Guest guest Posted July 2, 2004 Report Share Posted July 2, 2004 Who is a Guru? Our very first Guru is our own MOther who gives us birth. A child is reciting the 'so-ham' mantra even as a fetus in the mother's womb. It is from the mother , the child learns about the World and the environment right from its cradle days. The first five years are very imoprtant in a child's life, psychologists say! These are the FORMATIVE YEARS. The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world. Gandhiji says much of his 'interest' in spirituality was due to his mother's influence on his life during his early childhood. . Abhimanyu learned about the 'science of warfare' while he was still in his mother's womb. we all know how he knew how to get into the 'chakravyuha' in the enemy's camp but did not know how to get out of it and died as a result! do you think a formal guru would have helped here? and then of course , we have Ashtavakra who listened to his father's spiritual discourses while still in his mother's womb. So much so that at one point of time, the baby from the womb spoke up and corrected the mistakes in his father's presntation. The father cursed the baby and the baby was born 'crooked' and 'bent' in eight places. ( ashta-eight, vakra- crooked and bent) ! A famous hindu verse goes like this ... Mata Pita acharya devo bhavaha! MOTHER, FATHER AND GURU ARE GODS THEMSELVES. We all know the story of KARTHIKEYA AND GANESHA where GaneshA circled his parents Parvati and Parameshwera three times on his little mouse and won the prize. adi shankara sings in his Annapurnashtakam stotra Mata cha parvati devi pita devo maheshvarah Bandhavah shivabhaktashcha svadesho bhuvanatrayamh Goddess Parvati is my mother. God Maheshvara is my father. All devotees of Siva are my family. All three worlds are my home. Where does the Guru FIT in this scheme of things? Our spiritual birth occurs only when we approach a self-realized guru! there is a hindi saying which goes like this This is subtly illustrated by another famous verse known to all Hindus: Guru Govind donu khade, kisko laagu paay, Balihari Gurudevaki jinhe Govind diyo bataay. The Guru and Govind(God) are present before me, to whom shall I bow down first? Glory to the Guru since he showed me Govind. yes, the key phrase is one who leads you to God/govinda! Please, read the famous verse from srimad bhagvat gita on the group page tadviddhi praNipaatena pariprashnena sevayaa . upadekShyanti te GYaanaM GYaaninastattvadarshinaH .. Bhagavad-Gita 4:34 Learn that by humble reverence, by inquiry and by service. The sages who have seen the truth will instruct thee in wisdom. The key phrases are 1) by submissive inquiry in a mode of humility 2) service 3) one who has seen the TRUTH (TATTWA DARSHANA) ! AND that is the key phrase -Tattwa Darshna - one who has seen the 'truth' or realized the truth! The following sloka describes the true qualities of Guru... Brahmaanandham Parama Sukhadam Kevalam Jnaana Murthim Dhvandhvaa Theetham Gagana Sadhrisham Tathvam Asyaadi Lakshyam Ekam Nithyam Vimalam Achalam Sarvadhee Saakshi Bhutham Bhavaatheetham Thriguna Rahitham Sadhgurum Tham Namaami. Meaning: This sloka tries to describe the qualities of a true Guru. A real Guru has the following qualities. He experiences the supreme Bliss of Brahmaananda (transcedental divine bliss). He enjoys and confers changeless supreme happiness. He is beyond space and time (there is nothing higher than him). He is the embodiment of wisdom which is the basis for all types of knowledge. He transcends the pair of opposites (such as happiness and sorrow, gain and loss). He is more Omnipresent than space itself. He is the very embodiment of the Divine principle, which is the inner meaning of the four great pronouncements Prajnaanam Brahma, Aham Brahmasmi, Thath Thvam Asi and Ayam Aathma Brahma. He is One without a second (ekam). He never changes under any circumstances (nithyam). He is without any type of impurity (vimalam). He is steady and motionless(achalam). He is the witness of