Guru and Disciple.... A perfect Love story

Be a Disciple, not a Student

In the abode of Guru, there is no place for students; Students deserves Teachers. All a Guru seeks forward to, is a Disciple, to whom the legacy can be transferred. A disciple is a higher degree of learner; a learner who doesn’t want to accept mere bookish knowledge, or just learn from secondary sources, he is the one who follows the highest levels of discipline; tests the standards, checks even the master, and find the truth through self experimentation. The master is the Guru here, and not merely a teacher who shares acquired knowledge. A true master always facilitates the student to Invent, Investigate, and Inquire; he allows the disciple to commit mistakes and learn the important lessons the harder way; he doesn’t believe in preaching, rather he emphasizes on practices; as he is tender like the morning dew, so is he strict like the thunderbolt. With an eye for love and another for development, the master makes sure that the disciple attains the higher levels and realizes the truth by himself.

With a true master comes the promise. He ensures that the disciple, once boarded in his boat, sails through the toughest winds. He confirms that the way I am asking you to follow is safe and sure and leads it like a watchman. He unlaces the mind of the disciple and removes the dust of previous births and creates a yearning in the disciples mind for the supreme. In a way, he gives a second birth to the disciple; and as he does so, he cares for the disciple like a mother. He bestows unconditional love and care upon the disciple and caters to even the smallest spiritual need. This is the relation of trust, faith and internal bonding, which gets nurtured even when the disciple doesn’t know to speak the spiritual language after the rebirth, when he is stubborn, argumentative, demanding, and mudded with the worldly things. Like a loving mother, he handholds the disciple and teaches him to take the small steps towards Self Realization.

As the master promises and ensures a strong relation, so he demands. A great amount of discipline, transparency, longing for truth, and highest degree of devotion is the least necessity. Remember, a true master is not a teacher, and hence it doesn’t come that easy. It’s not about knowledge transfer, it’s about experiential sharing, not a dictating expression, but a transcendental attempt, it’s a mutual agreement, a give and take relation, a partnership where the disciple joins in as a stakeholder and shares common interests with the master. The master is always on the giving end, supplying the divine, the cosmic to the student who is on the receiving or rather demanding side. All it needs from the disciple is unconditional surrender; surrender to the plan of the master and pass through the ups and downs of the spiritual journey to get his special grace. This ‘let go’ attitude of the disciple, helps the ego to melt away, and then comes that soft guidance, that tender touch, that silent help to alleviate further. The presence of the master is there, like a million suns lighting and guiding the disciple towards the righteous path. All one needs to do is to open up the eyes and see.

Being a disciple is a rare phenomenon. It is unlike the journey of the student who wants to meet the teacher. A disciple seeks for the Guru, the master. The student gathers more and more knowledge and becomes more knowledgeable and finally becomes a teacher to someone else, based upon this borrowed knowledge. While a disciple experiments and lives in a state of being and hence transforms. For him there is no acquiring of knowledge, for him it is all about living in that moment of ecstasy. The more the disciple surrenders, the better it is. Layer by layer the peeling is done by the master. Ego, greed, lust, desires, anger, jealousy and many such weaknesses are removed as the time progresses. Dedication (Samarpan) – Devotion (Visarjan) -& Annihilation (Vilaya) are the stages through which one day the disciple effaces himself into the master. He certainly evaporates, there is no disciple left in the end; it is the same soul, same conscious that prevails thereafter. It happens when Thakur meets Narendra, when Buddha meets Sariputta, when Arjuna meets Krishna, when John meets Jesus, or Hanuman meets Rama. Where doubt becomes a method of learning between the student and the teacher, faith is basis of relation between the disciple and the master. Where teacher expect a selfish return from the student, the guru demands for a GuruDakshina for the welfare of the disciple. There are no personal hidden benefits for the guru behind this ritual. It is for the upliftment of the disciple that this ritual is practiced. Jesus knew he will be betrayed by his disciples; still he served them with the last supper. No guru demands or expects from the disciple. It is only giving, a one way flow. Even if the disciple suspect, the guru undergoes the test with. RamKrishna Paramhansa use to tell his disciples- “Test me before accepting me”. Narendra suspected that he is divine incarnated even when Thakur was on death bed; but Thakur responded to his doubt with a smiling gesture.

If a disciple annihilates in true sense, then there is no two entities. It is only one conscious now. The bodies might be different, the guru might have left the prison of body, but it’s the same consciousness that flows through. Pandit Kishord Prasad Vijayvinod shared his grief with Swami Brahmananda (Rakhal, the spiritual son of Thakur) of not seeing Ramkrishna during his visit to Dakshineshwar when he was a student. He did visit Alambazar to meet Thakur, but his fear of embarrassment that Thakur knows everything and will read my mind, stopped him from seeing Thakur. Remembering his bad luck Pd Kishord bent his head and began to sob. As soon as he lifted his face, he saw Swami RamKrishna seated in Swami Brahmananda’s place. This oneness of the master and disciple is the reward of the hardship through which the disciple undergoes. This fusion is sheer ecstasy. This is the most desired state for a disciple; to be merged with the conscious of the guru and become one.

