Teachings of Swami Brahmananda Lecture 04

Invocation

ॐ जननीं शारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुं, पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः.

oṃ jananīṃ śāradāṃ devīṃ rāmakṛṣṇaṃ jagadguruṃ, pādapadme tayoḥ śritvā praṇamāmi muhurmuhuḥ.

Introduction: Continuing the Teachings of Swami Brahmananda

We are continuing the spiritual teachings of Swami Brahmanandaji. One of the questions which is very important is our non-acceptance of different gods and goddesses.

Question: The Significance of Gods and Goddesses

"Maharaj, what is the significance of all these gods and goddesses? Do they really exist? And what is the meaning and purpose of ritualistic worship?"

Answer: The Many Aspects of the One Godhead

Maharaj: The many gods and goddesses represent—but so many—different aspects of the one Godhead. Men differ in their temperaments and so are inclined to different ways of worship. To meet the needs of all, the scriptures prescribe four distinct methods of worship.

The Four Methods of Worship

First Method: Ritualistic Worship

One method is the ritualistic worship of God embodied in an image or a symbol.

Second Method: Prayer and Japa

Higher than this is the worship of God with prayer and japa. By this means, the aspirant prays and chants and meditates upon the shining form of his chosen ideal within his own heart.

Third Method: Meditation

Higher still is meditation. When a man practises this form of worship, he keeps up a constant flow of thought toward God and becomes absorbed in the living presence of his chosen ideal. He goes beyond prayer and japa, but the sense of duality remains.

Fourth Method: Meditation on Unity

The highest method of worship is meditation on the unity of the Ātman and Brahman. This leads directly and immediately to God. The aspirant experiences Brahman. He knows that God is. It is an actual realisation of the omnipresent reality.

The Importance of Gradual Progress

These are the different stages through which the aspirant progresses. It is of vital importance that a man begin his spiritual journey from where he is. If an average man is instructed to meditate on his union with the Absolute Brahman, he will not understand. He will neither grasp the truth of it nor be able to follow the instructions. For a while he may try, but sooner or later he will tire of the struggle and give up.

However, if that same man is asked to worship God with flowers, incense, and other accessories of ritualistic worship, his mind will gradually become concentrated on God and he will find joy in his worship. Through such worship, devotion to the performance of japa grows. The finer the mind becomes, the greater is its capacity for the higher forms of worship. Through japa, the mind inclines toward meditation. Thus the aspirant gradually and naturally moves toward his ideal.

The Illustration of the Staircase

Take the illustration of a man standing in the courtyard of a house. He wants to reach the roof, but instead of climbing the staircase step by step, he permits himself to be thrown up bodily. What happens? He is seriously hurt. So it is with the spiritual life. One should follow the gradual path, for just as there are laws governing the physical world, so are there laws governing the spiritual world also.

Gods and Goddesses: Higher and Lower

So, two important ideas about gods and goddesses. In Hindu mythology, there is a mention of Gods as well as gods. Gods like Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śiva; Goddesses like Devī, Sarasvatī, Lakṣmī, Pārvatī; and gods like Indra, Varuṇa, etc. So these are called lower gods. And these gods—it is a position actually. Like Prime Minister or President, it goes on changing. Depends upon the number of votes you can muster. But they have some powers.

So both are true. You cannot simply say it is imagination. God is only one, but His manifestation comes through these two different aspects.

The Reality of Higher and Lower Gods

First of all, the first point we have to know: all this is true. The higher gods and goddesses as well as the lower gods and goddesses—they are all there. And they can do good or they can also do harm. So different people get different powers. Like, you know, President has greater powers, the Senators have lower powers, and there are local people—I do not know what you call—MPs or whatever you call them—they have still lower powers. Like that, these are all true.

Why Is It Necessary to Believe They Are True?

Why is it necessary for us to believe that these are true? Can we not do without that? Rarely. If we study the lives of great saints, I can refer to Indian saints like Ramana Maharshi—he was a pure Advaitin, and yet he believed not only in different gods and goddesses, he also had extraordinary things to say. I will mention one or two.

Ramana Maharshi on Siddhas

See, he used to say, firstly, that there are special categories of human beings called Siddhas, and they will be there underground, in underground cities. And a man who attained to the highest pinnacle of spiritual realisation—for him to say these things, he would not simply say unless they are true. So there are people who are very highly evolved; they look like human beings, but they have higher realisations, and they live invisibly.

One instance is that Ramana Maharshi was living in what is called the basement of the temple, Aruṇācaleśvara. It is called Pātālagṛha. And he was also an extraordinarily good student. He had extraordinarily good memory—what he reads once, he never forgets. And there are certain books called Sthala Purāṇas—that is the greatness, glory of some area, a local place—that is called Sthala Purāṇa, especially holy places. So in that Sthala Purāṇa, it is written that there is a city of Siddhas beneath the present Tiruvannamalai, and only rarely persons behold that.

Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's Vision of Vārāṇasī

Now if you come back to Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's life, when Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa first came to Vārāṇasī, he saw two Vārāṇasīs, if you remember. What was the first Vārāṇasī? A golden city filled with golden light, and he could never answer calls of nature there; he had to cross the river and go some other place. And then later on, when his mind came down a little, he saw the ordinary city that we see, and yet extraordinary.

So there are things beyond our ken, and it would be extremely foolish to say such things do not exist.

Ramana Maharshi's Exploration

Ramana Maharshi, one day, he said, "I was sitting there, and a ray of light was coming from a corner of that basement. I became curious; I went there, and there were some blue stones; I removed them, I went inside, and slowly the path was widening, and I went a little inside, I saw that there was a huge city there. But I wanted to go a little bit inside, and huge wasps came and stung him, and drove him out of that place." He understood it is not the intention of the Siddhas that he should enter into that. Like this, so many incidents are there.

So if you tell this to a modern man, "Come on, find out, let us see"—we do not know what we are going to discover, but certainly they do not want us. They want to be in peace.

How Siddhas Live

In this respect, Ramana Maharshi also told something very interesting. How do they live? They do not come out. So there are some plants—you know, there are some plants in Amazon—if you break the branches, pure water will be coming; they can drink that water—huge amount of water, bucketfuls of water. So the local people know, and all that they know is with a machete, they will cut one of the branches, and pure water—they know what they are doing.

So Ramana Maharshi said, "This small plant exudes a kind of milk, and if the Siddhas once drink a little bit, for about fifteen days or twenty days, there is no thirst, there is no hunger." Would you believe it? It is a matter of belief.

The Banyan Leaf

So there are other stories. One day he found a huge banyan leaf, and it is written in the Sthala Purāṇa that Lord Śiva sits under a huge banyan tree, and that banyan tree has this kind of leaf—it is usually a banyan leaf, a very small affair like that—but this, a person can eat food—huge leaf.

So when he was sitting there, he was a great trekker; he explored the whole thing; he was a naturalist; he knew many plants with auṣadhis and other things—auṣadhi means medicinal effects. So he was very familiar with all those—now you do not see anything; totally it has been denuded by people. Nothing is there. People—or it had died before people could discover it, whatever it is. So he wanted to investigate, and then again this stung him so badly, he gave it up.

The Point

What is the point? There are gods and goddesses who hold different types of powers. For some reason, if we displease them, then we can be harmed; and if we can please them, they can also help.

The Vision of Chandramani Devī

I will tell you one or two such stories in connection. Once when Chandramani Devī was carrying Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa, then she could see so many gods and goddesses. How dare you say that "I believe in Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa, but I do not—these are all cock-and-bull stories"? There are so many things which we do not know.

