Who is a Guru?

A Guru is way beyond an ordinary teacher. Guru is someone who mentors, inspires as well as nurtures.

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Indology | 24-11-2016

The Sanskrit word Guru is often mistranslated as a ‘teacher’. Teacher in Sanskrit is called as Shikshak. A teacher is someone who informs and educates us. A teacher is supposed to ensure that we learn to read, write, learn and understand. But, a teacher has no obligation for the complete welfare of his student(s). While teachers are often found taking credits for the success of their students they often wash their hands off those who turn into a failure. A teacher is a professional. He does that for his living.

On the other hand, a Guru is way beyond an ordinary Shikshak. Guru is someone who mentors, inspires as well as nurtures. Unlike a Shikshak, being a Guru is not a profession. Guru doesn’t do his work in exchange for monetary or any other material gains. He shuns the very idea of having something in return. He does what he does as his duty and stays away from all the results. Guru is verily a sage, a beacon of inspiration for his disciples, especially when they are struck by a crisis.

However, there’s yet another Guru whom we learn from although he doesn’t necessarily intend to teach us. Vedic rishis profess that everything we desire – happiness and knowledge – is deep within us. All the help we require is within. While Shikshak puts efforts to make us understand that we want and we may not want, Guru introduces us to ourselves and instils in us the wisdom to seek, lead and enlighten ourselves.

There are two interesting stories from the Vedic literature that are worthy of recollection in this subject-

It is said that Adi Shankaracharya of Kaaladi, a pioneer in the field of Advaita once came across a Chandala (low caste person who works in the crematorium) while on his way to Harighat in Varanasi for his bath. He, being aghast by the presence of an untouchable told the latter to get away from his sight. To Adi Shankaracharya’s utter dismay, the Chandala raised some pertinent questions – “Whom are you telling to keep away, Acharya the fountainhead of all knowledge of Vedas and Upanishads? This body or the Atman (conscious soul) which resides in this body? Your body and mine are made of the same substance, as pots of varying sizes and colours are made of the same clay. How could such body ask the other of the same element to stay away? Are they not part of the same illusion?” Legend says that Chandala’s words stunned Adi Shankaracharya. He realised that differentiation between one person and another come from the size and shape of the body, or the state of mind. The Atman, however, is beyond all these things. He not only hailed the Chandala for showing him this practical side of Advaita philosophy that he had been preaching for long but also offered his salutations and called the Chandala his Guru. Shankaracharya was so moved that he composed a new poem now called as Manisha Panchaka. At the end of this poem Shankaracharya declares “One who looks at the creation from a non-dualistic viewpoint is my true teacher, be he a Brahmin or a Chandala.” Here the great proponent of Advaita Vedanta verily declares that Guru can be of any caste, creed or even species. If anyone helps us in our endeavour in realising our true self and full potential that individual is verily our Guru.

