by Sri Bimal Mohanty
VOL No. 38
April. 2004

ATTEMPTS TO DESCRIBE BRAMHAN - Part 12

"Based on the lectures by Sri Bimal Mohanty"

Apart from possessing the qualities of tapah shradhah, non possession and non preference, calmness, ever engaged in knowledge gathering, the guru has to be be Shrotriyam Bramhanistham. This is the most common criteria often referred by all. Shrotriyam means one who understands the Shastras or the scriptures (especially the srutis). Previously we have discussed at length the authority of the scriptures when it comes to the knowledge of all knowledge, the adhyatmajnana.The depth and expanse of the Vedas, Bramhasutras and the Bhagavad Gita is so great that all saints even with their multipronged approach are unanimous about their acceptance of these scriptures. Sri Aurobindo, known for his original interpretation of knowledge was deeply influenced, studied and accepted the superiority of these scriptures. In olden times the scriptures were not accessible to general public. But now days any body can access them. Constant reading of these scriptures, known as swadhyayana, can greatly speed up one's yoga sadhana, bringing with it, its associated benefits.

And in the end a teacher has to be Bramhanistham- fixed or established in Bramhan. One who lives with the constant awareness of Bramhan, is Bramhanistham.

With this kind of strict guidelines for the Guru, people obviously ask, where do I find such a person? How do I recognise such a person? The answer to this is 'Do not even try to look for your Guru, your true Guru.' It is not within the powers of a disciple to organise an encounter with his Guru. Before one looks for a Guru, how many of us critically analyse ourselves and ask 'Am I ready for my Guru?'

Only when someone has prepared himself well, through his sankalpa,(determination) swasthya,(purity of body and mind) swadhyayana,(self acquiring of knowledge) sansuddha buddhi,(clarity of thought) shraddha, (trust and faith) and samarpan, (readiness to surrender), then by the divine grace, the right conditions evolve, when the Guru and disciple meet. Finding a Guru is the next best thing to finding the Bramhan himself.

All the time one has to walk the path of dharma, or lead a righteous life. If one has to become Bramhanistham, one has to be first Dharmanistham. Do not look for any short cuts. Shortcuts simply do not exist.

This requirement of continuing to walk the path of Dharma in search of a teacher, makes immense practical sense. If one is searching for a particular bird or an animal, he must search in the habitat or territory of these creatures. If one wants find snow, he must move in the territory of snow capped mountains and not in the arid deserts. If you wish for sunlight, you must come out of the shade. If you wish to encounter a teacher, you must move in the territory where these teachers walk, the territory of dharma. Do not look for them remaining in the darkness of your ignorance.