The Tired God

So one day, one god came—a small god, riding a swan—and he looked tired. So naturally, in Bengal is a place where you get tired even by entering that place. That is why Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa decided—Swami Vivekananda decided—no more coming to West Bengal; we have had enough of... No, Ṭhākur said he is going to come again in Bengal. Yes, he said, but he said somewhere far away—north, north-west; he did not say West Bengal. Anyway, we do not know where he wants to come. And he said, "This time I will come like a Baul." So Baul is being in Bengal only. There are Bauls outside also—in every area, what is called folk songs, etc. Anyway, whatever it is. If he comes again, he will suffer again. He says he came farthest from South India. Yes, that is true. Where does he come? Where dharma is at its lowest. So we do not know where he is going to come.

Śrī Rāma's Ancestors

Another story—we get the very birth of Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa. Śrī Rāma went to Gayā Viṣṇu temple. And what was the description? He saw his ancestors in a dream—vision-like. And then he saw the whole temple was filled with light. And then there he saw Gayā Viṣṇu.

Now you see, what is the point? We read about ancestors—Pitṛ Loka. He did tarpaṇa. And all the Pitṛs appeared to him. Was it his dream, imagination? Or was it a fact? It is a fact of life. But we do not have that.

The Brahma Rākṣasa Story

Why did Kṣatriya Rāma go to Gayā? You know, the story goes: a demon—or what do you call it? Demon? A kind of Brahma Rākṣasa. A brāhmaṇa committing a lot of sins, after death he will become a Rākṣasa—demon—Brahma Rākṣasa. So he possessed Kṣatriya Rāma's daughter. And Kṣatriya Rāma recognised: "Why are you troubling my daughter?" Then the reply was: "I want your prayers to release me."

So how many people believe in Brahma Rākṣasas? Let alone Brahma Rākṣasas, even an ordinary Rākṣasa—they are there. Kṣatriya Rāma's life is full of these stories. Kāmārhati, in Gopāla's mother's house, he had seen two skeletons. Swami Brahmananda—so many stories are there.

Holy Mother and Swami Yogananda

Holy Mother said. Another story: Swami Yogananda was travelling in a train, going, I think, to Jaipur. And one night he dreamt—before reaching Jaipur, that night he dreamt—a goddess came in his dreams and said, "But for Paramahaṃsa, I would have finished you today. You go and offer pūjā in Jaipur." And he narrated this story to Holy Mother. And next time, when they were moving in the Jaipur streets, and suddenly Yogananda saw one small place—this goddess. He said, "Mother, this is the goddess whom I saw." Immediately Holy Mother bought some sweets and then offered worship for her.

Do you think that these are superstitions? They are all there.

The Roles of Gods and Goddesses

So there are different gods and goddesses. What are their roles? Some type of gods and goddess—like Indra, Chandra, etc.—they can also grant some things. Now Caṇḍī—how many varieties of goddesses—Kālī, Cāmuṇḍā, etc.—it goes on mentioning. And the Bhagavad Gītā also: there are those who worship Yakṣas, Bhūtas—they will attain them. And those who worship Devatās—they will attain Devatās. And those who worship Me—they will attain Me. It is all there.

The Story of Vidyāraṇya

We also believe—we means the Hindu scriptures—also believe that if somebody is offering worship, etc., to these gods and goddesses, then they can protect them, they can grant. I remember a story. There was a great soul called Vidyāraṇya. And Vidyāraṇya was later on—he became the head of Śṛṅgeri Maṭha. And he wrote many beautiful books. When he did not—he was not yet a sannyāsī like that—he was an extraordinarily learned person. He worshipped Mother Sarasvatī. And Mother Sarasvatī came and told him, "I am going to give you a boon. I can give you a lot of money." He said—he did not refuse it—but he said, "I will ask you when I need it."

So then the Krishnadevarāya—he wanted to be established as the emperor, you know, Vijayanagara Sāmrājya. At that time money was needed. There were two—Harihara and Bukka—were there. And at that time this money had come handy, and then he could establish. So many stories like that we hear.

Recitation of Caṇḍī and Lalitā Sahasranāma

And Swami Brahmananda used to advise many people: "You read the Caṇḍī." Reading of the Caṇḍī is a lot of spiritual strength and protection for people. In South India, most ladies do this Lalitā Sahasranāma. It is on every Friday. In South India, it is the Friday which is the Mother's Day. Saturday is Rāma's Day. Thursday—Hanumān is on Thursday. Guru and Hanumān on Thursday. Monday is for Śiva. Tuesday is for Kṛṣṇa. In our order, Wednesday is for Rāmakṛṣṇa. Thursday is for Rāghavendra Swami, Hanumān, and Guru. Friday is for the Divine Mother. So one—one day. Very wonderful, you know. You have varieties.

Kṣudra Devatās

So there are many gods and goddesses. So many saints have this. By their grace, many people also have attained powers. There are also what we call Kṣudra Devatās—smaller powers. And so many of these Kāpālikas and others worship them, and they will get some powers also. These kind of stories are there.

What Is Important

So I am not going to go into these things. What is important is faith that these gods and goddesses do exist. After all, there is so much variation in our world. Some are rich, very rich; some are not so rich, etc. So why not? There is variation in gods and goddesses also. That is the point.

How Does It Help?

So what does it—how does it help? That is the point. How does it help? Because there are so many people who have faith in a particular aspect of God or goddess. So if they worship, they will attain to them.

What We Should and Should Not Do

So what we need to do: you do not need to worship if you do not have the faith, but you have no right—first of all—to say they do not exist. Secondly, we have no right to look down upon those people and say they are superstitious people and they are ignorant people, and we are very enlightened people.

The Lightning Story

"Maharaj, one thing that happened a couple of years back—I do not think I ever told any of the members of the group of this; I was probably embarrassed—but I was teaching my Hinduism class at Cornell, and there was one day when I thought I would make my students laugh, and I said a few things that probably were not very respectful about Indra, you know, trying to make a joke. Next night, about ten feet from my—my classroom was third floor of the building, which is top floor, the roof is right there. On the roof right above my classroom, struck by lightning—the fire department had to come—all kinds of damage—they were talking about it all over school that Professor Muller insulted Indra and then lightning struck."

You did not disclose—this is all because of me. Who knows? You see, I just now am reminded of, after hearing this incident, you know, if a guest—a brāhmaṇa, especially a brāhmaṇa guest—comes to us and we do not entertain him, destruction will come to that house.

The Belur Math Incident

This actually happened in Belur Math. So, one noon, a poor brāhmaṇa was seen coming there; he came to Belur Math and said, "I am so hungry—for two, three days I did not have food. Will you give me?" Unfortunately, everybody had eaten food; there was nothing left. But, you know, there were fruits, etc., in the—what do you call—Ṭhākur shrine. But we do not usually give to them, because it is meant for worship.

Now what happened—Mahāpuruṣa Mahārāj was there upstairs. So, after food, he casually looked through the window, saw a man going away with a downcast face. So he called the attendant and said, "What is the matter?" Then the attendant, who knew this, he explained: "He wanted some food and we could not give." So he said, "Oh, here also I expected to get some food, but I did not get," and he went away. He was going away.

Then Mahāpuruṣa Mahārāj said, "No, no, quickly call him back; we will give something." But by that time, the man had disappeared. So Mahāpuruṣa Mahārāj became very sad and then he was feeling something will happen. After three, four days, the cow shed caught fire and gutted down. And then he said, "It is because we have not treated that person properly."