Another story worthy of recollection in this domain is that of Avadhoota Dattatreya. Once King Yadu saw Avadhoota Dattatreya in a forest and asked “Sir, you are revered to be quite capable, energetic and wise. Such as you are, why do you live in the forest, free from all desires? Even though you have neither kith and kin nor even a family, how could you be so blissful and self-contended?”
The Avadhoota (word meaning: one who has given up all worldly desires) replied, “My contentment is because of my realisation of the self. I have gained the necessary wisdom from the whole creation, through 24 gurus. Let me elaborate the same for you:
Earth: People plough, dig and tread the earth without any respect, they light a fire on it. Yet, mother earth does not deviate from its path of sustaining life. On the other hand, it shelters the very creatures which cause it harm and trample it under their feet. This attribute of the earth has made me realise that to be wise one must never deviate from one’s vow of patience, love and righteousness under any circumstances and one should dedicate his life for the welfare of living. I, therefore, consider the earth as my first guru.
Air: I observed that air is pure and odourless. And it blows on both sweet and foul-smelling things without any discrimination or preferences. Though it momentarily seems to take on the smell of its surroundings, in a short while, it reveals its natural quality. From this I learned that a spiritual aspirant should live in the world, unaffected by the dualities of life as joy and sorrow and by the objects of the senses. One should keep his heart’s feeling and his speech unpolluted by vain objects. As I have learned all this by observing it, air is my second guru.
Sky: The soul is also like the sky, which is omnipresent. I have noticed that sometimes the sky (or space) gets thickly overcast, or filled with dust or smoke. At sunrise and during night, it apparently takes on different colours. But in fact, it ever retains its colourless self, and it is never touched or stained by anything. From this, I learned that a true sage should remain ever pure like the sky,  untouched or unaffected by anything in the phenomenal universe in time, including his own physical processes. His inner being is entirely free from an emotional reaction to things and events. Thus, I accepted the sky or space as my third guru.
Fire: My fourth teacher is the element of fire. Sometimes, it manifests itself as blazing flames; sometimes as smouldering embers, covered by ash. But it is for everyone, irrespective of his moral worth and burns down his sins; and it remains the ever-pure divinity; he is untainted by the sins of such devotees. So too, a sage of perfect realisation should accept food of everyone, burn down his sins and bless the giver. Though the fire has no particular form of its own, when it is associated with fuel that burns, it assumes such apparent forms. So too, the true self, though formless, appears in the form of deities, human beings, animals and trees when it is associated with the respective physical structures. The source of all forms in the universe, as also their end, remains ever mysterious. All the things are manifest only in between their origin and their end. Their source and end make the true self, which is eternal, unchanging, un-manifest and omnipresent. The nature of the element of fire is such. The manifest fire transforms the various things it consumes into the same ash. So too, the wisdom of self-realization rejects the manifest forms and properties of things as illusion and realizes their one original essence as itself. Thus, the element of fire is my fourth guru.

Sun: My fifth guru is sun. Though the sun we see in our daily life is one, it appears as many when reflected by water in different vessels. Similarly, the one real-self manifests itself as many selves of living creatures when reflected by their physical structures. As Sun illuminates the many forms in nature to our visions, the self too illuminates the true nature of all things to his devotees.

Pigeon: I have gained wisdom from a pigeon too. Once a pair of pigeons lived together on a tree. They bred their young and were bringing them up with deep affection and love. One day, a hunter caught the young fledglings in a snare. The ladybird, which returned from the forest with food for its young ones, saw their plight and, unable to leave them, she leapt in the snare to share their fate. Shortly after, the male pigeon turned up and, unable to bear the separation from its sweetheart, it too jumped in the snare and met its end. Reflecting on this, I realised how, even after being born as an intelligent human being, man is caught in the coils of possessiveness and brings about his own spiritual destruction. The self, which is originally free, when associated with the body sense, get identified with it, and thus get caught in the endless cycle of birth, death and misery. Thus, the pigeons are my sixth guru.

Python: The python is a sluggard, unwilling to move out briskly for its prey. It lies in its lurch and devours whatever creature it comes across, be it sufficient to appease its hunger. From this, I learnt that the man in search of wisdom should refrain from running after pleasures, and accept whatever he gets spontaneously with contentment. Like the python, he should shake off sleep and wakefulness and abide in a state of incessant meditation on the self. Thus, the python was my seventh teacher of wisdom.

Sea: Contemplating the unusual nature of the ocean, I have gained much wisdom. Any number of overflowing rivers may join it, yet the sea maintains its level. Nor does its level fall even by a hair’s breadth in summer, when all the rivers dry up. So too, the joys of life do not elate the sage of wisdom, nor does its sorrow depress him. Just as the sea never crosses its threshold on the beach, the wise one never transgresses the highest standards of morality under the pull of passions. Like the sea, he is unconquerable and cannot be troubled by anything. Like the unfathomable ocean, his true nature and the depths of his wisdom cannot be easily comprehended by anyone. The sea, which has taught me this, is my eighth guru.

Moth: I often see that the moth (or, more precisely, grasshopper) is tempted by fire to jump in it and get burnt down. So too, the unthinking man is enticed by the illusionary pleasures of the senses and thus gets caught in the ceaseless cycles of birth and death. On the other hand, the wise one, when he catches even a glimpse of the fire of wisdom, leaves everything aside, leaps in it and burns down the illusion of being a limited self. Thus, the moth was my ninth guru.

