Guru Poornima - Guru Purnima
Who is GURU - Hindu Spiritual Teacher || Aren't gurus more real than the
gods?
One saying of Sant Kabir Das ji is as follows-
Guru Govind dono khade kake lagu paay ||
Balihari Guru aapki Govind diyo batay.'गुरु
गोबिंद दोउ खड़े, काके लागूं पायं। बलिहारी गुरु आपने, जिन गोबिंद दियो बताय॥' -
संत कबीर |
गुरु ही वह ज्योति
जलाता है जिससे साधक का अज्ञान-तिमिर से पूर्ण हृदय सहज ज्ञान के
आलोक से आलोकित हो उठता है। इसी तथ्य को शास्त्रों और संतों द्वारा
विविध रूपों में कहा गया है -
'गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णु:
गुरुर्देवो महेश्वर:। गुरु: साक्षात्
परब्रह्म तस्मै श्री गुरवे नम:॥' |
|
ब्रह्मानंदं
परमसुखदं केवलं ज्ञानमूर्ति,
द्वंद्वातीतं
गगनसदृशं तत्वमस्यादिलक्ष्यम् ।
एकं
नित्यं विमलमचलं सर्वधीसाक्षिभुतं,
भावातीतं
त्रिगुणरहितं सद्गुरुं तं नमामि ॥
ब्रह्मा
के आनंदरुप परम् सुखरुप, ज्ञानमूर्ति, द्वंद्व से परे, आकाश जैसे
निर्लेप, और सूक्ष्म "तत्त्वमसि" इस ईशतत्त्व की अनुभूति हि जिसका
लक्ष्य है; अद्वितीय, नित्य विमल, अचल, भावातीत, और त्रिगुणरहित -
ऐसे सद्गुरु को मैं प्रणाम करता हूँ । |
Gurus are often equated with God and always regarded as a link between
the individual and the Immortal.
What is Guru Purnima or poornima?
The full moon day in the Hindu Calender Month of Aashadh (July-August)
is observed as the auspicious day of Guru Poornima, a day sacred to the
memory of the great rishi sage Ved Vyasa. All Hindus are indebted to
this ancient saint who edited the four Vedas, wrote the 18 Puranas, the
Mahabharata and lot more.
Significance of Guru Purnima
On this day, all spiritual aspirants and devotees worship the Guru whom
they got Dikhsa or conduct pooja for Vyasa in honor of his divine
personage and all disciples perform a 'puja' of their respective
spiritual preceptor or 'Gurudevs'.
The period 'Chaturmas' ("four months") begins from this day and ends on
Kartik Hindu Month. In the past, wandering spiritual masters and their
disciples used to settle down at a place to study and discourse on the
Brahma Sutras composed by Vyasa, and engage themselves in Vedantic
discussions. Jain Sadhus also settle down to some particular place in
this period.
The Role of the Guru
Saying is there=
The person who brings away from Darkness and take away towards the light
is GURU.
All world Gayatri Pariwar celebrates Guru Purnima world wide every
year on a grand scale on thousands of thousand places.
1.On Guru purnima, All aspirants awake at Brahmamuhurta, at 4 o'clock. They meditate on
the Guru and chant his prayers.
2. On Guru Purnima, All Gayatri Pariwar Parijan Participate in Yug Sangeet.
3. In Guru Purnima Day, All member of Gayatri Pariwar participate in yagna. Contibute or commit their Tan / Man / Dhan
towards gaytri Pariwar mission activities, the work initiated by Pujya
Gurudev Pandit Sri Ram Sharma Aacharya itself.
4. On Guru Purnima All Gayatri Pariwar Parijan visit Panch/ Five (now
six) teerth and do realize the
presence of guru ji in some or other form.
5. On Guru Purnima Almost capable disciples do fast and spend the whole day in remembrance
to the holy guru.
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Guru is the God, say the scriptures. Indeed, the 'guru' in Vedic
tradition is looked upon as one no less than a God. The Oxford
Dictionary of Current English defines it as "A Hindu or Buddhist
religious leader and spiritual teacher, A trusted counselor and adviser;
revered mentor".
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 Role
The 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.
From Hermitages to Universities
Gradually 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.
The Lasting Contribution
From 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.