The Lesson

So, there are so many mysterious things out there. We do not need to be frightened, but we should never be disrespectful, and neither should we neglect.

Respect All Forms of Worship

You worship—that is why Hindus, you know, temples—if you go, lots of gods and goddesses. What about here? People do not know about Hindu gods and goddesses. Here also, people believe in some powers, you know. If you go to some forest or here and there, Red Indians—they believe in so many spirits and other things.

So the point is, these gods and goddesses represent so many aspects of the one Godhead. So there are so many people, and some people like some aspect of the gods or goddesses—that is absolutely good. So we should never disrespect anybody, whatever they worship. That is the whole point.

The Example of Gaṇeśa and Kārttikeya

You know, even some of us: "Oh, this person is worshipping Gaṇeśa"—something like that we can make remark. Why? Why not? Gaṇeśa can be worshipped, and then Kārttikeya can be worshipped. The biggest temple, most popular temple in South India now, is Kārttikeya temple. What is that temple? Śabarī Malai. Śabarī Malai is the most popular. Yes, Ayyappa Swami is Kārttikeya. He is called Śanmukha, Kārttikeya, Ayyappa, Śabarī. Śabarī Malai means it is a hill. Malai means hill. Śabarī is hill. Anyway.

Two Questions

So, what is the point Maharaj is referring? If we are—yes.

"Maharaj, two questions. First, you said about reciting Caṇḍī is very good. That is in Bengal. And in South we do Lalitā Sahasranāma. What is the advantage of that? And my second question is, are there any spirits that exist and that can cause problems?"

Yes, both.

On Reciting Caṇḍī

First, every region worships God in a particular way. So in Bengal, Durgā Pūjā is very popular, and this recital of Caṇḍī is very popular. So that is worship of the Divine Mother in the form of the second type of worship—that is prayers, chanting, etc. One is actually taking flowers, etc., as a ritual you are worshipping. The second is—this is also worship—chanting, prayer, etc., japa, and all those things.

On Malevolent Spirits

Your second question is—I already had mentioned that incident in Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's life. Śudhiram went because his daughter was possessed. So malevolent spirits do exist. They can do damage. Usually, they do not do. They live in their own world. So just as there are human beings who can do wicked, evil deeds—even if we do not know anything about them—do you think evil people do evil only to some people? Or they kill people—they murder people—you know, what is it called? They hire murderers to do something. Even governments hire—what is it called? Contract killers, hitmen—like that. There are people are there. So what happens when these kind of people—they are generally, they meet also kind of violent death—then they become these malevolent spirits, and they can do harm.

Good Spirits Also Exist

But what we have to be aware—if it is there, every spirit is not malevolent. There are also good spirits. Swami Brahmanandaji in Vṛndāvana, he encountered a good spirit. So Swami Brahmanandaji took a vow: "I will every day sit up and meditate, do japam at midnight." And one night he could not get up. And at that time, he suddenly—one night he was oversleeping—then suddenly he felt that somebody pushed him. And then he thought his brother disciple Turiyānandaji did that. But Turiyānandaji was sleeping. Then he woke up and then said—then he saw a Vaiṣṇava saint sitting there. So, but here he is not a spirit; he is a disembodied being to help other spiritual aspirants. This person is—when they see some people took some vows and not able to, for some reason not doing, they will come and help. And several days thereafter he used to appear at midnight. These are all thrilling incidents.

Rare but Real

So there are malevolent spirits, and sometimes they can do—but that is very rare. Because we are frightened, we think that whenever something is not going right with us, that some spirit is doing something. Similarly, in this respect, you know, there are some people who are māntriks—black musicians. Yeah. And there are people—because mantras are real. So if somebody misuses the power of a mantra, it is called black magic. That is there in every religion.

How to Know If Someone Is Possessed

"Maharaj, if someone is possessed by, say, an evil spirit, how do you know that person might be creating problems? But how do you know it is because of evil spirit or his own personality?"

There are certain—you see, however a person may be, he can only do certain things. It is beyond any human being to do certain other things. So otherwise sometimes psychologists will tell us somebody thinks he is possessed. Actually, it is his own—what is called—unconscious taking over and acting. But if malevolent spirits take over, they can also predict things. They can say things that are there, here and there, which no ordinary man will never be able to tell. It is possible, but it is a very rare phenomenon. Usually it is a psychological problem. The real possession is a rare phenomenon, but it is there.

The Logic of Existence

If a god or goddess can exist, why not the other side also? The scriptures say that they exist, and the saints also have experienced it.

Swami Advaitānanda's Vision

So many things are there. I will talk very little about it. You know Swami Advaitānandaji? He was instructed by Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa: one day, with special mantras, you go and meditate on the Divine Mother. There is a place in Dakṣiṇeśvara. Swami Advaitānanda went there, and later on he reminisced: the whole day, one after the other, very frightening, ferocious forms of the Divine Mother. He was having constant visions, and towards the evening he thought he will die. Just at that time, he had no option but to remember Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa and say, "Ṭhākur, please come and help me." And then Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa felt like going there. He went there hurriedly, then stood at a distance because there was a huge dog in between. And then Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa asked him to come near. And then, seeing him, Swami Advaitānanda got courage, and Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa remarked, "Today, Mother saved you; otherwise it would have been very difficult for you to come out." And then he showed the dog and said, "Do you know what it is? It is Bhairava. The Divine Mother has kept it here, so that people cannot disturb you."

The Danger of Certain Practices

Many, many sādhakas die doing certain type of practices, you know, in crematoriums and other places. This is also true. But by death, they have not lost anything. They will only gain; next birth they will lose.

Karma and Spirit Possession

So you will have to be also—if something wrong is going on in our lives, it need not be—it is our own past karma that comes to fructify. Each one of us comes with our own past karma. Another point we have to—there is nothing we can do. Even if we get worried or anxious about it, things happen according to each one's karma. There is no point. So let us try to do something good, pray to God, and leave things to nature, as we say, and things will happen, so on. Yes, okay.

Regional Variations in Worship

"Maharaj, why South Indians—South Indian people worship Hanumān more?"

You know, it is a matter of—some great people they worship, and then other people will follow. I think in North India also it is pretty good—in Bihar and India, everywhere it is possible. Especially some areas. No, no, not everywhere, but some regions, some gods or goddesses are more popular than others. So that is a fact; it depends upon, you know. In UP it is called Rāmacandrajī; in Mathurā, Vṛndāvana, it is called... Andhra Pradesh, full of Rāma. So that is—it does not matter; they are all various forms of gods, same God—that is absolutely fine.

Ritualism: Its Importance

Alright. So, the second point is ritualism. Nowadays, have you noticed, young people do not like rituals. There are so many people who also pooh-pooh and say, "Oh, this is all superstition, etc." Rāmakṛṣṇa is specially born to prove the efficacy of ritualism. So if a person has faith, and if he does certain rituals with śraddhā, slowly he will progress in spiritual life. In fact, most of us need rituals rather than—you know, you think that we can meditate. There are so many people who say we meditate. What is the meditation? Either it is wandering of the mind, or—what is called—they go to a kind of sleep and think that they are really meditating.

The Story of Sītalā

Yeah, it is far better. There are orthodox people—Śudhiram himself, how much he was really devoted. You know, every day he used to go gather flowers, bring them, and worship. If you have read, you will recall it. One day, he went to collect flowers, and a small girl was following him and holding the branches down. Śudhiram asked, "My child, who are you?" And she said, "I am Sītalā, whom you worship. I am pleased with your worship. I have come to help you."

