" Attain this knowledge by all means; if you prostrate yourself at the feet of the wise, render them all forms of service and question them with a guileless heart again and again, those wise seers of Truth will unfold that wisdom to you. "
The necessity of a guru, a man of God - realization, is felt by all seekers after reality. Even in material matters, the necessity of a teacher is felt; how much more it shuld be in the case of spirituality for the path is very subtle. "Who can show the way except the guru? " asks Kabir. In the ocean of rebirth, lust and rage are two big rocks through which the boat of life cannot pass unscathed. The thieves of greediness are waiting to steal the spiritual wealth of an individual. There will be sharp showers of arrogance and jealousy and the hurricane of illusion, which overturns the ship. Guru alone knows the proper way to escape these dangers and reach the other shore, for he has already reached the other shore. He has come, out of compassion, to take others across the ocean of samsara, the cycle of birth and death.
Spiritual initiation is a necesary factor in the path of spirituality. During such an initiation, a spiritual power is transmitted from the guru to the disciple. One who receives such transmitted power is a disciple and one who transmits it is a guru. This power is very subtle but powerful. It clears the doubt, extinguishes confusion, settles the mind and enables the disciple to reach stability and equanimity. He finds his safety in the benign smile of the guru, like the young of the kangaroo finds safety in the pouch of its mother. He could stare at death without any fear, for he has reached immortality by the all-encompassing love and perfection from the guru.
Guru purifies understading. The vrittis(the deformities of the mind) subside and the mind resides, as it were, in the higher realms of consciousness.Evil thoughts dare not approach the disciple who is steadfast in his devotion to the guru. He feels the presence of his guru everywhere and at all times. Sant Tukaram says, " Guru makes his disciple one like him. Even though the preparation takes a little time on the part of the disciple, it takes no time for the guru to enter into the disciple to make him one like him." He says he cannot compare the guru to the philosopher's stone or the touch stone which only turns the metal into gold. Guru makes his disciple one like him or another touchstone.
Groping in darkness, one can never reach the light. Light will come from one who is flodded with it. By the grace of the guru, impossibilities become possibilities and future possibilities become very near ones. The dull and slow evolution gets compressed and that which has to be attained after many lives is at hand to the disciple now. He feels immense joy due to the wide skies of ananda (bliss) where he can fly with wings of devotion and wisdom. He attains the power to say yes to good thoughts and no to the bad ones. He can never be compelled to any sinful deeds and is never attracted towards phantasms. Life, which was boredom, becomes a life of freedom for he has attained the Kingdom of God within. All this was possible due to the grace of guru who took the disciple slowly to the inner chambers of his own heart and showed him the goal of life, which is God.
Guru is the vertable treasure house containing rubies of wit and humor and emeralds of truth and divine grandeur. He is deep and sublime but simple and approachable. He is a fire burning the bad karma of his devotees. Guru has the greatness of water to purify and quench the parched thirst of his disciples.He punishes through his silence and teaches his action.His ways are as mysterious as the ways of the God whom he has realized. His grace oozes forth through the pores of his body and shines through his lustrous eyes. " It is impossible to attain mukti(emancipation) without the grace of guru," says purandardas. A man might be well versed in all the scriptures. He might have renounced the world and might have crucified his flesh, but truth is revealed only to him who has become the slave to be the great master.
The guru looks after his disciples like his own children. He has a responsibility towards the spiritual upliftment of his disciples. He always remembers them as the mother cow her calf or the mother bird her young ones. The very remembrance makes the disciple fell the immense strength of the infinite compassion of the guru.
Unconditional surrender is the key towards success in life divine. Nobody can set a time limit for realization - it can be immediate or after many years. But it will certainly be given according to the intensity on the part of the disciple or according to the will of God to give him an instantaneous illumination. Due to the conscious loving service, proper ground is prepared in the heart and mind of the disciple. He is purified. Seeing the right time, the guru will summon the disciple to his chambers and whisper in the cavity of his ears the great secret of OM. Even though the Word, as a word, the disciple has heard or read many a time, this invaluable and glorious truth vision will be revealed to him only during the imparting of OM by the guru at the auspicious moment. Thereafter, the disciple becomes calm and serene. The insurmountable difficulties that he had in conquering anger, enimity and other qualities are transformed into divine love and great compassion. He finds in every word a deeper depth and a higher height. In other words he becomes Immortal. What is the price of immortality? Therefore, he remains indebted to the spiritual Master forever and ever. Such is the power of the grace of the spiritual perceptor.
source shirdisaibaba.com
OM SAI SRI SAI JAYA JAYA SAI!!!
Let us pray at the feet of Sai Baba who is the incarnation of all gods and protector of all, to show mercy on us, and increase our devotion towards him.
Topic: The necessity of a guru (Read 1198 times)