3 July, The Lawns of Malke Ashram, Thousands of Devotees seated facing the stage of Guru Purnima: It was the day of Guru Purnima. Purnima stands for the day (night) of the full moon and this particular purnima is dedicated to the Guru. The day began early at 5:30 a.m. with devotees having coming from far and near, stood in queue, as each one awaited his turn to offer their feelings of love, gratitude and surrender at the feet of the Guru. This session went on till 8:00 a.m.
Thereafter, Maharaj Ji came back again near 10:30 a.m. and the main sabha was underaway. Numerous beautiful devotional songs, devoted to the Guru, were sung. Thereafter, Br. Guru Chaitanya, Sadhwi Yoganjali, Swami Suryendu Puri Ji shared their experiences and insights with the assembly. It was time now for Maharaj ji to speak. The important points are recollected and reproduced in bulleted form for ease in reading.
- Today is Guru Purnima. It is quite hot outside (the month of aashaar). But Guru Purnima also marks the beginning of the new month of Saavan, if seen by the motions of the moon. Saavan is all about rain and rasa. Thus, Guru Purnima becomes the means to transform immense heat into cool rasa. Let us address a few pertinent questions for today.
- Who is the Guru? Who is a disciple? What is the relation between the two?
- First of all, there has been no Brahmgyani, knower of Brahman who has proclaimed himself as the Guru of someone. In the Gurbani, the signs of a Brahmgyani have been told. It is said, that though he is the higher than the highest, but in his own mind he considers himself lower than everything else in the entire creation. The idea is that the knowledge of Brahman only emerges when one has erased the false ego in oneself. So the Brahmgyani is lower, because he is non-existent. So it is impossible that a true saint, would ever consider himself to be the Guru of someone.
- Someone, who has yearning for the knowledge of Brahman would invariably get attracted to a Brahmgyani. It is in the eyes of such a person, that Brahmgyani becomes the Guru, even the Lord himself. Such a person is then a disciple.
- The means of meeting the Guru i.e. becoming a disciple is called Guru-Naam. It is the true Name of the Lord obtained from the Guru, who has awakened it within himself. The vibrations of the true name descend from the tenth door into the body of the Guru, assuming the form of his body itself, and then the Guru channels it into the being of the disciple.
- Just like we give and take external things, similarly, Guru Naam is actually given and received.
- But only taking Guru-Naam will not suffice. It amounts to sowing the seed in the ground.
- For the seed to grow, it needs to be watered and cared for. This implies constant practice of the Guru-Naam.
- But even this is not sufficient. If given too much fertilizer and water, some weeds etc. also grow in the close proximity. Similarly, when we practice a great deal the weeds of ego might also grow alongside. One must take care to eliminate them from the very beginning and not allow them to grow.
- Thus constant practice and also keeping off the negative tendencies of the mind must go hand in hand for the flower of Guru-Naam to blossom.
- Those who believe that they have once taken the Naam and now can practice all by themselves, are deluding themselves. This is ego-talk.
- The idea is that we must celebrate Guru Purnima sometimes. This means that whenever we face the heat of adverse circumstances, difficulties are galore in our way, let us digest them. Let us not react back, but act in full glory.
Sangat at the end of Raam-Dhun, the concluding part of the sabha
Listen or download the discourse audio here