Guru, Teacher, and Guru Poornima

Everything that has got to move should move on. Be it wealth or water or wisdom – its serenity and divinity is visible to us only when we see it in motion. We know the (ill) effects of still water, stagnant wealth, and suppressed wisdom. In our country, a few states suffer drought whilst a few others suffer floods; when these occur contemporaneously, we have to blame ourselves for having neglected the ground realities.
• Whilst, the flooding states would be more than willing to share the ‘excess’ the latter would be pleased to receive the same.
• On the wealth redistribution front, we continue to add more number of people living below the poverty line. Rather than just provide them with food, it would be better if we provide them with employment. That leads us to the question of imparting relevant and quality education to the poor at affordable cost.
• As regards wisdom – as opposed to knowledge, we have to seek a guru, not a teacher. Whilst a teacher would impart knowledge through a process of education (redistribution), it is essential that the knowledge-seeker and the knowledge-imparter both keep learning. The entire process has to be protected from the constant attacks of fear (of asking doubts) & anxiety (from lack of trust) from one side, and ego & lack of commitment from the other.
• Now we turn to the concept of ‘Guru’: Spiritually speaking, it is the guru who connects us with the God. It is the privilege of a guru to choose his followers, unlike a teacher who may not always have the freedom to choose his/her students. The greatest Guru of all time, Sri Krishna, chose the greatest seeker of all time, Arjuna, to be the proper person to receive the knowledge of the Gita. Arjuna asked many doubts, and in answering those, the Lord gave us the reference point for all time –the Gita.
• To become a guru, we require qualities that are far superior and sublime, compared to the qualities of a teacher. It is very difficult to attain the status of a ‘guru’; each one of us could start being a teacher.
• A few subtle differences between Guru and Teacher, that I learnt today:
o The former takes away things that we have BUT do not require, whilst the latter gives us things that we do not have, but we require;
o The former questions our answers, whilst the latter answers our questions;
o The former destroys the maze around us, whilst the latter creates a path inside the maze;
o The former prepares us for the inner journey, whilst the latter prepares us for the outer journey;
o The former points us to the path of freedom/ salvation, whilst the latter guides us to success;
o The former explains ourselves and our nature to us, whilst the latter explains the world and its nature to us;
o The former takes away our knowledge and punctures our ego, whilst the latter provides knowledge to us which may enhance our ego;
o The former constructs us, whilst the latter instructs us;
o The former touches our soul, whilst the latter reaches our mind;
o Whilst the former is to a pupil what a mother is to her child, whilst the latter is to a pupil what a father is to a son;
P.S. I tried posting this blog yesterday; perhaps the posting had to wait for July 7 2009, being the Guru Poornima day for 2009-2010. With all humility, I offer respects to the gurus and the guru parampara. I offer respects to the Adi Sankaracharya, Sringagiri Sankara Math,and my parents, who have doubled up as my guru as well!