Gurukul And Guruadesh!
Yesterday when I was asked by my disciple why does a person have to be in front of his Guru to get knowledge and not behind a phone or a video?
The Ashrams in India and worldwide teach us to stay in the vicinity of the Guru so that we can get correct knowledge.
The Ashram life is not the same as the life we spend in our own house.
We do not have strict disciplines at home. We get up when we want, take an off when we want, laze around, procrastinate, take too many things for granted, know that someone is there around us who will bail us out and take our load on his/her head. And so on!
You can shut a video chat down or pause a YouTube download or cut the phone line also.
You do not have a decorum or discipline of standing or talking to this persona. You maybe just lying and talking or be in the loo for all you care.
Ashram life is full of discipline and tough one to live.
There is always someone to keep a tab on you.
You can never address your Guru lying down or sleeping. You need to have respect and humility whenever you are in presence of your Guru.
There are lots of chores and seva activities to perform in the Ashram.
You may have to tend to the cattle, wash the toilets, cut vegetables in the kitchen, cook, take care of the personal toilet of the Guru and so on.
These activities cannot be overlooked at all.
Then there is sadhana and time for meditations.
There is early morning calls and your stomach may growl for lack of food.
You may have to go and shop for stuff for the kitchen or the Ashram.
You may work outside and yet hand over your entire earnings to the Guru.
Its the same as asking for bhiksha and then putting it all down in front of everyone.
You do not have privacy or personal comfort zone.
You do not have the liberty to put on the television or go for a movie.
Since you have accepted Ashram life there is no relatives or friends of yours.
The day the diksha is given by the Guru, your previous life comes to an end.
You do not have any parents, relatives, husband, wife, children or any other person whom you can call your own.
Your Guru becomes all that and more.
You follow all His instructions as if they are the only thing in the world that you got to follow.
Your complete life is dedicated to what He instructs you into.
The faith in Guru has to be so perfect that you may be called to jump over a cliff and yet you do not revolt or ask any questions. There is a story of a great saint whose Guru asked everyone to jump over a cliff and no one did. Then this great saint came along and listening to the Guru's instructions he just followed it without questions asked. The remaining disciples went to search for his body in the river below and found him afloat. When he was asked what happened, he recounted that a powerful invisible hand caught him and slowly let him down when he fell off the cliff. He knew his Guru's grace saved him that day.
I remember someone whom I met told me how he had left his active family life to serve his Guru.
His daughter one day asked if he could ask his Guru for some money to buy a house and he balked at that. Few days later he found the amount in his bank account even when he had never told anyone at all. His Guru had transferred that amount so that he could buy that house. Strangely when he asked why that amount was given, his Guru told him that he wanted him to have a house.
When we think about such things it brings us to the topic when God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son Issac and when he is about to behead him, the angel of God tells him to stop and instead sacrifice a lamb which is nearby.
Such is Guru's grace, benevolence and compassion.
When you submit to the will of the Guru, you gain everything in this world.
The ultimate goal that you have of liberation becomes yours for the asking.
The most important thing that is to be noted is Guru seva and Guru adesh palan.
When the Guru instructs you in anything it is important to just follow those instructs to the tee!
Even when Jackie Chan was staying with his Guru, he had to follow all his instructions and now we know who Jackie is. All because of his Guru's grace.
So I can conclude that no one can get any better if they stay at home and follow some blog or watch You Tube or read or listen to some recording of some sage.
A disciplined Gurukul life with direct instructs of your Guru will lead you to liberation or realization.
What you need to bring to the table is complete faith in Guru's words, surrender to Him, single pointed devotion and unconditional love.
Then doing His seva and listening to His adesh or instructions you will attain your goals for sure.
The Ashrams in India and worldwide teach us to stay in the vicinity of the Guru so that we can get correct knowledge.
The Ashram life is not the same as the life we spend in our own house.
We do not have strict disciplines at home. We get up when we want, take an off when we want, laze around, procrastinate, take too many things for granted, know that someone is there around us who will bail us out and take our load on his/her head. And so on!
You can shut a video chat down or pause a YouTube download or cut the phone line also.
You do not have a decorum or discipline of standing or talking to this persona. You maybe just lying and talking or be in the loo for all you care.
Ashram life is full of discipline and tough one to live.
There is always someone to keep a tab on you.
You can never address your Guru lying down or sleeping. You need to have respect and humility whenever you are in presence of your Guru.
There are lots of chores and seva activities to perform in the Ashram.
You may have to tend to the cattle, wash the toilets, cut vegetables in the kitchen, cook, take care of the personal toilet of the Guru and so on.
These activities cannot be overlooked at all.
Then there is sadhana and time for meditations.
There is early morning calls and your stomach may growl for lack of food.
You may have to go and shop for stuff for the kitchen or the Ashram.
You may work outside and yet hand over your entire earnings to the Guru.
Its the same as asking for bhiksha and then putting it all down in front of everyone.
You do not have privacy or personal comfort zone.
You do not have the liberty to put on the television or go for a movie.
Since you have accepted Ashram life there is no relatives or friends of yours.
The day the diksha is given by the Guru, your previous life comes to an end.
You do not have any parents, relatives, husband, wife, children or any other person whom you can call your own.
Your Guru becomes all that and more.
You follow all His instructions as if they are the only thing in the world that you got to follow.
Your complete life is dedicated to what He instructs you into.
The faith in Guru has to be so perfect that you may be called to jump over a cliff and yet you do not revolt or ask any questions. There is a story of a great saint whose Guru asked everyone to jump over a cliff and no one did. Then this great saint came along and listening to the Guru's instructions he just followed it without questions asked. The remaining disciples went to search for his body in the river below and found him afloat. When he was asked what happened, he recounted that a powerful invisible hand caught him and slowly let him down when he fell off the cliff. He knew his Guru's grace saved him that day.
I remember someone whom I met told me how he had left his active family life to serve his Guru.
His daughter one day asked if he could ask his Guru for some money to buy a house and he balked at that. Few days later he found the amount in his bank account even when he had never told anyone at all. His Guru had transferred that amount so that he could buy that house. Strangely when he asked why that amount was given, his Guru told him that he wanted him to have a house.
When we think about such things it brings us to the topic when God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son Issac and when he is about to behead him, the angel of God tells him to stop and instead sacrifice a lamb which is nearby.
Such is Guru's grace, benevolence and compassion.
When you submit to the will of the Guru, you gain everything in this world.
The ultimate goal that you have of liberation becomes yours for the asking.
The most important thing that is to be noted is Guru seva and Guru adesh palan.
When the Guru instructs you in anything it is important to just follow those instructs to the tee!
Even when Jackie Chan was staying with his Guru, he had to follow all his instructions and now we know who Jackie is. All because of his Guru's grace.
So I can conclude that no one can get any better if they stay at home and follow some blog or watch You Tube or read or listen to some recording of some sage.
A disciplined Gurukul life with direct instructs of your Guru will lead you to liberation or realization.
What you need to bring to the table is complete faith in Guru's words, surrender to Him, single pointed devotion and unconditional love.
Then doing His seva and listening to His adesh or instructions you will attain your goals for sure.
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