The condition for enlightenment is not something many people understand. I have to admit that I did not understand it until I met Master Sha. My understanding of this issue is still growing, all the time. At every workshop, I learn and see something new.

As we travel around the world with Master Sha, we meet many different people in varying conditions. I can see very clearly what is meant by the conditions for enlightenment. Some of these points are very well known.

The first one is this: “When the student is ready, the guru appears." This signifies that some basic conditions have to be met before we can meet our destined teacher.

The student has to be ready to accept teachings. The student has to have already reached a certain level, and some groundwork already been done.

Until the heart is pure enough and until the soul is pure enough, the student cannot see the teacher, even if the teacher is standing right there. A student can recognize the teacher only when the heart is pure enough, when the heart is open enough.

What is less known, however, is that the higher the level of the teacher, the higher the level of student has to be too. There are not many high level masters, but not many high level students either.

There is another side to it expressed in a sentence not that well known: “A teacher can teach only ready students.”