Sad Guru
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In Sreemadbhagabat Geeta Sri Krishna says :
Yadaa Yadaa Hi Dharmasya Glaanirbhavati Bhaarata
Abhyutthaanam_adharmasya Tadaatmaanam Srijaamyaham
Whenever and whereever humanity suffers a religious decadence, God manifests Himself in the form of a Human Being to enable mortals to come closer to Him. He manifests in order to impart His teachings to us.
If He appears in any other form, it would never be possible for us to be close to Him. Being born as a mortal, He does not break His own rule i.e. He has to abide by the mortal afflictions, sorrows, etc. This rigorous discipline on His part is intended for our enlightment and knowledge.
In Indian theology significance of Guru is unquestioned. One who desires of spiritual enlargement, initiation from his SadGuru is the first and mandatory step. Till date no one could accomplish his spiritual thirst without the kripa (grace / blessing) of his Guru. Even though Sri Rama and Sri Krishna, both were incarnations of Lord Narayana, they had to take initiation from their respective Gurus in their mortal sojourn. Bashistha Muni was the Guru of Sri Rama and Sandip Muni was the Guru of Sri Krishna.
In Sreemadbhagabat Geeta Sri Krishna says :
Ya sashtrabidhimuttsrijja bortate kamakarata
Na sa siddhimabapnoti na sukham na parang gotim
Person who behaves at his own will violating the shastra (sacred writings; teachings and commandments), neither could he attain his siddhi (achievement, perfection, hidden power, a superior talent), peace of mind nor the Moksha (salvation, freedom from transmigration of life and death). If a person thinks that he will attain the Supreme Consciousness without the guidance of Sri Guru the Great, his dream will never be fulfilled.
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Adi Guru Sri Sankaracharya had stated in the beginning of the Vivekacudamani :
“Durlabham trayameva etat devanugraha - hetukam
manushyatvam mudmukshutvam-purusha-samsargah”
There are three things are hard to obtain without God's Grace. They are
(1) birth as a human being,
(2) desire to know the truth and to get liberated and
(3) the attainment of the holy Guru.
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In Guru Gita says about the word Guru : The syllable gu means darkness, ru means light. Guru is that Supreme Divinity which destroys ignorance and enlighten us with supreme consciousness.
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Guru is Brahma, The Guru is Vishnu again the Guru is Lord Maheshwara. The Guru is actually the Supreme Divinity, and all other expressions are links in the chain which bring us close to that realization. Through all the teachers, guides, inspirations, examples, of every realm of heaven and earth, the principle of Guru is what has shown forth.
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Guru is not merely a human being. He is the embodiment of that Supreme Consciousness, The God. Guru works like a magnifying glass. Like a magnifying glass converge the beam of sun rays at a particular point, Guru focuses the flow of Supreme Consciousness into His disciples.
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Our scripture says :
Sa purvesham api guruh
Kaalena-anavacchedaat
For all people at all ages, the Guru is only ONE. He is the God. His existence is beyond the corporal limits. He is free from any limitation, any discrimination. He is like the firmament - formless & beyond any attributes of the trigunah. His corporeal framework is just a resort for the devotees to aim & attain the Absolute.
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Tulsidas says :
Sadguru paoey bhed bataoey gyan karey upadesh
Tab kaila ki maila chhute jaoye aag kare parabesh
Sadguru infuses the power in the disciple to distinguish between the eternal & the perishable. He makes such arrangements that the disciple is able to feel the insignificance of all sensual experiences. As - when properly instigated - a piece of coal turns radiant & hot, the human soul in the disciple can also unite with the Absolute when the powers of Sadguru destroys the indomitable 'self'.
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Guru is Absolute, He is the Supreme. There can never be your Guru & my Guru. He is the same. And so is the Gurupranam mantra (the hymns to worship the Guru) is same for all sects of Sadhana . No one can ignore the Guruparampara (lineage of advent of the Guru).
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The Supreme consciousness is present within all of us - although not completely expressed. In the corporeal abode of Sri Guru, there rests the Absolute in full vigor, fully expressed. This repository of Supreme is subject of our prostration. The physical form of Guruji is the first resort of a young practitioner for concentrating his mind during meditation. Next, in deep meditation, this physical form dissolves into an astral & self-luminous form - the real form of Guru, the Great. At the end of the meditation as mind again descends to the material world, the object of worship is again the physical form of Sri Guru. He alights from the highest state of existence, to elevate the disciple to such a state. His only aspiration is to see his sons & daughters firmly positioned in the world of immortality.
Seekers of immortality should be aware about the matters to be disposed with Sri Guru with their initiation. Scriptures are eloquent about this - " a disciple should surrender his mortal physique (tanu), mind (man), property (bitta) & words (bani) to the maximum possible. Sacrifice of one's mortal physique means to obey the directions of one's Gurudeva. Sacrifice of one's mind means the ability to behold his Guru as the incarnation of Supreme. Praising the greatness & recalling the words of Sri Guruji at every moment of life as well as considering one's wealth and intellectual excellence as a gift of his Guru is known as surrendering one's property and words.
The individual mind being in tune with the enjoyable & perishable materialistic aspects remains extrovert & wayward, confusing his identity completely in the corporeality. So the disciple's sole aim should be to get his mind totally entwined at the feet of Sri Guru. And then starts the relentless work of Sadguru to bring up the disciple to the level of his own accomplishment.
A disciple should not consider himself to have properly associated with Sri Guruji only by getting a formal initiation. Till the intimacy grows to cover the heart & thoughts with a sense of divinity, proper assimilation remains unachieved. With the sacred power of Sri Guru gradually engulfing the disciple, he fails to see any shortcomings in his Guru. Every act, every word of Sri Guruji manifests in the disciple's heart as emanating from & loathed with divinity. In the materialistic life also, He is to be looked up as an incarnation of the Supreme.
Guru is one's only friend in life & death. He is the ultimate reality from whom the world emerges, takes repose or gets immersed. A disciple should have no doubt that He has appeared in physical form out of sheer love & grace. Only self-surrender at His feet can culminate our lives to its highest possibility.
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