Guru Purnima

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THE

FULL moon day in the month of Ashad (July-August) is an extremely auspicious

and holy day of Guru Purnima. On this day, sacred to the memory of the great

sage, Bhagavan Sri Vyasa, Sannyasins settle at some place to study and

discourse on the thrice-blessed Brahma Sutras composed by Maharishi Vyasa, and

engage themselves in Vedantic, philosophical investigation.

 

Sri

Vyasa has done unforgettable service to humanity for all times by editing the

four Vedas, writing the eighteen Puranas, the Mahabharata and the Srimad

Bhagavata. We can only repay the deep debt of gratitude we owe him, by constant

study of his works and practice of his teachings imparted for the regeneration

of humanity in this iron age. In honour of this divine personage, all spiritual

aspirants and devotees perform Vyasa Puja on this day, and disciples worship

their spiritual preceptor. Saints, monks and men of God are honoured and

entertained with acts of charity by all the householders with deep faith and

sincerity. The period Chaturmas (the “four months”) begins from this day;

Sannyasins stay at one place during the ensuing four rainy months, engaging in

the study of the Brahma Sutras and the practice of meditation.

 

Mark

fully the deep significance of this great day. It heralds the setting in of the

eagerly awaited rains. The water drawn up and stored as clouds in the hot

summer now manifests in plentiful showers that usher in the advent of fresh

life everywhere. Even so, all begin seriously to put into actual practice all

the theory and philosophy that have been stored up in them through patient

study. Aspirants commence or resolve to intensify with all earnestness, their

practical spiritual Sadhana right from this day.

 

Generate fresh waves of spirituality.

Let all that you have read, heard, seen and learnt become transformed, through

Sadhana, into a continuous outpouring of universal love, ceaseless loving

service, and continuous prayer and worship of the Lord seated in all beings.

 

Live

on milk and fruit on this day and practise rigorous Japa and meditation. Study

the Brahma Sutras and do Japa of your Guru Mantra, during the four months

following the Guru Purnima. You will be highly benefited.

 

The

day of worship of one’s preceptor, is a day of pure joy to the sincere

spiritual aspirant. Thrilled by the expectation of offering his reverent homage

to the beloved Guru, aspirants await this occasion with eagerness and devotion.

It is the Guru alone that breaks the binding cords of attachment and releases

the aspirant from the trammels of earthly existence.

 

The

Srutis say: “To that high-souled aspirant, whose devotion to the Lord is great

and whose devotion to his Guru is as great as that to the Lord, the secrets

explained herein become illuminated”. Guru is Brahman, the Absolute, or God

Himself. He guides and inspires you from the innermost core of your being. He

is everywhere.

 

Have

a new angle of vision. Behold the entire universe as the form of the Guru. See

the guiding hand, the awakening voice, the illuminating touch of the Guru in

every object in this creation. The whole world will now stand transformed

before your changed vision. The world as Guru will reveal all the precious

secrets of life to you, and bestow wisdom upon you. The supreme Guru, as

manifested in visible nature, will teach you the most valuable lessons of life.

 

 

Worship daily this Guru of Gurus, the

Guru who taught even the Avadhuta Dattatreya. Dattatreya, regarded as God and

the Guru of Gurus, considered Nature Herself as His Guru, and learnt a number

of lessons from Her twenty-four

creatures, and hence he is said to have had twenty-four Gurus. The silent,

all-enduring earth with its lofty forbearance, the shady fruit-bearing tree

with its willing self-sacrifice, the mighty banyan tree reposing with patience

in the tiny seed, the drops of rain whose persistence wears away even the

rocks, the planets and the seasons with their orderly punctuality and

regularity were all divine Gurus to him. They who will look and listen, will

learn.

 

Become

a personification of receptivity. Empty yourself of your petty ego. All the

treasures locked up in the bosom of Nature will become yours. You will progress

and attain perfection in an amazingly short time. Become pure and unattached as

the mountain breeze. As the river flows continuously, steadily and constantly

towards its goal, the ocean, so also let your life flow ceaselessly towards the

supreme state of absolute Existence-Knowledge-Bliss, by letting all your

thoughts, all your words and all your actions be directed only towards the goal.

 

The

moon shines by reflecting the dazzling light of the sun. It is the full moon on

the Purnima day that reflects in full splendour the glorious light of the sun.

It glorifies the sun. Purify yourself through the fire of selfless service and Sadhana, and like the

full moon, reflect the glorious light of the Self. Become the full reflectors

of Brahmic splendour, the light of lights. Make this your goal: “I will be a

living witness to divinity, the brilliant Sun of suns!”

 

The Supreme Self alone is real. He is

the Soul of all. He is all-in-all. He is the essence of this universe. He is

the unity that never admits of a duality under all the varieties and

diversities of nature. Thou art this immortal, all-pervading, all-blissful

Self. Thou art That! Realise this and be free.

 

Remember

these four important lines of the Brahma Sutras:

 

1. Athatho brahma

jijnasaa—Now, therefore, the enquiry of Brahman.

 

2. Janmasya

yathah—From which proceed the origin, etc.

 

3. Sastra yonitwat—The

scriptures are the means of right knowledge.

 

4. Tat tu

samanvayat—For, That is the main support (of the universe).