Rituals as Foundation

So, where will we go? You know, our faith, without these rituals and other things, is foundationless. Rituals are the foundation. That is why Swami Vivekananda made a remark: religion in which rituals are rampant—great saints are born only in that religion; where there are no rituals, it is a rare phenomenon to have a saint.

The Four Methods Revisited

So, Maharaj is telling about four. First is ritual worship, then is prayer, japam, etc., recitation, etc. Third is meditation—and what is the fourth? Svarūpa-anusandhāna—meditation on the nature of God. Nature of God is—realistically—it is indescribable. But what we call—Sat, Cit, and Ānanda. Meditation on this. How many people can do? Or Ahaṃ Brahmāsmi, Tattvamasi—very few people.

The Modern Advaita Phenomenon

Nowadays, the phenomenon—you know, a lot of people, they are following—they say Eckhart Tolle, and there are so many people like that—Advaita, more than Advaita. There are people who say, "You do not need to do anything. Just you sit there and say, 'I am Brahman.' You have achieved everything. Only make sure that you write the check, or master card, or visa card—accepted." And they go to the extent that you lead your own normal life. You can have relationships with men, women, and do whatever you like. And yet, all that you need to say is, "Ahaṃ Brahmāsmi." How far they are from truth.

But this is the age. And also you notice, youngsters do not like rituals. They do not want to come. But they are ready to do some good work. There are so many young people who do good work. But they do not want to attend our classes, or do things like that. Neither they have the time, nor the inclination is there. But these are very helpful things for us.

Starting from Where You Are

So Maharaj then proceeds: "There are different stages through which the aspirant progresses. It is of vital importance that a man begin his journey from where he is." This is the most important point. If a man is fit only for ritualistic worship, he should do only ritualistic worship. Never look down upon it, because it helps. Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's special birth is to prove the validity of all these forms, including Tāntrika forms.

Tantric Practices

Certain Tāntrika practices are abhorrent—or look like abhorrent. But Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa had gone through them in a Sāttvika way, and he proved that it is also a door to God-realisation. Maybe, like he used to say, some of them are like a back door. But that is okay. If it is impossible for you to come through the front door, then at least you go through the back door. What is the problem? All of us say, "Am I a smaller person? I want to enter only through the front door." Front door is closed, back door is also closed. That is what happens.

The Three Stages of Tantra

But in the Tantras, there are three stages of Tāntrika worship. We are only focused on what is called left-handed practice. What are those three? Paśu, Vīra, and Daiva. So the middle one—Vīra—Vīra means heroic worship, where they drink wine, mix with women, etc. That is called left-handed practice. Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa never had gone through those things. A little bit he had done. He had to sit on the lap of a young woman, and he sipped a little bit of wine. But do not imitate Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa, you know—you sip and you sleep.

Knowing Where You Are

So this is a very important point. We have to start where we are. How do we know where we are? Everybody thinks that he is fit for Ahaṃ Brahmāsmi sādhana. He cannot sit for a few minutes peacefully. That is one. Even if somebody sits there, observe the person's reaction—action and reaction. Then you will get it.

How to Check Distracting Thoughts

The next question is our common question: "How can I check a distracting thought that persistently arises in my mind?" This is our problem.

Think to yourself: "This thought is immensely harmful to me. It will be my ruin." Impress the idea again and again upon your mind. The mind is extremely susceptible to suggestions, and will learn whatever you teach it. Therefore, if through discrimination you can impress upon it the joy and fullness of the spiritual life, and the folly of worldly attachments, it will devote itself more and more to God, and you will find yourself freed from all distracting thoughts.

The Key Insight

Very important hint. If a distracting thought comes into our mind, we want to get rid of it. But do we really think it is a harmful thought? Do you understand? Do we really feel it is a very harmful thought? How many of us? In fact, many times we welcome it. Yeah, distracting thought. Make a little bit of fun, you know.

Observing Our Reactions

So long, I will be talking. Send it to people. Absolute quiet. And then I say, "Go to the shrine and sit for some time, and then come." But the moment they go to the shrine, first thing that comes out is coughing. Second that happens is itching—at impossible places, itching starts. And then somehow, if everything is quiet—very uncomfortable—but if somebody starts coughing, a very welcome thought. Because now, "What a damn nuisance—I am sitting and waiting here." It is a good excuse for not thinking about God. See? So many things are there. And if by mistake any phone call comes, the person will jump and go out. What a relief. We have to observe these things. There are so many.

The Need to Be Observant

So, if we do not want a thought, we have to be very observant and say, "This is a very harmful thought." If you go on saying it is a very harmful thought, afterwards, slowly, slowly, you can try to get rid of it. That is our problem.

The Palace of Seven Gates

Swami Brahmananda is telling something very interesting. "Within the palace of seven gates, there dwells a king with whom a poor man begs an audience. The king's minister grants his request and leads him through the gates to the royal presence. At each gate, there stands a richly dressed officer, and each time the poor man asks the minister if that is the king. The minister answers, 'No.' Each time, until they have passed the seventh gate and the king stands before them in all his splendour and beauty—then no question is asked. A man recognises his king."

Bhrigu and Śvetaketu

So like that, Bhrigu goes on asking, "Teach me further." And then when he has reached a certain stage, he does not say, Adhīhi bhagavo brahmeti—he does not come. That means he has reached that state. So also, Śvetaketu—he comes to him. And then nine times he has been taught the word that Śvetaketu. And then afterwards, every time—eighth time—so "You teach me further, Bhagavān." "Yes, I will teach you." But ninth time, he does not ask. That means—yes, there is nothing more to ask.

The Guru as Minister

So it is with the guru. Like the king's minister, he leads the disciple through the different stages of spiritual unfoldment until he leaves him with the Lord.

The Guru-Disciple Relationship

This is a very important point we have to understand. You see, one of the questions that comes—rather two questions. The first thing that many times we ask is, "Is my guru capable of taking me?" Because people think that he also eats like me, he also cuts jokes like me, or maybe even more than me. So can this man be really a guide, a real guide to me? What that has got to do with guru? Who is the real guru? The real guru is manifesting through somebody.

Two Stages of Guru

Here again Maharaj makes two points. The first point is, in the beginning we need an external guru. But later on, one's own mind becomes one's guru. But even the external guru—what is that external guru? Is it the human being? Or is it something which comes through that guru? That is important. So the guru leads—because guru means God in the form of the guru—leads the disciple until he reaches the goal and no further questions are there.

The Danger of Finding Fault

That is not a problem. The problem is, am I having that guru-bhakti? Or am I critical of my guru? Let me talk a little bit here. You know, we have become so accustomed to find fault with other people, we also unconsciously or unconsciously we find fault with the guru. Because it is the same tendency. And that is a dangerous thing to do. So they go together. If any person says, "I am so devoted to my guru, I will not find fault with my guru, but I will continue finding fault with others"—do you think he will succeed? He will never succeed, because you are putting the same specs. So you will see your guru also in the same way.

The Guru as a Target

So slowly, the first thing is guru is a target. How is a guru a great person? It is not whether the guru is great or not—that is not the point. I decided to see in this person God. Because he is a target. I would say, you know, all your darts you will throw towards the guru. So I decided to do it. Even if he beats me, even if he misbehaves, even if he leads a bad life—for me he is Saccidānanda.

मद्गुरुर्जगद्गुरुः.

madgurur jagadguruḥ.

