We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves

~ Gautam Buddha

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Guru Purnima-the time of spiritual renewal


Every year this day of full moon falls on the month of Asadha (July-August).That day Vyasa the author of the Mahabharta was born. So the day is dedicated to honor the divine personage of Vyasa . Therefore the devotees worship him along with their respective spiritual preceptor or gurudevs.
Guru Purnima is the day of moon’s luminous brilliance and perfect form. The brilliance of luminous moon is synonymous as the guru’ grace and it is observed as the time for self realization. Just as the moon shines by reflecting the light of the sun and glorifies it, the disciples can shine like the moon by gaining knowledge from their guru.
Purnima the day of full moon means the proximity of moon to the earth which is considered to bring turmoil on human brain. As the proximity of the Moon bring same effect on human psyche as it does on tides. The day observed as being in gratitude to our guru actually safeguards us from that turmoil which usually leads us into indecisiveness as the human body holds enough water in its constitution. The state of gratitude brings the calmness which ultimately leads to focus. The calm mind provides flexibility which in turn helps to fight the tides of indecisiveness. Fighting the tides (indecisive) only saps energy whereas to move with tides saves life and wastage of energy.
Guru Purnima is the day of self referral where everyone has to find guru tattva the element of wisdom in ourselves. Guru tattva is the wisdom underlying in all of us. But each of us has to invoke it to bring at the surface and work for us. By awakening the tattva actually we allow wisdom to guide our path.
Wisdom only manifest through us when there is calmness. The reigning calmness provides us the light to introspect ourselves. So in the calmness which is guided by wisdom is the best time to review our actions and find out whether our actions are working for the growth or not.
The day of Guru Purnima is dedicated as the day of gratitude which we observe showing our respect to our guru. Here guru does not necessarily mean our teachers who taught us in institutions. But for all wonderful people of our lives who enriched our lives by imparting something as tips or suggestions which worked in our lives. So in some way the day deserves to show our gratitude to all those wonderful facilitators around us.
Being in gratitude ensures a healing effect and alignment of the chakras (the chakras are the energy centers of the body through which human body receives life force energy).so the day is here again to enrich all of us. Let the wisdom be our guide.

8 comments:

  1. Very informative - a nicely written article

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  2. don't know how many people still celebrate it....? in my school which was a strictly Hindu school, guru poornima was a big day.....they used to host a havan with all different pandits.....though i used to hate it and always wished of a day off instead.....but now i can understand it much better...........

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  3. Thanks Hitesh for imbibing the write up and comments.keep reading.

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  4. Thanks Mr Karve for positive comments.

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  5. Wonderful article!

    Human body is about 70% water. Just like the tides are higher during full moon day, so is our body influenced by it. That is the scientific explanation you have given here for skeptics to digest. Great job!

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