Whatever good or bad things people might say, don't take them as true; have no hope or doubt, acceptance or rejection. Let them say whatever they will, as though they were talking about someone already dead and buried. No one but a qualified guru - not even your own father or mother - can give direct advice. Therefore, keeping control over your own actions, do not hand your nose-rope to others. Outwardly good-natured, you should know how to get along harmoniously with all without 'burning their noses.' But in fact, if anyone - superior or inferior - comes to hinder your practice, you should be unshakable, like an iron boulder pulled by a silk scarf. It won't do to be a weak character whose head bends in whichever direction the wind blows, like grass on a mountain pass.

-- His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche