Is Guru needed on spiritual path ? I consider spiritual awareness very beneficial for person of every age. It brings balance in our life, gives real happiness, eliminates tension, depression, conflicts etc. Ultimately it can lead us to know all about us, our life, this world, God etc. Spirituality is also very useful for the society as it can bring more humanity and honesty in people. Luckily I came across many preachers, Gurus , books and courses which have helped me in getting answers to many questions related to life, spirituality, real happiness and myself. I am very grateful to all of them. When we talk of spirituality, concept of Guru immediately come to our mind. Is Guru really required on the path of spirituality? if required, what should be the relation with him? What if Guru brainwashes my thinking and exploits me for his vested interests? From the time of Mahabharata to recent times, stories of Gurus expectations of disciples are common. In India it is believed that spiritual progress is not possible without a Guru and the relation with Guru has to be of total surrender. However, in west mostly think that spirituality just like a science, where Guru is like any other teacher. The Indian concept of total surrender to Guru gives tremendous power to Guru, which has potential to bring even an enlightened Guru to the clutches of EGO. In my personal opinion, the journey of spiritual awareness is basically our own journey. We have to follow one of the four paths ( or more than one ) of spirituality ourself only. Others can explain about the purpose, the path and guide us with the problems in this path. Major effort ( say 90% ) is ours only. Our Guru cannot do this effort on our behalf. So the concept, that we make Guru, so as to free ourself of the efforts is not good. So while knowledge and guidance is needed on the path of spirituality, my view is that the Guru as per Indian concept is not essential. Now a days, internet has made lot of information about spirituality and the practice paths along-with discussions on them available to everyone. I have come across two very beautiful sites on internet, links of which are given on this blog. While one site gives knowledge of all aspects of spirituality, while other tells all about how to do practice. Both sites are totally free and they dont even bother to register or make member. I will keep on adding more links as I come across. Readers can also suggest the links. If someone still feels the need of a Guru, one can look for a good Guru. In my opinion, a good Guru is one who 1. Focuses more on imparting knowledge then worshiping him, 2. He himself is enlightened 3. He is following what he is preaching 4. He does not bind his disciples with him strongly. Also one should not become blind to the action of Guru in the name of surrender. It is true that we have to go above mind on the path of spirituality, but one should also be careful of pitfalls of this. Posted today on my spiritual blog - spiritualityforyou.blogspot.in/
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 08:45:33 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015