Guru Gita 23

Gurucharanam Saranam

Gurumoortim Smaret Nityam, Guror Naama Sadaa Japet

Guroraajnaam Prakurveeta, Guroranyam Na Bhaavayet

Remember the form of Guru daily. Repeat Guru’s name always. Follow Guru’s instruction. Do not think (in prayer) on anything other than Guru.

You float like a withered leaf in the indescribable spiritual sky without the support of Guru, the personified abstraction of the Supreme Light. Can a little infant walk without the finger of its father? The faith in Guru is the sublimation of one’s ego. Each soul is connected to certain astral skies from where manifests the Guru of his life; it may be in the form of a person or ideology. For our spiritual growth, it becomes necessary to absolutely identify with the omniscient Supreme Guru. Very less people understand the true Guru concept. Majority of Hindus follow temple worship and mightn’t have even got a Guru as such. Adi Sankaracharya once mentioned: ‘blessed is the life of one who has got three things in life – birth in Bharat, desire for liberation and getting of an enlightened Guru’.

We have innumerable Gurus belonging to Saiva, Sakteya and Vaishnava cults or paths like Yoga, Jnana or Bhakti. But the Guru of Guru Gita is above all sects and traditions. So long as there are different creeds, sects and traditions, there cannot be spiritual unity. The basic cause of India’s disunity lies in her heterodox spiritual tradition. Her heart is spiritually fragmented or compartmentalized. Following one or the other Guru is not as important as its social and spiritual impact. The Guru should be the catalyst for social change, not just a retail vendor of spirituality, like the pandas do sitting on the Ghats of Varanasi. This type of spirituality will not help to forge unity of mankind. The cumulative effect of all this spiritual degradation is that very few people know about the epochal Guru regime in Sanatana Dharma as different from popular religion. Each epoch has a Guru of its own, a Kaalaanthara Guru, like Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru in Kaliyuga, who has been empowered by the Supreme Light of Brahman. The exhortation of Guru Gita becomes a reality only when India installs the concept of Supreme Guru-hood in its altar of spirituality as being repeatedly stated here by Lord Siva in Guru Gita.

Guru Gita Discourse Fourteen

Sarva-teerthaavagaahasya Sampraapnoti Phalam Narah
Guroh Paadodakam Peethvaa Sesham Sirasi Dhaarayan

The one who drinks the water with which the feet of the Guru is washed (thus made holy) and puts it on his head, earns the merit that accrues from the dip in all the holy waters.

Why the feet of Guru are considered so holy? Feet are the support of a being. That which supports a being or thing, can be considered as feet, its support. The plants have roots as their feet. We are supported by our feet. But what do we have as support for our feet? It indeed is the earth. And what does earth has as its support? The earth is supported by waters of the ocean. What has water as its support? It is fire, for waters are produced by the warmth of the sun. And what is the support of fire? It is air, because without air, there can be no fire. And what is the support of air? It is space, because without space, air cannot have mobility. Then what has space as its support? It is self consciousness. Ego is a product of self consciousness. Only through self consciousness, the elemental world is perceived. This individualized consciousness is known as Jeeva, the soul. What has soul as its support? It is the gross consciousness, because a part cannot exist without a whole. Just like fire has its root in the sun, the individual consciousness has its root in the Supreme Consciousness. That Supreme Consciousness is Guru, the personalized self manifestation of Brahman, the attributeless God, without name and form. So now we know what the concept of Guru is and why his feet are our sacred support and the ‘paadateertham’ ambrosia for the soul.

However, the important question is how to recognize the Supreme Guru when he appears in human form. A Supreme Guru takes birth with the mission for an epochal change according to a scheme of cosmic evolution. Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru revealed that only four such Gurus manifest in a yuga (aeon) consisting of lakhs of years. There will be a fifth Guru in between the end and beginning of a yuga. Sri Krishna was such a Guru, who came at the end of Dwapara Yuga and the beginning of Kaliyuga. We are living in Kaliyuga, which has duration of 4, 32,000 years. It is said that Kaliyuga commenced more than 5200 years back approx. after the death of Sri Krishna. Since the beginning of Kaliyuga, several sages and prophets have prophesied the birth of a Supreme Soul for the epochal change expected of Kaliyuga. We can see that the dharma and karma being observed today, particularly in reference to India, belongs to or is an appendage of an obsolete yuga, i.e. Dwapara Yuga and even dating back to Treta Yuga. When yuga dharma is not observed as willed by God, human civilization stagnates. Let humanity be led to the Supreme Guru, whose exposition of Yuga Dharma is exceedingly enlightening and a panacea for all the ills in the world.

