Salutations unto the Guru !

The importance of the Guru in one’s life cannot be expressed in words. As per Sanatan Dharma, the importance of the Guru is little in the worldly sense, but supreme in the spiritual sense. Therefore, no matter how much gratitude is expressed unto Him, it always remains inadequate. Since Guru Purnima is the day to express gratitude unto the Guru, every disciple is aware that there are limitations to the gratitude that can be expressed.

Sachchidananda Parabrahman (Dr) Athavale (Founder of Sanatan Sanstha) propounded Gurukrupayoga, through which thousands of seekers are engaged in performing sadhana (Spiritual practice) today. Through Gurukrupayoga, 131 seekers have attained Sainthood till now. This itself reveals the greatness of the Guru. Offering one’s body, mind and wealth to the Guru is the goal of a seeker. Only then does the flow of the Guru’s grace begin, and by its uninterrupted flow, the seeker progresses spiritually, that is, he moves towards God and ultimately merges with Him.

Meeting a Guru who guides and bestows grace so that one may attain this state is not possible without the merits accumulated from previous births. The Guru Principle constantly guides the jiva (Embodied soul) and leads him forward in Spirituality. Teachers in the practical or worldly sphere cannot do this. Therefore, Gurus who grant God-realisation are of greater importance than worldly teachers. This is not a comparison, but it is necessary to state the limitations.

Once a Moksha Guru enters our life, the next stage is to progress by performing sadhana under His guidance. For this, intense yearning is necessary, for which one must increase faith in the Guru. When faith increases, the yearning to obtain the Guru’s grace also increases, and then, gratitude naturally manifests.

Gratitude is not expressed only on Guru Purnima; in fact, the jiva strives to remain in a state of gratitude every moment. He realises that his entire life is sustained by the Guru’s grace; his worldly life, dealings and sustenance go on with this grace alone. When this feeling is continuous, nothing remains in his mind except gratitude.

India has countless examples of the Guru-Disciple relationship. There are also examples where the Guru, by bestowing grace upon a disciple, commanded him to perform a particular mission, and the disciple fulfilled it by dedicating his entire being to it. The Guru gets the jiva to perform sadhana and later to perform the Guru’s mission. This may differ for every disciple. The mission later becomes the Guru’s satseva (Service unto Absolute Truth). Even if the Guru is no longer present in the physical form, the satseva assigned by Him becomes the Guru for the disciple, and through this satseva he remains in communion with the Guru. Through this, the Guru continues to guide him and leads him forward while working for the welfare of society.

Satseva unto the Guru’s samashti form is the quickest path to obtaining the Guru’s grace

As per the significance of times, establishing Dharma is the Guru’s samashti (For the sake of society) satseva. This is not the satseva of an embodied Guru, but satseva of the Guru Principle. Bhagawan Shrikrushna and Arjun were a Guru-Disciple pair in the Mahabharat times, and for Arjun, fighting itself was the Guru’s service because it was the Guru’s command, and Arjun could fulfil it only through the Guru’s grace. There, the Guru in the form of God Himself was providing guidance.

Under the guidance of Arya Chanakya, Chandragupta destroyed the unrighteous Nanda dynasty and unified Bharat (India). After Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj offered His kingdom to Samartha Ramdas Swami, he ruled it as the kingdom of his Guru as per His command and later became the ‘Janata Raja (Knowledgeable King)’. With the blessings of Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Swami Vivekananda spread Hindu Dharma across the world.

As per the significance of times, establishing Dharma is the Guru’s samashti (For the sake of society) satseva.

Bhagawan Shrikrushna has said in the Shrimabhagwadgeeta – ‘Whenever Dharma experiences lethargy and adharma is on the rise, I incarnate’. This very mission of Bhagawan is carried out by Gurus as per the significance of times.)

Disciple Dr Jayant Athavale established Sanatan Sanstha as per the wish of His Guru, Param Pujya Bhaktaraj Maharaj, and the propagation and dissemination of Sanatan Dharma commenced in Bharat (India) and abroad. Guidance began to be imparted on how one can progress spiritually through sadhana as per Gurukrupayoga, and through this, more than a thousand individuals have been liberated from the cycles of birth-and-death and are now progressing towards Sainthood.

There is no doubt that many more will progress spiritually through this Path in future. Simultaneously, the Guru’s mission in the form of establishing the Divine Rule (‘Hindu Rashtra’, Sanatan Rashtra) is also being performed as Guru’s satseva. This mission is being carried out only as per the wishes of Param Pujya Bhaktaraj Maharaj, and He Himself will bring it to completion. For this, thousands of seekers are striving by sacrificing their body, mind and wealth.

A Guru is not merely one who sits beneath a tree and guides disciples. In reality, by God’s wish, He works to protect Dharma and re-establish Dharma through the principle of ‘Shapadapi Sharadapi’ (Through a curse or a blessing alike) and gets this mission accomplished through many jivas. Gurus who simultaneously guide on vyashti (Individual) sadhana and get seekers to perform samashti sadhana are rare indeed. It is impossible to express gratitude unto such Gurus in words.

As per the significance of times, God Himself incarnates or gets such missions accomplished through Gurus, Saints and others. Thus, this is a Divine mission. It has happened in the past and will continue in the future. This mission will take place in every age.

Hence, while expressing gratitude on this auspicious day of Guru Purnima, it is necessary to pray for increase in bhav (Spiritual emotion), yearning and surrender so that we may perform the vyashti and samashti sadhana taught by the Guru in the manner expected by Him in the times to come. By making efforts with the bhav that this prayer be fulfilled only by His grace, we will realise that the Guru grants spiritual experiences.

The Guru is not limited to the body of the jiva; rather, the Guru works to uplift the soul principle and guides the jiva even in his journey after death. At present, since adverse times are ongoing, a chain of crises is continuing at the vyashti and samashti levels. Although one has to face many difficulties while participating in God’s mission to protect Dharma and re-establishing Dharma, the Guru carries the jiva safely through these crises.

Keeping this in mind, it is necessary to make utmost efforts to remain in a state of surrender and gratitude. On the auspicious day of Guru Purnima, let us surrender unto the Guru so that we may persevere in our efforts !