Preceptor, teacher, guide to spiritual liberation. (Glossary for the Vahinis)
Extract taken from (Guru - God Is the Only Sadguru: God, Guru-Shishya and the Significance Of Guru Purnima)
Who is a Guru? Is, one who teaches a ‘Mantra’ a Guru? No.
Gukaro Gunatitam, Rukaro Rupa varjithah
(one who is attributeless and formless is a true Guru)
Gukaro Andhakarascha Rukaro Tannivaranah.
Gukarasca Gunatito Rukaro Rupa-Varjitah;
Gunatitam Arupamca Yat-Tatvam Sa Guru-Smrtah.
Guru Dispels The Darkness Of Ignorance
‘Gu’ stands for Gunatita (one who transcends the three Gunas) while ‘ru’ stands for Rupa varjita (one who is formless). Also ‘Gu’ means the darkness of ignorance. What can dispel the darkness? Only light can do it. Therefore Guru is one who dispels the darkness of ignorance. Guru is not the one who gives a Mantra or teaches you Vedanta. Those whom we call Gurus in the common parlance are not real Gurus! You may call them teachers. Those who practice and teach the same to others are called Acharyas. Acharya is one who demonstrates through practice. Today we have neither Acharyas nor Gurus. Today the so-called Gurus whisper a Mantra in the ear and stretch their hands for money. Such people are not fit to be called Gurus. (SSS Vol.25)
Then who is a Guru? A Guru is necessary to make you understand the formless and attribute-less Divinity. Since it is difficult to get such Gurus, consider God as your Guru. Consider Guru as your everything. In this world, everything is a manifestation of Divinity. Sarvam Khalvidam Brahma (verily all this is Brahman).
All are embodiments of Divinity. In fact, all that you see is nothing but the Divine Cosmic Form (Vishva Virat Swarupa).
Om sahasra shirsha purushaha
sahasrakshas sahasrapat
sa bhumim vishvato vritva
atyatishthad dhashangulam
(With thousands of heads, thousands of feet
and thousands of eyes, Divinity pervades everything).
This means all the heads, all the feet and all the eyes that we see in this world belong to God. When the Vedic statement, Sahasra Shirsha... was made, the population of the world was only a few thousands, but now it runs into a few hundred crores. In those days, people considered everyone as Divine. They believed in the Vedic dictum,
Sarva Bhuta Namaskaram Kesavam Pratigachchati
(Salutations to all beings reach God).
Ishvara Sarva Bhutanam
(God is the In-dweller of all beings)
Ishavasyam idam sarvam (Isha Upanishad)
(The entire universe is permeated by God).
Divinity is not restricted to a particular place. God is here, God is there and He is everywhere. You are developing differences out of delusion, but Divinity is One and only One. It is the duty of a Guru to propagate such principle of oneness. (SSS Vol.33, pp. 188-189)
Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu
Gurur Devo Maheshwarah
Guruh Sakshath Para Brahma
Tasmai Sri Gurave Namaha.
(Guru is Brahma, Guru is Vishnu, Guru is Maheshvara. Guru is verily the supreme Brahman. So, salutations to the Guru.)
Who is a guru? The sloka mentioned above states that a Guru is verily Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the sustainer) and Maheshvara (the destroyer). These are the different facets of God and hence Guru means God, verily. (SSS Vol.41, p. 123)
Guru is Brahman. He is the Creator. He Himself is the creation and He is the One that exists in the creation. The universe is filled with Brahman. It becomes clear that the One who Himself has become the universe is the Guru.
Guru is Vishnu. Who is Vishnu? Is He the one with conch, discus, mace and lotus in His hands? No. Vishnu is one who has the quality of pervasiveness. He is the Doer and also what is done. The universe is the action, God is the Doer. God is the consciousness behind the cause and effect. The whole universe is the form of Vishnu. This Vishnu is the Guru.
Guru is Maheshvara. Who is Maheshvara? He is the one who rules all beings in the Universe. He commands and ordains everything in the universe in the right manner. Sunrise and Sunset go on according to His command. Seasons, rain, the day and night are His commands. Ishvara is one that makes everything follow its discipline without any lapse. Guru is not one who merely teaches. A Guru is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent, He is God himself. Guru is Brahma, Vishnu and Ishvara. Some people may say that Vishnu and Ishvara do not go together. But it is ignorance to think so. It is only the narrow-mindedness of these devotees. (SSS Vol.25)
These three GU’s are reminders of the three-pronged bilva (wood-apple tree) leaf, which is placed in reverence while adoring Shiva, symbolising the three gunas (qualities), the three prongs of time (past, present, future) held as a spear by Shiva, and the three attributes which man has to overcome, the Thamas, Rajas and Sathwa (inertia, passion and equanimity). (SSS Vol.11), 8- 7-1971
Some call themselves Vaishnavites (the worshippers of Vishnu) and some others namely Shaivites (worshippers of Shiva or Ishvara). But Vishnu and Shiva are one and same.
