The founder of Sri Gopinath Gaudiya Math offers wisdom and clarity about the most vital and least understood aspects of the spiritual path: the teacher. This compilation of articles written by Swami B. P. Puri is a handbook for those seeking guidance in their quest for a genuine guru, for those wanting to learn more about the foundational concepts of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, or for those simply wanting to deepen their spiritual practice. Swami B. P. Puri articulates the qualities and qualifications of both the spiritual teacher and the student disciple. The book describes the proper processes of approaching the spiritual teacher, learning from them, and offering service to them. Guru also explains what students and teachers should avoid in their pursuit of sincere spiritual practice. Firmly rooted in a wealth of ancient Sanskrit and Bengali poetry and accompanied by Swami B. P. Puri’s beautiful and elegant translations and commentaries, Guru will be cherished by those with a keen interest in Hindu spirituality.

“Acharya Devo Bhava,” state our scriptures. Treat the guru as god. “Teacher” is a very weak, inadequate substitute in English for the Sanskrit word “Guru”. “Guhate Ruhyate Iti Guru,” it is said. One, who dispels the darkness of ignorance is the true guru. A guru is like a lamp that illumines our path to self-discovery. A guru serves to instruct and inspire. He is a companion, a friend, a mentor all rolled into one. A guru leads one to God, to one’s own self. Listen to Bhagawan as He speaks of the guru and the sweetness in a guru-shishya relationship.

An enlightening, accessible, and highly entertaining guide to the guru-disciple relationship, the heart of Tibetan Buddhism The humility and compassionate activity of the Dalai Lama is something many people can connect with, but how can one understand the stories about some other Buddhist teachers’ unorthodox behavior? The centrality of and reliance on a guru is one of most misunderstood elements of Tibetan Buddhism—and one that is most often veiled in mystery. Because the guru can and will use whatever means it takes to wake us up, this relationship may require us to drop our most deeply held beliefs and expectations. Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse addresses some of the most misunderstood aspects of this powerful relationship and gives practical advice on making the most of this precious opportunity for transformation. Through stories and classical examples, he shows how to walk the path with eyes wide open, with critical-thinking skills sharpened and equipped to analyze the guru, before taking the leap.

The one infinite Truth (tattva) itself, is God, Guru and the Self. The Sadguru leads us to the Guru tattva within and the grand Realisation of the Truth. Swami Tejomayananda has picked up 108 ever fresh flowers from the spring-time garden of the Scriptures and strung them into a beautiful garland of names – Shri Guru Tattva Namavali – as an offering in praise of the Guru tattva. The commentary on them makes its chanting and offering in worship, meaningful and joyful, and its reflection and meditation, subtle and Blissful. It is sure to invoke the grace of Guru in our lives.

The Guru Tradition: India’s Spiritual Heritage discusses the natures and roles of both the guru and the śiṣya, or disciple, as depicted in the Upaniṣads and Dharma Śāstras. The entirety of this analysis, of guru and disciple, is developed into a paradigm by which both the ancient and modern Guru Tradition can be more thoroughly understood. Four pivotal gurus from the twentieth century who have impacted the spiritual fabric of both East and West —Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Sri Aurobindo, Ramana Maharshi, and Paramahansa Yogananda— are juxtaposed and discussed alongside this paradigm. This study is conducted from the perspective of Advaita Vedānta, the Indian philosophical system of nondualism.

A distinctive aspect of Hindu devotion is the veneration of a human guru, who is not only an exemplar and a teacher but is also understood to be an embodiment of the divine. Historically, the role of guru in the public domain has been exclusive to men. The new visibility of female gurus in India and the U.S. today, and indeed across the globe, has inspired this first-ever scholarly study of the origins, variety, and worldwide popularity of Hindu female gurus. In the Introduction, Karen Pechilis examines the historical emergence of Hindu female gurus with reference to the Hindu philosophy of the self, women spiritual exemplars as wives and saints, Tantric worship of the Goddess, and the internationalization of gurus in the U.S. in the twentieth century. Nine essays profile specific female gurus, presenting biographies of these remarkable women while highlighting overarching issues and themes concerning women's status as religious leaders; these themes are nuanced in the afterword to the volume. The essays explore how Hindu female gurus embody grace in both senses--as a feminine ideal and an attribute of the divine-and argue that their status as leaders is grounded in their negotiation of these two types of grace. This book provides biographical profiles of the following female gurus plus sensitive scholarly analysis of their spiritual paths: Ammachi, Anandamayi Ma, Gauri Ma, Gurumayi, Jayashri Ma, Karunamayi Ma, Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati, Mother Meera, Shree Maa and Sita Devi.

