Guru Gita Discourse- Fifteen

Soshanam Paapa-pankasya Deepanam Jnaana-tejasah
Guroh Paadodakam Samyak Samsaaraarnava-taarakam

The water rendered holy by the contact with the feet of the Guru (paada teertham) eliminates the dirt of sin and kindles the light of knowing. It takes us across the ocean of worldly existence.

Our soul actually is in the nature of pure consciousness without any dirt and inalienably connected to the eternal source of creation - God. However, the pure nature of soul is realized only at the end of a long process of spiritual evolution. The journey of the soul from a microbial state to the highest spiritual expansion involves innumerable births and deaths through a variety of life forms including plant and animal life. Human birth is the coveted fulfillment in such a long chain of evolution. In this journey soul gets tainted succumbing to various temptations of the senses and ego. These karmic imprints, good and bad, thus drag the soul through endless misery in the world. The merciful Guru only is the savior here. Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru while speaking about the greatness of the concept of Guru said the following.

“It is said that Guru is the personification of all Dharma -‘Guru Sakala Dharmatma’. Whichsoever births we have undergone, knowing the vices and virtues (acquired) in those incarnations, one should surrender all that in Guru. Guru gives ‘experience’ and crushes the karma in that experiential truth. Our soul has become dirtied in the passage of several births. Let us so consider that we are indeed good, virtuous. However, if you do not honor anyone, would you become virtuous? Entangled in one or other things, our mind gets stagnated in all that. How can you redeem such a muddled mind? We take birth, live and die like this ceaselessly. Only after millions of years, a soul gets guidance of a Guru. Man has a duty to evolve through the states of celestials (deva or devi), a rishi, sage, a seer and Muktha (liberated one). Guru is the guiding light, the witness of this (process). That is how Guru becomes ‘Sakala Dharmatma’- in whom exists all dharma. All celestials (gods & goddesses), Rishi and Sanyasi merge in the radiance of Guru”

Mukundan