The master affects the state of the disciple by his being. It is the relation of Chetna with Chetna (consciousness). Once Thakur decided to test Narendra and hence he changed his attitude towards Narendra during the early days of his visit to Dakshineshwar. For some days the master received him with the apparent indifference. Finally after more than a month, the master asked Narendra, “Why do you come here, when I don’t speak a single word with you?” “Do you think I come here just to have you speak to me?” Narendra answered. “I love you. I want to see you. That’s why I come.” Such is the dedication of the disciple. Once, Samarth guru Raidas wanted to test his best disciple. He declared that he is suffering from a serious ailment and only the milk of lioness can save him from death. While all the other disciples were thinking the possible dangers involved in it, his best disciple got up and ran to the forest. There he found a lioness with her cub, and first requested her for milk, and then became ready to fight with her. As the fight was about to begin, the master appeared and praised the disciple. The disciple later became one of the best rulers of Indian history, Chattrapati Shivaji. So was done by Guru Nanak Dev ji, when he wanted to chose his successor. Lehna, who later became famous as Guru Angad, was the disciple of Guru Nanak ji and was sincere, obedient and reflected the highest degree of devotion. Even Guru Nanak’s own sons were deprived of these qualities. Sensing his end was near, Guru Nanak decided to test his disciples' devotion and obedience with a view to selecting his successor. The nature of the tests and Lehna's responses were centred on the virtue of obedience and he emerged as the most appropriate candidate to carry the burden. His obedience was unqualified and unquestioning as he devotedly obeyed the Guru's orders.Several anecdotes figuring prominently in the Sikh tradition indicate that Lehna acquired the attributes of a true disciple, which were later explained by Bhai Gurdas in his 'Vaars':-

To become a disciple is, as it were, to become dead. It cannot be done by words. A disciple must be patient, faithful, possess a martyr's spirit, and free himself from the superstition and fear. He must be like a purchased slave fit to be yoked to any work, which may serve his Guru. He must never be hungry, and never require sleep. He must be ready to grind and bring fresh water for his Guru. He must be ever prepared to fan and wash his Guru's feet. He must be a sedate servant and never laugh or cry.

In another story from the Indian scriptures, Guru Vishwamitra was sitting in the court of devtas, where all were proclaiming their selfless devotion and were criticizing that there is no one human on earth who can match them. Over this, Guru Vishwamitra challenged the court and asked for a test. He confidently said that his best disciple can be tested now a here to prove the assumption of devtas wrong. The great disciple was King Harishchandra, who was a testimony of truth and rightfulness. What happened next, we all know and the disciple emerged as a winner from the harsh test of the devtas and proved his Guru true.

Narendra showcased the same dedication and cleared the test to become Vivekananda; Shivaji underwent the same process under the fire of test given by Samarth Guru Ramdas. Such illustrations teach us the deep bond of a Guru-Disciple relation. A relation founded upon the virtues of faith, unconditional love, care, compassion, selflessness, dedication, devotion, surrender, dutifulness, obedience, transparency and many more. That’s why it was said that being a Disciple is a rare phenomenon. The guru works like a sculpture; like a potter he uses one hand to hit hard with the hammer, and keeps the other hand of support to give shape to the character of the disciple. Blessed are the souls who find an able Guru, and dare to become a true disciple.

What am I?

Life is a deity. It appears to be ordinary due to layers of paucities it is been enveloped in. But what lies deep inside is a pure conscious- eager to interact, eager to guide us to the righteous path, eager to uncover itself and blossom; something beyond our ordinary imagination. The essence of life lies in Exploring, Encountering and Experiencing it. It is human to ignore things which are too close to us. We live life without understanding its glory, its divinity, its purity. All our life, we spend in fulfilling our natural instincts of food, shelter, clothing, earning livelihood, establishing family and a lot more; all this at the cost of the beauty of our inner self. We are expected to maintain the beauty of this garden called life like a Gardner. The self is neither born nor does it die. We can’t stay with the breathless (dead) body of our most beloved person for even one single day. So, what is that we love? It’s not simple breathe. It is beyond that, which had created LIFE, which has just evaporated away and what has been left behind is the sheath, called body, which will be degenerated by following certain rituals. So the question remains is that what is more important? The sheath or the Vitality which ensured the body and remained it ALIVE?