everything. He transcends mental comprehension and verbal explanation. He is beyond the three gunas (sathva, rajas and thamas). I offer my humble salutations to such a Guru who possesses all these qualities. Even a great saint like Adi Shankara received spiritual instruction from a Guru! the very first verse in Viveka Chudamani reads sarva-ved'ànta-siddh'ànta-gocaraü tam agocaram gov'indaü param'ànandaü sad-guruü praõato'smy aham. 1 I prostrate myself before Govinda, the true Guru and ultimate Bliss, who is the unattainable resort of all scriptures and Vedanta. AND FOLKS, HERE THERE IS A PLAY ON THE WORD "GOVINDA" for adi shankara's real guru's name was Govindapada and Govinda also IS NAME for lord Krishna. Point is GURU IS GOD IN HUMAN FORM! But, do you seek the GURU or the Guru seeks you out? When you are Ready, the guru appears! Till then, what do you do? Medidate On Lord Dakshinamurthy, the guru of all gurus! vaTaviTapisamiipe bhuumibhaage nishhaNNaM sakalamunijanaanaaM GYAnadaataaramaaraat.h . tribhuvanagurumiishaM dakshiNaamuurtidevaM jananamaraNaduHkhachchhedadakshaM namaami .. I offer my profound salutations to Shri maha dakshinamurti, the remover of the worldly (samasric) bonds binding us, Who is to be meditated upon as the one sitting under a banyan tree and bestowing knowledge (GYana)instantly on all the sages (and the devoted disciples). Meditate on sree 'Dakshinamurthy' (sree Lalita Devi herself is described as 'dakshinamurthyrupa-swarupini' -she is your indwelling guru) and He will show you the way. Once , a disciple asked Shri Ramana who his Guru is, shri Ramana replied Lord ARUNACHALA himself appeared to him in a dream and advised him to take shelter at his feet in Thiruvannamalai! Shri Ramana himself says after self-realization who is the Guru and who is the sisya- they merge into one!!! The great theosophist J.Krishnamurthy discourages the concept of Guru and only believes in the term 'waypointer' -marga darshaka!! true! Unless the student is ready , no guru can accomplish any miracles. THIS IS A VAST AND FASCINATING SUBJECT...one can go on and on. Adi shankara says in his famous Guruvashtakam "The Vedas with their six auxiliaries and knowledge of sciences may be on the one's lips; one may have the gift of poesy; and may compose good prose and poetry; but if one's mind be not attached to the lotus feet of the Guru, what thence, what thence, what thence, what thence?" Take our beloved kenji for instance! do you think he could have written that brilliant exposition on Rig Veda WITHOUT THE GRACE OF HIS ATMA GURU, Anandamoyi maa and Sree Saraswati devi! Kalidasa himself became a great Poet only because of the grace and benediction of Matangi devi who spoke through him in the famous 'Shymala Dandakam'? and adi shankara himself says at the end of Saundarya lahari in the last sloka that he was just the instrument and it was Devi herself who spoke through him! GURU AND GOD/ESS- it is their grace and mercy that directs us on the spiritual path and that is why tantriks address Guru as Gurudeva ! gurur-brahmA gurur-vishNuH gurur-devo maheSvaraH; gurus-sAkshAt param brahma tasmai SrI gurave namaH. The guru is Brahma, the guru is Vishnu, the guru is deva Maheshvara. Clearly the guru is the supreme Brahman, to that Shri Guru hails - (please read professor v.krishnamurthy's wonderful explanation of this sloka in his website science and spirituality) Because the guru gives mantra to a disciple and because she or he embodies the spirit and life of that mantra in an unbroken lineage to the Rishi who first perceived it, she or he is held in the utmost regard in the tantrik tradition. According to the 13th chapter of the influential Kularnava Tantra, there is no difference between devata, mantra and guru. "Devata in truth is the same as mantra; mantra in truth is the same as the guru. The fruit of the worship of the devata, mantra and guru is the same." Sage Vyasa is the Adi Guru! It is he who has given us the Vedas, puranas, Mahabharata etc... and Shankarcharya gave us the