Lucking out on guidance

Since Guru Poornima was yesterday, it's only natural to think of Teachers by the light of the silvery moon. On this Asadh Paurnami, we're ...

Since Guru Poornima was yesterday, it8217;s only natural to think of Teachers by the light of the silvery moon. On this Asadh Paurnami, we8217;re meant to remember Guru Veda Vyasa who compiled the Vedas and wrote the Mahabharata, and also honour all the philosophers and guides who commented or discoursed on the Vedas and the Gita. In the contemporary context, it8217;s another occasion, besides Vijayadashmi, to refresh our link with our gurus 8211; social, academic, artistic or spiritual.

But what of those, who, as often as not, had mediocre and uninspiring gurus? Surely there are many whose good fortune did not include real Teachers; not just in English, Economics or Physics, but people who taught us how to confront the frightening chaos of life with some degree of panache? Most of us know this deep down already: organised religion often fails to deliver true understanding; people will not give each other the benefit of doubt but rather look for reasons to be offended. Many of us resent another8217;s two-bits of success and are therefore more unforgiving and harsh than we might be, if we could pity them as losers.

A guru might have imparted a life code to us on how to deal with our envy and frustration. A guru might have taught us how to roll with the punches and spring back into combat. A guru might have made our lives better. For those who disdain the need for a Teacher, think of this: if you need a coach in every form of sport, how come you don8217;t need one in the subtle matter of spiritual growth?

However, an entire lifetime might pass without a guru coming into our orbit. Well, we can just turn to the printed word, then, and practise understanding by ourselves. Like Ekalavya did, but without having to amputate ourselves for an unworthy guru. It was not just his archer8217;s thumb but his sturdy, lonely, loving heart that Drona plucked out of Ekalavya. God defend us from laying our trust at the feet of such a one. But again, to be fair to Drona, he didn8217;t ask Ekalavya to choose him as guru. Surely a person has a right to choice in such matters? Sociologists and historians wax wroth about the tribal suppression implicit in this story. But don8217;t academics and gurus of every persuasion practise this sort of thing themselves even today?

So what is an average person, who has no time to spare from work and family to do, if hungry for spiritual sustenance? Different things work for different people, but if you8217;re the sort who doesn8217;t want to drown in jalebi juice and prefer your Teachers neat, try Marcus Aurelius.

The stoic sense of this 6th century BC Roman emperor is a great help in facing squarely up to life. He had a bad time, but he thought about it and decided to do his best anyway, because that seemed the only trick to conjuring some meaning8217; out of life. Sounds exactly like Yoga karmasu kaushalam, doesn8217;t it 8211; that doing your job right is the true yoga Bhagavad Gita? It also seems to link with what Zarathustra said: In the end, the hands that work are better than the hands that pray.

Little books of wisdom, compilations of prayers, good literature where memorable characters draw you back for re-reads, lives of saints and eminent people, world folklore all these sources are treasure troves from which we can build our inner standards, by which we can gauge whatever else is said or done. It8217;s another way of being inner-directed or finding our guru right inside ourselves, like Harry Potter8217;s patronus! It8217;s ridiculous that some people find these cult books scary and satanic.

Story continues below this ad

They are so much like the adventures of King Vikramaditya magic realism of a universal kind, with a strong value system. Gurus and shishyas of every persuasion would find value in them.