Mukundan

Guru Gita Discourse Twelve

Gurucharanam Saranam

Yadamghri-kamala-dwandwam Dwandwa-taapa-nivaarakam
Taarakam Bhava-sindhoscha Tam Gurum Pranamaamyaham

I salute that Guru, the pair of whose lotus feet remove the suffering owing to the consciousness of binaries and take us across the ocean of worldly life.

Suffering is the mental agony and agitation arising out of the dualities in life. Absence of food is the cause of suffering for a hungry man. When food is availed, the suffering ends but only to reappear. This is the truth of all sensory joys and pleasures. Like night follows day, sorrow follows all pleasures derived out of the mind body mechanism. So long as we are unable to transcend the contradictory experiences arising out from the interplay of sensory perceptions, human relations and aspirations in life, we would not savor peace of mind and experience tranquility of the Self. The way to tranquility is to fix our mind on the neutral point between sorrow and pleasure. What is that neutral point in us? It is the ever lasting consciousness in us concentrating on which one attains peace. Spirituality is this knowing of the self and nurturing it.

Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru affirmed that every soul is born subject to the cosmic rules and regulations. Life takes birth under 12 constellations, 27 stars and 9 planets in the solar system carrying unique spiritual rays that affect human life and character. This cosmic regulation is not a random arrangement but is decided by the karmic qualities and evolutionary status of the soul. Then there are the strong karmic, spiritual and ancestral bonds and debts the soul is tied with from previous lives. A Guru of transcendental experience knows the soul of the disciple. By the sword of his grace, he cuts these bonds and lifts the disciple to transcendental bliss. Through the service to Guru, the soul gets gradually purified of all impurities and inimical influences. Only then, the disciple can hope to reach the realm of spiritual experience. Therefore, in the three worlds, only the lotus feet of Guru, who is knowledge manifest, can remove the pangs of suffering and limitation of the soul.

Worldly life is compared to an ocean because of its impenetrable depth, unpredictable currents, and dangerous threats. It is perennial, riddle-some and difficult for one to swim over to the other end of this ocean called life. But the Guru of transcendental vision enables the inquisitive and enthusiastic disciple to cross over this difficult ocean. The peace and tranquility of the spirit definitely lies beyond the turbulent waters of life.

Guru Gita Discourse Six

Gurucharanam Saranam

Siva Said:

Mama Ruupaasi Devi Twam Twad-bhaktyartham Vadaamyaham
Lokopakaarakah Prasno Na Kenaapi Kritah Puraa

O divine one! You are my own Being. Owing to your devotion, I am revealing it to you. This question, which is beneficial to the world, has not been asked by anyone before.

Comments:
Siva, the popular god of great asceticism, is pleased by the unblemished devotion of Parvati. He equals her to his own Self. Their identification with each other is total. It is the saga of guru and disciple! Guru pours his grace, his ‘Self’ itself to the disciple, like the downpour that soothes the parched earth, the thirty heart of the disciple. Guru with endless patience waits for the arrival of such a disciple and the disciple for such a Guru. Many are people who go to Guru, but more often than not, they do it for the appeasement of worldly desires. And why not? Guru is verily Kamadhenu, the heavenly cow that grants your wishes.

After the era of Siva and Parvati, have we ever heard about another Parvati, the disciple Parvati? It would be wrong to say no. We have an incomparable example in our times, of Sishya Poojita Janani Amrita Jnana Tapaswini, of total surrender, love and dedication to the Guru. Imagine her devotion which forsook the comfort of home at the playful age of a child; imagine that wisdom, that courage which forsook the parents, dear and near ones for the sake of Guru. Sishya Poojita - she has even excelled Parvati of yore in the matter of devotion to Guru. Here one new epic has begun. With the pure passion of love and devotion to Guru, Sishyapoojita earned what a woman could never even dream about in the spiritual realm.

