Excerpts Chapter 26
THE MEDITATION BOOK:
THE SPIRITUAL MASTER
What is a Guru?
Question: Sri Chinmoy, what is your definition of the Guru?
Sri Chinmoy: Guru is a Sanskrit word which means teacher. The one who illumines is called a Guru. Now, according to my own inner realisation, I wish to say that there is and there can be only one Guru and that is the Supreme. No human being can be a Guru. But although the Supreme alone is the real Guru, here on earth we value time. If we have someone who can help us in our journey towards the highest Goal, we take his help.
We need a human Guru precisely because we want to go faster. A Guru is a private tutor. He is not like a school teacher who will pass or fail the student in the examination. The Guru privately and inwardly teaches the disciples to stand in front of ignorance and face it and conquer it. A spiritual Master is like the eldest member in the family, and the seekers are like his younger spiritual brothers and sisters. Spiritual Masters tell or show their younger brothers and sisters where their Father is. The Father is bound to be the Absolute Guru. All the spiritual Masters are trying to help their younger brothers and sisters and show these aspiring souls where the real Guru is. The real Guru is not in the vast blue skies. He is inside the very depth of our hearts.
Now, you may ask, if He is inside our hearts, then why is it necessary for us to take help from somebody else? I wish to say that this invaluable treasure is inside our hearts, but we have misplaced it, so we need help. A friend of ours who is the spiritual teacher comes to us and searches for our treasure. When he finds it, he tells us, “Look, here is your treasure and here is the key. Now if you want me to show you how to open the box, that also I will do for you.” And then when we see the treasure inside the box, immediately we come to realise that the treasure belongs entirely to us and does not belong to our helper. Now that we have seen the treasure, now that we have discovered it with the help of the friend, guide or teacher, we feel that it is necessary to have so that we can do more things in life.
To see the treasure is one thing, to grow into it is another and finally to manifest it is something else. There are three different things that we take one by one. First we try to realise God with the help of a teacher, then we try to reveal God in our activities and finally we try to manifest God.
The real Guru, the only Guru, is God the Supreme. He is manifesting Himself in and through all the seekers. We are all seekers, and a spiritual Master is also a seeker. But in the family, the younger members usually take help from the elder ones. All so-called spiritual Masters are trying to take their younger brothers and sisters to the Father, the Absolute Supreme.
Recognising a true Master
Question: How can one recognise a true living Master?
Sri Chinmoy: One can recognise a true living Master if, when he approaches the Master, his inner being is inundated with delight and ecstasy. If you stand in front of a real spiritual Master who is meant to be your own Master, then even your outer being will be filled with immense joy and ecstasy. Now, he may be a real Master, but if he is not meant to be _your_ Master, then you will not experience intense joy immediately. And, if he is not a true Master, and you are sincere, then you will not experience any joy at all. Of course, if you do not get anything from a Master, you cannot always say that he is not real; you may be in a very low consciousness and then you will not be able to feel that Master’s Light. But if your heart is crying for a real spiritual Master, then you are bound to feel something in a true Master. And if he is your own Master, then you will find in him everything that you need in this life.
Fastest progress with a Master
Question: Is a Master mandatory for proper meditation?
Sri Chinmoy: No one is forcing you to have a Master, but it certainly is advisable. You know that there is a goal, and you want to reach the goal. If you are wise, you accept help from someone who can show you the easiest, safest, and most effective path to that goal. If you want to take hundreds and thousands of years to realise God, a spiritual Master is not necessary. But if you want to reach the Goal the fastest way, then certainly he is a necessity.
If you want to become a doctor, you go to school and study with doctors. If you do not study with a doctor, you will not operate on someone, because there you are dealing with human life. The Guru is like a spiritual doctor. He will operate on your fear, doubt and jealousy. First you doubt the existence of the Vast, the Unknown. Then you are afraid of the Vast because you feel that it is not a part of you and that it will engulf you. And then you are jealous of the Vast, because you feel that it is all illumination, fulfilment and perfection, whereas your life is all obscurity, frustration and imperfection. So before you can operate on others, first you have to study with a spiritual doctor, the spiritual Master. He will cure you and then teach you how to cure others.