Jot Roop Har Aap Guru Nanak Kahayio - Sri Guru Granth Sahib, 1408 ‘The Lord Almighty caused Himself to be called as Guru Nanak’ Sri Guru Nanak Sahib was the incarnation of the Lord Almighty, a prophet, a Jagat Guru from His very birth. He did not, therefore, need the guidance, aid or help of a worldly Guru. He was a born Param Guru, Jagat Guru, Guru Eternal, Supreme Guru. He was a Maker and Producer of Gurus-Divine. He was the Aad and Jugad Guru. As there is no count before one and before God, so is Guru Nanak, the Supreme Jagat Guru. From this Guru Supreme has again emerged The Guru Eternal in the form of Sri Guru Granth Sahib radiating the Eternal Glory of Guru Nanak. Guru Nanak ensouls ten divine forms and Eternal Sri Guru Granth Sahib as one single Divine Entity. Parbrahm Guru Nanak shines in each manifestation in full Glory and each divine form of ten Gurus reveals various divine aspects of the Eternal Glory of Guru Nanak. This spiritual wonder enraptures the soul of mankind with their ensouling divine essence and unity. What a unique marvel of divinity! I was studying in D & M college, Moga when my respected father led me direct into the holy presence of Baba Nand Singh Ji Maharaj and afforded me number of such blessed chances thereafter. It was in the holy and direct presence of Mahan Baba Nand Singh Ji Maharaj that I experienced the grandeur and bliss of the Eternal Glory of Guru Nanak.

Louis E. Fenech offers a compelling new examination of one of the only Persian compositions attributed to the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708): the Zafar-namah or 'Epistle of Victory.' Written as a masnavi, a Persian poem, this letter was originally sent to the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb (d. 1707) rebuking his most unbecoming conduct. Incredibly, Guru Gobind Singh's letter is included today within the Sikh canon, one of only a very small handful of Persian-language texts granted the status of Sikh scripture. As such, its contents are sung on special Sikh occasions. Perhaps equally surprising is the fact that the letter appears in the tenth Guru's book or the Dasam Granth in the standard Gurmukhi script (in which Punjabi is written) but retains its original Persian language, a vernacular few Sikhs know. Drawing out the letter's direct and subtle references to the Iranian national epic, the Shah-namah, and to Shaikh Sa'di's thirteenth-century Bustan, Fenech demonstrates how this letter served as a form of Indo-Islamic verbal warfare, ensuring the tenth Guru's moral and symbolic victory over the legendary and powerful Mughal empire. Through analysis of the Zafar-namah, Fenech resurrects an essential and intiguing component of the Sikh tradition: its Islamicate aspect.

*When I focused on the spot, I could see sharp rays of light emanating from her Ajna chakra and entering mine. My eyes started burning, and my whole body went into a spin. I came to know later that this was Shaktipat and what had happened earlier was Jagran of Kundalini Shakti. *My initial meditational experiences were sometimes scary and sometimes amusing. There were times when I would growl like a lion or hiss like a cobra. Sometimes, my body would go into an uncontrollable spin, or I would keep shaking my head vigorously. I would be a lama fighting with another lama, or a Tantrik on a cremation ground making loud noises. Other people at the group meditation were getting disturbed and upset over my behavior. *In no way should this path be considered easy or inferior. In surrender your whole being, your wants and desires, your entire personality gets annihilated till a stage where you don't exist; it's only the Guru who exists. *Why would one ‘fall’ in love? Isn’t love supposed to uplift you? Is it such petty emotion that makes you fall? *The only thing the world needs is love. The only thing anyone needs is love – unconditional love and acceptance of ‘I Am’. No reason, no logic, no mind.