Don't Forget you are a Shining Star

Guru Govind Dono Khade Kake Lagun Paya
Balihari Guru aapne, Govind diyon batay

Meaning - if the Guru and the Almighty God appears before you, to whom would you bow first? Saints have said, “Without a Satguru’s blessings you wouldn’t even recognise God.” Therefore, one must bow to the Satguru first.

Guru meaning a teacher. In Sanskrit a Guru is a person who takes you from darkness to light. There are various types of Teachers / Gurus. Everyone needs a Guru as there is no enlightenment / true knowledge without a Guru.

Main Gurus in our lives are:–

Our first Guru is the Parents. They bring us in this world and guide and make us independent by giving a basic knowledge of life - help us to walk, talk, eat, dress etc. and lead us to the second Guru.

The second Guru is a Teacher at school where we learn the art of communication and specialise in the topics of our choice.

The third Guru is called a “tilak Guru” a symbolic Dharma Guru as it is believed that a soul without a Dharma Guru is considered to be unholy.

The fourth Guru is Dharma Guru / Satguru – who would give the basic knowledge of life, religion (Dharma) and God and show the way to the salvation of the soul.
He is believed to be in direct contact with the Almighty and his blessings can get us out of the circle of life and death and give us the ultimate peace.
Satguru is like an Immigration Officer with an authority to grant visas to visit and explore the Govind Dham – self-realisation - travel beyond what we can see. Only Satguru can give us the vision to see the glory of the Almighty – open our third hidden spiritual eye.

We should strive to see what is ours – the Soul. We live in the age of science and we believe in only what we see or personally experience. The Soul cannot be seen by our naked eyes and although we can experience the Soul, we have no ability to recognise or identify the Soul. There cannot be true knowledge without the Satguru’s teaching. You may read a thousand books but you cannot gain the knowledge, which a Guru can give you.

We are like a blind person, in the spiritual world. If four blind persons were asked to identify an elephant each would describe the elephant as that part of the elephant they may have touched. E.g. the one who touches a leg would describe the elephant as being like a pillar, the one who touches the trunk would say the elephant was like a rope, the one who touches the tail may say it was like a broom and the one who touches the body would say it was like a barrel of grain. All of them would be wrong. Only the person with the full view of the elephant could fully describe the elephant. Likewise the Satguru is the only person who has the full knowledge and vision, of the life, and can explain the mystery of life and death.

Therefore, we need Gurus to take us through various stages in life to achieve the ultimate goal.

Once you have accepted someone as a Guru it becomes that Guru’s responsibility to provide you with the necessary knowledge to see you through your life. Just as a teacher at a school would teach and help you to get through your exams, a Guru would work for you throughout the year and try to make you see the light of life. Therefore, Disciples have nominated a full moon day in a year called “Gurupurnima” when each Disciple would pay respect and bow to his Guru, bathe the Guru’s feet, as a sign of submission and offer him a gift (dakshina) in appreciation of the knowledge and blessings received from the Guru during the year which will take the Disciple from darkness to light. That is the importance of the GURUPURNIMA

Reference: http://www.ramapir.org/ramapir_gurupurnima.html

Dedicated to all women
on occasion of 100th International Women's Day (8th March 2011)

પૃથ્વી પર ઈશ્વરને નિમંત્રણ આપે, નારી તું નારાયણી
તારા થકી તો ઈશ્વર ઘરમાં આવે, નારી તું નારાયણી

અજવાળાં સૂરજ અઢળક છો રેલાવે પણ ઘરમાં હો અંધારૂ
તારા વિના તો સૂરજ પણ ના ફાવે, નારી તું નારાયણી

તારા આ સરજેલા દેવળમાં વસવાની કોની ઈચ્છા ના હો ?
તારે ખોળે તો જીવન કીર્તન પામે નારી તું નારાયણી

નારીના હૈયે ઊછળતાં ઉમંગો જોઈને દરિયો બોલે ,
આખે આખો દરિયો તું તો છલકાવે, નારી તું નારાયણી

મારા મનની પાગલ ઝંઝાઓને કોણ આવી ને સમજાવે?
એ શમશે તું જો આવે આ દરવાજે, નારી તું નારાયણી

- અમિત ત્રિવેદી

Professor began his class by holding up a glass with some water in it. He held it up for all to see & asked the students

"How much do you think this glass weighs?"

'50gms!' ..... '100gms!' .....'125gms' ...the students answered.

"I really don't know unless I weigh it," said the professor, "but, my question is:

What would happen if I held it up like this for a few minutes?"

'Nothing' ..the students said.

'Ok what would happen if I held it up like this for an hour?' the professor asked.

'Your arm would begin to ache' said one of the student

"You're right, now what would happen if I held it for a day?"

"Your arm could go numb, you might have severe muscle stress & paralysis & have to go to hospital for sure!"

.. ventured another student & all the students laughed

"Very good.
But during all this, did the weight of the glass change?"

asked the professor.

'No'. Was the answer.

"Then what caused the arm ache & the muscle stress?"

The students were puzzled.

"What should I do now to come out of pain?" asked professor again.

"Put the glass down!" said one of the students

"Exactly!" said the professor.

Life's problems are something like this.

Hold it for a few minutes in your head & they seem OK.

Think of them for a long time & they begin to ache.

Hold it even longer & they begin to paralyze you. You will not be able to do anything..

It's important to think of the challenges or problems in your life,

But EVEN MORE IMPORTANT is to 'PUT THEM DOWN' at the end of every day before You go to sleep...

That way, you are not stressed, you wake up every day fresh &strong & can handle any issue, any challenge that comes your way!

So, when you leave office today,
Remember to ' PUT THE GLASS DOWN ! '