Satguru

Satguru (Sanskrit: सत्गुरु), or Sadguru (Sanskrit: सद्गुरु), means the 'true guru' in Sanskrit. However, the term is distinguished from other forms of gurus, such as musical instructors, scriptural teachers, parents, and so on. Satguru is a title given specifically only to an enlightened rishi or saint whose life's purpose is to guide the initiated shishya on the spiritual path, the summation of which is the realization of the Self through realization of God. Technically, Satguru or Sadguru is someone who has returned from Nirvikalpa Samadhi. Nirvikapla Samadhi is the last stage of Yoga where the Yogi becomes one with the Nirguna Brahma or Parambrahma and doesn't return to his body. It is very rare to find a Yogi who has attained the Nirvikalpa Samadhi. So, attaining Nirvikapla is extremely rare and someone who has returned from Nirvikalpa is a Sadguru.

A satguru has some special characteristics that are not found in any other types of spiritual guru. The words sant and satguru were prominently used in the spiritual ideology of Kabir in the 15th century. Kabir says Satpurush Ko Jansi, Tiska Satguru Naam, meaning the one who has seen the supreme lord of truth- Satya Purush is satguru.[1] Devi dewal jagat mein, kotik poojey koye. Satguru ki pooja kiye, sabb ki pooja hoye.[2] Kabir says that worship of satguru includes in it worship of all deities. In other words, satguru is the physical form of God (Sat Pursh).

In Sikh philosophy, Nanak, defines satguru as truth itself and not a physical entity. This truth emanates from reality and requires no blind faith. In the Japji Sahib he writes Ek onkar, satguru prasad (There is one creator, this knowledge I have learnt from reality). The Sikh (student) learns from reality as presented by the creator. Truth (sat) itself is the teacher (guru).


"There is no one greater in the three worlds than the guru. It is He who grants divine knowledge and should be worshipped with supreme devotion." - Atharva Veda, Yoga-Sikha Upanishad 5.53. yt, 26


|| गुकारश्चान्धकारो वर् रुकारस्तेज उच्यते|

अज्ञानग्रासकं ब्रह्म गुरुरेव न संशयाः ||

|| gukāraścāndhakārō hi rukāra stēja ucyatē ।

ajñānagrāsakaṁ brahma guru rēva na samśayaḥ ll

‘गु’ शब्द का अर्थव हैअंधकार (अज्ञान) और ‘रु’ शब्द का अर्थव हैप्रकाश (ज्ञान) | अज्ञान को नष्ट करनेिाल जो ब्रह्मरूप प्रकाश हैिह गुरु है | इसमेंकोई संशय नहीं है|

‘Gu' stands for darkness and ‘Ru' for light. Undoubtedly Guru is one who swallows ignorance and he is ‘Parabrahma' himself by such an act.


|| गुकारश्च गुणातीतो रूपातीतो रुकारकाः |

गुणरूपववर्ीनत्वात् गुरुररत्यवभर्ीयते||

|| gukārassyād guṇātītō rūpātītō rukārakaḥ ।

guṇa rūpa vihīnatvāt guru rityabhidhīyatē ll

‘गु’ कार सेगुणातीत कहा जता है, ‘रु’ कार सेरूपातीत कहा जता है | गुण और रूप सेपर होनेके कारण ही गुरु कहलातेहैं|

'Gu' stands for one who is beyond the three Gunas or qualities; 'Ru' stands for one who is beyond Rūpa or form. Guru is the personification of the Absolute without attributes and form.


|| गुकाराः िथमो वणो मायावद गुणभासकाः |

रुकारोऽद्धस्त परं ब्रह्म मायाभ्राद्धिववमोचकम् ||

|| gukāraḥ prathamō varṇō māyādi guṇabhāsakaḥ ।

rukārōsti paraṁ brahma māyā bhrāntivimōcakaḥ ll

गुरु शब्द का प्रर्थम अक्षर गुमाया आवि गुणों का प्रकाशक हैऔर िू सरा अक्षर रु कार माया की भ्राद्धन्त सेमुद्धक्त िेनेिाला परब्रह्म है |

The first syllable 'Gu' belongs to the three Gunas, which are the cause of illusion. The second one 'Ru' stands for the ’Parabrahma’ that destroys the delusion caused by illusion.


ब्रह्मानिं परमसुखदं के वलं ज्ञानमूवतं िन्द्िातीतं गगनसदृशं तत्वमस्यावदलक्ष्यम् |

एकं वनत्यं ववमलमचलं सवधर्ीसावक्षभूतम् भावतीतं वत्रगुणरवर्तं सदगुरुं तं नमावम ||

brahmānandaṁ parama sukhadaṁ kēvalaṁ jñānamūrtiṁ dvandvātītaṁ gagana sadrś̥ aṁ tattvamasyādi lakṣyam ।

ēkaṁ nityaṁ vimala macalaṁ sarvadhī sākṣibhūtaṁ bhāvātītaṁ triguṇa rahitaṁ sadguruṁ taṁ namāmi ll

