June 2015
Knowing if we need a Guru is like knowing if we need a milestone. Do we need one? – Yes and no. Yes if we are uncertain, no if we know our way. Once we are certain in ourselves, the Guru is no longer needed, except in a technical sense. Your mind is an instrument, after all, and you can learn how to use it. As you are taught the uses of your body, so you will know how to use your mind.
The struggle is never alone. You are never alone. There are powers and presences who serve you all the time most faithfully. You may or may not perceive them, nevertheless they are real and active. When you realize that all is in your mind and that you are beyond the mind, that you are truly alone, at-one; then know that all, and the power is you.
Each seeker accepts, or invents a method which suits him, applies it to himself with some earnestness and effort, obtains results according to his temperament and expectations, casts them into the mould of words, builds them into a system, establishes a tradition and begins to admit others into his ‘school of Yoga;. It is all built on memory and ideas in the mind.
No such school is valueless, not indispensable; in each, one can progress up to the point, when all desire for progress must be abandoned to make further progress possible. Then all schools are given up, all effort ceases; in solitude and darkness the last step is made which ends ignorance and fear forever.
The true teacher, however, will not imprison his disciple in a prescribed set of ideas, feelings and actions; on the contrary, he will show him patiently the need to be free from all ideas and set patterns of behaviour, to be vigilant and earnest and go with life wherever it takes him, not to enjoy or suffer, but to understand and learn.
Under the right teacher the disciple learns to learn, not to expect and judge, not to remember and obey. The company of the noble does not mould, it liberates. Beware of dependency.
Most of the so-called ‘surrenders to the Guru’ end in disappointment, if not in tragedy. Fortunately, an earnest seeker will disentangle him or herself in time, the wiser for the experience.
There is no need to look for a Guru, or even think of one. Make your goal your Guru. After all, the Guru is but a means to an end, not the end itself. He is not important; it is what you will of him that matters to you. Now, what is your will?
The outer Guru only represents the inner, the inner accepts the outer – for a time. The effort is that of the disciple. The outer Guru gives the instructions, the inner sends the strength; the alert application is the disciple’s. Without will, intelligence and energy on the part of the disciple the outer Guru is helpless. The Inner Guru bids his chance. Obtuseness and wrong pursuits bring about a crisis and the disciple wakes up to his own plight. Wise is he who does not wait for a shock, which can be quite rude.
The innermost light, shining peacefully and timelessly in the heart, is the real Guru. All others merely show the way. The inner Guru is the only reality, all else is shadow, cast by the body-mind on the face of time. Of course, even a shadow is related to reality, but by itself it is not real.
Life itself is the Guru, and the mind – the disciple. The mind attends to life, it does not dictate. Life flows naturally and effortlessly and the mind removes the obstacles to its even flow. By itself, life is immensely creative. A seed, in the course of time, becomes a forest. The mind is like a forester – protecting and regulating the immense vital urge of existence.
Whoever may be the Guru, if he is pure of heart and acts in good faith, the disciple will come to no harm. If there is no progress, no blame is there but lack of self-control. On the other hand, if the disciple is earnest and applies himself intelligently and with zest, he is bound to meet a more qualified teacher, who will take him further. The Guru’s role is only to instruct and encourage; the disciple is totally responsible for himself.
To know if you have the right Guru, watch yourself. If you see yourself changing, growing, it means you have found the right Guide. He or she may be beautiful or ugly, pleasant or unpleasant, flattering or scolding; nothing matters except the one crucial fact of inward growth. If you don’t well, he or she may be your friend, but not your Guru.
The distance from your Guru does not matter. If your will is strong and true, it will mould your life beyond all desire. Sow your seed and leave it to the seasons. The sign of progress in spiritual life is the steady spread of freedom from anxiety; a sense of ease and joy; deep peace within and abundant energy without.
There are no hopeless cases. Obstacles can be overcome. What life cannot mend, death will end, but the Guru cannot fail. The Guru and inner reality are really one and the same, and work toward the same goal – the redemption and salvation of the mind, and cannot fail. Out of the very boulders that obstruct, the bridges are built. Consciousness is not the whole of being; that you are beyond. The Guru is at home everywhere, with inexhaustible energy and patience.
NaturesDestiny 