Importance of Guru in everybody life
The Sanskrit scriptures describe the guru as “dispeller of darkness” (gu, “darkness,” and ru, “that which dispels.”) The role of the guru is to help his disciples find liberation in God through a very personal spiritual bond formed between guru and disciple, a union of loyal spiritual endeavor on the part of the disciple and divine blessings bestowed by the guru. In the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna stands as the symbol of the ideal devotee, the perfect disciple.
The Indian perspective says that the aim of human life is to grow by inner and outer experience till man lives in god, realises his spirit, becomes divine in knowledge, in will and in the joy of his being. In the course of achieving this transforming experience, the guru holds a special place. The guru-disciple interaction touches deep and regressed layers of the two main features of the relationship, surrender of the shishya and intimacy with the guru.
Real teaching is believed to occur when the disciple has disciplined himself and is tuned to the wavelength of the guru. Teaching, example, and influence play significant roles in mentoring. One very distinctive characteristic of guru-shishya relationship is its poly-variant nature. It indicates the all encompassing quality of this relationship. Dynamics of the relationship indicate that its basis was a complete transformation of the shishya by the guru.
Obedience or surrender to the guidance of the guru is another basic tenet of the guru-disciple relationship. Why this divine imperative? Man must learn obedience to a higher wisdom in order to overcome the stumbling block of ego and its self-made delusions. The disciple’s obedience must be sincere and wholehearted. To give lip-devotion to the guru and continue to behave according to the dictates of the ego’s bad habits is folly. He alone is the loser who cheats in his efforts on the spiritual path.
Humility is the wisdom that acknowledges One who is greater than ourselves. Most human beings worship the ego-self. But, as the disciple bows instead to the ideal of a greater Self, and to the guru as the instrument of the Divine whose aid he seeks in realizing that Self, he gains the humility necessary to tear down the imprisoning wall of ego, and feels within him an ever-expanding divine consciousness welling up from that greater Self.
The guru-disciple relationship also perfects in the chela the quality of faith. The world in which we live is founded on relativity, hence it is unstable. We know not from day to day whether our bodies are going to be well or beset by disease. True faith is born of experience of truth and reality, a direct knowledge and certainty of the divine forces sustaining all creation. Man is insincere because he has no such faith. The guru-disciple relationship calls for complete faith on the part of the disciple. To help the disciple to cultivate faith, the guru says, “Follow me; blindly if need be”. Ego impairs our vision, but the guru’s sight is always flawless. His eyes of wisdom are always open. To him there is no difference between yesterday, today and tomorrow.
The guru helps the disciple in countless ways. Perhaps greatest of them all, he inspires the chela through his exemplifi-cation of divine attributes: He is the “speaking voice of silent God”, and the incarnation of highest wisdom and purest love; he embodies the soul-qualities that reflect God; he symbolizes the way and the Goal. The guru also helps the disciple by assuming much of his burden of karma. He may also, at God’s behest, take on part of the mass karma of humanity. The Bible states that, “The Son of man came not to be ministered to, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28). The guru also serves as a mirror reflecting the character image of the disciple. If a disciple stands before the mirror of his guru with reverence, devotion, faith, obedience and surrender, it will show him all the personal flaws and weaknesses that block his way to the Goal.
The disciple must learn to follow the guru by emulating his example and by practicing faithfully the Sadhana he gives. (Sadhana is the Indian term for spiritual discipline: the ‘do’s and don’ts” defined by the guru as necessary to the chela’s search for God.) By following these instructions sincerely and to the best of his ability, and by constant effort to please the guru through right behaviour, the disciple demolishes every ego-erected barrier between his will and the will of the guru as expressed through His wise precepts.
The guru is omnipresent. His help, his guidance, and his teachings prevail, not only for the brief years he dwells on earth, but forever. The guru’s help to sincere followers does not cease when he leaves his body as the consciousness of the true guru is eternal. His awareness of the disciple and his link with him are constant.I am very lucky my guru ji is alive and he helped me every time,when i do mistake he teached me in very gently manner,i have discussed any type of situation with him he always helped me.i am blessed
Vedic scriptures state that the spiritual effort of the disciple constitutes only twenty-five percent of the spiritual forces required to bring his soul back to God. An additional twenty-five percent is given through the blessings of the guru. The remaining fifty percent is bestowed by the grace of God.
