BANGALORE : The Guru shifts our focus from being knowledgeable about the outer world towards focusing on our inner world, as we know absolutely nothing about our own inner world.
For instance, we do not know the principle of creation; we don’t know that the vedas are resonating in the cosmos. Only when we become subtle, can we tune into it. Only with discrimination or viveka we can understand our inner selves.
In the sphere of our outward education, we do not operate with Viveka and Vairagya that is discrimination and dispassion. This is because, Viveka must emerge from within us.
Our heart should prompt untruth, patience and impatience, care and compassion. This is when we are operating in the mode of viveka or discrimination. In the mode of worldly operations our decisions, actions, reactions this is not the case. It is mostly mind based.
There are many situations and instances in our life that clearly indicate to us our deficiencies with which we operate in the outer world due to lack of viveka. In matters of our education, when we are a student, we don’t understand what is good and bad. So, we may not always put in the best of our efforts in education and pay more attention to distractions. After we complete our education, we don’t want to pursue education any further. We want to work.
After a few years, if we don’t get any recognition, we want to change our job. When we see some people, we immediately feel panicky or get upset - “Why has he come?” Sometimes we get scared. Even when he is still away from us, we are enveloped by his fear. We must feel - “He is demonic due to his qualities. I have nothing to fear in him.” Otherwise we will carry him in our minds and also talk about it to others. How do we get out of this fear? By understanding the Guru, his teachings, his principles and his love.
The whole point of life is not just making it complete, but to make it full. When we operate with discrimination, we do selfless service and then life becomes whole. That is liberation or freedom from troubles and worries. A trouble is not seen as a trouble. A problem is not seen as a problem.
In this shloka, Lord Shiva clearly tells us that we are all empty vessels making noise without knowing anything. He also tells us that those who are really chaitanya swaroopa (embodiment of consciousness) don’t brag about themselves. Guru performs miracles to those devotees who have the inherent power in them but their logic stops them.
A believer and a devotee already knows that everything in life is a miracle. The fact - when we sleep at night we are able to wake up in the morning itself is a miracle, we are able to see the sun or day light itself is a miracle.
Gurus, enlightened beings, chiranjeevis are always established in Brahman, they have no other thoughts other than Brahman.
A Guru gives Chaitanya Shakti or power of consciousness to his disciples. He teaches the essential qualities of humbleness and humility. The Guru doesn’t use his chaitanya shakti but give opportunities for shishyas or disciples to do seva as seva activates the Chaitanya Shakti of the disciple.
When we want to buy some grains from a grocery store, till the grains are stocked up in the shop, the shop keeper claims it to be his. Only after we pay for it, does the shopkeeper hand it over to us. From then we start saying that the grains are ours.
Prior to the shopkeeper, the farmer who grows the grains claims it to be his. But, have you ever thought about the grains itself? At no point of time, do the grains tell anything or claim anything. In the same way only when we operate with viveka, we think that in life everything is given by God, everything belongs to God.
Lord Shiva says, to develop this viveka from within, we must always be in Guru chintana or contemplation upon our Guru - the supreme soul. Then only, over a period of time, we start losing our ego or aham. We also prevent socialising and anti-divine activities so that the nest of divinity is built in our heart. Only then can we create the inner world and in that inner world we get access the small pot of nectar or nidhi.
The Guru empowers us to be constantly oozing out knowledge from within us to the whole world just like vapours coming out of dry ice. Guru chintana (contemplation) takes us towards manthana (Churning) and this establishes us in nidhidhyasana - deep contemplative state.