Vishnu holds in the four hands the Conch, the Discuss, the Mace and the Lotus. The Conch is the symbol of sound, the Discuss of time, the Mace of power and the Lotus of the heart. He is the master of sound, time, power and the hearts of all beings. Similarly Shiva holds in the hands Damaru (the drum), and Trishula (trident). Here Damaru stands for sound and Trishula for a three-pronged time. He is the master of time and sound. Thus both are the same, only names and forms are different. (SSS Vol.25) 14 Jul 1992
The true Guru is Tat and he reveals to Tvam, the fact of Asi. The true pupil is the Tvam thirsty for Tat and anxious to acquire the Asi wisdom. (SSS Vol.8, p. 84)
One must have unwavering faith in the Guru, but you must try to understand as to what kind of Guru Sankara had in mind in this context. One who lights up the Atmajyoti in you by teaching you what is right and what is good, helping you to practise the sacred principles contained in the Shastras, disciplining your mind, can be regarded as the proper Guru. The word ‘gu’ means darkness or ignorance and ‘ru’ stands for the removal thereof. This means that the darkness of ignorance can be dispelled by the light of wisdom. Such is the function of a Guru. ‘Gu’ also stands for one who is beyond all attributes and ‘ru’ is rupa varjita or one who has no form. One who has neither attributes nor a form is only God. (SSB 1973, p. 332)
The true Guru is like an ophthalmic surgeon. The latter removes the opaque film (cataracte) in the patient’s eye and restores his natural vision. The Guru should remove the veil of ignorance and attachment that blurs the vision of the disciple, and restores his natural spiritual vision. (NNSG Vol.9, p. 58)
The first Guru is the mother; her example, her advice, her admonition affects man deepest and longest. The second is the father, who is admired by the child for his strength and knowledge and feared for the punishments he inflicts. Next is the teacher, who leads him and guides him into the maze of material knowledge. (SSS Vol.8, p. 103)
A Guru is a spiritual preceptor. He transmits wisdom to his disciple. His duty ends here. It is the disciple’s duty to receive and respond to his master’s spiritual wisdom. He must put into practice what he has learnt. A Guru is like a ‘guide-post’ on the highway. He shows the path to the disciple. A sign-post indicates the road to be followed but does not indicate anything about the ups and downs and the pitfalls and obstacles on the road. Similarly, a Guru is only a guide. The disciple has to find for himself all the obstacles on the mountain path of spirituality. He must personally experience all the vicissitudes of the spiritual life. (SSB 1979, 1979, pp. 67-68)
The Guru is referred to reverentially, as Brahma, the First of the Trinity entrusted with creation; as Vishnu, the Second of the Trinity entrusted with the Preservation and Protection of Creation, and Maheshvara, the last of the Trinity, charged with the Destruction and Dissolution. The description is symbolically correct if we analyse the work which the teacher or Guru is expected to carry out. The Guru sows the seeds of virtue, of wisdom and of faith in the heart of the pupil. He is, therefore, Brahma, of the nature of the creator. He is like the farmer who plants saplings in the well-prepared soil of his field. He takes incessant care to see that the saplings grow, vigorously and well and he is vigilant to water the growing crops and feed them with fertilisers at the appropriate stages of growth. This is the role of Vishnu, so far as education and the educator are concerned. (SSS Vol.9, p. 6)
Though gurus of the common type have increased in numbers, there is available for man, a Guru, far more supreme and far more compassionate that any or all of them. He is no other than the Avatar of the Lord. He can, by the mere expression of His will confer on man the highest consummation of spiritual life. He can gift it and get man to accept it. Even the meanest of the mean can acquire the highest wisdom, in a trice. He is the Guru of all gurus. He is the fullest embodiment of God as man. Men can cognise God only in the human form. The Bharatiya Spiritual Stream has been declaring, over and over again, that adoring God in the human form is the highest duty of man. Unless God incarnates as man, man can never hope to see God or listen to His voice. Of course, man may picture God in various other forms, but he can never approximate to the genuine form of God. However, much one may try, man cannot picture God in any form except the human. (BPV, p. 98)
The Divine alone can be the guide, the companion and counsellor on this lone journey of man. Those styled gurus cannot help or rescue. The Srutis advise man to approach gurus who are ‘Shrotriya’ and ‘Brahma Nishthas’. They warn man against resorting to other. What does Shrotriya mean? It means a person who is unquestioningly loyal to the Srutis or Vedas and who adheres to the rules prescribed and the limits imposed therein, without the slightest deviation. Brahma Nishtha means a person who is established in Brahma-Consciousness. He has no doubt to pester him, no diversion to distract him. For, he has won steady faith in the Atma. He is unconcerned with the material world. He sees all worlds as Brahma, as the manifestation of the Brahma Principle. His activities and movement are in consonance with this awareness. His vision encompasses all of Time; he knows the past, the present and the future. He is beyond all characterisation; the three (modes) do not affect him. He has his being in the One and Only - the Atma. He is unaffected by distinctions and differences, dualities and disparities. He is perpetually in ananda. The Vedas exhort the seeker to approach such Guru. But, only one Person has all these attributes. He is Sarveshvara, the Lord of all. Scholars who have learnt the truth or are proficient in principles are not in the category of Shrotriya and Brahma Nishtha. They are not the gurus you need. (SV, pp. 99-100)