wonderful treatises on those vedic texts and commentaries on Gita, brahma sutras etc... on this day, join me in this Guru Vandana ... Sankaram Sankaracharyam Kesavam Badarayanam; Sutra-Bhashya-Kritau Vande Bhagavantau Punah Punah I adore Lord Siva, Lord Vishnu, Bhagavan Vyasa and Sri Sankaracharya. I again and again prostrate to Sri Vyasa who wrote the Vedanta Sutras, and to Sri Sankaracharya who wrote the commentaries thereon (Guru Vandanam). For the recitation of the Vishnu Sahasranama, the author sage Vyasa is to be invoked first as the 'Rishi' special. In fact, Vyasa is an incarnation of Lord Narayana Himself. vyaasaaya vishhNu-roopaaya vyaasa roopaaya vishhNave | namo vai brahma nidhaye vaasishhThaaya namo namaH || \ and one of the names of Lord Vishnu is 'Agranih' one who leads us forward! so, THERE YOU HAVE IT! on this day of Gu- ru ( one who removes darkness ) . let us offer manasika prayers to 1) Adi Shankara bhagvadapada- Jagadguru 2) SHRI RAMANA MAHARISHI -THE MAUNA GURU 3) Shri Ramanuja and Shri Madhavacharya 4) Shri RAMAKRISHNA PARAMAHAMSA 5) SHRI AUROBINDO 6) NARAYANA GURU 6) RAGHAVENDRA SWAMI AND of course kanchi paramacharya ! AND SALUTATIONS to a host of other upagurus who lead us in the path of spirituality! Hara Hara Shankara ! Jaya Jaya Shankara! AUM NAMO MAHA-TRIPURASUNDARAYAII NAMAHA! jai Gurudeva! ( saadar pranaams to my own manasika Guru braHman- shakti) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 2, 2004 Report Share Posted July 2, 2004 advaitin, "adi_shakthi16" <adi_shakthi16> wrote: > Who is a Guru? Namaste, Thank you for the anthology on the glory of Guru. The Guru Gita extols this further: The Guru can potect one even the wrath of god Shankara! But from the Guru's wrath, even Shankara is helpless to protect!! Therefore, surrender to the Guru in every way you can. Regards, Sunder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 2, 2004 Report Share Posted July 2, 2004 thank you kindly, sunder-ji! you write one para > The Guru can potect one even the wrath of god Shankara! > But from the Guru's wrath, even Shankara is helpless to protect!! > Therefore, surrender to the Guru in every way you can. and it is worth a Thousand words! yes... Even if one lacks scriptural knowledge he/her can still attain liberation just with the help of his/her 'her devotion to his guru. we all know of Shankara's disciple Totaka -he was toidiculed by other disciples for his 'slowess' and lack of 'intelligence' but Shankara took Totaka under his wings and mentored him. here is verse from Totashtakam which totaka composed to honor his guru, ADi shankara! Totaka pleads with all humility I have neither understood even one branch of knowledge clearly, nor do I possess any wealth, O Guru . Quickly bestow on me the compassion which is natural to You . O Preceptor Shankara, be my refuge. YES! a bhava of 'surrender or sharanagati is very important while approaching the lotus feet of Guru! Why was shri hanuman able to cross the ocean on e one giant leap ? because he had only 'Sri Rama nama ' ON HIS LIPS! "Na guroradhikam tatvam, Na guroradhikam tapah Na guroradhikam jnanam Tasmai Sri Gurave namah" There is no philosophy higher than the Guru. There is no tapas higher than the guru. There is no knowledge higher than the guru. My pranams to such esteemed Gurudeva! Guys, this is my favvirite topic! sorry for getting carried away! Guru is Shiva sans his three eyes, Vishnu sans his four arms Brahma sans his four heads. He is parama Shiva himself in human form" ............................... ............