If I want to be perfectly honest, I must admit that there is a strong element of fantasy in the master/disciple relationship: the disciple projects all the elements he has heard, seen, and desired onto a guardian figure of his discipline.
As soon as the label has been affixed to a nearby forehead, he automatically becomes, in his own eyes, a disciple.
This double-labelling process has a calming effect on the tension inherent in grasping the problems of existence.
This effect, in turn, tends to further fuel the projection onto the master/disciple relationship.
The authentic master knows how to thwart these mechanisms that are triggered and how not to feed this projection machine.
As a master, he does not call himself by this name and will attach no importance to it.
As a master, he has no need of a disciple.
Likewise, the authentic disciple does not need a master.
This is why the disciple will meet the master and the master will take him as a disciple.
This relationship exists only from moment to moment; thus, it cannot accumulate the dross of projections that would eventually settle there.
If they do, the master/disciple relationship is an illusion and no different from the other interactions that make up human life.
This is why an authentic master-disciple relationship can arise from an artificial relationship.
In this, the master is the disciple and the disciple is the master.
Notes & Silence 
Which seems to say we all learn from each other, as disciples of experience and masters of our own footsteps.
I think…
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I find your ideas interesting. I would like make my comment from the master’s point of view.
There are different types of « authentic masters ». One of the differences between them is their mission in this life.
Some of these masters have had this Self-Realization for many lives, and have come back for a particular mission, eg Yogananda. They will not take many disciples, unless they are advanced enough to understand the Master’s mission and work for its advancement. They cannot devote much of their time to training disciples because of their mission, so they send them (those who knock at the door) to one of their very advanced disciples who is himself/herself an enlightened Master.
Both Masters are « authentic », but they do not have the same mission. Their relationship with disciples will therefore be different. I know this firsthand because I have been living in this context since 1990. I will admit that this is an exceptional case, but I do not know enough about other masters to speak about them, except that some will honestly tell you, after a few years, that they cannot help you any further, and that you need to find another master. For me, that is a sign of an « authentic » master, even though he may not be as advanced as some others. And very often those disciples never forget such a master, the bond between remains strong.
One important thing to know is that when you become enlightened, your mission in life is revealed to you in one way or another, and you act accordingly. Having disciples may be a big part of it, or just a small part.
I know nothing about masters who are not enlightened.
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Hello…thanks for reading and sharing here.
I really liked how you differentiate masters according to the extent of their mission.
I agree with you…acknowledging limitations to help the disciple further is also a marker of mastership.
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Your topic caught my attention, and I feel happy to join in the discussion.
Your conclusion leads to deep reflection:
« In this, the master is the disciple and the disciple is the master. »
This reminds me of something a Master I know once said.
« And in my view, every Guru is a disciple and every disciple is the Guru. »
Here is the context in which she said it:
« The Guru represents the Ultimate One that we ourselves are. Whoever or whatever your Guru may be – whether a mountain, nature, a brilliant Elder, a Wise one, a great Mahatma, or an Enlightening Being – all benefit you and represent the Ultimate One awakening in you. Whoever or whatever appears in your life… guiding you to your Self Nature, the Essence that you are, continue to open to that One more and more and more. Until the One falls into the One, rises in the One, loving the One and only One in everyone.
Awakening to the One is the whole point of the Guru and disciple relationship. And in my view, every Guru is a disciple and every disciple is the Guru. These roles never cease to exist for those whose thirst is quenched by the sweet ambrosia of Truth. » (Shri ShantiMayi)
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