A Rare and Precious Thing: The Possibilities and Pitfalls of Working with a Spiritual Teacher [Hardcover]

John Kain (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 5, 2006

Never have there been so many spiritual seekers and so much readily available information about paths to self-fulfillment. Yet this book is the first in-depth exploration of how to evaluate spiritual teachers, what to expect from them, and what to be wary of, as well as whether it is necessary to study and practice with a guru or possible to achieve the same thing on your own.

John Kain introduces us to teachers (and their students) from a wide range of traditions:

Murat Yagan, a ninety-year-old Circassian teacher of Sufism and Kebzeh in a rural community in British Columbia; Chief Arvol Looking Horse, the nineteenth-generation keeper of the sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe of the Lakota, Dakota, Nakota Nation; Joan Chittister, OSB, a sister at a Benedictine monastery in Erie, Pennsylvania, an ardent advocate for peace and justice, a feminist, and a questioner of institutional thinking; Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, founder of the Jewish Renewal movement, enthusiastic teacher of Hasidism, and past holder of the World Wisdom chair at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado; Gehlek Rimpoche, a renegade but beloved Tibetan Buddhist teacher whose aim is to dispense with superficial traditions and integrate the essence of Buddhist teaching into Western culture; Sudha Puri, the American-born head of Ananda Ashram north of Los Angeles and the Vedanta Centre in Massachusetts, in the lineage of the Indian sage Ramakrishna; John Daido Loori, the abbot of Zen Mountain Monastery in New York’s Catskill Mountains, who is known for using photography and the arts as bridges to awareness; and Adyashanti, a charismatic American teacher in Los Gatos, California, who has broken away from all established traditions.

Woven throughout Kain’s detailed profiles of the teachers themselves is information on finding a teacher, life in a spiritual community, dealing with problems like disillusionment and abuse of power, and the meeting (or lack thereof) between Western psychology and religion.

A teacher's job is not actually to give us anything but to take away the unnecessary baggage we accumulate in our minds that obscures the truth. It is a rare and precious thing to work with someone whose purpose is to cajole us into opening our eyes and experiencing a saner reality. Kain offers would-be pilgrims an inside look at this relationship and what extraordinary things can result from it.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

According to Kain, the spiritual teacher's duty is to offer new ways of seeing. He acknowledges that this is no easy task, that it requires a "delicate surgery," since both student and teacher, by dint of their complicated relationship with one another, are in vulnerable positions. Power can be dangerous. If misused, it can lead to such tragedies as those of -Jonestown and Waco's Branch Davidians, even to a 9/11. Kain profiles spiritual teachers from Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Native American, and Vedanta traditions; with the exception of Joan Chittister, they aren't famous. He explains what to look for in a spiritual teacher, when to be suspicious, and whether a teacher, rather than personal study, is even necessary. He points out that the teacher-student relationship can be life altering, and that "For every teacher who goes astray, there are ten who never waver." Those interested in spirituality, let alone in spiritual teachers, may find this book a useful resource. June Sawyers
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

“Spiritual guidance can be treacherous—literally a matter of life and death—as we have seen with Jonestown, Heaven’s Gate, and the Branch Davidians. Yet the yearning for spiritual teaching is a constant in human nature and must be answered if we are to be complete. John Kain’s elegant book is a Gray’s Anatomy of the spiritual search. Read it before embarking. It could save you years of wasted time—or your life.” —Larry Dossey, M.D., author of The Extraordinary Healing Power of Ordinary Things

“It is a gift to be given glimpses into the parallel journeys of these seekers of truth. This book is a fine example of the interspiritual consciousness that is arising today, of a unity that exists at the contemplative level of practice and that offers profound hope for humanity.” —Kabir Helminski, author of Living Presence and The Knowing Heart, teacher, and translator of Rumi

“An extremely worthwhile and timely book that provides an inside perspective of eight well-known teachers and clarifies what to expect of authentic spiritual guides.” —Rabbi David A. Cooper, author of God Is a Verb and Ecstatic Kabbalah

“An excellent, generous book and a much-needed blessing on the varieties of spiritual life. Kain has a genuine feel for the great spiritual quest and enthusiastically immerses you in the many, many ways you can successfully work with a teacher.” —John Tarrant, author of Bring Me the Rhinoceros and Other Zen Koans to Bring You Joy

“Judging from so much publicity about scandals involving spiritual teachers, one might think of the teacher-student relationship as a can of worms. John Kain lets us see it as a basket of herbs—some of them medicinal and bitter, others sweet and fragrant: truly a rare and precious thing. Teachers and students speak for themselves in these pages; no theorizing here. This book is for readers who like to get the facts firsthand and draw their own conclusions.” —Brother David Steindl-Rast, OSB, author of Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer

“Ever since arriving in the New World in bulk four centuries ago Americans have tried to beat their own spiritual paths. John Kain’s fascinating book is a fine guide to the spiritual possibilities of our time.” —Jim Harrison, author of Saving Daylight

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Harmony (September 5, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307335925
• ISBN-13: 978-0307335920
• Product Dimensions: 5.6 x 1.1 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,544,456 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John Kain has been associate publisher of Tricycle magazine and his articles on Buddhist teachers and teachings as well as his poetry have appeared in Tricycle, Shambhala Sun, Yoga Journal, and Terra Nova and on Beliefnet.com. This is his first nonfiction book. He lives in Ashland, Oregon.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly, A Rare and Precious Thing, November 21, 2006

By 

Eric Paul Shaffer (Honolulu, HI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Rare and Precious Thing: The Possibilities and Pitfalls of Working with a Spiritual Teacher (Hardcover)

John Kain's A Rare and Precious Thing is a book which is astonishingly accurately named, for, indeed, it is. Kain introduces eight teachers from different spiritual disciplines, including an adept in Ahmsta Kezbeh (which is some sect of Sufisim); the bearer of the sacred bundle of the Lakota, Dakota, Nakota Nation; a Benedictine abbess; a rabbi; a Buddhist monk; a Hindu Vedanta reverend mother; a Zen abbot; and a Zen renegade (if that's possible).

