be able to act out our compassion, too
- Seeing what is required, and see different ways of being compassionate
Can you share what a good relationship with a teacher is?
- Depends on the disciple how close the relationship is going to be and in what way
- Student checks the qualities of the teacher, and vice versa
- Honesty – student should be open and honest with their teacher
- Realistic expectations of the teacher – they are not a parent, partner, or therapist in disguise
- Teacher should not depend on students to boost their ego
- Student needs to do the work and accept guidance from the teacher
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.