 

Jaya

Guru Shiva Guru Hari Guru Ram;

Jagad

Guru Param Guru Sat Guru Shyam.

 

It

is through the medium of the preceptor that the individual can raise himself to

Cosmic-Consciousness. It is through that medium that the imperfect can become

perfect, the finite can become infinite and the mortal can pass into the

eternal life of blessedness. The Guru is verily a link between the individual

and the Immortal. He is a being who has raised himself from this to That and

thus has a free and unhampered access to both realms. He stands, as it were,

upon the threshold of immortality, and, bending down, he raises the struggling

individuals with his one

hand,

and with the other, lifts them up into the kingdom of everlasting joy and

infinite Truth-Consciousness.

 

Do

you realise now the sacred significance and the supreme importance of the

Guru’s role in the evolution of man? It was not without reason that the India

of the past carefully tended and kept alive the lamp of Guru-Tattva. It is therefore not without reason that

India, year after year, age after age, commemorates anew this ancient concept of

the Guru, adores it and pays homage to it again and again, and thereby

re-affirms its belief and allegiance to it. For, the true Indian knows that the

Guru is the only guarantee for the individual to transcend the

bondage

of sorrow and death, and experience the Consciousness of the Reality.

 

Give

up the delusive notion that to submit to the preceptor, to obey him and to

carry out his instructions, is slavish mentality. Only the ignorant man thinks

that it is beneath his dignity and against his freedom to submit to another

man’s command. This is a grave blunder. If you reflect carefully, you will see

that your individual freedom is in reality an absolute abject slavery to your

own ego and vanity. It is the vagary of the sensual mind. He who attains

victory over the mind and the ego is the truly free man. He is the hero. It is

to attain this victory that a man submits to the higher, spiritualised

personality of the Guru. By this submission he vanquishes his lower ego and

realises the bliss and freedom of the infinite Consciousness.

 

To

strengthen and affirm the faith of the wavering man and to guarantee the

attitude that is necessary for the fruition of all worship, the ancients have

deified the personality of the Guru. To adore the Guru is indeed to adore the

Supreme. In this world of mortality, the Guru is verily like an ambassador in

an alien court. Just as an ambassador represents fully the nation to which he

belongs, even so, the Guru is one who is the representative of the sublime transcendental state which

he has attained. Just as to honour the ambassador is to honour the nation

that

he hails from, even so to worship and to offer adoration to the visible Guru is

verily the direct worship and adoration of the Supreme Reality. Even as a

distant tree though it cannot be seen is nevertheless known by the fragrance

its fully-bloomed flowers waft far and wide, so also, the Guru is the divine

flower who disseminates the Atmic

aroma of divinity in this world, and thus proclaims the immortal Lord who is

invisible to the physical eye.

 

 

He

is the standing witness to the Supreme Self, the counterpart of the Lord

on earth, and through worship of him one attains the Self.

 

Remember

and adore Sri Vyasa and the Gurus who are fully established in knowledge of the

Self. May their blessings be upon you! May you cut asunder the knot of

ignorance and shine as blessed sages shedding peace, joy and light everywhere!

 

At

the Sivananda Ashram, Rishikesh, the Guru Purnima is celebrated every year on a

grand scale. Many devotees and aspirants come from all parts of the country.

 

1. All aspirants awake at Brahmamuhurta,

at 4 o’clock. They meditate on the Guru and chant his prayers.

 

2. Later in the day, the sacred worship of

the Guru’s Feet is performed. Of this worship it is said in the Guru Gita:

 

Dhyaana

moolam guror murtih;

Pooja

moolam guror padam;

Mantra

moolam guror vakyam;

Moksha moolam

guror kripa

 

“The Guru’s form should be meditated upon;

the feet of the Guru should be worshipped; his words are to be treated as a

sacred Mantra; his Grace ensures final liberation”.

 

3. Sadhus and

Sannyasins are then worshipped and fed at noon.

 

4. There is continuous Satsang during

which discourses are held on the glory of devotion to the Guru in particular,

and on spiritual topics in general.

 

5. Deserving aspirants are initiated into

the Holy Order of Sannyas, as this is a highly auspicious occasion.

 

6. Devout disciples fast and spend the

whole day in prayer. They also take fresh resolves for spiritual progress.

 

Wake

up at Brahmamuhurta (at 4 a.m.) on this most holy day. Meditate on the lotus

feet of your Guru. Mentally pray to him for his Grace, through which alone you

can attain Self-realisation. Do vigorous Japa and meditate in the early morning

hours.

 

After

bath, worship the lotus feet of your Guru, or his image or picture with

flowers, fruits, incense and camphor.

 

Fast

or take only milk and fruits the whole day.

 

In

the afternoon, sit with other devotees of your Guru and discuss with them the

glories and teachings of your Guru.

 

Alternatively,

you may observe the vow of silence and study the books or writings of your

Guru, or mentally reflect upon his teachings.

 

Take

fresh resolves on this holy day, to tread the spiritual path in accordance with

the precepts of your Guru.

 

At

night, assemble again with other devotees, and sing the Names of the Lord and

the glories of your Guru.

 

The

best form of worship of the Guru is to follow his teachings, to shine as the

very embodiment of his teachings, and to propagate his glory and his message.