The best Guru is the Divine in you: yearn for hearing His Voice, His Upadesa. If you seek worldly gurus, you will have to run from one to another, like a rat caught inside a drum which flees to the right when the drummer beats on the left and to the left when he beats the right. (SSS Vol.7, p. 265)
The true Guru is not a human preceptor. It is the cosmos itself, Prakriti, Creation. The Universe and all its components are to be looked upon as one’s preceptors and lessons learnt from each. (GA, p. 158)
The Guru need not always come in actual concrete form; he can prompt the higher impulses and urges through a friend or a book or an event which reveals the Reality in a flash. After this awakening, the rest is mostly in the hands of the aspirant. The Guru can, at best, watch and guide. Do not get agitated or lose heart. You will be guided, however far you may be geographically, I am as near you as you are near me. Be steady. (MyB, p. 15)
Who is the genuine Guru? He who teaches by precept and example, good conduct, right thinking, loyalty to truth, mental discipline, sense of Duty. Who is the genuine student? He who learns these. ‘These are qualities that will guarantee happiness here and Bliss hereafter. The virtues will effectively countermand the evils that degrade man into a monster. (SSS Vol.9, p. 21)
The Guru must act as the alarm clock; he should awaken the sleeper to his duty to himself ‘Uttishthata! Jagrata’, as the Upanishads proclaim, ‘Arise! Awake’. And bear witness to the God within in every thought, word and deed. (SSS Vol.11, pp. 65-66)
The child has its tongue and the mother has hers. The mother keeps the child on her lap and pronounces the words so that the child may learn to speak. However busy the mother’s tongue may be, the child has to speak through its own tongue. The mother cannot speak for the child and save herself all the bother! The Guru too, is like that. He can only repeat, remind, inspire, instruct, persuade, plead; the activity, the disciple must himself initiate. He must jump over the stile himself. No one can hoist himself over it! (MBI, p. 98)
What is the role of the Guru? It is the total removal of the darkness of ignorance. As long as there are the three gunas, there can be no freedom from darkness: It is only when one transcends the three gunas that one attains the state of the Guru. Alternatively, when one realises the unity of the three gunas, the message of the Guru is comprehended. The import of the unity of the three gunas is indicated in the declaration; ‘Madatma Sarvabhutatma’ (My Atma is dwelling spirit in all beings). That which dwells in all beings is the one only. ‘eko vashi sarva bhut antar atma ekam rupam bahudha yah karoti’ (The one that is the inner Spirit in all beings). Forgetting this basic principle of Oneness and lost in the wilderness of multiplicity, men are having no peace.
It is on account of the varied functioning of the three gunas that the process of creation and dissolution takes place. The three gunas are the primal source, the basis and the life-breath of the Universe. They are responsible for the manifestations and transformations in Nature. The permutations and combinations of the three gunas in varying proportions account for the infinite diversity in the Cosmos. (SS Aug 88 , pp. 199-200)
Guru is one who dispels the darkness of ignorance.. Those who teach mundane subjects can only be called teachers or scholars, but they cannot be called Gurus. Even those who profess to impart spiritual messages (Upadesa) cannot be regarded as Gurus. God is the Supreme Guru - the Guru of gurus.
To offer fruits, dakshina and other offerings to a teacher on Guru Purnima day is not the right way of worshipping the Guru. Those who accept such gifts are worldly preceptors. Real Gurus are to be worshipped by Pradakshina, by revering them with heart and soul. Most preceptors today are mercenary. The Only true Guru is God. He manifests Himself in Nature, which serves as the cosmos teacher. Nature is the best teacher.
Recognise the Divinity that is manifested in the Cosmos. All things in Nature observe their laws with un-deviating regularity. The sun, the moon, the seasons observe their respective laws. Man alone violates the laws of his being. Animals obey their instincts and have their seasons for regulating their lives. Man is the exception. He needs to be taught the rules of right living (Dharma). He has to cultivate morality and integrity. There is only one way by which this can be done. It is by the spiritual path. Without spirituality man cannot discover the light within him. (D3 , 1991, pp. 147-148)
One day, (Shirdi Sai Baba) he summoned Kelkar and told him, ‘Today is Guru Purnima.’ Perform Guru Puja. Kelkar asked Baba what was meant Guru Puja. Baba asked: ‘Who do you think is Guru? It is not the pontiffs of Maths who are gurus. Nor are sannyasins (renunciants) gurus; God alone is the Guru (Preceptor) ‘Brahmanandam Parama sukhadam Kevalam Jnaan murtim Dvandwa atitam’ (He is Supreme Bliss, the giver of Divine happiness, the embodiment of the Highest Advaitic knowledge and one who combines the three forms of Trinity, the gods who presides over creation, protection and dissolution. This God alone is the real Guru declared Baba. On hearing this Kelkar asked: ‘Should I worship Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra?’ Baba declared in a voice of assumed Anger: ‘Eh Shaitan! Here I am! Offer worship to Me!’ Thereby Baba made known that He was Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra. All those present felt that Baba was the Divine incarnate. (DD on 28.09.91 )
One must rely upon Nature, saturated with God is the real Guru. God does not teach us direct; He teaches us through Nature which surrounds us. When we teach Om to children, we pronounce it loud and at the same time write the letter Om on a slate. God has written Om on every speck of Nature: that is the slate from which we have to learn of Him.
