Guest guest Posted January 31, 2004 Report Share Posted January 31, 2004 that's an inspiring distinction. one of the hallmarks of ramakrishna is he continuously referred to himself as a devotee. this is really very beautiful, in some ways even more beautiful than the advaita identification with god and self. peace, s , gaurav singh <gaurav_singh12> wrote: > hi , > > The basic difference between a devotee and a disciple is that in a society , there can be no of cultured people but only few are mad and those ( mad people) can be termed as devotee. > > The essence is that anyone can be a disciple but devotees are few who after crossing the stage of disciple has lost there entity ( identity ) and now is only reffered by the name of their Guru / God. > > " Saint Kabir said : Jab Dekha Taab Gawa , Taab Maan Dheraj Pawa " > means When I saw that Divine ( God) then only I got satisfied and told the world about his grace." > > So the essence is in Practically Realising God, which is very much possible" > Bible " Search and you will find it, Seek and you will know him , Ask and you will be told " > Now the ball is in your court. > > bye > gaurav] > > > > kbbookbag <karenborak@e...> wrote: > My husband and I have been having an ongoing conversation about the > terms "disciple" and "devotee." It seems like the more we try to > understand the terms, the more elusisve the meanings become. Does > anyone have any thoughts to offer? Thinking in relationship to Devi > Mandir, do the words have specific meanings? TIA > > Regards, > Karen > > > > Sponsor > > > > Links > > > / > > > > > Terms of Service. > > > > > > SiteBuilder - Free web site building tool. Try it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 31, 2004 Report Share Posted January 31, 2004 I posted the question about disciple and devotee, seeking thoughts and ideas and am grateful for all the various opionions presented. Last night, however, I was rereading BEFORE BECOMING THIS, and the answer leaped out! (See pages 175-176) These are Swami's words: "That is the difference between a devotee and a disciple. The devotee says, 'I want to please the Guru.' The disciple says, 'I want to become the reflection of the Guru.' In Sanskrit, the term for disciple is 'shishya,' which means mirror. You look in the mirror and you can't tell which is the original and which is the reflection. That's the relationship between Guru and disciple. The relationship between Guru and devotee is the devotee comes to please the Guru, but doesn't necessarily make changes in his or her life. They hold on to the same old baggage that they're carrying around, even while they are trying to please the Guru. The disciple automatically polishes thier image so that it reflects in the same way the Guru's image reflects." There's more information in Chapter 13, Having a Relationship with Your Guru. I thank Swamiji most sincerely for answering this question. Warmest regards to all, Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 31, 2004 Report Share Posted January 31, 2004 that's pretty nice! you found the exact answer! regardless of which word you use for what, the distinction being, between one who literally 'becomes ' the guru the other is more or less a 'member' of the guru's circle. we all have a part to play. peace, s , "kbbookbag" <karenborak@e...> wrote: > I posted the question about disciple and devotee, seeking thoughts > and ideas and am grateful for all the various opionions presented. > Last night, however, I was rereading BEFORE BECOMING THIS, and the > answer leaped out! (See pages 175-176) These are Swami's words: > > "That is the difference between a devotee and a disciple. The > devotee says, 'I want to please the Guru.' The disciple says, 'I > want to become the reflection of the Guru.' In Sanskrit, the term > for disciple is 'shishya,' which means mirror. You look in the > mirror and you can't tell which is the original and which is the > reflection. That's the relationship between Guru and disciple. The > relationship between Guru and devotee is the devotee comes to please > the Guru, but doesn't necessarily make changes in his or her life. > They hold on to the same old baggage that they're carrying around, > even while they are trying to please the Guru. The disciple > automatically polishes thier image so that it reflects in the same > way the Guru's image reflects." > > There's more information in Chapter 13, Having a Relationship with > Your Guru. > > I thank Swamiji most sincerely for answering this question. > > Warmest regards to all, > Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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