जो ब्रह्मानंिस्वरूप हैं, परम सुख िेनेिालेहैंजो के िल ज्ञानस्वरूप हैं, (सुख, िुेःख, शीत-उष्ण आवि) द्वन्द्वों से रवहत हैं, आकाश के समान सूक्ष्म और सिवव्यापक हैं, तत्वमवस आवि महािाक्ों के लक्ष्यार्थव हैं, एक हैं, वनत् हैं, मलरवहत हैं, अचल हैं, सिव बुद्धियों के साक्षी हैं, भािना सेपरे हैं, सत्व, रज और तम तीनों गुणों से रवहत हैंऐसेश्री सिगुरुिेि को मैंनमस्कार करता हाँ|

Obeisance to Sadguru who is the source of bliss, giver of great comfort, form of pure knowledge, beyond all dualities, sky-like, the essence of the Mahāvākas like Tatvamasi, unique, eternal, pure, steady, witness to all intellect, beyond the intellect and who is without the three qualities Sattva, Rajas and Tamas.

-- Shiva-Parvati Dialogue, Shri Shri GuruGita, Skanda Purana

Ancient and traditional sources

The recommendation says that the first and the foremost qualification of the True Master (satguru) is that he must have known the True Lord (God) himself.[3]

In one of Kabir's songs[4] the satguru is described as the real sadhu:

He is the real Sadhu, who can reveal the form of the Formless to the vision of these eyes;
Who teaches the simple way of attaining Him, that is other than rites or ceremonies;
Who does not make you close the doors, and hold the breath, and renounce the world;
Who makes you perceive the Supreme Spirit wherever the mind attaches itself;
Who teaches you to be still in the midst of all your activities.
Ever immersed in bliss, having no fear in his mind, he keeps the spirit of union in the midst of all enjoyments.
The infinite dwelling of the Infinite Being is everywhere: in earth, water, sky, and air;
Firm as the thunderbolt, the seat of the seeker is established above the void.
He who is within is without: I see Him and none else.[5]

Vasishtha, Rama's guru, was the satguru in the Treta Yuga. Swami Shankar Purushottam Tirtha quoted the Yoga Vasistha:

A real preceptor is one who can produce blissful sensation in the body of the disciple by their sight, touch, or instructions.[6]

According to Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, a Hindu satguru is always a sannyasin, an unmarried renunciate,[7] but not all writers include this stricture.[8] Tukaram, a Hindu satguru, is known to have had a family, and Moinuddin Chishti also had children. Satguru Kabir had a son, Kamal, who was very devout.[9]

In Sant Mat and Advait Mat, the living satguru is considered the path to God-realization.[10]

Meher Baba equated worship of the satguru with worship of God: "Consciously or unconsciously, directly or indirectly, each and every creature, each and every human being — in one form or the other — strives to assert individuality. But when eventually man consciously experiences that he is Infinite, Eternal and Indivisible, then he is fully conscious of his individuality as God, and as such experiences Infinite Knowledge, Infinite Power and Infinite Bliss. Thus Man becomes God, and is recognized as a Perfect Master, Satguru, or Kutub. To worship this Man is to worship God."[11]

Satsang is an audience with a satguru for religious instruction.[12]

According to Dada Bhagwan:

It is very difficult to define and identify someone as a satguru. In the language of the scriptures, whom can you call a satguru? Sat is the Atma (the Soul, the Self); so, whoever has attained the Soul, that guru is a satguru! Therefore, an 'Atmagnani (knower of the Soul, Self-realized) can be called a satguru, for he has experienced the Self. Not all gurus have Atma Gnan. So, the one who continuously remains as the eternal element - the Self - is a satguru! The Gnani Purush is a satguru.[13]

See also

References
  1. 'Kabir Sagara'
  2. Kabir Sagara
  3. Adi Granth: 286
  4. LVI I. 68. bhâi kôî satguru sant kahâwaî
  5. Songs of Kabir LVI, I. 68 - Translated by Rabindranath Tagore New York, The Macmillan Company (1915)
  6. Tirtha, Swami Shankar Purushottam (1992). Yoga Vani: Instructions for the Attainment of Siddhayoga. New York: Sat Yuga Press. p. 27.
  7. Subramuniyaswami, Satguru Sivaya. Living with Siva, glossary. Himalayan Academy Publications. ISBN 0-945497-98-9
  8. God Speaks, Meher Baba, PUB Dodd Meade, 1955, 2nd Ed. pp. 150,158,196, 291
  9. Meher Prabhu, Bhau Kalchuri, Manifestation, Inc. 1986. p. 92 - Footnote 1
  10. Lewis, James R. Seeking the Light, p.62. Mandeville Press, ISBN 0-914829-42-4
  11. Baba, Meher (2000). The Path of Love Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. Myrtle Beach: Sheriar Foundation. pp. 28–29. ISBN 1-880619-23-7.
  12. Taylor, McComas (2016). Seven Days of Nectar: Contemporary Oral Performance of the Bhāgavatapurāṇa. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 187. ISBN 9780190611910.
  13. "Who Is a Satguru?".
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