The true Guru is one who has understood his own Self. Emperor Bali promised to give Vamana - Vishnu who had come in the form of a short Brahmin lad - whatever he wanted. Bali’s Guru Sukracharya warned Bali against honouring his promise on the ground that it would prove disastrous for him. But Bali stood by his promise despite his preceptor’s warning and intervention. Bali esteemed God as greater than his preceptor. He declared that there could be no greater sin than breaking one’s promise. A Guru who advises his disciple to go back on his plighted word is no Guru at all.
In the episode from the Mahabharata in which Dronacharya, the teacher in archery for Arjuna, turned away Ekalavya from being his disciple because he had agreed to teach to no one else all the arts he had taught to Arjuna. Ekalavya, however, learnt more than what Arjuna had been taught, by merely worshipping an image of Dronacharya. When Dronacharya came to know about this from Arjuna, he demanded from Ekalavya his right thumb as ‘Guru Dakshina’ so as to incapacitate Ekalavya from making use of his proficiency in archery. Ekalavya readily offered his thumb out of his devotion to Dronacharya, whom he regarded as his preceptor. This conduct on the part of Dronacharya in response to a demand from Arjuna who was envious of Ekalavya’s superiority in archery, was unworthy of a true Guru).
Gurus who are governed by selfish considerations or narrow loyalties cause great harm to the cause of spiritual enlightenment. They are worldly teachers, not spiritual preceptors. (Sai G, pp. 4-5)
There is only one Guru. There cannot be two Gurus - Inner Guru and external Guru. Guru is the one who treads along the path of Truth. He is truth himself. (DD on 24-07-2002 , p. 11)
Verily, he who does not have
All the virtues in full, is no Guru at all!
How can one be held high unless he is humble?
Education fosters good traits, good thoughts,
Strong faith in Truth, in God and devotion
To discipline and to duty.
The real Guru is one
Who teaches these
And the real pupils are those who learn them.
(SSS Vol. 15, p. 96)
Three different types of Gurus in the world
Consider how far man has succeeded in overcoming the animal inheritance of lust, greed and hate, when he spends time, money and energy for these so called Adhyatmika exercises. What progress does he make by listening to exponents of texts? Has man become any less bestial? This is the inquiry, this is the assessment for man to be engaged in, though this is the very task
ignored by him at present.
The sadhanas (spiritual practices) now adopted promote only pride and prompous display, envy and egotism. They do not uproot them in the least. People proceed to the House of God as pilgrims, but pray to Him for more money, fame and power, for their thoughts, words and deeds centre only around these transitory and trivial tokens of worldly success. The world and all its trappings bespeak the tamasika guna (quality of inertia). They can never raise man to the higher sattvika (pure level).
The Guru must exhort the individual self to realise the Universal Self. On this Guru Purnima,
we must revere with grateful hearts such Gurus who have consummated liberation for many. They are the highest Gurus. There are in the world many other types also. There is the Guru who gives you a Mantra (sacred formula), tells you its potentialities and directs you to repeat it sincerely and steadily. He is the diksa Guru; the initiation into the Mantra is called diksa in ritualistic parlance. He assumes that his duty ends with the gift of the Mantra and the command to use it with conviction and care. He does not direct the pupil to master his senses or guide him to march forward and attain that victory. For the pupil the Mantra is a formula to be repeated in a parrot-like way. He might not even know that it is a precious gift, but without the
sadhana (spiritual discipline) of self-improvement, the gift has no value at all. The maya too is an aspect of Brahman
A second type of Guru recommends the worship of one or another of the forms of God. Another
set of gurus teach lessons destined to change your consciousness. These are the teacher-gurus.
But all these types ignore the One and divert attention, adoration and devotion to the many, which are only relatively real. They do not lay down methods by which purity and clarity can be won. They are afraid to antagonise the animal urges in their pupils. Their teachings fill the head but do not thrill the heart. All types of gurus assert that God, Nature and man are distinct,
whereas they are all really based on the play of maya on Brahman. They deal with subsidiary not the Primary, the diversity not the Unity, the trivial not the true. The primary is Brahman which, when reflected in maya, seems to be broken into God, Nature and man. These three are
only the unreal images of the One. And the maya, too, is an aspect of Brahman ‘Mama-maya’
(My maya), says Krishna in the Gita. Hence when we merge in Brahman or win the Grace of
the Lord, His maya cannot exist for us.
One can also be rid of maya if one can discard the three gunas from one’s make up. The Sattva
guna, too, has to be transcended. Why? The Gita directs that even the eagerness to be liberated is a bond. One is fundamentally free; bondage is only an illusion. So the desire to unloosen the bond is the result of ignorance. Krishna says, ‘Arjuna! Become free from the three gunas.’ In truth, the word ‘guna’ means ‘rope,’ for all three gunas bind the jiva with the rope of desire. Liberation means liberation from delusive Moha (attachment). ‘Mohakshaya’ is decline in the desire caused by attachment to sensory pleasure.
