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Re: the Guru and you
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To: alt-hindu@uunet.uu.net
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Subject: Re: the Guru and you
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From: mpt@mail.utexas.edu (michael tandy)
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Date: 18 Feb 1995 15:39:14 GMT
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From news@geraldo.cc.utexas.edu Sat Feb 18 10: 28:54 1995
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Newsgroups: alt.hindu
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Organization: The University of Texas at Austin
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References: <3i2m0o$poi@ucunix.san.uc.edu>
In article <3i2m0o$poi@ucunix.san.uc.edu>, griffin@gate.net (The Answer is to Question) says:
> If one's
>"job" as it were is to "see God," then can we not do that directly, or on
>our own? Is God really limited to showing himself through the Guru only?
>If God is truly everywhere, why not seek him in direct experience?
>
Seeing God is less important than serving God; Ravana, Kamsa,
Hiranyaksa, and many others were able to see God. In fact, as you
have already noted, God is indeed everywhere, so in one sense we
already see nothing but God. But to understand God as He is in
fact when and if we do see Him, there are high qualifications re-
quired; that is why we need a guru. Bhagavad-gita teaches that
bhakti (devotion) is the only method of understanding God in full,
as the Supreme Person, Krsna. And Krsna also teaches us that to
serve His devotee is actually service to Him. A qualified guru is
just such a worshipable devotee. As a mattar of fact, even lord
Shiva confirms this principle when he tells Parvati:
aradhananam sarvesam visnor aradhanam param /
tasmat parataram devi tadiyanam samarcanam //
"O Devi, of all kinds of worship, worship of Lord Visnu is
supreme; but even better than that is the worship of His devotees."
(Padmapurana)
Similarly, Lord Krsna tells Arjuna in Adipurana that one
who claims to be His devotee is not really His devotee. The real
devotee is one who claims to be the devotee of His devotee.
This world is often compared to a blazing forest fire. In
such an uncontrollable conflagration, there isn't any hope of
assistance even from the fire dept., what to speak of a few buckets
of water that we may be able to collect. Rain is pretty much the
only thing we can hope for at such times. It is, as they say. a
Godsend. Similarly, ultimate advancement in spiritual life also
depends wholly upon the mercy of God. As we've already seen, this
He prefers to confer through His pure devotees. And this is why
in the Gita (4.34) He instructs:
tad viddhi pranipatena pariprasnena sevaya /
upadeksyanti te jnanam jnaninas tattva-darsinah //
"Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual
master. Inquire submissively with a service attitude. The self-
realized impart knowledge; they have seen the truth."
God isn't limited to showing Himself through a guru; rather
it is His choice--He is a person. We are also persons, and we have
an eternal, personal relationship with Him, which we are currently
neglecting due to long material conditioning. But by humbly serving
a QUALIFIED guru (and there are many cheaters to beware of) we can
gradually recognize our eternal constitutional position as servants
of Krsna. Even in this world, the relationship between bonafide
gurus and disciples is completely harmonious with this principle, as
the teachings of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu indicate:
"gopi-bhartuh pada-kamalayor dasa-dasanudasah"
"(I am eternally) the servant of the servant of the servant
of the lotus feet opf the Lord of gopis.
I hope this is of some help for you; thanks for posting.
-mpt
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