You know, there is this thing:

मन्नाथो जगन्नाथः मद्गुरुर्जगद्गुरुः | मदात्मा सर्वभूतान्तरात्मा तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः ||

mannātho jagannāthaḥ madgurur jagadguruḥ | madātmā sarvabhūtāntarātmā tasmai śrīgurave namaḥ ||

The Real Test

This is the point we have to recognise. We are always thinking, "Let my guru prove to me that he is really a great man." That is not the point. The point is, let me prove to myself that I can look upon one person as my guru. This is one of the most important relationships—Guru-Śiṣya relationship.

So, which guru does not have defects? Do you find in this earth anybody who is without a defect? If you are determined to find fault, you will get more than one fault in any guru. So this guru-tattva has to be understood.

Guru-Sect vs. Guru-Cult

This is one danger. Another danger is guru-cult. Guru-sect and guru-cult. What is the difference between these two? In the guru-cult, you start disrespecting—or you disrespect the other gurus and other people who are on the same path. But in guru-sect, it is more of a group, more of inspiration and motivation. Yes, you are right. But in a way, it is a better way of expression. When a person idealises the guru and then slowly starts looking upon him as divine, as God, etc., and progresses in spiritual life—that is called guru-sect. When a person targets the guru's body as the be-all and end-all and goes on catering only to the guru's body and never moves forward—that is called guru-cult.

The Tribal Mentality

Then comparisons come: "My guru is better than your guru." If anybody proves that his guru is a better guru—sometimes, like tribal mentality—"So which tribe is greater, more powerful? Let us fight. If I win, my God is greater. If you win, your God is greater." Like that, you know—"If my guru can attract 100 audiences and if your guru attracts only 20 audiences, which guru is greater?" These are our human frailties, weaknesses.

We have to understand crystal clear: it is our sincerity, our desire to progress in spiritual life, which plays an important part.

What Is True Guru Dakṣiṇā?

So, there is a beautiful incident—I must have told you, I do not know, but it can be repeated. We had a wonderful sādhu called Swami Bodhātmananda as our training centre principal. Extraordinarily great sādhu. There was a devotee, a young man, who knew him or he knew. And this young man took initiation from Belur Maṭha. And the young man, after initiation was over, he came to Bhāv Mahārāj—we used to call him Bhāv Mahārāj. He came there and said, "I want your blessings; today I got initiated." Then Bhāv Mahārāj smilingly asked him, "Did you give Guru Dakṣiṇā?" He said, "Yes Mahārāj, you know we have a set—a small plate with some cloths and flowers, etc. We gave." And that was what he meant—Guru Dakṣiṇā is given. Then Bhāv Mahārāj, very serious, and he said, "Do you know what real Guru Dakṣiṇā is? Guru Dakṣiṇā is: you follow the instructions of your Guru and realise God. That is true Guru Dakṣiṇā." And that truth holds true for all time. That is true Guru Dakṣiṇā.

The Important Points to Keep in Mind

So, the important point we have to keep in mind is, first thing is, do not target the body of the Guru as—"I want to feed him, I want to do this, I want to do that." Still, Swami Dayātmanji said, "And then from now onwards I will not care whether he eats or not." That is not the idea. We also have to live, you know. Yeah, the idea is, there is a certain limit. You respectfully pay that attention. But beyond that, do not pay attention. "Am I making progress? So am I seeing divinity?" You know what is spiritual life? Gradually seeing divinity in everybody. First we have to see in somebody. Sometimes we can see in our mother, in our father, in our teacher. But for disciples, Guru is most important.

Do Not Idolise the Guru

This is important. Never idolise the Guru, otherwise it becomes idol worship—not ideal worship, idol worship. And that is what makes most people, they go down there. Second, do not seek any faults in the Guru. Third, do not compete for the Guru's affection, because jealousy will come.

Competition for Guru's Affection

You see, sometimes—most of the times I would say—the Guru will be closer to somebody, whether it is justified or unjustified—usually necessity. Then you see, the other people will be thinking, "Oh, my Guru, he does not even look at me, or if at all I go, I just make a quick praṇām and go away. So hardly there is any contact between me and my Guru." And this is one type of thinking is there.

This is one type. The other type is there: "Whatever my Guru does is super. You know, even by chance if he sneezes also, some interpretation will come—some divine interpretation will come." This is called Guru-cult.

Be Frank with the Guru

And then, one has to be very frank with the Guru. If a person is not able to be frank with the Guru, then the Guru-Śiṣya relationship will not go. Let me talk very shortly about this. What is this frankness? What are we talking about? Whatever you are going through, whatever your emotions are—talk it out honestly. So it helps. It helps the disciple, because so many times we suffer suppressing these things within ourselves. If we talk to somebody, then it helps. But the Guru also—very often, you know—he can observe much better. And maybe he can give some good suggestions also which one can follow easily. And it helps.

Trust in the Guru

But the thing is, if we do not confess, that means we do not trust him. And that is not at all good. Once you chose, you have to trust. Do you think the Guru really betrays your trust and then does something like that? Never. And ultimately, who is the Guru? The real Guru is—you are confessing to whom? It is a Christian practice—confession is there. So sometimes the betrayal has come, and sometimes tug of war within the confessor. Suppose somebody comes and says, "I have murdered these fellows." And there is a rule—even if he confesses, he cannot object. But suppose somebody comes and says, "I am going to bomb this place." It is a confession. Should he tell it? See, these are rules—regulations are there, where your lips are sealed by holy vows, oaths. But in this case, for the sake of saving other people's lives, one has to do it. But anyway, coming back to our point, you know, one should trust the Guru.

Trust and Respect

Do you trust the Guru? What type of relationship you have? Very peculiar one—I do not know whether I can convey it properly. Respect is there, trust is not there. This is one. Then the other is, "OK, I respect my Guru. Does the Guru respect me? I trust the Guru. Does the Guru trust me?" This is another question. What does it matter to you whether the Guru trusts you or not? It is your business. You decided to trust the Guru. And if you question your Guru's trust, whom are you questioning? You are questioning Rāmakṛṣṇa. You are not questioning Rāmakṛṣṇa—you are mistrusting yourself. If I do not trust, then whose fault is that?

Related to God

Then this is also related to God. If I do not trust, then I will not trust God also. It is our problem, you know. If things are going on well, then God is looking after me. If something goes wrong, we think that He has turned His face away from me. That is totally wrong.

Real Guru-Bhakti

Then, what is real Guru-Bhakti? Certain things are there. If I am having real Guru-Bhakti, I will never denigrate any other Guru. I will give you an example. You know, there was Swami Ram Dās, Swami Chinmayānanda—they all respect Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa. So, when Swami Yathirushan Ji was there, once Swami Ram Dās—Kanhangad Ram Dās—he came to the ashram to make praṇāms to Ṭhākur in the temple. Mahārāj was—I heard this one. So, Mahārāj was sitting in the veranda, and he saw, and he asked, "Who is going?" Then somebody informed, "Swami Ram Dās." He was a famous person, a saint in those days. Immediately he stood up with folded hands. Swami Ram Dās did not come to Swami Yathirushan Ji; he just stood there. Swami Ram Dās went inside, made praṇāms, and then he went away. Until he went away, I heard that Mahārāj was standing with folded hands to show his respect.

The Disease of Comparison

So, this is a disease creeping among our devotees: "My Guru is incomparable"—that means denigrate or look down or neglect, disrespect other Gurus. A true disciple respects every Guru because the real Guru is only working through everybody.

