Greatness of the Guru:
The Guru is one who dispels the darkness of ignorance. He is regarded as an embodiment of God and is essential for a person seeking moksha. The Guru is one who guides his or her disciple to become a jivanmukta (liberated soul) who is able to achieve salvation during his or her lifetime.
Mahan Sri Seshadri Swamigal, well known as the "Saint with the golden hand", is one of the greatest Indian saints who lived in Tiruvannamalai. He is revered as a spiritual Guru by many people around the world.
Adi Shankaracharya’s words on Guru:
“No known comparison exists in the three worlds for a true Guru. If the philosophers’ stone be assumed as truly such, it can only turn iron into gold, not into another philosophers’ stone. The venerated teacher, on the other hand, creates equality with himself in the disciple who takes refuge at his feet. The Guru is therefore peerless, nay, transcendental. (Century of Verses, 1)”.
Satsang (Sanskrit सत्सङ्ग sat = true, sanga = company) in Indian philosophy means:
1) The company of the "highest truth,"
2) The company of a guru,
3) Company with an assembly of persons who listen to, talk about, and assimilate the truth.
This typically involves listening to or reading scriptures, reflecting on, discussing and assimilating their meaning, meditating on the source of these words, and bringing their meaning into one’s daily life.
Shankaracharya says, "In all the three worlds there is no boat like satsang to carry one safely across the ocean of births and deaths."
Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi’s words on Guru:
The realisation is the result of the Master’s grace more than teachings, lectures, meditation, etc. They are only secondary aids, whereas the former is the primary and the essential cause. (Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi, talk no. 13)
Guru is the Self.... Sometimes in his life, man becomes dissatisfied with it, and, not content with what he has, he seeks the satisfaction of his desires, through prayer to God, etc. His mind is gradually purified until he longs to know God, more to obtain his grace than to satisfy his worldly desires. Then, God’s grace begins to manifest. God takes the form of a Guru and appears to the devotee, teaches him the truth and, moreover, purifies his mind by association. The devotee’s mind gains strength and is then able to turn inward. By meditation it is further purified and it remains still without the least ripple. That calm expanse is the Self.
The Guru acts both ‘externally’ and ‘internally’. From the ‘exterior’ he gives a push to the mind to turn it inward; from the ‘interior’ he pulls the mind towards the Self and helps in the quietening of the mind. That is Guru-kripa. There is no difference between God, Guru and the Self. (Maharshi’s Gospel, p. 33)
The Guru is one who dispels the darkness of ignorance. He is regarded as an embodiment of God and is essential for a person seeking moksha. The Guru is one who guides his or her disciple to become a jivanmukta (liberated soul) who is able to achieve salvation during his or her lifetime.
Mahan Sri Seshadri Swamigal, well known as the "Saint with the golden hand", is one of the greatest Indian saints who lived in Tiruvannamalai. He is revered as a spiritual Guru by many people around the world.
Adi Shankaracharya’s words on Guru:
“No known comparison exists in the three worlds for a true Guru. If the philosophers’ stone be assumed as truly such, it can only turn iron into gold, not into another philosophers’ stone. The venerated teacher, on the other hand, creates equality with himself in the disciple who takes refuge at his feet. The Guru is therefore peerless, nay, transcendental. (Century of Verses, 1)”.
Satsang (Sanskrit सत्सङ्ग sat = true, sanga = company) in Indian philosophy means:
1) The company of the "highest truth,"
2) The company of a guru,
3) Company with an assembly of persons who listen to, talk about, and assimilate the truth.
This typically involves listening to or reading scriptures, reflecting on, discussing and assimilating their meaning, meditating on the source of these words, and bringing their meaning into one’s daily life.
Shankaracharya says, "In all the three worlds there is no boat like satsang to carry one safely across the ocean of births and deaths."
Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi’s words on Guru:
The realisation is the result of the Master’s grace more than teachings, lectures, meditation, etc. They are only secondary aids, whereas the former is the primary and the essential cause. (Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi, talk no. 13)
Guru is the Self.... Sometimes in his life, man becomes dissatisfied with it, and, not content with what he has, he seeks the satisfaction of his desires, through prayer to God, etc. His mind is gradually purified until he longs to know God, more to obtain his grace than to satisfy his worldly desires. Then, God’s grace begins to manifest. God takes the form of a Guru and appears to the devotee, teaches him the truth and, moreover, purifies his mind by association. The devotee’s mind gains strength and is then able to turn inward. By meditation it is further purified and it remains still without the least ripple. That calm expanse is the Self.
The Guru acts both ‘externally’ and ‘internally’. From the ‘exterior’ he gives a push to the mind to turn it inward; from the ‘interior’ he pulls the mind towards the Self and helps in the quietening of the mind. That is Guru-kripa. There is no difference between God, Guru and the Self. (Maharshi’s Gospel, p. 33)
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