Naropa

“It is reported of Naropa, one of the greatest Tibetan mystics ever born…. He was a very absurd personality. I say “absurd” because he would do things no one would expect of a master. He was found in a pub drinking.

Someone said, “Naropa, what are you doing? You are enlightened, you have achieved the goal, and you are drinking?”

Naropa said, “This is a game. And when it is a game, I do not care this way or that. Once I have come to know that I am the eternal within, why be afraid of this alcohol? Why be afraid?”
I say “absurd personality” — but he is saying that this is alcohol and that whatsoever is created by alcohol is a dream. He is not saying this is reality; he is saying this is a dream. He said, “I am not obsessed for or against. It happened that a friend invited me and I didn’t want to say no. A friend invited me. For him this is real, for me this is a dream. But this is a dream for me, not for him. Why be bothered? It will be difficult for him.”
– The Supreme Doctrine, Chapter #7

“There was a mystic in Tibet called Naropa. Many people used to come to him and they were puzzled, because it was well known that he was totally merged in the divine and they never heard Naropa ever remembering God’s name. His disciples often asked Naropa, “People say that you are merged in the divine, but how come you never remember God?” Naropa is said to have replied, “How am I to remember when I never forget? And the day I start remembering God, know that Naropa has fallen. The day I remember, the day I call God’s name, you may understand that Naropa has fallen, that he has forgotten and has fallen asleep. When I do not fall asleep, when I never forget God, how am I to remember then?”
– Finger Pointing to the Moon, Chapter #3