If the Guru Turns Out to Be a Fake

Another very important point is, supposing you have a Guru, and then later on he turns out to be either a fake or a man of wrong conduct—if such thing happens, what should you do? It is the Guru's teachings that make a better person. We are not talking about the Guru's teachings. Most of the Guru's teachings are exactly the same. They are not talking anything different. In fact, some false Gurus talk much better way than the real Gurus. That is not the problem. We are talking about our attitude towards our Guru.

The Bengali Proverb

In Bengali, there is a saying:

যতই পি গুরু নিত্যানন্দ রায়, তবুও আমার গুরু নিত্যানন্দ রায়.

Jatapi guru nityānanda rāya, tabuo āmāra guru nityānanda rāya.

Can you translate it? "Though my Guru goes to the toddy shop where you train, still he is my Guru." So I have full respect for him. "Still my Guru is Nityānanda Rāya—he is God Himself to me." That is the correct attitude.

What If My Guru Turns Out to Be the Worst?

Now, does it help? Usually, we do not have that problem. You see, our Gurus are more or less respectful and of good conduct, and everything is fine. But sometimes it could be. Then what should be our attitude? Even if my Guru turns out to be the worst—what is it that turns out? Whom am I calling the Guru? Is it the body and mind? Or is it something within, through that body and mind? So, if I do not focus upon it—I think that this person's conduct proves whether he is a good Guru or a bad Guru—then I will be the loser. So, the real Guru is God—Saccidānanda. It is absolutely said.

Guru-Śakti

Rāmakṛṣṇa's direct disciples many times they told: to the extent a person unites his will with the universal will, to that extent his Guru-Śakti is manifest. Can it be the reverse way? If the student goes bad, Guru can be good to—like you said, the proverb. "Anything happens to Guru, still Nityānanda Rāya." But if the student sometimes goes bad, Guru's attitude towards the student would not change? See, that is the point we are discussing here. If you mean by Guru this human personality, he may turn against the student also and say, "I do not want this student." But if you are talking about God, God will never—it is because He is the root cause of all these problems. It is He who created all this mischief, you know. The biggest terrorist, as somebody put, is God. It is the truth. Simply if you close your eyes and say, "No, no, no, do not call it mischief"—who created all the terrorists? It is the Dada of all the terrorists.

Holy Mother's Compassion

Mara—wasn't there a story about Holy Mother that one of her disciples became immoral and other devotees were telling her, "You should not see him anymore," and she said, "No, no, that is my son; I have to see him," something like that? Yes, many times. You see, once—this is a sentiment. Once Holy Mother accepts somebody, then she will never give it up.

Rāma's Promise to Vibhīṣaṇa

There is a famous verse in the Rāmāyaṇa, Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa. Vibhīṣaṇa deserts his brothers and then he comes. Then he is standing; he sent a news that "I want to take shelter at Rāma's feet." Rāma was testing other people. He called Sugrīva; he called other people, and everybody said, "No, he may be an enemy spy. He came to spy and find out our strengths and weaknesses and goes back. We can never trust—he is a rākṣasa." Rāma was smiling. Then he asked Hanumān. Hanumān said, "I have seen how he behaved in that place. Not only that, he has come to take refuge. How can you refuse him? He has come as a refugee." And then Rāma utters a very famous statement: "If anybody once in his life says, 'O Rāma, I surrender myself to You,' thereafter I will never desert him. Even if he deserts Me, I will not give him up."

Swami Vivekananda's Promise

The same sentiment Swami Vivekananda says. I think Sister Niveditā or somebody writes: "Go as much low as possible. I will come after you, catch hold of your śikhā, and then pull you up. Only condition is—keep the śikhā." Because if you put all coconut oil...

The Importance of the Topic

So, very important topic we are discussing. Our whole spiritual life hinges upon this. In this world, in this life, we must have somebody out of whom we wholeheartedly surrender ourselves.

Can a Guru Spoil a Disciple?

"Can a guru spoil a disciple?" This is one of the questions that comes, because there are also cases. It is a very unusual case where a guru—what is called—abuses the respect and devotion. But if he does that, that is also—if he has a real faith in the real guru, then it will not happen. But if it happens, he has to learn his lesson. Maybe some karma is there, we do not know.

The Highest Respect

So that is most important for us to have the highest respect. And we should not degrade our guru into this body worship and all that. Body is there, of course, we respect it. So, do we trust him? Can we frankly tell him everything? If we are not able to do it, we will not progress in spiritual life. Be assured about it. You tell anything—the utmost secret you tell—can you not tell to your God? If you cannot tell to your God, then you cannot tell.

The Incident of the Public Woman's Son

There is an interesting incident. Once, the son of a public woman entered into the room of Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa at Dakṣiṇeśvara. And Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa was taking rest. He caught hold of his feet very forcibly and bowed down. And Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's feet began to burn. I do not know how many of you remember that incident. Yeah. And Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa—what can be done? Already the man had caused—he said, "You confess your sins, you will be free." And he could do it. And then he told him, "You go and confess to Mother Gaṅgā." You do not—but that poor unfortunate fellow could not even do it.

Question: Do Gurus Absorb Sins?

"I have a question. Like Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa or Ramana Maharshi, when the disciples come and confess their sins and all those things, they take their sins, right? That is why in some of the books they say, as a disciple you do not go and confess your sin or tell your problems so that pass it on to those gurus, which is not a good thing. Is that something like that they do?"

It is—you know, we are first of all talking about certain types of gurus who had the power to absorb the sins of other people. Every person does not have that capacity. What we are talking is, if you do not trust your own guru, whom you have chosen, then whom else are you going to trust? Whether the guru is capable of absorbing your sin or not—that is the point. Most of the people nowadays, they will not be able to do that. We have to suffer our own sins. But you should have that trust in the guru to be able to tell like a child, not hiding anything. Otherwise, that means you do not trust the person. If you do not trust the person, what is going to happen? That means you do not trust God, really speaking. And that is not going to be a good thing at all. That is the idea.

Don't Take It as a Licence

But do not take it as a licence and say, "I have got a hundred thousand things; it will take three months to confess all of them." Your autobiography from your grandfather's time. This also happens. Aldous Huxley is writing in one of his essays—you know this confession business? So one woman has prepared a hundred pages of confessions: "I did this, I did that." And there was one—St. Francis de Sales—what is that? Introduction to the Devout Life. He says that this is not a licence. So no human being in a hundred lives can make this kind of mistakes. So the woman was what is called a kind of psychological case. She is imagining, "I have done this, I have done that, I have done that"—all those things. And this is another extreme people go. But I am not talking about that. I am talking that you should be able to trust your guru. You should be able to respect him. At the same time you should be able to see not the body aspect, not even the mind aspect.

The Case of the Vegetable Guru

Certain things happen. You know, some people have become unstable towards the end of their life. And I have some experiences. When one devotee came and then told me, "Her guru has become like a vegetable in the last stages. And they have some understanding about this state. That means I thought he was very spiritual. Now he is like this. So what is going to happen to me?" How do you know your guru is a vegetable? So if you do not have that kind of trust, do not take initiation. You just respect him, go there, take his teachings and maintain that relationship. But once you have—that is why I say Rāmakṛṣṇa, Brahmananda—all these people, crystal clear these things—instructions. Before you select a guru, test him any number of times. Weight does not matter. But once you have done this, it is compared to marriage. Once you are married, then you are married for life—life after life is what they say.

