GURU PURNIMA

With the birth of 'Ashadh' month in mid-July, the festival days are here again!

Guru Purnima will be celebrated on July 29th 2007. In Sanskrit, the day of full moon is known as Purnima. The full moon day in the Hindu month of Ashadh is traditionally celebrated as 'Guru Purnima'. It is also known as 'Vyaas Purnima' in remembrance of the great sage Ved Vyaasa, the divine guru who wrote the great epic 'Mahabharatha', the eighteen 'Puranas' and classified the 'Vedas' of the Hindu Dharma. On this day, all spiritual aspirants and devotees worship Sage Vyaasa and all disciples perform a 'puja' to their respective ‘Gurus’.

Who is a Guru? The Sanskrit root "Gu" means darkness or ignorance. "Ru" denotes that hich dispels darkness. Therefore one who removes darkness caused by our ignorance is a Guru. Students also refer to their school teacher as Guru. The Guru in this case is one who imparts knowledge that enlightens the students and therefore, worthy of respect.

In the Hindu tradition, the Guru is looked upon as an embodiment of God himself. For, it is through the Guru’s grace and guidance that one reaches the highest state of wisdom and bliss.

Many of you may know the popular Sanskrit hymn that reads:

Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu Guru Devo Maheswara; /
Gurur Sakshat Para Brahma Thasmai Sri Gurave Namaha //

"My salutations to the Guru who is Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara. The Guru is Parabrahma (God) incarnate"

Indian culture places 'Gurus' who impart knowledge, equivalent to God. Acquiring knowledge forms the basis to shape a person’s future. So worshipping a guru is like worshipping truth, knowledge and invaluable experiences. On this day, students visit their teachers in order to show respect to them and offer some gifts to express their gratitude.

Guru Purnima is the day we reflect on the knowledge imparted to us. The annual function of Guru Purnima presents an opportunity of introspection to monitor our progress in learning over the last one year, and take lessons from it to march faster in the current year.

Therefore, on the day of Guru Purnima, let us resolve to offer puja and reverence to the Guru in mind, action and speech; obey the Guru, and serve him as a worthy disciple who would bring glory to the Guru. The Guru helps our minds to grow. Let us show our gratitude and appreciation for all the wisdom, and blessings, that we constantly receive from our Gurus.