I’ve asked myself this question every DAY. Who is a Guru? Honestly, I’ll never know. An inexplicable four lettered word. In not knowing I understand the true definition. Something undefined, unknown and incomprehensible. The closest word I’d put my finger on is- Magical.
The word ‘Guru’ prevails back to ages ago in the Indian traditions. The letters supposedly mean ‘remover of darkness’. The word itself however lives way beyond this meaning.
The Guru Shishya tradition is a deep-rooted part of Indian culture. Dronacharya-Arjun, Vishwamitra- Ram, Dronacharya- Ekalavya and countless others. The Gurukul system did not educate, it enlightened. It’s a relation naught to be thanked in words but bowed to from the soul.
‘Guru Govind dou khade, kake lagu paye,
Balihari Guru aapano, govind diyo bataye.’
-Saint Kabir Das
If ever you find yourself standing before Guru and God, whose feet would you get to first? My eyes would always look for my Guru first. The lotus feet that led me to God. Those very feet that paved the path I walked- an unpayable debt.
In another verse, he also says-
‘Sab dharati kagaz karu, lekhani sab banarai,
Saat samand ki masi karu, Guru gun likha na jaye.’
Even if we turn the entire planet into our scroll, the enormous forests into a quill, the gigantic oceans into ink; we still could never describe a GURU. Very metaphorical, huh?
This full moon brings with it a wave of gratitude and respect. Guru Purnima. A festival that marks celebration of this incredible tradition. The celebration itself lasts an eternity, growing with every heartbeat. Today, this tradition is barely known, let alone practiced. If it were not for art, who knows where it would have been in the mists of time. But the relation is sacred enough that it would never bow to wicked time. It’s a one way ticket, once we step in, its eternal. However, it’s incredibly frightening to see the words ‘teacher’ and ‘Guru’ being used in the same sense today. These words are worlds apart from each other. A teacher merely teaches you to swim, a Guru teaches you to drown before guiding your stroke. The word Guru carries the weight of wisdom, love and divinity. Sacred, pure and GODLY. All Gurus are teachers but not all teachers are Gurus.
In ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho, the Alchemist guides the boy to the Soul of the World, which he later realizes is a part of Soul of God, which was his own soul. Gurus are the manifestations of the Universe come to guide us to our Soul of the World. They guide us through the perilous journey of existence. They are the light in our darkness of knowledge. They teach us to swim in the gigantic ocean of life; not handing you a lifeboat but letting you drown just enough to learn to breathe. They don’t teach you to rise, they teach you to fall first and then hold your hand as you get up.
In ‘The prophet’ by Khalil Gibran, he talks about love. Reminds me of a GURU-
‘Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto himself.
He threshes you to make you naked.
He sifts you to free you from your husks.
He grinds you to whiteness.
He kneads you until you are pliant;
And then he assigns you to his sacred fire, that you may become sacred bread for God’s scared feast.’
All these things shall a Guru do unto you that you may know the secrets of your heart, and in that knowledge become a fragment of Life’s heart.
A bond wrapped in discipline, devotion and dedication, with a sparkle of tough love. The core binding is respect. And I’m not talking “obeying instructions and asking permission to drink water” kind of respect. I am talking Krishna- Arjun kind of respect. Indefinite trust. So much so that they become our eyes when life blinds our path. They help befriend the stranger within us.
The unspoken words between the pair could contain a million empty minds. The relation teaches you to understand without communication. To trust without doubt. To grow without ego. Here, every brow flick, every narrowed eye, every lip curl betraying a smile breathe stories. Where eyes speak more than words and corrections appeal more than compliments. Wait, compliments don’t exist, atleast not unless you read deep into the eyes like you would with a thriller book.
Confusing huh? Ah! Anyone who’s known a Guru could never define one. The deeper you get down this rabbit hole, the lesser your ability to put it down the quill. Because, then you stop trying to understand it and surrender to the magic. As I sat down to write this article, words failed me. I stared at the blank document for a week before I wrote my first word. This is the most challenging topic to deal with as a writer. You’ll find this article very messy, but emotions aren’t something to be structured into neat chapters. Gurus are the artists that define the art of life itself to an extent that they can’t be described using art. So, I will put my humble quill down with one last verse-
गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णुः गुरुर्देवो महेश्वरः ।
गुरुः साक्षात् परब्रह्म तस्मै श्री गुरवे नमः
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