Who's A Guru?

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Who's A Guru?

"Guru is Shiva sans his three eyes, Vishnu sans his four arms Brahma sans his

four heads. He is parama Shiva himself in human form"~ Brahmanda Puran

Guru is the God, say the scriptures. Indeed, the 'guru' in Vedic tradition is

looked upon as one no less than a God. 'Guru' is a honorific designation of a

preceptor as defined and explained variously in the scriptures and ancient

literary works including epics. The English word 'guru' has its etymological

origin in the Sanskrit term. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English

defines it as "Hindu spiritual teacher or head of religious sect; influential

teacher; revered mentor".

Aren't gurus more real than the gods? Basically the guru is a spiritual teacher

leading the disciple on the path of "god-realization". In essence, the guru is

considered a respected person with saintly qualities who enlightens the mind of

his disciple, an educator from whom one receives the initiatory mantra, and one

who instructs in rituals and religious ceremonies. The Vishnu Smriti and Manu

Smriti regards the Acharya (teacher), along with the mother and the father as

the most venerable gurus of an individual. According to Deval Smriti there can

be eleven kinds of gurus and according to Nama Chintamani ten. According to his

functions he is categorized as rishi, acharyam, upadhya, kulapati or

mantravetta.

The Guru's RoleThe Upanishads have profoundly underlined the role of the guru.

Mundak Upanishad says to realize the supreme godhead holding samidha grass in

his hands one should surrender himself before the guru who knows the secrets of

Vedas. Kathopanishad too speaks of the guru as the preceptor who alone can guide

the disciple on the spiritual path.

Over time the guru's syllabus gradually enlarged incorporating more secular and

temporal subjects related to human endeavor and intellect. Apart from usual

spiritual works his sphere of instruction now included subjects like

Dhanurvidya (archery), Arthashastra (economics) and even Natyashastra

(dramatics) and Kamashastra (sexology).

Such was the ingenuity of the all pervading intellect of the ancient Acharyas

that they perpetuated even shastra like thievery. Shudraka's celebrated play

Mricchakatikam tells the story of Acharya Kanakashakti who formulated the

Chaurya Shastra, or the science of thievery, which was further developed by the

gurus like Brahmanyadeva, Devavrata and Bhaskarnandin.

>From Hermitages to UniversitiesGradually the institution of Gurukula or

in-forest-hermitage, where disciples learnt at the feet of guru for long years

was evolved. The great urban universities at Takshashila, Vikramashila and

Nalanda essentially evolved from these tiny gurukulas tucked away in deep

woods. If we have to believe the records of Chinese travellers who visited

Nalanda at that time, there were more than 1,500 teachers teaching various

subjects to more than 10,000 students and monks.

Legends of Gurus & DesciplesThere were gurus as well as disciples of different

hues to whom references were made in scriptures and literary works. The most

popular legend is that of the amazing young tribal boy Ekalavya on being

rejected by the ace trainer Dronacharya, raised his statue and with great

dedication practised the art of archery and left behind Arjuna, the master

archer, who actually learnt the art under the living guru. And the heartless

guru asked for his thumb as gurudakshina or fees, and made him inferior before

his royal disciple. In the Chandogya Upanishad, we meet an aspiring disciple

Satyakama, who refuses to tell lies about his caste in order to get an

admission in the gurukula of Acharya Haridrumat Gautam. And in the Mahabharata

we

come across Karna who did not bat an eyelid while telling Parashurama that he

belonged to the Bhrigu Brahmin caste just to obtain the Brahmastra, the supreme

weapon.

The Lasting ContributionFrom generation to generation the institution of the

guru has evolved various basic tenets of Indian culture and transmitted

spiritual and fundamental knowledge. Gurus formed the axis of ancient

educational system and ancient society, and enriched various fields of learning

and culture by their creative thinking. Herein lies the lasting significance of

gurus and their contribution to the upliftment of mankind.

Source:http://hinduism.about.com/od/gurussaints

Arun Reddy Nukala

+44 7946 595063

http://groups.msn.com/

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