I hear a voice from far off, registering repulsion: “Look at the audacity of that
man in ochre, allowing a respectable human being to touch his feet with the
forehead! Nauseating!”
Let
us examine whether this performance of namaskara is, after all, such a
foolish and meaningless physical action.
When
the disciple, who feels a certain amount of guilt in his conscience as result
of his innumerable daily interactions with people, kneels down at the feet of a
Guru, there is at least a temporary sense of surrender, a gathering of
all his innocent instincts in a sense of submission to a Higher Power. The Guru,
in his all-embracing love, accepts him warmly with his mind, rich in spiritual
power (tapas), and wishes him wholeheartedly, “May he fare well!” His
generous heart goes towards the disciple spontaneously and with eagerness. Now,
how can this sinful disciple fare well, unless he exhausts his sock of sin so
that he is qualified to sit on the lap
of happiness?
Does
not a loving mother intensely wish to take away, on herself, if possible, the agonies
of her dear one struggling in pain? So does the Guru wish with regard to
his disciple – his adopted child. Then the disciple’s stock of sin is
transferred to the Guru, for his words never fail- he is a satya-sankalpa.
Then the Guru absorbs and endures this sin newly acquired.
Yes,
it is a draft of sin drawn in favour of the Guru by the disciple and cashed
in the bank of the Guru’s spiritual wealth; since the Guru
is powerful in tapas, he will pay for it in the form of austerities.
Slowly, as the years roll on, the drafts of sin get overdrawn on the bank due
to the immense generosity of the Guru, and then he suffers. It may take
form of a physical malady. We have all heard of our eminent and well-known
saints and saviours – Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Ramana Maharshi and others
becoming victims of a dreadful disease. We have also heard in the life of Sri Saradamani
that towards the close of her earthly career, she endured aches in her body and
explained that those aches were the results of her disciple’s sins. This is
usually the case with most mahatmas who come out and mix with people.
The sages who perform penance in the
caves of the Himalayas, not coming into contact with any mortals and his sins, generally remain healthy.
If
a Guru has the ordinary man’s common sense, he will not allow any
disciple to touch his feet. But his generosity and mercy know no ‘common
sense’. A true Guru’s heart overflows with love and compassion, and he
has no place to accommodate such mundane ‘common sense’ there.
It
is a one-sided business, where the Gurus are the losers. It is not a
transaction; it is transference. Out of pure love which embraces everything,
they redeem the sinners. They save the sinner who is wallowing in the mire of
sin, by giving a helping hand, by wholesale extraction of their sin! The
disciple only stands to gain, or in other words, the Guru gains all the
disciple’s sins to date, purifies the disciple completely, absolves him of his
sins and gives him a clean slate. If the disciple is worthy and wise, he
should, after accepting a spiritual Guru, be careful not to commit more
sins and pass it on to the Guru, though the latter stands ready to receive
them.
Our
parents and elders feel responsible for our safety and well-being and are ever
ready to sacrifice for our happiness. A true Guru is much more so and
intensely prays for the young ones – his disciples. Jai Gurudev!
*Reproduced
from Tapovan Prasad, July 2013, Spiritual Monthly of Chinmaya Mission Worldwide.
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