Who is a Guru?
Guru bestows us with the light of knowledge that is ever illuminating within each one of us. He removes the darkness called ignorance. Ignorance arises when we are drowned in this illusory world called Maya. Lord Dakshinamurthy, form of Lord Shiva is revered as the AdiGuru as he is believed to be always in meditative state holding the chin mudra (hand gesture of unity of Jivatma with Paramatma). Adi Sankaracharya wonderfully describes this in Dakshinamurthy stotra.
मौनव्याख्या प्रकटित परब्रह्मतत्त्वं युवानं वर्षिष्ठांते वसद् ऋषिगणैः आवृतं ब्रह्मनिष्ठैः ।
आचार्येन्द्रं करकलित चिन्मुद्रमानंदमूर्तिं स्वात्मारामं मुदितवदनं दक्षिणामूर्तिमीडे ॥
maunavyākhyā prakaṭita parabrahmatattvaṃ yuvānaṃ
varṣiṣṭhāṃte vasad ṛṣigaṇaiḥ āvṛtaṃ brahmaniṣṭhaiḥ |
ācāryendraṃ karakalita cinmudramānaṃdamūrtiṃ
svātmārāmaṃ muditavadanaṃ dakṣiṇāmūrtimīḍe ||
Lord Dakshinamurthy is in deep silence emanating the highest supreme knowledge called Brahman. He is youthful yet surrounded by old and great sages who are ever-established in Self. Dakshinamurthy is in a state of bliss and holds his hand in chin mudra. He who has realized his own Atma is seen with a happy face and let us offer our salutations to Him.
Why do we need a Guru?
Jivatmas are locked in this never ending vicious cycle of birth and death called samsara. The very purpose of human birth is to realize one’s self and attain God through Guru. The following verse from Vivekachudamani, written by Adi Sankaracharya mentions that three things are very difficult to attain in life such as human birth, desire to know the truth and satsang with great sages & saints.
दुर्लभं त्रयमेवैतद्देवानुग्रहहेतुकम् । मनुष्यत्वं मुमुक्षुत्वं महापुरुषसंश्रयः ॥
durlabhaṃ trayamevaitaddevānugrahahetukam |
manuṣyatvaṃ mumukṣutvaṃ mahāpuruṣasaṃśrayaḥ ||
Finding one’s Guru can happen only with the grace of Ishwara and Guru. Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Vivekananda who lived in the last century are said to be the divine pair whose life experiences show us how both Guru and Sishya yearned to meet one another. Kanchi Mahaswamigal mentions in Voice of God that one’s Guru is greater than God and once we reach Guru’s proximity, we realize that he is no different from Ishwara. We do not necessarily need to master great scriptures, stories and religious texts. Guru’s sannidhi would bestow us with the supreme knowledge that even books cannot offer us. Once we attain Guru and start serving him selflessly with utmost devotion or Bhakti, we are bound to experience the following
- Clarity in action, thought and speech
- Mental purity (Chitta Shuddhi) & Acceptance
- Destruction of ego
- State of contentment & bliss
- Knowledge of Atman(Self)
Guru can be different for different people. He may appear in his physical or subtle form. Sometimes, Ishwara himself becomes one’s Guru or a sacred book like Gita could become a Guru. Arjuna who had considered Krishna as his best friend suddenly asked for his preachings in the war field and Krishna became his Guru in the midst of a warzone. This truly depends on the individual’s mental maturity and state of readiness to grab Guru’s teachings. For example, Arunachala mountain became the Guru for Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi and he reiterates this in his 19th verse of Aksharamanamalai. It is generally said that before Guru gives upadesa (preachings), he moulds the disciple to make him ready to understand that upadesa in its correct sense.
குற்றமுற் றறுத்தெனைக் குணமாய்ப் பணித்தாள்
குருவுரு வாயொளி ரருணாசலா 19
Kuttra-mut traṛut-tenai guṇa-māip paṇit-tāl
Guru-vuru vāyolir Arunachalā 19
Removing all the faults in me, and making me a good being, shine as the form of my Guru, Arunachala.
Grace of the Guru cannot be measured or even understood by common men like us. Remembering God, God’s name and form are possible only by the grace of Guru and God himself. Adi Shankaracharya blessed one of his disciples, Totakacharya who was known for his selfless service with the greatest knowledge when everyone around him thought less of him. Even today, all of us chant Totakashtakam, which was written by Totakacharya, as a prayer to Bhagavatpada.