The greatest of Gurus was Sage Vyasa
The Yadhavas were attached to Krishna through a sense of worldly belonging. He was their kinsmen, they felt, and this feeling did not save them from total destruction. The gopis felt they
were His, not that He was theirs. So they were recipients of His Grace. When the ideas of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ disappear, man’s only thoughts are of ‘Thee’ and ‘Thine.’ He then finds only ‘Thee’
everywhere and thus achieves the Vision of Unity. (SSS Vol. 10, pp. 253-254)
Eight types of Gurus and their functions
Bharatiyas have held the view that one should try to sublimate one s life by seeking a Guru and acting according to his teachings. There are eight types of Gurus:
Suchakadi prabhedena guravo babudha smritah
svayam samyak parikshyastha tattva-Nishtham bhajet-sudhih.
- Bodhaka Guru; (verse 166 of Guru Gita)
- Veda Guru;
- Nishiddha Guru; (verse 167 of Guru Gita)
- Kamya Guru;
- Vachaka Guru; (verse 165 of Guru Gita)
- Suchaka Guru; (verse 164 of Guru Gita)
- Karanakhya Guru; (verse 169 of Guru Gita)
- Vihita Guru. (verse 168 of Guru Gita)
Bodhaka Guru teaches the Sastras and encourages the pupil to act upto Shastraic injunctions.
The Veda Guru imparts the inner meaning of tie Vedas, establishes the pupil in spiritual truths and turns his mind towards God.
The Nishiddha Guru imparts knowledge about rites and duties and shows how one s welfare here and in the hereafter, can be ensured.
The Kamya Guru makes one engage himself in meritorious deeds to secure happiness in both the worlds.
The Vachaka Guru imparts knowledge of Yoga and prepares the disciple for the spiritual life.
The Suchaka Guru teaches how the senses are to be controlled through various types of discipline.
The Karanakhya Guru reveals the unity of the jivi and the Atma.
The Vihita Guru clears all doubts, purifies the mind and shows how Self-realisation can be attained.
Of these eight Gurus, the Karanakhya Guru is the foremost. Through various teachings and practices, he helps the individual to progress from the human to the divine consciousness. Only the divine can act as such a teacher. All other Gurus can be helpful only to a limited extent.
There are, moreover, persons who claim to be Gurus, but who are really after the disciple s money. They trade in mantras and tantras. Self-realisation is not to be got through mantras or tantras. Only by the purification of the mind can the Omni-self be realised. (SSS Vol.19), 11-7-1987.
Guru and Pupil – Acharya and Shishya
Brahmanandam Parama Sukhadam Kevalam Jnana murtim
Dvandva atitam Gagan asadrisham Tatvamsyadi Lakshyam,
Ekam Nityam Vimalam achalam Sarvadhee Sakshibhutam
Bhavatitam Trigunarahitam Sad Gurum Tam Namami.
(SSS Vol.18, p. 72)
The Rishis of ancient times were revered with the utterance of this laudatory verse as gurus by those who approached them for spiritual guidance. When aspirants for spiritual illumination pay homage to the gurus who lead them to the goal, the implications .of this authentic summary of the credentials attributed in this verse, to the Sadguru or Proper Preceptor can be probed.
Brahmanandam: The Guru is the embodiment of Brahma-Bliss, since he is merged in the Ananda which Brahman is. It is not imported or acquired or attained. It is inherent in every heart. The world, the cosmos, every particle, is Ananda itself but being ever in it, with it, of it and for it, man is unable to be It, on account of the darkness that misleads him and deludes him.
The Upanishads attempt to give men a faint idea of the measure of that Brahma-ananda. The Taittiriya Upanishad assumes the height of human ananda as the unit for estimation. A person having all the wealth he desires, all the renown that man can earn, all the learning that can be gained, perfect health, perpetual youth, and undisputed sovereignty over the entire globe---his Ananda is an understandable base from which to proceed. A hundred times this Manushi-ananda is the Ananda of celestial singers (Gandharvas); a hundred times that is the Ananda of the souls of departed beings dwelling in heavenly regions. Hundred-fold of this is the Ananda of the divine entities (Ajanma-ja). A hundred times is the Ananda of the gods (Deva); the Lord of the Gods, Indra, is ever in Ananda that is a hundred times more than that of the Gods, Brhaspati, the preceptor of Indra, has Ananda a hundred times more than Indra; and Prajapathi, the Lord of Creatures, has a hundred-fold Ananda when compared to Brhaspati. Hiranyagarbha (the Cosmic Golden Manifestation) is the source of a hundred times more Ananda. The Supremest Ananda, the Brahma-Ananda, which is the characteristic of the Guru, is that of Hiranyagarbha.
Eliminate the ‘I’ to experience the Ananda
Man has the potency to elevate himself to this Ananda. Only he has to get rid of the obstacles that deny this experience. He is Brahmam and so his nature is Brahma-anandam. But, he does not know that all he believes he knows is known only as distorted or deluded. His waking experiences are as unreal and self-contrived as his dream experiences.
