Friday, July 31, 2015

Grateful on Guru Poornima — A Lesson in the True Meaning of Celebrating the Teachers on Your Journey


I was wrong.

A while ago I wrote a blog post announcing that I would never again celebrate Guru Poornima.

Today I received a message from one of my long-time supporters. This person was never a devotee, but is offended by the long-con fraud perpetrated by Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat and the damage it has done. 

Today I received a personal note from this person — and I’m going to share it with everyone, because the words are so beautifully stated and profound. Today I have learned the true meaning of Guru Poornima.
A couple of years ago you had a blog post where you had mentioned that you would never celebrate Guru Poornima again in your life. While I can surely empathize why you felt like that at the time, you could not have been more wrong.

Guru Poornima is one of the most important days of the Hindu calendar. It symbolizes the fact that we are eternal students, who are on a constant quest to learn.

It is a day to recognize the fact that our learning process never stops — from the cradle to the grave, from the womb to the tomb, so to speak.  

It's our duty to seek the right gurus (yes, the use of the plural word here is deliberate). These are the teachers who can unravel before us the countless mysteries of this universe. Teachers who can help in our personal, professional and emotional growth. Teachers who can help us cope with our problems with equanimity. Teachers who can help us with our spiritual growth etc. etc.  

No one guru can fit into all of these roles. So never seek a guru's advice in an area that is not the guru's expertise.

Always Remember the Cardinal Rule: You learn from the guru, but you never surrender to the guru. You seek the guru's advice, but you never let the guru make decisions for you. If you feel that the guru is misleading you, immediately step back and look elsewhere. 

There is some twisted logic in the following — but let me still try to explain. If you realize that the guru is willfully misleading you, he/she may be teaching you something important that you need to be thankful for. This is not the same thing as being willfully misled so the guru can profit from the deception. Understand the distinction.

Be thankful, but never get emotionally attached to your gurus. When you are done with learning from one guru, seek another.

No one knows everything that there is to learn, so this quest never stops. Always remember that no single guru can teach you everything. You will have multiple gurus with non-overlapping roles in your life.

So, Karen, you were wrong when you said that you will not celebrate Guru Poornima again. Go out and celebrate this important day, and show your gratitude to people who have taught you something in order to become a better person (e.g., your 12th grade English teacher). If the gurus are alive, call them, and show your appreciation for what they have done for you. If the gurus are dead, spend a moment in contemplation and remembrance.

I strongly believe that Guru Poornima should be observed by one and all, irrespective of whether or not you are a Hindu.
Thank you to the author of these words. I could not love them more. They are so beautiful. And they have inspired me to once again celebrate Guru Poornima.

I will not throw out a beautiful expression of gratitude because of the exploitative fake gurus in Jagadguru Kripalu Parshat.

Today I want to give thanks to a few of my important gurus since I left the JKP cult.
  • Thank you to the author of this message (who shall remain anonymous for specific reasons), but who has been a staunch supporter since day one.
  • Thank you to Dr. Madhu P. Godsay, who wrote a chapter in my book about the true tradition of the guru-disciple relationship in Hinduism, and gave me my first-ever glimpse of the truth of our eternal existence.
  • Thank you to Mohan Joshi, who has guided my spiritual awakening more profoundly in a few words than my ex-fake-gurus could in a billion words.
I am so very very appreciative of the guidance I have received from these three enlightened beings. 

THANK YOU with deep gratitude!

Guru Poornima Jay Ho!!!!

4 comments:

  1. Thank you for this post .. i was a blind devotee of kripalu although i never met him in person.. tell me something..did JKP really know all the vedas including the page number and verse number or he just managed to mug up some .. ??

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    1. Hello Prachi, I apologize for the late reply. Thank you for commenting. I hope you are completely out of this wicked cult. I think that Kripalu was a very smart person and had the ability to memorize a great amount of content. He used that skill to dazzle the gullible.

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  2. Whatever has been said against Mr Kripalu is 100% right. He preached to destroy the happiness of innocent people. His philosophy is in question and about money extraction, He loots like no one.

    Extracting money under some pretext or the other, His deviji's , they all are very harmful and dangerous. They suggest "Udhaar Sewa" viz the worst and funny thing that can be taught to Hindus. Its very shameful how good Hindu families and smart people get trapped under him and they don't get anything from Him, they lose their parents, siblings, social status, money and above all moral values.

    Such victimized can't respect parents and elders in society and there is fight and quarrels in Families. Small kids are also being deprived of rich Hindu culture. And all this is a very serious situation which needs attention, but its also true He is brutal and knows no Humanity !!! ...

    Think what is His Tattvagyan ? ...when Humanity is missing in Him! Hope people understand the Truth and stop visiting such Rascals who destroys human birth making it completely Futile.

    Sad how so many are trapped and how much families suffer. Newly born Hindu kids are also in danger.

    Wonder part is, He is exploiting even after He is dead, with the support of his so many victimized people who don't know his rascaldom.

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    1. Thank you Seemaji for caring about others. That is in very short supply in JKP. The only good in this world is done by people like you.

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