By India is a country of festivals. Among those, there are many that celebrate the birth of human beings who lived exceptional lives and attained the ultimate peak of spirituality – Ram Navami, Buddha Poornima, Janmashtami, Mahavir Jayanti, Guru Nanak Jayanti, to name just a few. But in the month of Ashadha (June-July) comes a unique festival that celebrates not any specific individual, but an entire tradition that has paved the path to liberation for countless human beings – Guru Poornima.
This year, the Universe conspired to let seekers at SRM pay tribute to the presence of Guru Tattva not just once, but twice! Sri Guru’s US Dharma Yatra meant that while the seekers in the US got the opportunity to celebrate the occasion with their Pratyaksh Guru after 10 long years, Guru Poornima in India was celebrated two weeks later, from 14th-16th July.
14th July – Chaaturmaasik Niyam
Friday, 14th July, was a day when the 3rd pillar of SRM, Sainyam, took the lion’s share of the limelight at the Sewa Sansthan Hall in Ashok Vihar. Guru Poornima marks the beginning of the Varsha Kaal Chaaturmaas, a four-month period from July-October during which our planet’s energy becomes naturally conducive for Sadhana. To help seekers turn within and reap maximum benefit from this sacred period, Sri Guru ties them in Chaaturmaasik Niyam, a set of spiritual disciplines that protect a seeker’s energy from dissipating into the material world, conserving it for Sadhana. But seeing the child-like excitement with which these disciplines were received by the seekers during the Friday Satsang, it was plainly evident that not a single soul felt as if they were being “tied”. Instead, the overwhelming feeling was that of liberation… from the usual slavery to cravings and desires. Ah, the magic of new beginnings!
15th July – A Night of Celebrations
Saturday, 15th July, was a night of pure and joyous celebrations at Shri Satya Sai Auditorium, Lodhi Road. The evening was inaugurated with Deep Prajwalan, a reverence-filled invitation to the entire Guru tradition to descend and partake in the celebrations. It was followed by a rousing speech by Gautam Prabhu, the admin head of the mission, reminding seekers of the extremely rare blessing in their lives – the presence of Guru Tattva in the form of a Living Master!
The evening also included dedications from Mumbai and Kolkata seekers in the form of Nritya Bhakti. As Gautam Prabhu rightly pointed out, no one felt as if they were witnessing someone else perform on stage. Rather, everyone felt a part of the dedications, expressing their own love for their Guru. After all, every single seeker present in the auditorium was bound by one common thread – love for their Guru!
Hriday Ki Baat – Expressions of Gratitude
The most elevating part of the evening came in the form of expressions of gratitude from seekers who have experienced unprecedented transformation in the guidance of their Guru. Whether it was Shivani Batra Prabhu, who found life-altering clarity in the form of Ashtavakra Gita Satsangs on Youtube, or Gautam Salecha Prabhu, whose fast-paced life has taken a U-turn towards a higher purpose, or Shikha Goel Prabhu, whose tears reflected the purity of the time spent in the aura of her Guru during the US Dharma Yatra, or Tejasvi Kaur Prabhu, whose eyes, sparkling with love and gratitude, spoke even louder than her mesmerizing poetry – these expressions came straight from the hearts of the seekers, and struck a beautiful chord of devotion that resonated deeply with everyone.
Bhakti
One of the purest feelings a seeker can experience is that of feeling connected with their Sadguru. That connection can come through prayer, meditation, or, as was the case on Saturday night, through Bhakti. In addition to a soulful round of Bhakti by the SRM Bhakti Team, the evening included the launch of two new Bhakti tracks – Sach hai Sadaa (to be released soon), an intensely personal expression of a true devotee’s journey from meeting their Guru, to actually identifying the Guru Tattva within them, and the Hindi translation of Guru Paduka Stotra by Sri Guru, a timeless devotional poem composed by Adi Shankaracharya Ji, expressing salutations to Guru – the boat that helps us cross the endless ocean of births and deaths! The instantaneous connection that seekers made with these new Bhaktis made it quite obvious that these tracks are going to be played on loop in the coming months!
New Launches
The evening included many other new launches and announcements, greeted by seekers with enthusiasm that is usually on display by children in a candy shop! Winners of Shri Atmasiddhi Shastra Exam II were announced, confirming their tickets to the annual pilgrimage to Idar with Sri Guru. This also meant the launch of the next and final exam, covering all 142 verses in the Shri Atmasiddhi Shastra Vivechan book authored by Sri Guru. Other launches included:
- Nivrutti Workbook, a book containing mindfulness activities for seekers of all ages.
- A meditation mat, specially designed with direct instructions from Sri Guru, to help strengthen seekers’ experiences during meditation and periods of spiritual solitude.
- Bhagavad Gita Part 1 – Onset of an Epic Battle, the first of a series of online courses, based on Sri Guru’s popular Satsang Series on the Bhagavad Gita, that will explore the spiritual side of the Bhagavad Gita, providing seekers with a deeper and more accessible understanding of the world-renowned scripture.
Guru Prasadam
The evening concluded with Guru Aarti, followed by what has become a Guru Poornima tradition at SRM. Since 2019, Sri Guru has been blessing seekers with Guru Prasadam on this pious day, an energized Rudraksha that will elevate seekers’ connection with their Guru during the Sadhana Pad and beyond. This is no magic or superstition, as Sri Guru has clearly emphasized the science behind it. Seekers came into the auditorium with their Guru in their hearts, and left with a tangible part of her tied to their hands!
Of the 365 days in a year, Guru Poornima is one day where seekers get to express their collective gratitude to their Sadguru. And yet, even on this day, a Sadguru can’t help but shower their disciples with priceless blessings and gifts to uplift their spiritual evolution! The 125th verse of Shri Atmasiddhi Shastra comes to mind…
क्या प्रभु चरणों में धरूँ, आत्मा से सब हीन;
वह तो प्रभु ने ही दिया, वर्तुं चरणाधीन ।। 125 ।।
— Shrimad Rajchandra ji
16th July – The Significance of Lakshman Rekha
The final day of the 3-day Guru Poornima celebrations belonged to Shri Ram and his journey to divinity, with the 8th installment of the ongoing series of Satsangs on Yogvaashishth Maharamayan. With these Satsangs, Sri Guru has been squashing many false myths surrounding the life of Shri Ram, bringing into light the pristine values with which he navigated every circumstance of his life. This Satsang included a revelation about the spiritual significance of Devi Sita crossing the Lakshman Rekha and being abducted by Ravana. Sri Guru explained that this incident presents a warning to every seeker – crossing the boundaries of spiritual discipline leaves us vulnerable to the evil of vices!
The Celebrations Continue…
In the excitement of these 3 days, few would have noticed the irony – owing to Sri Guru’s US Dharma Yatra, Guru Poornima in India was actually celebrated just a couple of days before Amaavas (New Moon). But who needs the light of the full moon to celebrate the presence of a Guru in their lives? The moon merely reflects light that belongs to someone else. But a Pratyaksh Guru constantly radiates their own light, coming from a ceaseless experience of Oneness – a light that pulls us from the depths of darkness towards the ultimate goal of human existence.
The 3-day official Guru Poornima Event might have ended, but the celebration of this invaluable blessing continues in our hearts!
Love you sri guru ❤