Elephant: The elephant was my tenth guru. The human beings raise a stuffed cow-elephant in the forest. The wild tusker mistakes it for a mate, approaches it and then skilfully bound in fetters by the cunning human beings. So too, the unregenerate man is tempted by the opposite sex and gets bound by the fetters of infatuation. The seekers after liberation should learn to be free from lust. The elephant was thus one of my teachers.

Ant: The ant stores up lots of food materials which it neither eats nor gives away in charity to any other creature. In consequence, other more powerful creatures are tempted to plunder the ants. So too, the man who lays by treasures of merely material things becomes a victim of robbery and murder. But the ant has something positive to teach us too. It is a tireless worker and is never discouraged by any number of obstacles and setbacks in its efforts to gather its treasure. So too, a seeker after wisdom should be tireless in his efforts for self-realisation. This noble truth taught by little ant, I regard it as my eleventh guru.

Fish: The fish greedily swallows the bait and is at once caught by the angle-hook. From this, I realised how many meets his destruction by craving for delicious food. When the palate is conquered, all else is conquered. Besides, there is a positive feature in the fish. It never leaves its home, i.e. water. So too, a many should never lose sight of his true self, but should ever have his being in it. Thus, the fish became my twelfth guru.

Pingala: The thirteenth guru that has awakened my spirit is a prostitute named Pingala. One day, she eagerly awaited a client in the hope that he would pay her amply. She waited and waited till late in the night. When he did not turn up, she was at last disillusioned and reflected thus: “Alas! How stupid I am! Neglecting the divine spirit within, who is of the nature of bliss eternal, I foolishly waited for a debauchee (sensualist) who inspires my lust and greed. Henceforth, I shall expend myself on the Self, unite with him and win eternal joy. Through such repentance, she attained blessedness. Besides, reflecting on its obvious purport, I also realised that a spiritual aspirant should likewise reject the lure of lesser spiritual powers, which are mere by-products of Sadhana (spiritual practice). I learned that the temptation of secure things from other’s hands are the seeds of misery; that renunciation of these is the sole means of realising infinite joy.

Arrow-maker: Once I observed an arrow maker who was totally absorbed in moulding a sharp arrow. He grew so oblivious of all else that he did not even notice a royal pageant that passed by. This sight awakened me to the truth that such single-minded, all-absorbing contemplation of the Self spontaneously eliminates all temptation for the trivial interests of the world. It is the sole secret of success in spiritual discipline. Thus, the arrow-maker is my fourteenth guru.

Playful Boy: Little boys and girls know neither honour nor dishonour. They do not nurse a grudge or prejudice against anyone. They do not know what is their own, or what belongs to others. Their happiness springs from their selves, their innate creativity and they do not need any external objects or conditions to be happy. I realised that the sage of perfect enlightenment is also such. A playful boy thus happened to be my fifteenth guru.

Moon: Of all things in nature, the moon is unique. It appears to wax and wane during the bright and dark fortnights. In fact, the lunar globe ever remains the same. In this, it is like the self of the man. While a man appears to pass through the stages of infancy, boyhood, youth, maturity and old age, his real self-remains unchanged. All changes pertain only to body and not to the self. Again, the moon only reflects the light of the sun but has no such of its own. So too, the soul or mind of a man is only a reflection of the light of awareness of the real self. Having taught this truth, the moon became my sixteenth guru.

Honeybee: Honeybee wanders from flower to flower and, without hurting them in the least, draws honey. So too, a spiritual seeker should study all the holy scriptures but retain in his heart, only that which is essential for his spiritual practice. Such is the teaching I imbibed from my seventeenth guru.

Deer: It is said that deer are very fond of music and that poachers employ it to lure them before hunting them. From this, I learned that passions and sensual desires will soon bog down a spiritual aspirant who has a weakness for merely secular music, till he ultimately loses whatever spiritual progress he has achieved earlier. The deer taught me this truth is my eighteenth guru.

