Who Is Guru

Who Is Guru

We all know the Samskrut definition of Guru
The remover of darkness.
But whose darkness?
How does he remove?
What is this darkness about?
What is the meaning of remove?

In Omkara Dharma tradition,
Knowledge & Wisdom has been so important
that from the time immemorial
Many people came forward.
At the time of leaving for the cause of Knowledge & Wisdom
Some of these people had comfortable life and some didn’t

But, one thing was common.
The concern for the humanity and selflessness
Selflessness means they didn’t start new journy
for their personal gain and glory

Concern for humanity means
Compassion, love, respect, forgiveness
is diminishing among the human of society
People in the society are becoming so
Self-centrist that whether this life or post death life
They just look for their comfort
That too at the cost of other around them
So, to bring the society to the
center of humanity

Guru is not a proper name it is a common name
It is like prime minister or president
Whoever fill that position is called prime minister
But prime minister is position of democratic system
Guru is position which is neither democratic or self procalimed
It always existed in the Omakara Dharma tradition

According to different Sampradaya
They say first Guru is Shiva or Vishnu or Brahma
Some wise people say they all are same
Some say they are different position
Some even say they are not proper noun
But common noun.

A power which destruct is Shiva
A power which maintains is Vishnu
A power which creates is Brahama
But these powers are not physical in nature

Like if your remove a person
from a prime minister position
What happens to person? He becomes common man.
What happens to power? It remains.

Either cabinet exercise or
new coming person will exercise that power
So, even if we keep people away,
To whom we worship
These powers are eternally there

From our ancient wisdom stories
We know that the powers and position
to create, maintain and destruct were
never filled by any individual
like Indra’s position was filled by powerful kings

We know from traditions
that these three powers always existed
They are not human nor they are human like
For meditation or worship we give them
the form which most suites to our mind

Interestingly in Omkara Dharma tradition
Either Vishnu is Adi Guru or Shiva is Adi Guru
But Brahma is that first power
who got the wisdom from the Adi Guru

From the wisdom He created the world
But even he is not Adi Guru
He is called Guru
That is why famous sloka
Guru Brhama, Guru Vishnu, Guru Devo Maheshwara

In the entire system of Omkara Dharma
From the time immemorial
uncountable number of people
who have come forward and
refined the body of knowledge

The purpose was not to create new book
Or copy right or their worship from common people
The purpose was to give direction to the society

Bharadwaj, Vishamitra, Vashista,
Veda Vyasa, Patanjali, Gautam, Kanad,
Siddhartha, Rushabhadeva, Mahavir Jain,
Chankya, Adi Shankara, Guru Nanak,
Kabir, Tulasidas, Ramkrishna Paramhamsa,
Vivekananda, Dayananda Saraswati is just starting list
Your can write a book just with names of these people

Unlike other religions which are history based
Omkara dharma never ever bothered about time and history
For us person was not important
For us time was not important

We don’t care whether Gandhi said or
Krishna said or Buddha said
We don’t care when it was said
We care and worship that
Who did enough Tapasya
And based on his wisdom
What he did versus what he said?

Whatever was done by him
whether that was inline with our Dharma or not.
Whether based on the need of time
that was contextualized or not
That was important for us

Unlike today’s time when most of the people
Have lost touch with ancient knowledge-base
Some has knowledge about the book
But they cannot contextualize

Some people try but refer to some old book
so many times that public start feeling
why are you going so much back in 21st century
It is not about the respect, but about the connect.

We need to understand people in Omkara Dharama
At any point of time never bothered about
What is written in book.
We were never book driven society
Tradition of writing came very late.