Ask a person to express about her/himself and everything she/ he expresses from her/ his name, family background, caste, creed, community, occupation, life style to pseudo set of principles of life revolves around the worldliness. Everything we know about ourselves is related to our body, life itself is missing! The answer to the question WHAT AM I is – I am the SOUL. Body is the just the temple the soul is lying in. Humankind realizing that we are mere bodies spends most of its time in fulfilling the bodily needs and hence living in a vicious circle yielding more pain for self and others. Those who have even an iota of belief that they are more than body, feels the difference in their lives; they hear a sound from within before taking the next step forward, and whenever they ignore the voice of this True Self, they feel negatively different; and this difference is expressed in the body through an increased heartbeat, shaking legs, nervousness, etc. See it in an innocent child who lives more close to her/ his self. The moment a kid tells lie, observe the body language. Any deviation from the true self is signaled and warned. The DGM- Divine Guiding Mechanism works. Those who succeed in developing this inner sight by sticking to the basics do not get distracted by small shake ups and face the turmoil of life with dignity and distinction. A cub nurtured among lambs behaves like a lamb. It’s the way it is nurtured. We nurture our SELF like a lamb, and fail to enhance its capabilities to convert it into a lion. The more we dwell deeper and ask ourselves this basic question, the more life reveals it’s secretes to us and blossoms to its fullest.

The celebrated affirmation of Indian scriptures - Ishwar Jeev Ansh Avinashi, deserves emphasis here. Our SELF is a small fraction of the WHOLE, and it’s immortal, ever-lasting, never dying. But to be like the whole, to inculcate it’s qualities, we need to be connected with it, the frequency should be matched, the wavelength should tally; and once it is done, the energy starts flowing, the Universe starts conspiring, nothing falls apart, all pieces start coming together and the picture gets more clearer, the riddle finds the clues, and we start radiating something beyond ordinary, something very precious and that’s called LIFE.

Dwelling deeper to this question, takes us to another level, where the answer is- We are neither body, nor SELF, we are that; SOHAM- I am that. Indeed I am that, whom the Almighty has incarnated in human form. I am a devotee whom the almighty has given the opportunity to refine. Why should any prescribed task be difficult for me? At this level of exploration the inner guide becomes more prominent and the established connection moulds us spiritually. If I am that, nothing is impossible; if I am that, I am empowered to Generate new, Operate the existing and Destroy the Unwanted. This transformation is a big leap forward.

Further efforts alleviate one to deeper levels; viz SHIVOHAM- I am the akin of Shiva. Shiva means auspicious. I am essentially a blessed person. So how can there be any place for evil in my thoughts, feelings or actions? If any appropriate trait has become fixed, it is due to bad company and surroundings. It is foreign to my nature. Why should I have any difficulty in removing it? SATCHITANANDAM- I am the Ultimate being, thought and bliss. Why should I be affected by falsehood? Why should I strive for something which will not last forever? I am true bliss. Why should I wonder searching for material gains? Why not enjoy what is the best? AYAMATMA BRAHMA- this very soul is Brahma. As the ocean is water, so also a drop is water. Every ray of the sun has the virtue of the sun. How so ever small the sun be, it has the capability of uniting with Brahma. And after union who is small or big? Both tap and tank are capable of giving water. So, why should I remain small and miserable? Why not become all-powerful? TATVAMASI- You are That. Whatever is great in this life, in this world, all of that is You (Supreme Soul). Everything is nothing but light, so why wander searching for greatness? Why become a slave of material things? Why not search for greatness in God.

It should be remembered that the meaning of "Soham", "Tatvamasi" the words "I", "You" don’t refer to this body or mind, they corresponds to the soul. Thus ‘SOAHAM’ is a divine message which reminds that the soul is a part of the Brahma. The spiritual scholars of all times have described the unity of the soul with the Brahma as that of a wave with the ocean, light with the Sun, an atom with the Universe, a spark with the fire.

Our body is made of physical elements, but the soul is subtle in nature. Oil drops in water always float up; a wooden piece will never sink in water, how much ever we try. This is because the molecules of oil and wood are lighter than that of water. Law of gravity or atmospheric pressure can’t stop it. Soul is lighter than body, and hence, in-spite of being associated with the body, it never mixes up and always tends to move upwards. This is like the soul desires for something lost, something with which it wants to in communion with. The difficulty however is that the intensity of self oblivion and the darkness of ignorance cover this reality. In darkness, a simple rope appears to be a snake; but when there is light, the truth appears, as it is. Atma Bodh (Self Knowledge) is the advent of that light in which man gets the glimpse of his real form. Then no more time is taken in searching the right path. The cub now knows the reality, and it no more behaves like a puny lamb, it roars at the top of its voice. This is LIBERATION. A spider weaves web, gets entangled in it and becomes restless; but when it determines, it winds up the web and swallows it itself. Worthless, insignificant life is a man’s on creation, his own web in which he remains entangled for long. To experience Liberation, one needs to cut away this web, which can only be done through Atma Bodh.

Fruits, flowers do not fall on the tree from the sky. Trees grow and bear fruits and flowers when their roots suck juice from the earth. Roots are within us and influence our entire persona, which ultimately leads us to magnificence. One gets nothing by begging and entreating. Spiritual inward path needs to be travelled on your own. A Spiritual Master, ‘GURU’, surely guides and leads us as a mentor, but the steps to self refinement and self purification needs to be taken by us. This is the greatest and ultimate object of human pursuit. Those who have understood this ultimate truth, have realized the secret behind the Spiritual Knowledge.