The I-sense, the ego, constructs the world it is after. It shatters the One into many and takes pride in deceiving itself. It reduces the Ananda by resorting to polluting desires and actions. When I is eliminated, Ananda is experienced fully. One becomes truly and genuinely One s Self when this I does not intrude. I sets one apart and establishes Dvaita (Duality). No I brings together and establishes Unity, One-without-a-second, Advaita (Non-dualism). I sense arises, persists and disappears. It is Kshara, liable to deteriorate. The One-without-a-second is A-Kshara, it is symbolised by Om, the Pranava, the Ever-alive. The Guru who is ever in this consciousness has Brahma-ananda. Such a one is the Guru to be sought.
Parama-sukhadam: The Guru grants the highest joy. What exactly constitutes this joy? Is it physical well-being? Mental poise? Intellectual alertness? Sharpness of the senses? No. The rishis declare that words return crestfallen after attempting to describe that state. Even the mind with its fast-moving wings of imagination cannot reach that state. The highest joy has its source and spring in the Atma, the spark of the Cosmic Splendour. The person who is ever aware of the Atma in him and in all is therefore the Sadguru.
Kevalam: Beyond all limitations of time and place the guru is pure chaithanya, Is-ness; his consciousness is all pervasive; that is to say, God alone is the Sadguru.
Jnana Murtim: What is meant by Jnana? ‘Advaita darsanam Jnanam ’: the awareness of the One, without a second, is Jnanam (the supreme wisdom). And the Sadguru is the embodiment of that wisdom, having unbroken experience of the One. Those who are commonly known as gurus are signposts, name boards. They have not travelled the entire journey and reached the goal. But the Jnanamurti is with you right through, beside you and before you, smoothing the path until the journey ends in him.
Dvandva atitam : The Sadguru is unaffected by the inevitable dualities of life: joy and grief, profit and loss, ridicule and respect.
Gaganasadrisham: Untouched by happenings and incidents but forming the perennial base, like the sky enveloping the nature.
Tatvamsyadi Lakshyam: The living exponent and experiencer of the four crucial axioms of the Vedic thought--That-tvam-asi (That Thou Art), Ayam Atma Brahma (The Self is verily Brahman), Aham Brahma asmi (I am Brahman) and Prajnanam Brahma (Consciousness is Brahman).
Ekam: The One; though apparently passing through varied experiences and even no experience while awake or dreaming and in deep sleep, The One is unaffected and remains as One--the guru is firmly established in the One.
Nityam: Eternal, untouched by time, the Sadguru is eternally pure, aware, serene.
Vimalam: Faultless, nothing can tarnish its purity. The Guru has no desire or sense of want. He is perfect.
Achalam: The Sadguru, which is another name meant for God, knows no change in his primal perfection, whatever form he may assume. The motion picture film projects 16 pictures a second on the screen in the cinema but they give transitory and counterfeit experiences. The Achalam is the unmoving screen.
Sarvadhee: All-pervasive, all-activating intelligence.
Sakshi Bhutam: That which has become the witness of everything, everywhere, like the sun which activates but is only witness of the activity.
Bhavaatitam: He is beyond all urges, emotions, feelings and thoughts.
Trigunarahitam: Not bound by the three modes of qualities that divide living beings into categories--the serene mode, the active mode and the dull. When bound, you are human, when you are free from entanglements and limiting characterisations, you are divine.
Sadgurum: The worthy Guru.
Tham: To Him
Namami: I offer my reverential homage. (SSS Vol.18)
The Guru who deserves homage must possess these attributes. This is only another way of saying that God alone can be the guide, the path and the goal. Gurus available for aspirants are themselves deluded into foggy paths and faltering faith. The genuine Guru must have overcome Maya and the ego; he must be free from desire and need. When a person yearns for some benefit or profit and is engaged in sadhana with that view, he cannot be accepted as Guru.
The verse which speaks of Guru as Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshvara is quoted often. But, the One has not broken into three, one part in charge of creation, another who fosters and maintains and the third who dissolves and destroys. The Pranava Mantra Om is symbol of the One; it is composed of three sounds A (as in far), U (as in push) and M (as in hum). Brahma is A, Vishnu is U and Shiva is M and all three are indivisibly united in Om.
