Guru is the Spiritual Master – we are His creation

So many people come to Guruji and take His Blessings. Some stay with Him and some lose it somewhere along the way. Ever thought why do people stop coming to the Master? There can be numerous reasons but broadly classified, here are three of them. What ever we talk about here, may help many of us to understand and identify these feelings. Once identified, it is easier to tackle them. It is important to note that this understanding is not needed to judge others, it is needed only for the purpose of self realization. Even if only one person can relate to what’s written and it helps him to move forward with his faith in life, the purpose of this post is fulfilled.

Some people stop coming to Him because their work got done and they no longer feel the need to come anymore.

Some people stop coming to Him because their work (for which they came) got delayed and they did not have the patience to wait any longer.

These are two of the most common reasons but there is a third reason as well. Let us first comprehend these two reasons before we move forward.

First….. May sound strange to some but it’s true. As long as the particular need of a person is fulfilled, he gets busy and satisfied with his life not giving any thought that those problems can re-occur. More than the fear of re-occurrence is the lack of knowledge of the Guru. Once reached and the worldly goals achieved – the real reason of reaching the Guru starts… Spiritual upliftment… Paving the way to salvation. Sadly, many people do not realize it and give up coming to Him. The actions of such people are governed largely due to ignorance. If they had even a little idea, as to what they are foregoing, they would never have left His side. Many of these people return to their Master later in life when the realization sinks in.

Second….. This is the most common reason for people to stop coming to their Master and thus needs to be understood properly. They came for a particular wish and it didn’t get fulfilled. The faith gets shaken and they stop coming altogether. The thing to understand here is; who decided the time frame? Ok, let’s understand it in a little more detail. Suppose a person came for a year before stopping to come. Now the question is who decided the time frame of ONE year for that person’s work to get done? Maybe the Master chose 15 months as the time and the person gave up three months short. The Guru does not expect anything from His disciples except “Faith and Patience”. And THAT, HE TAKES. If we are not ready to wait for Him, He is in no hurry to come to us. He doesn’t force any one to stay, He lets go. We have to remain pasted to Him. Delay is NEVER without a reason. Though HE is capable of providing, He first prepares the person to be able to receive. If a school student asks for a good job and the Guru accepts and grants, should the student expect to be employed the next day? Even if he does, what kind of job would he get? The Master likes to give the best, so He would first prepare that student with the best of education. That period of education will be tedious and tough but when that period is cleared; think about the result. Another very important point to remember is that if we FEEL, we have not got anything from Him (which is a very difficult situation to believe in – as we don’t realize what we get), we also have to think, what has He taken from us? The answer will always be ‘Nothing’ except Faith and Patience. Yes, sometimes He does take a ‘Smile’ as well.

Everything in our life is destined. We face problems because of it. The same problems that we were facing BEFORE we started coming to Him. But when we reach Him, some of us just start thinking that it is Him, who is not doing anything for us. A highly misplaced thought. Even if nothing is happening for us in life, we must stop and think… what have we done for Him? We are bound by our destiny… HE is not.  Complaints are not needed because HE is not responsible for what has happened in our life. Just ask what is needed and let Him decide what is best for us. Look around and see what He is doing. If He can solve problems of most people around us, then there must be some reason if our work is being delayed or not being done. The best thought during these times is to understand that even after all our problems in life, we do not leave our elders of the family. We continue to take their blessings. Why can’t we continue to take His Blessings? We don’t have to pay for it. We just get His unbound love and caring. At least we can remain in His shelter this way.

Now, let’s come to the third reason, which has yet to be discussed. This may not be very common but is still very important to understand as it is the most dangerous. Why? Because, in this case, we put a question mark over the judgement of our Master.

