The Grace of the Guru
By: Raghavendra Giri
aka: Ricardo Dacosta
Anyone who practices Yoga for spiritual development has read about the Guru tradition and how what we practice today has been passed from Guru to disciple for the past centuries.
So is Guru a Teacher?
Well, sort of. In the Yoga tradition, the meaning of Guru is "He/She who removes darkness" so the Guru is much more than a teacher. He is there to actually not teach anything but to show you the way towards your inner-self. He does not want you to learn some new technique, but to go deeper into yourself and find your-self, which is the source of all answers. Just like you need directions to go to a certain party from someone who is at the party, so the Guru gives you the way so that you too can enjoy the party.
One of the main Hindu texts, which is used by all Yogis and Yoginis, the Bhagavad Gita, is a dialogue between God in the form of Krishna and Arjuna a nobleman. Not only does their dialogue outline many of the ideals of Hinduism, but also the discussion and relationship between the two considered to be an expression of the ideal Guru/disciple relationship. In the Gita itself, Krishna speaks of the importance of finding a guru to Arjuna:
"Acquire the transcendental knowledge from a Self-realized master by humble reverence, by sincere inquiry, and by service. The wise ones who have realized the Truth will impart the Knowledge to you. " (Bhagavad G ? t ? , c4 s34)
So how does one find a Guru?
Well, there is no such thing as "I am going out for a few days to find myself a Guru" It just doesn't happen that way. You can set up an intention and/or pray for a Guru, but you never know when the Guru is going to appear and in which for is he/she going to manifest. There is saying that says that you are not who finds the Guru but that the Guru either finds you or makes you find him.
There are many Gurus these days and it almost feels like you can pick and choose, but again it doesn't work that way. It has nothing to do with the mind, who's always picking and choosing. Masters are many, but once you find a connection with your Guru, then you know your "search" is over.
What if you feel like you don't believe in these Guru thing or that you don't need a Guru?
It is the mind that gives us the illusion of needing or not needing. When you are in front of your Guru to be, you will know. Let me share with you one of the e-mails I sent to Pilot Baba's website before I met him:
"I don't mean to sound arrogant, but I am not usually the type of person who is looking and/or following a Guru. As far as I am concern, people who have become enlightened in the past, were following their own path, so I don't see the reason to follow somebody else's path. As I said before I like to have my own experiences in life and learn and evolve from them. I do feel a strong connection and respect to Pilot Baba's writings and I have been feeling an urge to be able to meet with him....Ricardo
Dear Ricardo,
Its nice to read your mails. At least you are honest and upfront in what ever you do and say. don't worry no one is going to force you to follow any guru or any one else's path. You are the master of your will. You may choose which ever path you want. If you feel connected to Babaji that is also fine. You need not attend any course, and you may stay in Ashram from 13th to 17th July. Its going to be very simple living and I hope you are prepared for that.
will give your details to the ashram and will have to show your mail to Babaji as soon as he is back in Delhi....Till then loads of happiness and peace, Baba's disciple.
As you see, I was one of those and when I met him face to face and was able to enjoy his presence, I knew then the search was over. I was so overwhelm, that I even asked him to initiate me in the order of Sannyasins (monk) I did say to him that I was not interested in any dogmatic tradition and taking vows of any source to which he responded "All I ask from you is your commitment to realize who you are" and it was 3 days after, during the auspicious day of Guru Poornima that I was initiated into sannyasin and given the name of Raghavendra Giri.
So How a Guru passes down his knowledge to you and what is Diksha (initiation)?
I would say that the best gift a Guru can give you is to transmit his grace to you. He can guide you with words and perhaps share with you some meditation techniques, but the magic really happens during Diksha (the initiation process) it is during the initiation that the Guru connects with you internally and transmits his grace to you. He takes on your Karma and sort of removes the obstacle or cleans you the way, so you can find your true-self. He will give you your own mantra, which you will use during your meditations. This mantra it is said to be very powerful and under no circumstances you would share your mantra with any other person.
Nisargadatta Maharaj, one of the greatest self-realized beings in India says on his classic book "I Am That" "I simply followed my Guru's instruction which was to focus the mind on pure being 'I am', and stay in it. I used to sit for hours together, with nothing but the 'I am' in my mind and soon peace and joy and a deep all-embracing love became my normal state. In it all disappeared -- myself, my Guru, the life I lived, the world around me. Only peace remained and unfathomable silence."
You do not need to become a monk or a disciple or any sort of nametag to be initiated, at least not with Babaji. The only requirement for taking Diksha is to be humble and to surrender your-self to the Guru. For this total trust is needed and this is why you must feel a connection with your Guru before you go any further.
Just like water or anything else in nature for that matter flows from high to low, so the same happens with energy and with the grace that is transmitted from Guru to you. If you go in with Ego, you put yourself higher than the Guru and grace will not flow. You must have an open heart to receive and it is our Ego which most of the time makes our heart closed.
Isn't so that a Guru should not charge money for Diksha?
Many people have asked me this question in the past "Why do Pilot Baba and Yogmata charge money to give Diksha?" Well, there are several things to take into consideration but the most important one is:
You can either take the opportunity to have a Guru here in your own country and take Diksha and in exchange support their travel expenses with a $300 donation or you can do what I did and many people have done in the past which is to spend $1100 to fly to New Delhi in India, then get on a 12 hour train with 1000000 other people to Kathgodam and then if you are lucky a 2 hour bus or a 3 hour ride on top of a pick up truck to Tala Gethia in Nainital where Babaji's ashram is located. Once you are there you can take Diksha from Babaji and just like anybody else offer a small donation.
• In India there is a common tradition of Dakshina or donation, which does not exist in America. Dakshina is given to Gurus not only during the time of initiation but all year around that is how they are able to maintain their Ashrams and provide a safe place for students and renounciants to stay and practice.
• If a Guru is spending money out of his pocket or organization to share his teachings with us in America, I would think that is expected that they get some money in return so that they can continue to afford to come to us.
• As far as tradition goes, Yoga should not be charged either. I really admire our friend and great Yogi, Prem Prakash, from Green Mountain School of Yoga (Kailash Ashram) in Vermont for maintaining such tradition. Besides him, most schools of Yoga charge between $1500 - $8000 for a Yoga Teacher Training and people seem to have no problem spending such amounts, but when a Guru, who has achieve the highest state of Yoga, charges $300 for giving Diksha, then they do???
Has my life change since I met Baba?
There are many things for which I am grateful to Baba, but the one thing I feel extremely grateful to Baba is Grace and awareness. I have never in my life been so intoxicated with love for God as I am these days. Surrendering to God's will and the ability to recognize my false mind-body identity and been able to be fully present (most times ;) ) has been definitely thanks to him too.
It was during a group meditation session with Baba at the Ashram in Himalayas that I was able to find for the first time that place inside of us where there are no thoughts, no reactions, just pure evenness. It was then that I asked him "Why do I feel this way when I am near you?" and he simply said "this is how it always is, it just happens that when you are close to me your awareness also expands" He went on saying "Develop your awareness and you will always be there"
These days I try to share with people that place inside of us, through the practice of yoga, meditation and conscious eating.
Note: If you would like to learn about my guru, Maha Yogi Pilot Baba, please click here Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti
Would you like to add a comment? Email us at: ricardo@integralnutrition.com
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