Sanjay was relating the happening on the battle-field to King Dhritarashtra. Dhritarashtra asked him, “Sanjay! Tell me who is going to win?”
Sanjay parried the questions for some time but finally said :
“Oh King! Wherever there is Krishna, the Lord of Yoga and wherever there is Arjuna, the archer, there is prosperity, happiness, victory and firm policy; such is my conviction.”
(The Gita : 18.78)
Dhritarashtra is stunned, “What are you saying?”
“If it doesn’t come true, then don’t consider me a disciple of Maharshi Veda Vyasji.”
A worthy disciple is proud of having acquired a Self-realized Guru and Satguru too is proud of having acquired worthy disciples. This is pride but this pride is not associated with the Real Self. It is real Self-esteem. What worldly people call self-esteem is in fact the ego based on individually or the subtle body. But the pride between a Satguru and his disciples is the pride based on the Supreme Brahman.
There are three types of ego. “I am the body; the height is this much and weight this much….”- this is bodily ego. “I am a devotee, a sadhu, a Yogi, a sadhaka…..”- this is subtle ego. However, “I am You and You are me, That is me and This is me……” – this is the pride of Oneness, of non duality, of Wisdom. This pride, is one which helps man cross obstacles, which delivers man from the material world. My Satguru, Sri Sri Lilashaji Bhagwan, once having judged the state of my mind, carried out an immensely generous act. Even today it comes to my mind.
It was early morning about 4-5 A.M. A satsang was going on and two-three of us disciples were sitting near Gurudev’s feet. Even after Gurudev had showered His grace, sometimes doubts would still linger in my mind. Showering his compassionate glance, Gurudev presented an incident. He said in the course of the satsang, “Many people, many poor disciple, because of past samskaras, present efforts the grace of God and the Satguru, do experience the Truth but before they get settled in that experience, they slide down from it. They have doubts, ‘Where do I have the power like what my Gurudev, Sai Lilashahji has? Many people have faith in Gurudev. Many come to listen to Him. But nobody pays attention to me ……. “Such doubts like ‘paying or not paying attention,’ ‘having or not having power’ are states of the mind. Even those sadhakas, who attain to the experience on the measuring scale of worldly gains.”
Then my Lord Gurudev looked at me. Lowering my head, I looked at His feet and at His face, overwhelmed with reverence. Gurudev cast another compassionate glance at me. He said, “If you agree to what Lilashah says, well and god, otherwise listen….” And He cast another glance at me.
“Asaram! This is the Gita and this is the Upanishad. I place them on my head and swear by them that what Lilashah is, you Asaram are also That. You are what I am and I am what you are.”
This is the experience of Self-pride. Satguru wants a disciple to reach such a stage in which he can make the sadhaka experience: “I am what you are. You are what Lord Krishna is. You are what Lord Rama is. You are what Lord Shiva is. You are what Ma Amba is. You are the entire universe and the universe is you.” A great soul who is constantly on the lookout for leading a disciple to such an experience of Self-realization- we call such a soul a ‘Satguru’.
Sanjay parried the questions for some time but finally said :
“Oh King! Wherever there is Krishna, the Lord of Yoga and wherever there is Arjuna, the archer, there is prosperity, happiness, victory and firm policy; such is my conviction.”
(The Gita : 18.78)
Dhritarashtra is stunned, “What are you saying?”
“If it doesn’t come true, then don’t consider me a disciple of Maharshi Veda Vyasji.”
A worthy disciple is proud of having acquired a Self-realized Guru and Satguru too is proud of having acquired worthy disciples. This is pride but this pride is not associated with the Real Self. It is real Self-esteem. What worldly people call self-esteem is in fact the ego based on individually or the subtle body. But the pride between a Satguru and his disciples is the pride based on the Supreme Brahman.
There are three types of ego. “I am the body; the height is this much and weight this much….”- this is bodily ego. “I am a devotee, a sadhu, a Yogi, a sadhaka…..”- this is subtle ego. However, “I am You and You are me, That is me and This is me……” – this is the pride of Oneness, of non duality, of Wisdom. This pride, is one which helps man cross obstacles, which delivers man from the material world. My Satguru, Sri Sri Lilashaji Bhagwan, once having judged the state of my mind, carried out an immensely generous act. Even today it comes to my mind.
It was early morning about 4-5 A.M. A satsang was going on and two-three of us disciples were sitting near Gurudev’s feet. Even after Gurudev had showered His grace, sometimes doubts would still linger in my mind. Showering his compassionate glance, Gurudev presented an incident. He said in the course of the satsang, “Many people, many poor disciple, because of past samskaras, present efforts the grace of God and the Satguru, do experience the Truth but before they get settled in that experience, they slide down from it. They have doubts, ‘Where do I have the power like what my Gurudev, Sai Lilashahji has? Many people have faith in Gurudev. Many come to listen to Him. But nobody pays attention to me ……. “Such doubts like ‘paying or not paying attention,’ ‘having or not having power’ are states of the mind. Even those sadhakas, who attain to the experience on the measuring scale of worldly gains.”
Then my Lord Gurudev looked at me. Lowering my head, I looked at His feet and at His face, overwhelmed with reverence. Gurudev cast another compassionate glance at me. He said, “If you agree to what Lilashah says, well and god, otherwise listen….” And He cast another glance at me.
“Asaram! This is the Gita and this is the Upanishad. I place them on my head and swear by them that what Lilashah is, you Asaram are also That. You are what I am and I am what you are.”
This is the experience of Self-pride. Satguru wants a disciple to reach such a stage in which he can make the sadhaka experience: “I am what you are. You are what Lord Krishna is. You are what Lord Rama is. You are what Lord Shiva is. You are what Ma Amba is. You are the entire universe and the universe is you.” A great soul who is constantly on the lookout for leading a disciple to such an experience of Self-realization- we call such a soul a ‘Satguru’.
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