What we discussed above was probably known to many of you. But, it is very important to understand what we discuss now. It is also important because this happens to people who have conquered the above two emotions and have gone through the test of time. They realize the significance of their Guru and are well aware of His powers. Yet, they may lose it if they fall prey to this reason. There are people who stop coming to their Master because, they feel their place is not justified. Maybe, they feel misplaced. In more specific words, they start comparing themselves to others. Maybe the feeling is that some one is more closer to his Guru than himself. Another case maybe, that the person may not be making comparisons, but is just not happy with his position or condition after coming for many-many years. This causes disillusionment. Most of you must NOT have felt this, but it does exist and there are examples, where Guruji has tested people on this account.

As stated above, this is the most dangerous thought to have as to return to the Master is the most difficult if we fall prey to this reason. Always remember that He is never wrong and if He has chosen a place for us, trust His judgement. He is only preparing us for the better

Another branch of this “disillusionment” is the “ridiculed” feeling. That is, when a person does not like something said to him/her by some one who considers himself to be serving the Master (Sewadaar). Words can hurt… that’s true. A very important thing to remember here is that the Guru never directs anyone to say harsh words to anyone. We are here for our Guru and not for that person who uttered those words, so our focus should be towards our Guru only. Let HIM take care of the situation because HE is watching you as well as the person who uttered those words. Not only will silence be rewarded but HE will also make sure that the person who actually said any hurtful thing, realizes it on his own. we don’t have to apply our mind here as well.

That is why, such “Disillusionment” is termed as dangerous because if not cared about in time, it can lead to a person drifting away from his purpose and from his Guru. And that too when a person’s faith was FULLY INTACT.

Ok, lets understand in a much more simple way… And I’m sure so many of you would already have heard of this example before because we have been taught about it in elementary school. The reason it is being written here is that so many of us just forget.

The Guru is like a builder. If He decides to build a temple, He uses all types of stones. He uses cement and other materials as well.

He uses certain materials for the foundation of the temple. Once the structure completes, the materials used in the foundation will NEVER be visible. Does it reduce the importance of the foundation?

From some stones, bricks and other materials, He makes the pillars and walls of the temple. Then He uses some materials to make the tower, the steps and the compound of the temple.

He chooses some stones to be carved and creates the Deity, which is installed in that temple.

Can any ONE stone of the temple claim to be the temple; even if it is the living Deity? When any stone or any material becomes a part of the temple, it no longer remains a stone that it was. Its identity changes; It becomes a monument. But no single stone can ever claim to be the temple.

Similarly, many people come to the Guru.

Depending on their degree of surrender, the Guru gives them their place. But, the most important thing to remember is that EACH AND EVERY ONE of them is essential and has his own importance.

Can a temple stand without walls and pillars? What would happen if there was no foundation? Can anyone enter the temple if there were no steps to reach it? For the Builder, EVERY stone is valuable. EVERY stone is precious and EVERY stone has its own place.

What we have to understand is that the stone does not have any identity. It should just be proud to be a part of that temple, where ever it is placed. Because the builder has a choice of replacing a broken stone, but the stone once broken from its temple, probably has nowhere to go.

The great Ocean of the world, is made up of drops of water. Each drop is important because collectively they become the ocean… But no single drop once separated from the ocean can claim to be the ocean. The ocean remains the ocean – undisturbed, but the separated drop becomes just a drop of water

The journey does not end when we reach our Guru. The journey starts that day… The Guru is our Spiritual Master and we are His creation… Continue on this journey that you have started and reach the destination that He has decided for you. Just enjoy His Kripa on the way. Would like to share a ‘Doha’ of Saint ‘Kabir’ over here which summarizes everything that we discussed above:

“Kabira, te nar andh hain, Guru ko kahte aur,

Hari roothe Guru thaur hai, Guru roothe nahin thaur”

Kabir, those men (and women) are blind, who say that Guru is not mine. If God gets upset, one can go to the Guru for shelter but if Guru gets upset, there is nowhere to go.

This is the truth. How soon we understand, decides the pace of our journey. May each one of us be Blessed with Patience, Faith and Focus. Jai Gurudev.