Why a Guru?

Many have asked me this question with a look of disgust on their faces, as if they were picturing Charles Manson or any other well-known cult leader. The truth is the word guru has departed from its true meaning and is now used by a wide range of marketing-powered, self-proclaimed experts in many fields.

But a Guru — with capital G — refers to something far more profound than just an expert in something. When thinking of a well-known example of a True Guru, Jesus comes to mind. A Guru is a teacher who leads the way by example. But more than a teacher, a Guru is the goal they preach, and the path to that goal: ‘I am the path, the truth, and the energy of life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’*

It is said that liberation can only be reached via Grace. What is Grace? — Grace is to liberation as oil is to an engine, you simply cannot drive a car without oil, because the engine will break and you’ll never reach your destination. No matter how much fuel you have, how good your engine is, if you run it without oil, it will break.

Now, the Divine is the only source of Grace there is. But it is through the Guru that this Grace is bestowed upon the seeker. The Guru is not a person, it’s not a body. Rather, it is a presence, and the Grace that flows from That presence is what lubricates the seeker’s path to liberation.

Why a Guru? Because there is no other way. If you aspire to liberation, you need three things: discipline, sadhana and Grace. But even the first two can be dispensed of if there is enough Grace.

‘To be at the feet of the Guru is to be on top of the world’

*Scripture taken from The Voice™. Copyright © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.