The problem this verse poses is whether Guru is God or God is Guru. The answer is--God is Guru, the ever-present, ever compassionate, the Witness who resides in the heart. (SSS Vol.18)
‘Without a preceptor, all learning is blind.‘ To see your own eyes, you need a mirror; to see yourself in your native grandeur, you need a guru (preceptor). (SSS Vol.6, p. 22)
Who is fit to be a Guru and who is fit to be a shishya (disciple)? If we examine the Gita, we will know whether we are the ideal shishyas (disciples) or not. In the Bhagavad Gita Gita, the shishya is Narottama (the highest among men), the Guru is Purushottama (the Supreme Person); the shishya is a Mahatma (high-souled), the Guru is Paramatma (the Over-soul); the shishya is Adarsha-murti (an ideal person), the Guru is an Avatar-murti (incarnation of the Divine); the shishya is a Patradhara (an actor), the Guru is Sutradhara (the director of the play); the shishya is a Dhanurdhara (wielder of the bow), the Guru is Yogeshvara (the Lord of Yoga). It is this type of Guru-Shishya relationship which illustrates the ideal combination. (SSS Vol.17, p. 90)
The signs and qualities of a true Guru
The true Guru is one, who has no ego or selfishness, and who can raise the shishya to his own level. Donning the saffron robe, mouthing a few mantras (sacred formulas) and expounding some texts are the signs of many Gurus these days. The signs of a true Guru are large-heartedness, absolute selflessness, purity in living, freedom from acquisitiveness, absence of envy, and equal mindedness in his conduct towards everyone. Freedom from envy is an essential quality in a Guru or shishya, because envy is the root cause of many evils. The Guru s role is to lead the shishya on the Godward path. He must teach the true purpose for which each of his sense organs is to be used--his eyes, his tongue, and his limbs. All the senses are to be used for discovering and experiencing the Divine. (SSS Vol.17, p. 90)The pupil (shishya) has to sit near the Guru (Acharya) or Preceptor, paying steady attention to what is being communicated to him. Then only can he learn the fund of knowledge and the skill of discrimination. (Vidya Vahini, p. 3)
The great one who has the Atmic truth imprinted on the heart is alone to be accepted as the Guru. The individual who can welcome this Truth and is eager to know it, he alone is to be accepted as the Pupil. The seed must have the life principle latent in it. The field must be ploughed and made fit for the sowing. The spiritual harvest will be plentiful if both these conditions are fulfilled. The listener has to possess a clear receptive intellect, or else the philosophical principles that form the basis of Jnana will not be comprehended. The guru and the pupil both have to be of this stature. Others who have no such qualification or authority can only dabble and play about purposelessly in the spiritual field.
There are Gurus with far higher stature and far deeper capabilities than these learned and cultural masters. They are the Avatars, the Human Incarnations of God. They confer, by mere willing, the blessing of spiritual strength.
They command and by the very force of that command, the lowest of the low rises to the status of One who has attained the goal of spiritual sadhana (Siddhapurusha). Such persons are the Gurus of all gurus. They are the highest manifestations of God in the human form. . (Vidya Vahini)
An authentic Gurus, have the double qualification of gu and ru: gu. Guru (spiritual preceptor), who knows the Truth by experience and whose daily activities, words and thoughts reflect this realisation. The Guru is called so because the letter GU signifies Gunaatita---one who has transcended the three gunas (qualities)---the Tamasika, the Rajasika and even the Sattvika (ignorant passionate and virtuous); and the letter RU signifies one who is Rupa Varjita (one who has grasped the formless aspect of God-head (SSS Vol.1, p. 26) and who have transcended Form and Flavour, those who have merged in God, or the Atma Itself. It is only these who can help you to attain. (Divine Discourse on 29/7/1969 Guru purnima day Prashanthi Nilayam) Of course, he could come to that stage only through the sublimation of the lower into the higher qualities and the steady and conscious ignoring of the part played by mere name and form. In the preliminary stages of spiritual Sadhana, name, form and quality all have their part to play in the moulding of the spirit. The Guru destroys the illusion and sheds light; his presence is cool and comforting. (SSS Vol.1, pp. 26-27)
If you do not come across such preceptors, do not get downhearted; pray for guidance and from your own heart you will receive the Gita that you need from the Charioteer who is there. You can easily get plenty of preceptors the moment you seek; for, it has now become a profession, full of competing practitioners, each one trying to collect as many disciples, as much money, and as wide a reputation as he can. There are some who have developed swollen heads, while others suffer from short sight or bitterness or itching palm. How can persons challenging each other for dry disputations be revered as Gurus? When they do not possess, along with the elation of scholarship, the ecstasy of Divine Experience, they are not entitled to that holy mission He who seeks a Guru can find him in every word spoken within his hearing, in every incident that happens around him. (SSS Vol.9, pp. 76-77)
Guru-shishya relationship a cherished tradition of Bharatiya culture:
The sacred relationship between the guru (teacher) and the shishya (pupil) has been idealised in Bharat as in no other country. It has come down to us over the aeons as a cherished tradition. The words of the preceptor, at the time the pupils left the gurukulam (school in which shishyas live with their guru, serving him and learning from him) for their homes, were vibrant with meaning. ‘Worship your mother and father as God. Regard your teacher as God and receive your guest as God Himself’, (Matru Devo bhavah, Pitru Devo bhavah, Acharya Devo bhavah, Atithi Devo Bhavah), the guru would say.
