Reaching the Guru

Guru describes a spiritual teacher or master. A Guru has the power and wisdom to dissolve spiritual ignorance in a disciple.

The most simple, true and popular definition of Guru is ‘one who removes ignorance’. ‘Gu’ stands for ignorance and ‘ru’ means for ‘dispeller’.

1. Gurupasadana

With Gods grace wheneven a diciple found a Guru who bestows the self – knowledge that liberates him from the cycle of birth and death. Reaching that kind of Guru is known as Gurupasadana or Gurupagamana. As per vedic texts ‘Guru’ means ‘teacher’ ‘upa’ means ‘near’ and ‘sadana ‘ / gamana’ means going. The knowledge of Vedanta is to be obtained from the Guru is not to be pursued independently.

2. Prasthana – trayi

Vedanta philosophy acknowledges the Prasthana Trayi as its three authoritative primary sources. The texts comprising the Prasthana Trayi are the Upanishads, the Bhagavadgita and the Brahma Sutra. The Upanishads are the sruti prasthana, the revealed texts (sruti - that which is heard); the Bhagavadgita is the smriti prasthana, composed by sages based on their understanding of the Vedas (smriti - that which is remembered); the Brahma Sutra is the nyaya prasthana, the logical text that sets forth the philosophy systematically (nyaya - logic/order). No study of Vedanta is considered complete without a close examination of the Prasthana Trayi.

4. The tradition of carrying ‘Samit’ to the Guru

In ancient days disciple should approach preceptor with the Samit in his hands. Samit is the symbol of self-dedication and surrender to the Lotus-Feet of Guru. “Here is the bundle of my Karmas. You burn it.” This is implied in the Sishya’s approaching the Guru with Samits in hands. The outward meaning is that Rishis used to perform Agnihotra and this symbolises service of the Guru in the form bringing fire-wood for sacrifice. Spiritual Realisation is the result of supreme devotion to Guru.

You will find in the Manu Smriti: “Let the students ever engage in the study of Vedas and during services to the preceptor with full faith and devotion. Let the student refrain from wines, meats, perfumes, scents, women, tasty dishes, and from injury to sentient creatures and lust, anger, greed, dancing, singing and playing on musical instruments, dyes, playing, gossiping, slander, too much sleeping and untruth.”

1. What are the qualificatiuons of the Guru?
The Guru should be well-versed in the scriptures, sinless, free from desires. The mind of the Guru is always fixed on Brahman. He is full of compassion. He is always intent on helping others without the expectation of anything in return. The disciple should approach the Guru with humility and pray to him to instruct him on the means to attain liberation. The Guru tells such an earnest seeker that he is in reality none other than the supreme Self and that all sufferings are due only to ignorance of his real nature. This ignorance can be removed by the knowledge that will arise by a proper enquiry into the import of the Upanishads

The sun requires no torch to make him visible. We need not light a candle in order to see him. When the sun rises, we instinctively become aware of the fact, and when a teacher of men comes to help us, the soul will instinctively know that truth has already begun to shine upon it. The conditions necessary for the taught are purity, a real thirst after knowledge, and perseverance. The second condition necessary in the teacher is – sinlessness. The third condition is in regard to the motive. The teacher must not teach with any ulterior selfish motive – for money, name or fame.

Various Vedantic texts unanimously explain the qualifications of the Guru as Two fold:

1] Srotriya

One who is well versed in Vedantic lore is a ‘srotriya’. The Guru has to be well-versed in the Upanisads, Bhagvad Gita and Brahma-sutra,texts in order to instruct the student. Without this qualifications, even a self – realized master will not have the language or the expression to convey his profound knowledge to the disciples. The scriptures are the only available perfected tools to awaken the student from the realm of illusion to the state of truth. Hence, the Guru to be well versed in Vedantic lore.

2] Brahma-nistha
One who is established in the Knowledge of Brahman. The study of Vedanta has to be culminate in the Experience of Brahman. He who has had a direct experience of the Self as being identical with Brahman and is ever established in this experience is called a ‘Brahma-nistha. The teacher’s knowledge, if it has to ring a note of conviction in the student’s heart, has to travel on the wings of the

Teacher’s personal Experience of Truth.

The Guru is the proof of knowledge as it is the Guru who creates the trust in us that the self-knowledge and its fruits of liberation are attainable goals. Only a Srotriya – Brahma – nishta Guru , who can wield the Upanisads and decipher their hidden meanings and subtle implications can give a right and coherent understanding to the student.