We do come across people, both in the ancient and modern era, who ask questions like ‘who am I’ or ‘who is God’ etc. But we hardly hear this imploration, ‘what is the secret of Guru concept?’, ‘what is the greatness of Guru?’ or how should one identify a Guru? People talk endlessly about the glory of the god of their faith, about the soul and the universe, questions well beyond human clarity; but the Guru concept is abandoned. There are reasons, however. The Guru concept is a highly secretive knowledge and Guru a rare occurrence, a rare manifestation. It is not our dry intellectual conceptions and blind faith that brings about spiritual progression, but the grace of Supreme Light channeled to us through the medium of Guru.

Well, from perennial time, humanity has not well pondered over this question, as affirmed by Siva here that this question Parvati asked about Guru had not been asked by anyone before.

Mukundan

Guru Gita Discourse Five

Gurucharanam Saranam

Kena Maargena Bho Swaamin Dehii Brahmamayo Bhavet
Tat-kripaam Kuru Me Swaamin Namaami Charanau Tava

O Lord! Kindly tell me about that path by which soul attains union with God. O Lord! I bow at your feet.

Comments:
The eternal thirst of the jeeva; the essence of life; that is the question Parvati asked Siva. How to discharge one’s soul in Brahman, in God? In the journey of jeeva for this ultimate goal in life, one does not know how many births and deaths, how many lives of transformation and evolution it had undergone, before reaching this door of enlightenment to knock and ask , ‘how do I merge with God’ and find eternal peace. Parvati is that soul, that symbol of a disciple who has reached to this ultimate refinement in life.

Here we are faced with the real meaning of spirituality. What helps one here is not tradition or culture, blind religiosity or philosophies, rituals or riches, name or fame, but only GURU, of Godly experience. Therefore, to find the peace of soul, neutralizing all dualities in life, one ultimately sets out in search of Guru.

‘The Guru disciple bond is the most sublime subject’, Navajyoti Sri Karuakara Guru said. It goes beyond our traditional concept of Guru and Sishya; the treatment of this subject is taken unduly in a personalized context by some, even in a light vein by few others. Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru takes the concept of Guru and Sishya to a most elevated platform of spiritual realization when he said:

‘It is said that Guru is the embodiment of all dharma (Guru Sakala Dharmatma). We realize ourselves the vice and virtue in our soul accrued through many births and deaths that we have undergone and (in the end) submit everything (this karmic imprints of vice and virtue) at the feet of Guru. Guru by imparting spiritual experience breaks (such) karmic bonds in the light of that experience’.

This is the quintessence of Guru, the essentiality of the medium of Guru in God realization. Here we find Parvati, an example of true spiritual seeker surrendering at the feet of her Guru in all earnestness beseeching him to guide her in the science of the soul.

Mukundan

Guru Gita Discourse Four

Gurucharanam Saranam

Suuta Said:
Kailaasa-shikhare Ramye Bhakti-saadhana Hetave
Pranamya Paarvatii Bhaktyaa Sankaram Paripruchhati

At the beautiful mount of Kailas, Paarvati, bowing in devotion submits a question to Sankara (Siva), for the sake of nurturing devotion.

Paarvati said:

Bhagavan Sarva Dharmajna Vrataanaam Vratanaayakam
Bhruuhi Me Kripayaa Sambho Guru-maahaatmya-muthamam

O Lord! Knower of all Dharma! O Shambhu! You are the greatest among ascetics. Kindly disclose to me the supreme greatness of Guru.

Comments:
For a woman, her husband is her Guide, her Guru and therefore her God. This is the dharma as per Sanatana tradition. A husband should be such an elevated soul with the knowledge of dharma, karma and right spiritual knowledge. In the ancient Rishi tradition, a child is therefore sent to the ashram of Guru to get trained and educated in these concepts. When he thus completes his education from the Guru, he is directed to lead a worldly life according to dharma, based on true spiritual wisdom. Such a man becomes qualified to become a proper householder, an ideal husband.

The conjugal bliss and prosperity of home fundamentally rests on this. It is due to this, Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru has given utmost importance to the institution of marriage and family, by bringing to fore this long lost Rishi tradition in the Ashram. It is the revival of Sanatana Dharma and the noble institution of family.

