GURU - THE GIVER OF KNOWLEDGE
Today is Guru Poornima - the day we worship our Gurus.
Who is a Guru? A teacher (shikshak) only gives information - but a Guru gives us knowledge. If we think knowledge is the same as information, we will never understand the meaning of Guru. Our ancestors understood the meaning of knowledge and its power - and hence the importance of Guru. So they built an education system (Guru Kula system) based on this understanding. That is why India was the greatest civilisation in the world for 4000 years.
The counter-part of Guru is shishya (disciple). A student (vidyarthi) only receives information; but a shishya discovers knowledge - with the blessings of his/her Guru. The requirement for a Guru is knowledge. Similarly the requirement for a shishya is faith - in his/her Guru. If our Guru tells us to walk through fire, we must do so. Not by thinking that we will get burnt - then it is not faith; it is slavery. Faith means knowing that we will be able to walk through the fire without getting burnt - because we have our Guru's blessings.
Today everybody says: "Now there are only teachers/shikshaks - and very few Gurus". True. But the other side of the coin is: Today there are only students - and very few shishyas. If we want to produce Gurus, first we must become shishyas. If we want Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, first we become Narendranath Datta. Only then we can become a nation of Swami Vivekanandas.
The 21st century is the knowledge century. So let us understand the meaning of knowledge and its power - and the importance of Guru. And let us remember the timeless wisdom of our ancestors:
guru brahma guru vishNu
guru devo maheshwara
guru sAkshAt parabrahma
tasmai shree gurave namah
- Skanda Purana
No comments:
Post a Comment