Kain introduces a bike-riding Zen dude called Adyashanti, whose picture reminds me pleasantly of a thirty-something Charlie Brown. His words are even more pleasant: "I don't want to be in the role of `wisdom guy' all the time. . . . I mean, who wants to sit around talking about the Truth for any longer than is absolutely necessary?" I heard that, and I've lost count of the times I've wished somebody would say it. Now, somebody has, and Adya (as he is known affectionately to his friends) has other stirring things to say. My favorite: "Most spirituality is a construction project," he says, "But enlightenment is a demolition project." I like this guy's approach to teaching. Step one: stay out of your own way.

Chief Arvol Looking Horse is the nineteenth-generation keeper of the sacred bundle, and for a guy with so much responsibility, he seems circumspect and thoughtful, unlike so many charged with such duties. The chief finds himself in a difficult position. Pledged to protect his religion, he cannot profit from ceremonies related to it nor can he live off the reservation. As a result, he finds his income limited, and unfortunately, like truly religious people anywhere, he finds that the poverty his office requires is not eased by the people who benefit most. He has a sense of humor, however, and that seems to sustain him: on his mission of peace to South Africa, government officials refused to allow him to leave the airport without an armed guard. As part of his sacred office, he cannot be around guns, and he refused. The officials insisted, so Arvol responded, "All right, let them have their guns but take the bullets out." His confidence and creativity is enough to endear him to anyone.

Sister Joan Chittister is a Benedictine with a radical streak as wide as thirty books and as profound as a stream of ink. I found her thoughts provocative: ""I really think that religion at its best is when it moves us beyond religion. We do make a God out of religion, but the function of religion is to move us beyond itself." I found her spiritual questions intriguing, and I'd like to e-mail them to every one of the self-selected godly: "If we're still in a state of ongoing creation, what are we helping to create?" Try that one on, Oral. And if you are interested in the knots religion can set in your shoelaces, you should read this book just to find out why Chittister likes to tell the old Hindu story "about the master who tied up his cat during prayer time." Good stuff.

For me, this book was as bracing as a dive into a Sierra stream, eye-opening and moment-inducing. I enjoyed the clear vision of the teachers looking at themselves, their pursuits, and their students, which was so ably conveyed by the author, and I recommend these pages to anyone who needs to step up or step back from a spiritual pursuit, for whatever reasons, real, imagined, or fabricated. If you want to follow up, the book also includes a reading list of the works of the teachers Kain interviewed.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Rare and Precious Thing, November 3, 2006

By 

Justyn Livingston (Bend, Oregon) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Rare and Precious Thing: The Possibilities and Pitfalls of Working with a Spiritual Teacher (Hardcover)

John Kain's thoughtful and sensitive writing speaks to much more than working with a spiritual teacher. The candid and often intimate conversations tell us of the common messages inherent in all spiritual practices. There is a circular thread in this book which leads the reader inside these relationships; allowing us to see the human-ness in both the students and teachers. A Rare and Precious Thing is about ALL relationships and how we might be wise to embrace them.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rare Help, September 20, 2006

By 

Kosei Hartel (Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Rare and Precious Thing: The Possibilities and Pitfalls of Working with a Spiritual Teacher (Hardcover)

This book by John Kain is an exceptional aid to all who have a spiritual teacher, are considering such a teacher, or are curious about spiritual teachers in general. In my years of Buddhist practice, I have observed tremendous energy focused on understanding one's relationship with teachers. Too often this attempt at understanding occurs post-hoc in the wake of a problem or rift in the relationship with a teacher or the community of a teacher. While nearly all traditions have explicit lineages of teachers, there is very little written about this the relationship especially across traditions. In this way, John Kain stands in for all of us as he asks questions of well-known teachers and their students actively working in a wide range of spiritual paths.

Mr. Kain has a keen eye for the character, style, and every day environment of these teachers interviewed outside their formal roles. With him, we appreciate the great dedication of these genuine human beings --not super-beings -- who are sometimes called "teacher." Understanding their work as the result of extraordinary dedication by an ordinary person should help us all to see our own potential for depth in spiritual practice. It may also help to remove the mystique surrounding religious leaders that has sometimes led to imbalanced and improper behavior in so many religious and spiritual communities in America.

John Kain's writing is a pleasure to read with its poetic touches throughout this basically journalistic approach. I appreciate that the author has not left himself out of the dialogue as he reveals but does not belabor some of his own views in working with his teacher. This book gathers knowledge and insight on both sides of the teacher-student relationship, opens up the dialogue to a wider audience, and provides material for more in-depth study of our own relationships to spiritual mentors and friends. For this we owe Mr. Kain a great deal of gratitude for his thoughtful, even-handed and insightful work.