‘Satyam vada, Dharmam chara’ (speak the truth and practise dharma). This is also one of the important aphorisms enunciated by the ancient gurus of India. It emphasises the importance of satya and dharma. Satya is the eternal, absolute and unchanging truth. Dharma is often translated as righteousness, but it is much more than that. Dharma is a power-packed term epitomising an entire philosophy and a way of life. It is the summum bonum of Indian ethics. A shishya or disciple is one who has grasped the content of satya and dharma by constant sadhana or spiritual practice. Satya and dharma sum up the code of conduct and scale of values explicated in the immortal scriptures of India. (SSB 1979, p. 170)
In the ancient hermitages (Gurukulams), after the pupil had finished his studies under the guru, the guru gave him such exalted advice as no pupil in any other country received from his master: ‘Matru Devo Bhava (May the mother be your God), Pithru Devo Bhava (May your father be your God) Acharya Devo Bhava (May your preceptor be your God), Satyam Vada (Speak the truth), Dharmam chara (Act righteously), No tarani Yanyasmaka Sucaritani Tani Tvayopasyan (Do not adopt other ways).’ These were the commands. ‘Stop all acts that are unrighteous. Engage yourselves only in such activities as would promote your progress.’ This was the advice. The Vedas and the Upanishads refer to these commands only when they lay down that we should utter Shanti, Shanti, Shantihi, praying for peace on earth.
The advice given to the pupils is, every bit of it, highly powerful. By his devoted service to his mother and father, Dharmavyadha won eternal fame. Through consistent adherence to Truth, Rama and Harishchandra made themselves immortal. By means of right conduct, mere men rose to the position of Mahapurushas. Buddha desisted from harm to living beings. He spoke of Ahimsa (non-violence) as ‘Paramo dharmah’ (the highest morality). So, he was revered as a world teacher. (Vidya Vahini)
Faith in the Guru:
The Sastras say:
Have faith in the doctor, so that you may get cured of illness;
Have faith in the Mantra (holy formula) with which the preceptor initiates you, for then alone can your sadhana be fruitful;
Have faith in the sacredness of the temple, for then alone is your pilgrimage profitable;
Have faith in the astrologer s predictions, for, without it, why bother yourselves with him and his abracadabra?
Have faith in the Guru, for then alone will your steps be steady and firm, on the path to self-realisation.
Faith in the Guru should bring faith in the Atma (true Self), or else, the Guru is a handicap. (SSS Vol.7, p. 79)
The Guru has very often to tell you that you have forgotten your real name or that you have lost the most precious part of yourself and yet are unaware of the loss. The Guru is the physician for the illness which brings about the suffering of alternate birth and death. He is an adept at the treatment needed for the cure. If you do not get such a Guru, pray to the Lord Himself to show you the way and He will surely come to your rescue. (SSS Vol.1, p. 27)
The guru is the person who discovers that you have fallen into a wrong road that leads to further and further darkness. For, he knows the fight road and he is full of love for all who strive to escape the travails of the night, without lamps to light their steps. This is a day when the First of Gurus is remembered with gratitude. He is called Narayana, because Narayana is the reality and if you do not get a Guru from outside yourself, if you pray, the Narayana inside you will Himself reveal the road and lead you on. It is always preferable to be prompted by that inner Guru, because most of those who claim to that status are themselves rolling in objective pleasure or are bound by greed, envy or malice. Guru also means heavy ; many have only the qualification of physical weight, not of spiritual height! (SSS Vol.5, p. 22)
God within is the Guru of Gurus
The study of texts might remove some wrong notions and induce some right resolutions. But it cannot confer the Vision of Reality. Meditation is the key to the Atmic treasure that is the real wealth of the individual. Meditation can progress and gain victory only when one wins the affection of great souls and obeys their instructions.
In fact, God, the God within, is the Guru of Gurus. His Grace can make the blind see, the lame walk and the dumb speak. By a mere touch, He can demolish the sins of the past and erect the basis for peace and joy. God can be adored, worshipped and even-imagined or pictured by man only in human form, so long as the consciousness as man persists, so long as man cannot escape from this necessity. How can he travel beyond his limits? He can visualise God only as man, with super-human or supra-human power, wisdom, love, compassion. He can never describe or delineate the formless, the attribute-less, the quality-less. It is only by means of form and attribute that one can pray, adore, worship or feel the presence. And the form has to be human. Little minds with no faith may argue that God cannot come as Man but in fact God can be recognised only as Man by human. This explains the statement, ‘Daivam manusha rupena’---’God through human form,’ found in the scriptures.
The sum total of spiritual experience is ‘Knowing oneself.’ This does not mean the knowledge of one s capabilities and skills, wants and wishes, strength and weakness. It means the knowledge of who one is, what one really is. Sankaracharya has summarised this knowledge in three lines--- Brahma satyam, jagat mithya, jivo brahmaiva naparah. Brahma Satyam (God is Truth), Jagath mithya (Creation is an illusion) and (the Jiva---the individual---is Brahma only, is God only, not else). Every become has its source in being. Being is God. God and the Individual are the undifferentiated One. So human-ness is holy; it is neither mean or low. It has the status of God, though clouded and contaminated. For this faith to strike deep roots in our minds and to keep us fixed in that belief, a guru is needed. (SSS Vol.14), 2 7- 7-1980.
(See – Atma, Brahma Vidya, Dasoham, Disciple, Education, Faith, Four Principles, God, Grace, Gratitude, Handicap, Identify, , Janaka. Learn, Nature, Padukas, Practice, Preceptor, Sampradaya, Self-Satisfaction, Shloka, Soham, Teacher, Unity, Useless, Winds)