A husband has a sacred responsibility of elevating his wife too, to the pedestal of his attainments- both spiritual and temporal. How glad we would be to come across such blessed couples in our times! Here we find the epitome of that principle in Siva and Parvati. The example of Siva and Parvati has always been extolled in the sacred literature and by poets like Kalidasa. Kalidasa described the union of Siva and Parvati as inseparable as the 'word' is to its 'meaning'.

Parvati herself is well known for her practices of spiritual austerities. She worships Siva as the greatest ascetic and the knower of dharma. In her devotion to Siva, she finds latent in him the principles of sacred Guru-hood, which inspired her to ask him the question about the whole concept of Guru, which is very much hidden knowledge.

Guru Gita Discourse Three

Gurucharanam Saranam

The Rishis Said:

Guhyaat Guhyatamam Saaram Gurugiita Visheshatah
Twat Prasaadaaccha Shrotavyaa Tat Sarvam Bhruuhi Suuta Naha

O Suuta! Guru Gita is very unique, and its contents holding greatest hidden meaning. Therefore may it please you to render all of that, which would be suitable for our ears!

Comments:

Guru Gita is in the form of a dialogue between Siva and his consort Paarvati. Sage Suuta was a disciple of Vyasa and the son of sage Loma. He was approached by a group of rishis who were eager to go into the depths of the law of Guru. Suuta, then contacts through his visionary wisdom the knowledge that was given by Siva to Parvati on the mystery of GURU. And Suuta relates it to the eager rishis.

Guru Gita thus commences here.

One of the qualities of a spiritual seeker is said to be the quality of inquisitiveness or eagerness for knowledge. Where there is no desire for knowledge, it would be futile to sow the seed of wisdom. Once the disciples of Buddha asked the Noble One that why he was unable to liberate the suffering masses through his teachings of Noble Dharma! Upon this Buddha asked his disciples to go and bring any person they could find desiring liberation.

As advised by Buddha, the disciples went down to the nearby village. Door to door they went. They were surprised to find out that all persons wanted something or the other in life, but not liberation. All wanted just solutions to problems which are in abundance in life and are found to recur without an end. The disciples thus returned to Buddha disappointed. They were unable to find a single person desiring salvation!

Most of us are not prepared to look beyond and search for permanent solutions and remedies to the problems and riddles in life. But the ascetics- the rishis are noble souls of wisdom and the opportunity to learn from a great sage is made use of with an urgency of knowing the truth related to Guru.

Mukundan

Sri Guru Gita -Discourse One

Gurucharanam Saranam

Sri Guru Gita
(The Guru Disciple Paradigm)

Paramaachaarya Padapraaptam, Paramaatma Swaruupakam
Karunaakara Gurum Vande, Bhavaroga Bhishagwaram

My obeisance to Sri Karunakara Guru, who has attained the seat of Supreme Guru-hood and who is the embodiment of the Absolute Truth and is the healer of the affliction that is life on the earth plane!

Comments: This mantra is an invocation to Guru seeking his blessings. It is an ancient practice that when we commence a work, first we pray to Guru and at the end, the whole action is submitted at the lotus feet of Guru. All our actions and thought files are submitted at the Divine Server called GURU so that he might keep them safely in our folders available with Him.

It would also be beneficial if we recollect all our thoughts and actions of the day before going to bed, so that we can analyze them in our mental screen and make subjective amendments wherever required. Please remember, virtue or vice, pain or gain, right or wrong, everything has to be submitted at the lotus feet of Guru. It is a subjective process that could help in our harmonious mind-soul integration. The residues of conflicts work subjectively and create ripples of disharmony in the mind and body level leading to ailments in the form of worry, tension and so on.

We must understand that GURU is the Supreme everlasting Consciousness Screen of the universe. Every phenomenon in the universe is ultimately integrated, harmonized and supported in this universal screen called Guru. The afflictions arising out of the binaries of existence could be harmonized only on this plane of Absolute Truth. The thoughts and actions of ours that are not submitted at the feet of Guru are lost like forlorn and fallen leaves tossed about in the natural wind.

Mukundan