Guru Poornima

Guru Poornima Meditation  - Sadhana Sangama

“Jab Tak Mera GURU Balwan, Mein Pahalwan”

- H.H. Pujya Swami Rama of the Himalayas

The dynamism of life is very uncertain and the tides and waves of uncertainty camouflages the definite, certain, fathomless foundation of Reality on which the dance of life is going on with rhythms, colours and enchanting whirly, swirly movements. You are caught in this and this is creating insecurity, uncertainty and anxiety which have become the bed rock of tension–charged life that you go through. This situation makes mankind desperate, hopeless and directionless. But deep within you are searching for a path, for a guide, seeking for support, praying to the Divinity to stretch its compassionate and caring hand to hold, guide and lift you to the sky of transcendence, bliss and beauty from the ghastly paws of uncertainty – this is the eternal misery that the mankind is going through. This very tender but all powerful, ever-loving hand of Lord is “GURU”, which is the eternal, unbroken bridge between you and Divinity.

On this Guru Poornima day let us contemplate on this eternal truth, GURU, and pray to it to strengthen the connection that exists between us.

To give an example: You are like a raw material that has reached the compound of a very huge manufacturing facility awaiting its turn to be processed, refined, fine-tuned and pushed out as finished product.

The first step where you have to begin is to accept this reality and then work your way through. You need a firm ground to walk the path and the firm ground in the pathless path of Sadhana is “Purification – Practice – Prayer”.

Purification: Keep yourself clean, dirt-free at the physical level, emotional level and at psychological level.

Practice: Without an iota of doubt, start applying the teachings shared by the Guru in your daily life situations.

Prayer: It is the product of purification and practice. Prayer is nothing but the sincere and deep longing within to experience who you are beyond the mind-body entity. In other words, the moment you begin to purify and practice regularly, prayer happens automatically. Prayer, no doubt, is a definite tool of communication with Divinity i.e., YOU.

You are blessed and don’t fail to embrace the Grace on this auspicious occasion. For this, I personally request you to devote sometime for yourself and do the following practice:

PRACTICE:

1. Sit in a comfortable posture – in padmasana or ardha padmasana or sukhasana or vajrasana or in any other comfortable position – by keeping your back, neck and head along the same straight line. You need not tension your face and back to sit straight. Your sitting posture has to be a relaxed one.

2. Gently scan through your body and relax from head to toe.

3. Step 1: Focus your attention on stilling the body. Stop all conscious movements in your body like scratching, moving the fingers, contracting the body muscle, etc.

4. Step 2: Listen to the sounds that is coming from outside and inside you. Make it a point not to get disturbed by the sounds that you hear. Do this activity with full involvement and awareness – to accustom yourself with your environment.

5. Step 3: Shift your awareness and bring it on to Shushumna Kendra – Shushumna Kendra is located at the root of the nose (not the tip) the place where the middle wall of the nose and upper part of the lip meets. Staying in shushumna Kendra, feel that while inhaling you are inhaling the pure, divine cosmic consciousness and while exhaling feel that all your spent and impure energies are coming out of you. This pranayama definitely works if you do it with feeling. It cleans your system. Do this for 5 minutes.

6. Step 4: Focus your attention on the Ajna Chakra (eyebrow centre). Ajna chakra is located in-between your two eyebrows. Staying in Ajna chakra, observe your thoughts. You should consciously practice to separate yourself from your thoughts – you are not your thoughts. Do this for at least 5 minutes.

7. Step 5: Come to Guru Chakra which is just above the Ajna Chakra. Focus on Guru Chakra for 2 minutes and gently relax. Invoke Guru in energy form, or in paduka (two feet) form, or in physical guru form (face of your Guru), or in the form of light, etc. The short point is keep an image in the Guru chakra in which your concentration can stay for a longer time without getting disturbed.

Focussing on that image chant:

“Hiranya Garbhaa Aarabdhaam, Seshou Vyaasaadhi Madhyamaam

Swami Shree Rama Paadaanthaam, 

Vande Guru Paramparaam, 

Vande Guru Paramparaam, 

Vande Guru Paramparaam”.

After the above prayer, make a sincere Sankalpa from the bottom of your heart that, ““in this sadhana let all the members of my family join and bring harmony and in that base of harmony let me experience the Guru”

Then start chanting (minimum one mala - 108 times)

“Om Shreem Gurudevaaya Namaha “

by focusing on Guru in Guru Chakra. Don’t chant the mantra too fast, don’t drag also. Maintain a steady rhythm. You find your comfort level. The important thing is do this japa with the understanding (explained in the first page) and with feeling. Let your awareness and attention follow the mantra each time you chant.

8. After completing chanting of mantra, sit silently for one or two minutes without doing anything and experience the presence of Guru in the form of light, etc. Feel as if they are offering everything to that light which is there in the form of Guru and praying from deep within that I seek nothing but your Grace, your Presence and your Blessings.

9. Feel your individual consciousness is merging with GURU Consciousness and that is pervading everywhere. In that feeling you offer the following prayer to the Universal Consciousness:

Om Sarve Bhavanthu Sukhinaha, Sarve Santhu Niraamayaha

Sarve Badraani Pashyantu, Maa Kaschit Dhukka Baagh Baveth

Loka Samasthaa Sukhinou Bhavanthu, Loka Samasthaa Sukhinou Bhavanthu

Samastha Sanmangalaani Bhavanthu, Om Tat Sat

Akhanda Mandalaakaaram

Vyaaptham Yena Charaacharam

Tat Padham Darshitham Yenaa

Tasmai Shree Gurave Namaha

10. Rub both the palms, massage your eyes and slowly open your eyes.

Akhanda – unfragmented;

Mandalaakaaram – one infinite whole;

Vyaaptham – pervades;

Yena – by which;

Charaacharam – movable & immovable;

Tadpadham – That state;

Darshitham – has shown;

Yena – by whom;

Tasmai – to that;

Shree – glorious;

Gurave – Guru, teacher;

Namaha – my salutations.

My Salutations to that Guru who revealed to me that Truth, which is unfragmented, infinite, timeless divinity, and which pervades the entire universe – movable or unmovable.

BABA Bless All !

As ever,

Jyoti Pattabhiram