How to Know True Respect for the Guru

So how do we know we have true respect for the guru? Because whatever may be his habit or behaviour, we will respect him. Because I decided to look upon him as God. Second, if anybody makes any type of comparison—"My guru is great, the other guru is..." or "My guru is not so great; my guru is only vice-president, or your guru is the president"—like there are Prabuddhas there. Usually it happens in the other way around: "My guru is a president; your guru is only vice-president." As though president and vice-president shows the inferiority and superiority of a guru. This is nonsense. All gurus, irrespective—they are all instruments. The real guru is only one. It is Saccidānanda.

Initiation as Second Birth

At the time of initiation, I do not know what others do, but most people what they do, they say, "O Lord, I am—you know, you are supposed to offer water. You offer and then, O Lord, whatever I have done in the past life, I do not know. What I am going to do in my future life also, I do not know. I offer the results of all these things at Your feet. Graciously accept them and guide my life so that I can come to You at the end." This is what our gurus do. They offer all the disciples at the feet of Ṭhākur and Mā.

Parents of the Second Birth

So when a guru initiates in our order, so this initiation is considered as a second birth. So just as the first birth there are parents—biological parents—the second birth also has parents. Who are the parents in the second birth? For us, you know, you can say Ṭhākur and Mother, Viṣṇu and Lakṣmī, or Śiva and Pārvatī. It is like that. And there is a third birth which is called Sannyāsa. And there also Guru becomes the father and Śāstra becomes the mother.

The Spiritual Family

The point here, suppose you are initiated and your mother is also initiated, or your father is also initiated, your husband is also initiated, your wife also is initiated—what do they become? Brothers and sisters. This is an idea we have to do. Let any devotee be initiated. If Rāmakṛṣṇa is the father and Holy Mother is the mother, it does not matter who initiates whom. Everybody should be brothers and sisters. We are a spiritual family.

The Challenge

I know it is not easy. The moment you are initiated, you do not become an enlightened soul. But our goal is to consider everybody in a different light. Then sectarianism comes—and within Gurubhais and all Gurubhāginīs and all those things. And that is really not a good thing at all.

Disrespecting Any Guru

So we have to respect the Guru. If we disrespect any other Guru, we are disrespecting our own Guru. That is why Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa used to say, "If you disrespect any God and Goddess, you are disrespecting Me." So if anybody disrespects any other religion, however crude it may appear to us, we are disrespecting our own religion. The religion is there to ennoble us, to make us better people, not to make us go down. It is very important.

True Guru Dakṣiṇā

So also what is the true respect, praṇām to Guru? It is not feeding, it is not making hundred times praṇāms. What is the true Guru Dakṣiṇā? I do not say God-realisation, but I will say sincerely practising Guru's instructions and trying to become a better person. So what do we need to do? Those who are initiated—then you will have to sit and think, "Really, am I doing what my Guru has asked me to do? Am I progressing in spiritual life?" If that is not important in your life, then your taking initiation is only just a formal affair. It will help. But this is how a Guru-Śiṣya relationship is there.

Assessing Our Spiritual Progress

One of the most important steps in assessing our spiritual progress is to question ourselves: "What type of relationship I have with my Guru? What type of relationship I have with other people? What type of relationship I have with God?" Usually our relationship with God is totally dependent upon our relationship with what we have with our Guru, because it is our own. People do not understand it. You think you can have any type of relationship with people or Guru, and you can have divine relationship with God—because it is dealing with the same mind.

Eric Fromm's Insight

This point was brought out by Eric Fromm in the book The Art of Loving. He says, you know, many people say, "We should not love ourselves—that is selfishness. We should always love other people." He said this is illogical, irrational, because he gave the example: if a person puts on black-coloured specs, whether he looks at other people or whether he looks at himself, he will appear in the same light, same colour. Same way, if we say we love other people but we do not love ourselves—that is exactly a wrong thing. If you do not love yourself, you do not love other people. But if you love other people truly, you cannot help but love yourself.

Forgive Yourself

That is one of the advices given: you better forgive yourself more than you forgive other people. Very important. Love yourself. Do you love yourself? You are under the impression you love yourself. No, that is not correct. If you love yourself, you will not stuff your stomach with all sorts of junk food. Because I want my health. But many people think, you know, "I love myself—my tongue is telling me, stuff all this masala and all those things—excellent, excellent, excellent"—like that. Who is going to digest? Who is going to suffer? So they apply this to every field of life.

Atmanyeva Ātmanā Tuṣṭaḥ

This is called:

आत्मन्येवात्मना तुष्टः.

ātmanyevātmanā tuṣṭaḥ.

We have to—उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानम्—uddhared ātmanātmānam—that is the thing.

Examining the Relationship with the Guru

So, two points here I would like to remind you: one is, closely examine what type of relationship I have with my guru—not superficially, "I have great love for my Guru," but deep inside there may be distrust, there may be outright disrespect. How does it manifest? It manifests unconsciously in many ways. We do not know how much our unconscious deceives us, cheats us. Where is the question of spiritual progress? It is impossible. That is why Swami Yudhiṣṭhira used to say, "Observe yourself constantly."

The Real Indication

So what type of relationship I have with my Guru—and that is how Guru can help. If we have right relationship with my Guru—do I criticise my Guru? Do I abuse my Guru? Yes. If you do not follow his instructions, only you fall at his feet and make praṇāms, whenever possible put flowers there, and feed him nicely or give him presents—these are not real indications of love of Guru. Real indication says, "You progress in your spiritual life." That is the only indication.

The Guru and the Chosen Deity

So ultimately, Swami Brahmananda used to say—this was a question put—"What happens when a person is taken by hand by the Guru, and he goes to the deity and says, 'Here is your chosen deity'?" The question is, "I am here, I am seeing; Guru has shown me the chosen ideal. What happens to the Guru who showed me?" He merges in the Iṣṭa Devatā. What does that mean? It means, who was my Guru from the beginning? It is only the Iṣṭa Devatā. This is the truth. Even from the normal point of view, the one who is within you and me and within everybody is only that one God.

Important Points Summarised

So very important points we have discussed today. If we look down upon any Guru just because I think that my Guru is a greater Guru than anybody—you have respect for your Guru, but the same respect you will also give to other people. You follow your Guru's instruction. Do not go on following everybody's instruction. One Guru. That is why Hinduism is five—what is called—some essence of Hinduism. Five points. You know what it is? One religion, one scripture, one path, one Guru, one mantra. That is most emphasised by Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa. So we have to learn that.

How to Know We Are Making Progress

How do we know we have love for our Guru? I follow his instructions; I make spiritual progress. How do I know I am following his instructions? Because I make progress. If I follow his instructions, I must make progress. And how do I know I am making progress? Because these changes will take place. The changes—our love for God increases. And the more we become spiritual, the more our attitude towards everybody changes.

The Danger of Sectarianism

How many problems you just see. Those who follow the path of Jñāna—I have heard innumerable times Swamis say, "There is no other path except Jñāna Mārga." Jñāna Mārga is one path, definitely. But it does not mean everybody has to travel there. Whereas Śrī Rāmakṛṣṇa's teaching is: there are many other paths out there—Karma is there, Yoga is there, Bhakti is there. Everybody can reach the same state. And then there are some people who think that they are fit for Jñāna Mārga. In this Yuga, only two paths are very important: Bhakti Mārga—because we are emotional—aided by Karma Yoga and reason, which is Jñāna Yoga. These are the important things.

