Many wonder if it is really necessary to have a Guru (spiritual Teacher, Master). The answer depends on your aim in life, what your aspirations are. If the aim in life is just to live a happy, balanced life, then no Guru is necessary. But if the aim is to realize one's true nature, which is God, in this same life, then a realized Guru is necessary, for on the disciple's path to enlightenment there are many obstacles he does not even know about; and so finding the solutions may take several lives. There are also certain things which the disciple cannot do for himself.
Indeed, once on the path, the disciple discovers that he is constantly torn between living an easy, pleasurable life of the lower self, and following the call of his heart to embrace higher aspirations which give him spiritual joy. This brings some suffering, and he progresses by fits and starts. By himself, it is difficult to find the recipe which will bring balance into his life and allow him to reach the goal more easily and in a much shorter time.
Maharajji (Shri Hans Raj Maharajji), a great Avatar and Saint of the Sacha lineage (1922–2011) in his answer below to a question, gives us some important elements about the help of a true Master.
In the late 1990s, in reply to some seekers who asked him if he had a message for their country, Maharajji replied:
“I have only one message: spirituality – more precisely peace. Love is not in the mind nor in thought. Love is in the heart, and that is universal, whatever the country. There is no particular spirituality for any country. It is quite simply universal. One maybe a Christian, a Mohammedan, a follower of Krishna etc, but all must follow this… Love is God. Christ also says so; Mohammed also.
If you want to realize God, first you have to see inside. Don't look at other people. You have a lot of ego inside.
You try to become purified by the grace of the Guru; you cannot purify yourself alone [in one lifetime]. You have to be helped by the Guru. And if you have an utmost demand for Realization, you will get a Guru. Until you have an extreme demand for realization, you will not get a Guru. When you get a Guru he will open your heart. And love is open, the heart is universal. You will then see everybody as yourself. It is the same in every country.
But there is no particular spirituality for a country, or a particular religion. Spirituality is universal and it is One. God is One.
Your sadhana – meditation, and all such things are adapted to each person; some sing songs, some do pranayam, some do yoga. But the ultimate goal is one. When you do turn your attention inside, and you see your ego, then that ego will go by the grace of the Guru, by the help of the Guru. You can't get rid of that ego by your own effort. You need a Guru first. Then you will get realization, peace, love. Just like dirty water connected with the Ganges, the Ganges automatically purifies that water. So the Ganges will not go to dirty water, it is the dirty water which will connect with the Ganges.
Therefore, if you have an extreme disire to realize your [higher] Self, your Guru will come, he will meet you and give you peace. He will open your heart. The path to that goal may be different – it can be Christian, Mohammedan, Hindu, etc.but God is One. The ultimate goal is One.”
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Some Remarks
Such a Master or Guru is one who has realized his true nature, who, having learnt all the lessons life has to teach, no longer needs to reincarnate. However, he can choose to do so in order to lead diligent disciples from the darkness of the lower self to the light of the higher Self, God. His spiritual mastery enables him to open the disciple's heart and bestow such help which is possible and which will shorten the disciple's path.
The link with this Master is also the link with the fifth kingdom, the spiritual realm – more precisely the spiritual Hierarchy of Masters to which he belongs. They watch over humanity's evolution, teaching them and guiding them as one body at every step up the spiral of evolution. Although we see such a Master in a physical body, he works on the spiritual planes to assist the disciple in his struggle to reach the light. Such Masters are, themselves, light and love, and one greatly benefits by keeping them in our thoughts.
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