2. Why is the Guru indispensable in spiritual pursuit?
There are multiple school of thought that, whether we require a Guru to guide us to self – knowledge, or is it possible to gain it without any guidance? Few believes that one can learn from both; the Guru and the Sastras, but some believe since the Guru only explains the Scriptures he may be dispensed with, provided one is knowledgeable and intelligent enough to understand Vedanta independently. Both these opinions are wrong. Why?

No one stumbles upon self- knowledge by accident; the Atman, being our very self – the subject and never an object of the senses or the mind, remains to us by a competent Guru who has to come to abide in it, we would have no inkling about it whatsoever.

The Guru is the proof of knowledge – one may never come to trust the existence of this knowledge and its promised results of liberation without actually seeing someone abiding in it and showing us the possibility of our attaining it. It is the Guru who creates this trust in us; that self – knowledge and its fruits of liberation are attainable goals.

Spiritual life definitely implies turning to the one great source within, to find all the interest, delight, inspiration, creativity and fulfillment there. True devotion must have its relevance and focus in the mind and intelligence, there subtle pulsations. Everything about these comes to be observed, evaluated, improved and refined at every stage. Such inner attunement and refinement alone will mean true seeking and a clear means for spiritual attainment.

An important part of spiritual wisdom, says Krishna, is the preservation of unflinching or unanswering devotion to the Teacher. The external God could be an object of faith to begin with. But, when a devotee like Arjuna stands as a seeker, aspiring for shreyas, one like Krishna, who can take up the role of a Teacher, alone can fulfill the quest. Obviously, for such a seeker, the external God or faith does not arise at all. He is driven and empowered by his quest. He places it before the knower Teacher, with resolve and pious resignation.

It is for the Teacher then to tell the seeker in very clear terms, what he had to do, as does Krishna to Arjuna. The seeker then has to pin his attention on whatever is heard from the teacher and imbibe it wholeheartedly. He has to make it a full, vibrant, wholesome pursuit. That determines the degree of his success. No desultoriness, distraction or distrust should intercept his commitment.

The disciple then asks the following seven questions.
1. What is bondage?
2. How did it arise?
3. How does it continue?
4. How can it be eradicated?
5. What is the not-Self?
6. Who is the Paramaatmaa?
7. How can we distinguish between the two?

The firm belief that one is the body, senses, etc., (the not-self) is bondage. It is due to nescience, i.e. ignorance of one's real nature. It is the cause of repeated births and deaths and all sorrows. Because of it a person looks upon the unreal body as real and identifies himself with it. He nourishes the body and protects it by indulging in sense pleasures

The cause of bondage is ignorance of one's real nature. This ignorance is natural to every one and is without beginning. It continues until it is destroyed by self-knowledge. It is the cause of all suffering in the form of birth, disease, old age, death, etc. This ignorance cannot be destroyed by any missiles, nor by the wind, nor by fire, nor even by the performance of innumerable rituals laid down in the scriptures. It can be destroyed only by the sharp and beautiful sword of discrimination which arises by the grace of the supreme Being.

But it should not be thought that the rituals laid down in the scriptures are futile. The performance of these rituals with full faith is essential for attaining purity of mind which is the prerequisite for the dawn of knowledge. Release from bondage can be attained only by direct realization and not by merely repeating the word ‘Brahman'. Without negating the world as unreal and without knowing the truth of one's nature, how can liberation be attained by mere repetition of words? In order to retrieve a treasure buried under the earth one must first of all know the exact location of the treasure from a knowledgeable person.

The first requisite for a spiritual aspirant is intense detachment towards all things that are impermanent, i.e. everything other than the Self. Then come control of the senses, control of the mind, etc. He should give up all actions motivated by desire for his own benefit. That means that all actions should be performed in the spirit of karmayoga. He should hear the teachings of the sruti from a teacher, reflect on the teachings to remove all doubts, and meditate on them. All these should be done continuously over a long period.

Supreme Self [Paramatma]

By realizing one's real nature as identical with the supreme Brahman one becomes free from the bond of samsara and attains liberation.
The Self has no birth or death; it does not increase or decrease or undergo any change; it is eternal. It is not destroyed even when the body is destroyed One should realize this self as identical with oneself by controlling the mind and making it pure. Thus one can cross this ocean of samsaara with its waves of birth and death.

Discriminating Self from Non-self

Theself is not clearly known because it is covered by five sheaths, whichare superimposed on it, like the water in a pond covered by a layer ofmoss. When the moss is removed, the pure water becomes clearly visibleand accessible. It can quench one's thirst and make him happy.Similarly, when the five sheaths are negated the indwelling self which is pure, eternal bliss, homogeneous, supreme, and self-effulgent shines unobstructed. Therefore one should discriminate between the self and the not-self and negate the not-self for attaining liberation from bondage. Realizing the self which is Existence-Consciousness-Bliss one becomes blissful.