Choosing The Guru
If you find peace in the presence of a Mahatma,
if you are inspired by His speeches, if He is able to clear your doubts, if He
is free from greed, anger and lust, if He is selfless, loving and I-less, you
can take Him as your Guru.
He who is able to clear your doubts, He who is
sympathetic in your Sadhana, He who does not disturb your beliefs but helps you
on from where you are, He in whose very presence you feel spiritually elevated—He
is your Guru.
Once you choose your Guru, implicitly follow Him.
God will guide you through the Guru.
Mysterious Help From The
Lord
Just see how the Lord has helped the devotees in
the following instances. Ekanath heard an Akasa-Vani, a voice from the sky. It
said, “See Janardhan Pant at Deva Giri. He will put you in the proper path and
guide you”. He acted accordingly and found his Guru.
Tukaram received his Mantra “Rama Krishna Hari”
in his dream. He repeated this Mantra and had Darshan of Lord Krishna. Lord
Krishna directed Namadev to get his higher initiation from a Sannyasin at
Mallikarjuna.
Queen Chudalai assumed the form of Kumbha Muni,
appeared before her husband Sikhidhvaja in the forest, and initiated him into
the mysteries of Kaivalya.
Madhura Kavi saw a light in the firmament for
three days consecutively. It guided him and took him to his Guru Nammalvar who
was sitting in His Samadhi underneath a tamarind tree near Tinnevelly.
Bilvamangal was very much attracted to
Chintamani, the dancing woman. The latter became his Guru. Tulasidas received
instructions from an invisible being to see Hanuman and, through Hanuman, to
get Darshan of Sri Rama.
So long as there is a world, there are Gurus and
Vedas to guide the struggling souls in the path of Self-realization. The number
of realized souls may be less in the Iron Age when compared with the Satya
Yuga, but they are always present to help the aspirants. Let each man take the
path according to his capacity, temperament and understanding. His Satguru will
meet him along that path.
Stick To One Guru
From a doctor, you get a prescription. From two
doctors, you get consultation. From three doctors, you get your own cremation.
Even so, if you have many Gurus, you will be bewildered. You will be at a loss
to know what to do. One Guru will tell you: “Do Soham Japa”. Another will tell
you: “Do Japa of Sri Ram”. A third Guru will tell you: “Hear Anahata sounds”.
You will be puzzled. Stick to one Guru and follow His instructions.
Listen to all, but follow one. Respect
all, but adore one. Gather knowledge from all, but adopt the teachings of one
Master. Then you will have rapid spiritual progress.
Guru-Parampara
Spiritual knowledge is a matter of
Guru-Parampara. It is handed down from Guru to His disciple. Gaudapadacharya
imparted Self-knowledge to his disciple Govindacharya; Govindacharya to His
disciple Sankaracharya; Sankaracharya to His disciple Suresvaracharya.
Initiation—Its Meaning
A Bhakta will be initiated by a Bhakta saint in
the path of devotion. A Jnani will initiate a student of Vedanta in the
Mahavakyas. A Hatha Yogi or Raja Yogi can initiate another in His particular
path.
But, a sage of perfect Realisation, a Purna
Jnani or Purna Yogi, can give initiation in any particular path. A sage or
saint like Sri Sankara or Madhusudhana Sarasvati can initiate a Sadhaka, in any
particular path for which the aspirant is fit.
The Guru will find out by close study of the
aspirant his tastes, temperaments and capacity, and decide for him the most
suitable path. If his heart is impure, the teacher will prescribe selfless
service for a number of years. Then the Guru will find out for what particular
path the student is fit and initiate him in that.
(Extract from Guru Tattva, Swami Sivananda)
Love.
