Guru Moulds Soft Mud into a Sensible Man
By Er Taraprasad Mishra
Guru is an image-maker who moulds soft mud into a sensible man. Disciple is just like a lump of wet mud that is shaped up as an enlightened being by the deft and benevolent hands of his guru. At birth we are no different from beasts, guided by our instincts, ignorant about the ways of the world. It is our guru who selflessly shares with us the secrets of how to undertake the arduous journey with dignity and determination through the unknown terrain of life. He endows his disciple with such gems of wisdom that can never be repaid if we pour a world of wealth at his feet. Indian traditional practice places Gurus on a higher pedestal than that the Trinity—Brahma, Vishnu, and Maheswar. We have been keeping a day apart from our Calendar since antiquity for worship of our gurus and sages who sacrifice their selfless service for the enlightenment of the people on earth. That auspicious day is called Guru Purnima that falls today, on 24th July this year. The guru-shishya relationship is a pious and transcendental one that has religiously sustained in Indian tradition since the time immemorial. The episode of Ekalabya offering his chopped finger to Guru Drona in the great epic the Mahabharata well announces the high esteem with which we Indians hold our gurus. Our first president and a great philosopher, Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan appealed to the people eager to celebrate his birthday, saying, “Instead of celebrating my birthday, it would be my proud privilege if 5th September is observed as Teacher’s Day.” The enlighten us, they show us the path to our salvation. The gesture of bowing our heads before our gurus is as much a token of respect to them as an act of relieving us from our ego. We get rid of our ego or Ahankar when we fold our hands in paying homage to teachers. Ego or Ahankar is an obstacle on our way to the realization of higher truth. We can’t measure a guru’s high stature, or his benevolent gesture with our limited mundane knowledge. He accepts us unquestioningly, he showers on us unfathomable love without condition. The guru teaches the disciple how to lead a virtuous life without being vulnerable to commission of mistakes. He helps us realize the ultimate goal of life. He generously offers us the wisdom for liberating our souls from rebirth. Our life gets illuminated by the grace of our guru. Without his advice, his guidance, teachings we will be condemned to live like a beast. On this holy day let’s sing the glory of the gurus and keep alive this tradition for the wellbeing of whole human race.
