Principles of Spirituality
Path of Guru's Grace (Gurukrupayoga)
Continued from the previous issue.
Types of Gurus
Gurus based on the form and absence of a Guru:
The table below gives the types of Gurus according to the form, and an outline of Their missions. It clarifies points such as the necessity of a Guru, who needs a Guru, etc. In this context, the point to consider from the worldly viewpoint is that until the thoughtless state (70% spiritual level) is attained, spiritual evolution occurs faster under the guidance of a Guru in human form. Thereafter, for further spiritual progress a disciple receives guidance mostly from within.
|
The form of a Guru |
Absence of a Guru |
|||||
Human |
Book |
Idol |
Others |
||||
|
55 |
40 |
60 |
30 |
- |
||
|
60 |
70 |
70 |
70 |
100 |
||
|
Service and sacrifice |
Understanding the implied meaning |
Guidance from within |
Depends on the type of the Guru |
High ego** |
||
|
2-3 |
0.25 |
0.75 |
0.25 |
0.001 |
||
Practical Application
The table above indicates that spiritual progress under the guidance of a human or manifest Guru occurs most rapidly. In order to obtain the grace of a manifest Guru, one should not go in search of Him, but strive towards progress to the spiritual level of at least 55%*. At that level, a manifest Guru would automatically come into the seeker's life.
There are various paths to spiritual progress, like the path of Meditation (Dhyanayoga), path of Devotion (Bhaktiyoga), the path of Knowledge (Dnyanayoga), etc. The fastest growth can be achieved by following Gurukrupayoga (please refer to the glossary for details about this Path).
*On a scale of 1% to 100%, a spiritual level of 20% indicates that of an average person, while a level of 100% indicates that of One Who has attained Final Liberation (Moksha). On an average, a spiritual seeker is at a 35% level.
** Here ego refers to faith in oneself. If faith in oneself is not high, one cannot make spiritual progress without taking guidance from someone.
*If one is not currently doing any spiritual practice, or to complement one's current spiritual practice, one can begin with the simple, but powerful spiritual practice of chanting or constantly remembering God's Name according to one's religion. Chanting also acts as a useful complement to any spiritual path one may be already following. It is a practice recommended for the current times by Holy texts and Saints of all religions.
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To begin with, one can repeat God's Name according to their religion (refer to Issue 3 Clarification of Doubts section for a list of God's Names as per various religions), or the Name that they feel most comfortable chanting.
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Interested readers can determine the exact chant for them from the experiment given inIssue 124, Message to Seekers section.