The Absurdity of Comparing Gurus

So, this is the most important point. How much respect our tradition teaches us. Swami Vivekananda prostrated in front of Swami Brahmananda, saying, Guru-putrāḥ guruvat—something like that—Guruvat guru-putreṣu. And Swami Brahmananda prostrated—Jeṣṭa-bhrātā pitṛ-samaḥ—"His elder brother is equivalent to father." And then, their disciples—like these monkeys and gowls—started fighting. "Who was great? Swami Brahmananda was great." We do not know—even those who are living nearby, whether their lovers are—you know, so many tragedies. Suddenly, one morning, husband is gone. Twenty years he has been declaring, "I love you, I love you," suddenly he is gone. And you have not understood him. You will understand who is great. What a stupid thing we are doing, to judge this Jīvanmukta is great or that Jīvanmukta is great. Who can understand? Do you have any authority to do that? But we go on doing. Swami Vivekananda gives books. Many of us do that. This comparison is nonsense.

Follow One Guru

So follow one Guru, whoever. And then if you follow, you will reach. Guru will only tell the correct path. Guru also is a target, I say. Target of what? For you to see some divine. Suppose he is God, he behaves like God—what is your greatness? What is your greatness if you see God in a God-like person? But if he is an un-God-like person, to see God in him, that shows your real greatness. But anyway, many Gurus are very decent people, very good people—and do not expect miracles. You know, I have seen this also: "My Guru is protecting me all the time"—until something bad happens. Then they feel abandoned. Or "My Guru has lost his power." Or "He is particularly not gracious to me." All these stupid dramas playing in the mind—they are obstructions.

All right, we will stop here. Om Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ.

Questions and Answers

Question on Droṇācārya and Ekalavya

"Gurudev, was Droṇācārya justified in demanding Guru Dakṣiṇā from Ekalavya?"

Absolutely no. This is for two reasons. One reason is, he has not really taught him. Poor fellow had taught himself. And when he became an expert, it is absolutely cruel, unjustified. That is why he was not a real Brahma; he was a very mean-minded person, though he was an expert. Droṇācārya, you know, he brought the ruin of Virāṭa Rāja. What is the quality of Brahma? They were friends, that is actually. No, no, Droṇācārya had insulted him. But if he was a brāhmaṇa, then he should not keep in his mind. In fact, the very purpose of coming here is to demand the Guru Dakṣiṇā. What is the Guru Dakṣiṇā? "Bind that fellow and bring him here." For a brāhmaṇa—not only that, even Kṛpācārya was a brāhmaṇa. In the end, Jagghanakas said a horrendous thing. He and Aśvatthāmā, they joined together and went and then killed the innocent babes, which is unimaginable.

Learning from the Mahābhārata

Many things—from the Mahābhārata we learn many, many things. Like for Droṇācārya, he was the Guru of the Śāstras. Yes. He was not a spiritual Guru. He was not a spiritual teacher. But that is not the point. The point is, they respected him like an Ācārya. But his question is—this poor Ekalavya—he refused to teach. Actually, any worthy disciple should be taught.

The Story of Satyakāma Jābāla

There is a story in Satyakāma Jābāla. The story is there. The Guru asked him. A boy frankly told, "I do not know who my father was. My mother served many people," and then the Guru understood and said, "This truth can come only from the mouth of a brāhmaṇa. You must be a brāhmaṇa child. Even if your father is not a brāhmaṇa, you are a brāhmaṇa because you did not hide this." Whereas what did Karṇa do? He went to Paraśurāma and he told a lie—"I am a brāhmaṇa"—and learnt. So he did not come in real time.

The Lesson

You have to learn our lesson that even though he was an Ācārya, but he did not do the right thing. He could have told him, "Promise that you will not compete with Arjuna" or something like this. He said, "Who do you like?" But it made him completely useless. And a glorious greatness comes that without hesitation, he cut off his thumb and then gave. Nowadays, you know, he says, "Give me your thumb." We will show the thumb. What is he saying?

The Mahābhārata in Daily Life

So many wonderful things are there. We have to learn. The Mahābhārata is what is happening in our day-to-day life in various phases. You know what happened? One couple used to come from Reddy to our centre. They moved to Reddy and they started coming. And then I was talking with them. And I asked them, "What are you doing?" "Maharaj, we started reading Mahābhārata every night." Then I asked, "How far have you come? Did you come to Kurukṣetra war?" He said, "Next day after our marriage, we were..." Kurukṣetra war.

Question: Is a Living Guru a Must?

"Maharaj Ji, a question on Guru. Is a living Guru a must, or is much better than some Guru who has left his body?"

That is not a proper question. It is better to have a Guru whom we can—otherwise, certain things we miss. See, you can worship some great soul. "You are my Guru, you guide me." Guidance will come. If we are sincere, guidance will come. Whatever it is. You know, suppose something—you choose a living Guru—there is no guarantee that he is going to be with you all the time. He will pass away. Then he will also help you in some other way, indirect way. But it is good to have a living Guru because, I just now mentioned, when we do not see a Guru, our imagination flares up. "He is this, he is that, he is God, he has miraculous powers—this, that—anything you can attribute." But when a Guru is living, then you observe there and then you will not have that much of imagination—fact. Then you can confess, you can respect him, you can do so many things. So that is very helpful to us. To respect a dead person is very easy. But to respect a living person—that is why there is some quip there, you know. Once a disciple got into an emotional frenzy and he said, "Guruji, I can sacrifice my life for your sake." The Guru said, "Idiot, can you live and serve your Guru? Can you serve?" It is far easier, you know, to die. To live and serve the Guru—that is going to be very difficult. Okay? All right.

Question: Can We Find Another Guru?

"Yes, yes, come. Just because the Guru's body is not around, does that mean that we should go find another Guru? We should—what? Go find another living Guru?"

You mean, you want to—you see, Guru is only one, but you can have any number of Upagurus. So if you say that this man is dead, and then now I will adopt another Guru—no, you are free to learn many things, not only when the Guru is dead, even when the Guru is alive, and some other things you can learn—what is the harm? But as I mentioned, our whole talk here: you must have a special, very special relationship with the Guru who initiates you, and you accepted him as Mantra Guru—he is only one; you cannot go on changing. But you can learn from any number of teachers. In fact, if something—some Guru is dead—find out some Swami or somebody in whom you have confidence, and whom you can think, "Guide you." In fact, it may be good. Sometimes not necessary, but sometimes—but rigidly some people, "Now my Guru is my Guru; I will not go to anybody." It is a type of unspiritual stubbornness. I am not saying you should go; what I am saying, you must be flexible. You must be open.

Question: Do Gods Go Through Rebirth?

"In Hinduism, we believe in rebirth, right? And we go to our past karma. So similarly for the Goddess, they take a lot of incarnations in different Yugas. So, is that they also going to their past karma?"

Yes, yes. No, no, there are two. If Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śiva—they do not go through rebirth. But Indra and other gods and goddesses—we should not call them really God—they are exalted positions. The moment their puṇya credit is over, they will come back. So if the puṇya is extreme, greatest, then that person becomes the king of that place. If the puṇya is slightly less, he becomes assistant manager. If the puṇya is still less, he will become—what is called—manager of a local office. Like that, there are gradations are there. If the puṇya is much less, then he will become just one Dvārapālaka or something like that. Things like that.

The Guru Takes Another Instrument

But Guru—same God—will take another instrument. So according to the development of the Jīva, he will guide. Guidance is what is called Guru. But this idea—a living Guru—is a good target for us to look upon him as something divine. That is the idea.