~ Brahmanda Puran AND guess what! Guru is like ' moonlight on a dark night!' the moonlight falls on a dirty waters of pond as well as on the pristine waters of the river Ganges! but is it the fault of the moonlight if the 'reflection of the moonlight' in the dirty pond is not as crystal clear as in the pristine water of the river ganges? so, to be a good disciple also one needs 'qualifications' ! Ekalavya never had a formal guru ! dronacharya would have never accepted Ekalavya as his diciple. By just concentrating on the stone statue of his Guru Dronacharya , EKALAVYA through Shradda (devotion) and dedication acquired supermacy in the art of 'archery' and was able to even surpass ARjuna in this vidya! this is called'Guri' - eka chitta - steadfast concentration!!! AUM SHRI GURAVE NAMAHA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 Namaste Continuing on the discussion regarding Guru Purnima I wish to bring the group's attenion to the following web-site (http://www.yogamalika.org/yogahome.html) and a speech titled "What is Faith?" by Swami Paramarthananda delivered on Guru Purnima day. As some of you on the forum may already know, Swami Paramarthananda is well-known as a erudite, lucid and superb exponent of our scriptures (in English), very closely following Sankara's interpretation. The yoga malika folks have done a great job by posting His Uddhava Gita and Gita classes on the net as audio files as soon they happen in Madras. He also discusses 'generic' topics on New Year, Guru Purnima day etc - you can check them out using the link. Swamiji presents a profound and deeper understanding of Shraddha in this year's speech, questioning our understanding of it, compares and contrasts modern science's interpretaion of faith etc. I am sure you will enjoy it! regards Sundar Rajan advaitin, "adi_shakthi16" <adi_shakthi16> wrote: > thank you kindly, sunder-ji! > > you write one para > > > > The Guru can potect one even the wrath of god Shankara! > > But from the Guru's wrath, even Shankara is helpless to protect!! > > Therefore, surrender to the Guru in every way you can. > > > and it is worth a Thousand words! > > yes... > > Even if one lacks scriptural knowledge he/her can still attain > liberation just with the help of his/her 'her devotion to his guru. > > we all know of Shankara's disciple Totaka -he was toidiculed by other > disciples for his 'slowess' and lack of 'intelligence' but Shankara > took Totaka under his wings and mentored him. > > here is verse from Totashtakam which totaka composed to honor his > guru, ADi shankara! > > Totaka pleads with all humility > > I have neither understood even one branch of knowledge clearly, nor > do I possess any wealth, O Guru . Quickly bestow on me the compassion > which is natural to You . O Preceptor Shankara, be my refuge. > > YES! a bhava of 'surrender or sharanagati is very important while > approaching the lotus feet of Guru! Why was shri hanuman able to > cross the ocean on e one giant leap ? because he had only 'Sri Rama > nama ' ON HIS LIPS! > > > "Na guroradhikam tatvam, > > Na guroradhikam tapah > > Na guroradhikam jnanam > > Tasmai Sri Gurave namah" > > There is no philosophy higher than the Guru. There is no tapas higher > than the guru. There is no knowledge higher than the guru. My pranams > to such esteemed Gurudeva! > > Guys, this is my favvirite topic! sorry for getting carried away! > > Guru is Shiva sans his three eyes, > Vishnu sans his four arms > Brahma sans his four heads. > He is parama Shiva himself in human form" > .............................. ............~ Brahmanda Puran > > AND guess what! > > Guru is like ' moonlight on a dark night!' > > the moonlight falls on a dirty waters of pond as well as on the > pristine waters of the river Ganges! but is it the fault of the > moonlight if the 'reflection of the moonlight' in the dirty pond is > not as crystal clear as in the pristine water of the river ganges? > so, to be a good disciple also one needs 'qualifications' ! > > Ekalavya never had a formal guru ! dronacharya would have never > accepted Ekalavya as his diciple. By just concentrating on the stone > statue of his Guru Dronacharya , EKALAVYA through Shradda (devotion) > and dedication acquired supermacy in the art of 'archery' and was > able to even surpass ARjuna in this vidya! this is called'Guri' - eka > chitta - steadfast concentration!!! > > AUM SHRI GURAVE NAMAHA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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