Bird of prey: A little bird of prey is my nineteenth guru. One day, I saw one such carrying away a dead rat. Many other birds like crows and eagles attacked it, now kicking on its head and again pecking on its sides in their endeavour to knock off the prey. The poor bird was thus very much pestered. At last, it wisely let is prey fall, and all the other birds rushed after it. Thus, freeing itself from so much botheration, it sighed in relief. From this, I learned that a man who runs after worldly pleasure would soon come into clash with his fellow beings who too run for the same, and must face much strife and antagonism. If he learns to conquer his craving for worldly things, he can spare himself much unhappiness. I realised that this is the only way to the peace of the world.

Maiden: Once I observed a family visit a maiden’s house, seeking her hand in marriage for their son. At that time, her mother was away from home. So, the maiden herself had to entertain the guests with refreshments. She at once started pounding the food-grains with a pestle. The bangles on her hand started knocking against each other. She was afraid that the guests might hear the sound and be unhappy for having caused her so much trouble. As a Hindu maiden, she is not expected to remove all the bangles on her hand at any time. So, she kept two on each hand and removed all the rest. Even then, they were knocking against each other and making noise. So, she kept only one bangle on each hand this time, and she could finish her task in quiet. Reflecting on this, I realised that several spiritual practices can be pursued with a single-minded effort. Only in solitude, a spiritual aspirant can carry his task. Knowing the truth, I henceforth resorted to solitude. Thus, a maiden happened to be my twentieth guru.

Serpent: I observed that a serpent never builds a dwelling for itself. When white ants have raised an anthill for themselves, the serpent eventually comes to inhabit it. Similarly, worldly people must endure many hardships in raising houses for themselves, while a recluse monk lives in them; or, he leaves in old dilapidated temples, or underneath shady trees. The serpent moults, leaving off its old skin. So too at the end of his life Yogi leaves his body deliberately and in full awareness of his own true self and is not frightened by the phenomenon of death. On the other hand, he casts off his old body as happily as he does his worn-out clothes and dons new ones.

Spider: The spider is my twenty-second guru. It weaves its web from the thread in the form of fluid. After some time, it gathers up the web into itself. This projects the whole creation out of itself and after some time, withdraws it into itself at the time of dissolution. The individual soul too bears the senses and the mind within itself and, at its birth as a human being or any other living creature; it projects them out as the sense organs, organs of action and the whole body. By its latent tendencies, the creature thus born, gathers up all the means and objects needed for its living. At the end of its life’s duration, the soul again withdraws the senses, mind and acquired tendencies at the hour of death. This is what I learned from the spider.

Caterpillar: The caterpillar is also one of my teachers of wisdom. The wasp carries its caterpillar to a safe corner and closes it up in its nest and goes on buzzing about it. The young caterpillar is so frightened by the incessant buzzing, that it cannot think of anything else than the buzzing wasp. Through such intermittent contemplation of its mother, the caterpillar too soon grows up into a wasp! In a like fashion, a true disciple is so charmed and over-awed by the spiritual eminence of his own guru that he cannot think of anyone other than him. Through such contemplation, he soon blossoms into a great spiritual master himself. The caterpillar is thus my twenty-third guru.

Water: Water is my twenty-fourth Guru. It quenches the thirst of every creature, sustains innumerable trees and all creatures. While it thus serves all living beings, it is never proud of itself. On the other hand, it humbly seeks the lowliest of palaces. The sage too should likewise bestow health, peace and joy to every creature that resorts to him. Yet he should ever live as the humblest of nature’s creation.
With such humility and devotion, I looked upon the whole of creation as my teacher, gathered up wisdom and through patient effort I realised my goal of attaining bliss through wisdom.”

Finally, it’s important to note here that Guru comprises of two words, namely Gu (Ignorance) and Ru (Destroyer). Therefore, Guru is anyone who can destroy our internal and external ignorance. Ignorance is not bliss. It’s often the cause of man’s own suffering. When ignorance is identified – solutions present forth them and peace is attained.

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