When knowledge base was getting lost
Because people were dying and
entire chain of knowledge getting wiped out
So, we understood the importance of documenting

Otherwise, we were very practical
We always question.
What is there for me if I do that?
Then what is there for my people, my tradition and my Rastra?
If you tell them it is written in such a such book
Such sloka and such page they will laugh at you

Since few centuries, our mind has been conditioned
Because of western education & western influence
All the time referring to people.
Who said what, and what is written in which Holi book,
which chapter and which page number

That is why, today when we share quote
We mentions, who said that,
As if it copy right problem or
they know that they do not have courage to say that
or practice that and people will laugh
so it is better to use name of some Holi book
or some great philosopher or scientist

Have you ever seen great Upanishad text
being referred which Rishi said that?
Either people do not remember what is written there
Or they do not remember who said what
Or people have read so much English text
that they feel filled and enlightened

Guru of anytime were those people
Who took this bold charge
They left their personal comfort
Because they had deep pain in their heart
They came forward to give direction to the society

Did society accepted them?
You ask yourself,
did Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Mahavira, Kabira,
Mirabai, Vivekananda or any Guru lived a unopposed life?
Never ever! when they lived they had
enough opponent to keep them on toe

They struggled enough but never
Deviated from their path
We worship them not as individual
But as Guru-Satta, Dharma-Satta

Because of their efforts and sacrifice
We are here today in 21st century, as a thriving civilization
Otherwise we could have been finished thousand years back

Where are original habitat of America, Europe, Africa?
They all are killed, finished!
Where is their knowledge system?
All digested by ruler and new religion!
Why? Because these societies had great people & great minds
But they couldn’t produce Guru

A person who is punching bag of the society.
When a guru lives
He gets punch from his family members
his friends, pupils, opponents, society
And in today’s time even from media

But these are the people who don’t care about anything
They even don’t care about
their personal name, fame, gain & business
If it is there it is fine
If it is not there that too is fine

In ancient time also
Guru control king but lived in forest
They ran universities but never lived in luxries
They ran business but not for themselves
They ran hospitals but not for making money
They offered several social program not for their TRP

All was to comer forward and lead from the front
So that other take inspiration and do it right way

In today’s time our mind is conditioned that
Guru is Godman, he gets power from god
Therefore he should not do business
Should not indulge in politics
Should not do social reforms
Should not live in society
They should live in forest like some ancient people
This is all media coined definitions & expectations from Gurus

This all is being pushed upon us by self-interested western forces
If we have concern for society and Rastra
Then we should be very careful
About such interpretation
That what Guru should do and what not
We are not frozen society
who will follow what is written in Holi books.

We do what is needed
That is the why Guru becomes punching bag of the society
If they start following Holi books word by word
and Remain cut from everything
and let the society, politics and business
go to the dogs then western interest group will be happy,
because they get opportunity to fill the space.

We should never ever be prejudice about the people
Look what they are doing
Look what we are doing
Can we renounce and become punching bag like them?
Can we help them?

If nothing then remain silent
We have lost the ability to preach if we cannot practice
It is not cricket game that by watching commentary
you teach Virat Kohli how to play a six

It is about taking society forward
Keeping them alive at the cost of a life called Guru
Don’t speak against the tradition of Guru Shishya Parmpara
It has given us our identity
But at the same time we need to understand
That Guru is not a person
It is not a proper noun, It is a common noun
Who ever fill that space becomes Guru
Ask yourself, who fills that space in your life.

If you find none then
Either you are the greatest of all time
Or a selfish of height
Or an ignorant about contribution of others
Or an arrogant or a commentary maker
Or an ungrateful for the lifes of past and present
who have given you opportunity to breath
in today’s vibrant democracy
In all cases you have to think,
what is missing in me,
which made me like this.

On the occassion of Guru Poornima of 2019
I offer my these words as a Pranami
to the entire Guru-Satta

Who kept their personal life & comfort aside
And drove out us from darkness to light
The light of the life that exists today
The light of the live festivals and events
The light of the joy & happiness that in spite of
we billions people, we are living
as one tradition of thousands of inter-woven traditions

The light of wisdom of balancing old wisdom with current challenges
The light of wisdom of remaining context sensitive and not dying in books
That is why our society is not in frozen in books

Thank you my Guru for being part of my life
Inspiring me all the time
Giving me hope and purpose
and being my punching bag
Enduring all the pain given by me and society
Because you lived for Dharam and not for yourself

Hari Om Tat Sat
Yours Truly Hari