visualizing your guru as a deity

[Luke]

Hello everyone,

I have only recently begun to do vajrayana meditations which require me to visualize my guru in the form of Amitabha. I'm not sure if I should visualize Amitabha and simply think the thought: "my guru's mind is inside this image of Amitabha," or if I should visualize Amitabha's body, but with the facial features of my guru.

I would be curious to hear which of these approaches the rest of you take--or if you do it another way which I didn't think of.

[tatpurusa]

Try to be aware and feel that your guru is the embodiment of the unbroken lineage of gurus and disciples beginning with Amitabha. He represents Amitabha to you in this life.
Through your guru you recieve the blessings and wisdom of Amitabha and of his whole lineage. By this you are becoming an intimate part of it; becoming one with an authentic, living tradition or transmission (parampara).

[Luke]

Try to be aware and feel that your guru is the embodiment of the unbroken lineage of gurus and disciples beginning with Amitabha. He represents Amitabha to you in this life.
Through your guru you recieve the blessings and wisdom of Amitabha and of his whole lineage. By this you are becoming an intimate part of it; becoming one with an authentic, living tradition or transmission (parampara).

So, you're suggesting that I visualize my lama in his ordinary form without the red skin, etc. of Amitabha?

[tatpurusa]

So, you're suggesting that I visualize my lama in his ordinary form without the red skin, etc. of Amitabha?

No. I am suggesting that these are of secondary importance.
It is also possible to practice guruyoga directly with the deity, but it is much more beneficial if one integrates
one's own present guru and the whole lineage into it.

The essence of the practice is to recieve the wisdom, the blessings and the protection of the deity and to integrate oneself with the whole lineage. Yes, the visualization is important, but even more important is to actually feel the presence of the deity, the lineage masters and their blessings. It IS a living tradition, a reality, not something abstract or imaginary.

But yes, technically, the idea of the visualization is to see the deity in his form with as much clarity as possible, and to integrate into this form the physical appearence of one's own present guru.

Probably you have had dreams where a character was two persons at the same time.
It is something similar to this. It is more this kind of mental state, not logical thinking.