In my decades of studying Buddhism, I've witnessed many false teachings and teachers, students taken advantage of and harmed, and years wasted heading down wrong alleys which have lead to much suffering and damage in the world of Buddhism as it has grown in the west. I thought it might be useful to outline a path for the new person on a path that will guarantee that they will be on the correct path, without fear of being taken advantage of or worse, being subject to great harm. I humbly give you my outline of a path that you can embrace fearlessly, a path that has been used for thousands of years successfully and one that will lead to eventual freedom and joy.

1. Learn Pali. Not only is learning Pali a great spiritual practice, it will allow you to read the words of the Buddha directly as they have been preserved since the Buddhas time and absorb them directly into your heart. This is the best way that I know to insure that you are not confused by poor translations. There are many sources to learn Pali, but a good place to start is this site which has a Pali to English dictionary built in: http://suttacentral.net/. Since Pali is a specialized language only used for studying the words of the Buddha, it is a fairly easy language to learn in that there are no idioms present that do not directly tie into the reading of the canon.
2.  Read the Pali canon in the original. This is one of the best defenses I know to guard against false teachings and false teachers. Once you have experienced the Buddha’s words for yourself, you will be much better armed against charlatans and bullshitters, who do not have your best interests at heart.
3. Learn to meditate the way the Buddha taught. One of the best sources I know for this is With Each and Every Breath which can be downloaded here: http://www.dhammatalks.org/ebook_index.html#big_books of course, for free.
4. It is best to study by yourself rather than find the wrong teacher, but if and when you decide you need a teacher, find out one who lives the life and has a long history of teaching and living a moral life. My personal recommendation for westerners is Thanissaro Bhikkhu who has a long history of being a knowledgable and respected teacher.
5. Go on a retreat at a place that practices in the methods outlined by the Buddha. Again, I would recommend Metta Forest Monastery, that practices in the old style. The monks are not allowed to accept money, they eat only food that is provided in their daily alms rounds, you an make day trips and they have longer retreats available. And of course, there is no charge to go on these retreats.

If you feel the need to find other teachers or methods after you have done all this, you will be truly armed against harm.

Answers to questions such as “What is reborn” etc can be found with great clarity Buddhist Publication Societies website which can be found here: http://www.beyondthenet.net/bps/bps_main.htm

When evaluating a teacher, here are some red flags to watch out for:

1. Do they charge for their teaching? It is immoral to charge money to teach the Dhamma. Anyone who wants to charge you a fee should be avoided like the plague.
2. Does the teacher claim attainments? Avoid.
3. Does the teacher exhibit any of the following traits: arrogance, narcissism, petulance, anger, egoism, defensiveness, do they radiate a sense that they are superior to you in any way, pride, boasting. If I teacher exhibits any or all of these traits, it is a sure sign to run the other way.

Over the last 45 years of being a practicing meditator and the last 30 being a Buddhist, this is what I have found to be the safest, and most direct route to a happy, joyful, and productive life.

Bill

You definitely want to avoid the Buddha then. He claimed attainments.

Yeah, the Buddha was pretty into himself. It is hard to tell that from bragging. I am pretty into the Buddha, so I think he was just stating things mostly as they are and I am willing to forgive those aspects I consider a bit of hyperbole, but realize that this judgement is coming from my side, as your judgement would from your side, so any teacher or claimer or whatever you would be judging would be your perception, as whether or not they had attained to what they claimed is sometimes hard to tell, and it could be just an accurate assessment or bullshit or a mix of both, and so it is worth realizing that.

In my perfect world, teachers would tell you what they had realized and mastered and be right and be willing to teach you that. This is the best scenario. I feel the Buddha generally falls into this category.

Other scenarios exist also, such as teachers who won't tell you what they had realized and mastered but have actually mastered things and are willing to teach you how to master them, but this is a strange thing, as how can you tell what the teacher knows and doesn't know? It is pretty gamey in my view.

Other scenarios you clearly wish to avoid: they claim something but don't know it and are willing to teach you: obviously a big problem.

Only slightly better: they claim nothing, have realized something, but won't teach you or you can't find them, as they make no claims to anything, the effect being the same: you can't learn from this person who has real insight. What a waste, if you ask me.

Thoughts?

Daniel