|
(Continued from Issue 209)
Ego about having a Guru
| 1. |
Once a sage
named Gorakshanath developed ego that no one could defeat him
since he had a Guru. Thereafter, he was defeated by an individual
in a debate. Gorakshanath was perplexed and asked the individual, “Who
is your Guru?” He replied, “I do not have a Guru.” That
individual was none other than Lord
Gurudev Datta (One of the
seven principle deities) Himself! |
| 2. |
I (H.H.
Dr. Jayant Athavale) perceived that a seeker attending the
workshops on Spirituality had immense ego. When I asked those
attending the workshop to narrate examples of her egoistic
nature if they had come across any, four to five seekers who
generally spoke to her remained silent so as not to incur her
ire. Finally, another seeker replied, “I can cite an
example, but she will get angry with me.” On hearing
this, the egoistic seeker retorted angrily, “You need
not say anything. My Guru will take care of everything.” |
Ego about possessing supernatural powers (siddhis)
When energy is generated from spiritual
practice, fascinating
miracles can be performed with it. These are called supernatural
powers. One’s ego can
inflate on acquiring such supernatural powers. The exception to this is Saints.
Even if They use Their supernatural powers as per the needs of Their mission,
They do not develop ego.
Saints taking the suffering of others upon themselves
When a Saint takes the suffering
of others upon Himself, He harbors some amount of ego.
Developing the ego that ‘I do not have any ego’
One can also develop the ego that ‘I
do not have any ego’. Even a
spiritually evolved person can develop such a subtle ego.
Once Saint Chokhamela (a devote worshipper of Lord Vitthal) found that the
gold necklace, which adorned
Lord Vitthal’s idol in the village temple, was around his own neck.
He was perplexed at this occurrence. When the temple priests found out, they
thought
He was a thief and started beating Him up. He prayed fervently to His beloved
deity Lord Vitthal, “How is your necklace around my neck? The priests
are beating me up. What is my offense?” At that very moment, He received
enlightenment that even asking “What is my offense?” is a sign
of subtle ego, because getting beaten up by the priests, etc., is all a part
of The Lord’s divine
play. Further, considering The Lord’s divine play to be real is a result
of our subtle ego.
In the next Issue, we will discuss how
much ego develops according to one’s path of spiritual practice
and one’s spiritual level. |