Glory of Guru Paduka
Guru Paduka is a representation of Guru’s complete presence and it symbolizes self-knowledge. Guru’s grace and compassion completely dwells in his lotus feet or Paduka. Whoever has Guru Paduka in their homes, it is believed that Guru is present there and the house becomes a temple. King Bharata from Ramayana is a great example who glorified Guru Paduka. He took Lord Rama’s Paduka and the holy Paduka ruled the kingdom for 14 years until Rama’s return to Ayodhya. There are different ways by which a Guru can initiate his disciple such as nayana deeksha (eyes), sparsha deeksha (touch) and smarana Deeksha (remembrance). Paduka deeksha is one among the ways of initiation by providing Guru’s Paduka to the deserving disciple. Adi Sankaracharya has composed two great stotras on praising the glory of Guru Paduka such as Guru Paduka stotra and Paduka Panchakam that are believed to be highly powerful.
“I worship the two Feet of the Guru, endowed with the effulgence of Siva and Sakti, marked by the white and red colors – Feet that denote the Supreme and are beyond the reach of speech, mind and the senses.” – Guru Gita, 1.90
One Paduka in the pair represents the truth or self-knowledge in which the Guru is ever-established, which is present within each one of us and which we have to realize through experience. The other Paduka is the symbol of awakening other people. Just as a lit candle, lights up other candles, the Master too has realized the Truth and his life is spent in awakening others.
“Just as a Shiva Lingam represents Shiva and Shaligrama represents Vishnu, in the same way, the feet of the teacher represent to the students, not the feet, but the underlying concept. What we are invoking is Brahman, the Lord. But we cannot go directly to Him. We want a symbol. At this time, there is no symbol more sacred than the feet/Padukas of the teacher.” – Swami Chinmayananda.
Power of Guru Paduka Stotra
Adi Shankaracharya, in search of a Guru was travelling across the country and he came upon a cave on the banks of river Narmada. He saw the padukas of Govinda Bhagavatpada outside the cave and immediately recognized them as his Guru’s. Having found the Master that he had been searching for, he was filled with abundant joy and sang the Guru Paduka Stotra. Honoring the paduka has been a part of Indian tradition as a way of showing respect to the Guru Parampara, who has been preserving the knowledge for us. When the disciple is ready, Guru appears automatically, and one will instantly feel the divine presence similar to the ripened fruit falling from the tree by itself. Guru Paduka Stotram is an expression of such experience of a true disciple.
Bhagavatpada’s Guru Paduka stotra glorifies the two feet of Guru in the following shloka and how a seeker’s life transforms with the presence of the Master.
अनन्तसंसार समुद्रतार नौकायिताभ्यां गुरुभक्तिदाभ्याम् ।
वैराग्यसाम्राज्यदपूजनाभ्यां नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् ॥ 1 ॥
ananta samsãra samudra tãra noukãyitãbhyãm guru bhaktidãbhyãm|
vairãgya sãmrãjyada poojanãbhyãm namo namah shree guru pãdukãbhyãm||1||
Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which is a boat, which helps me,cross the endless ocean of life,
Which endows me, with the sense of devotion to my Guru,
And by worship of which, I attain the dominion of renunciation
This stotra encompasses following key themes
-
- The guru as a bridge to the divine
- The purifying nature of the guru’s teachings
- The guru’s role in dispelling ignorance
- The eternal nature of guru-disciple relationship
It is evident that this ancient stotra continues to touch the hearts and transform the lives of many spiritual seekers. Its profound teachings on devotion, sharanagati (surrender), and the Guru-sishya bhakti remain as relevant today as they were centuries ago. Whether you’re new to spiritual practice or a seasoned seeker, the Guru Paduka Stotram offers a wealth of wisdom and inspiration. It reminds us of the power of guidance and mentorship on the spiritual path and the transformative potential that lies within each of us when we open our hearts to higher supreme knowledge.
Guru Paduka Panchaka, another stotra composed by Adi Sankaracharya mentions that the Guru’s feet are cool like the nectar of the moon. In other words, just as the moonbeams cool us off after the heat of the day and nourishes all the flora and fauna, in the same way devotion to the feet of the Guru extinguishes the fire of sorrow and suffering and gives us peace. We must consider incorporating this stotram into our routine practice, reflect on its meanings, and allow its timeless wisdom to guide us towards light, inner peace, contentment and ever-lasting bliss.
