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Importance of a living Guru-Sishya Parampara

The document discusses the significance of the guru-sishya parampara in preserving authentic yogic teachings, emphasizing a direct, personal transmission of wisdom from master to disciple. It critiques modern interpretations of yoga, which often neglect the traditional lineage and can lead to superficial practices devoid of genuine spiritual growth. Despite challenges posed by contemporary secular trends and commercialization, the text reaffirms the enduring value of traditional yoga rooted in authentic mentorship and transformative experience.

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GURU SISHYA PARAMPARA The Reservoir of Authentic Rishiculture Yoga Yogacharya Dr ANANDA BALAYOGI BHAVANANI MBBS, MD (AM), ADY, DSM, DPC, PGDFH, PGDY, FIAY, C-IAYT, DSc (Yoga) Director CYTER of Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth & Chairman ICYER at Ananda Ashram, Puducherry, India. yognat@gmail.com Prepared for the “KASHI YOGA FESTIVAL”​ , 17 - 18 October 2020
www.icyer.com
Trans-generational transmission of teachings in maintained without break………….
Importance of Guru • Yoga, like all forms of esotericism, presupposes the guidance of an initiate, a master who has firsthand experience of the phenomena and realizations of the yogic path. • Ideally, he /she should have reached the ultimate spiritual destination of all yogic endeavour - enlightenment (bodha, bodhi), or liberation (moksha). • Thus, contrary to the “pop” Yoga espoused by a large number of Westerners, authentic Yoga is never a do- it-yourself enterprise. (Georg Feuerstein, The Yoga Tradition)
Guru-Sishya Parampara • Abundant living reservoir of traditional wisdom. • Keeps alive the timeless art & science of Yoga, one of greatest treasures of our Indian culture. • Unbroken lineage passes on undiluted teachings from master to disciple. • Sishya in time becomes a master to his disciples. • Safeguards wisdom of the lineage for generations to come. • Highest quality control.
"The real Guru enables their disciple to manifest their potential thus becoming a Guru themselves. The goal is to empower them and NOT to keep them, limited and disempowered as a disciple forever“. - Yogamaharishi Dr Swami Gitananda Giri ICYER @Ananda Ashram, Pondicherry
Can a tradition that originated 5000 years ago possibly be relevant today? • This question is legitimate enough. • Over the part two centuries, we have seen the erosion of tradition religions beliefs, values, and practices in Europe and America and increasingly slide in other parts of the world. . . . • Since then, secular humanism - propped up by scientific materialism - has unsuccessfully tried to fill the void created by this onslaught on traditional mores and religious creeds. (Georg Feuerstein, The Path of Yoga)
Guru-Sishya Parampara • Uninterrupted transmission of Universal Wisdom. • Purity, fidelity and clarity of purpose maintained • Based on value, trust, love and reverence. • Disciple had to first earn the trust of the Guru and prove to be worthy of the teachings. • Imparted timeless wisdom with heartfelt blessings. • Received with gratitude. • Transmitted to next generations in a similar manner- “Vazhaiadi Vaazhai”.
Cardinal Guiding Principles Utopian Ideals Spirit of Altruism
• To strike water, one needs to dig deep in one place. • Maharishi Patanjali in his timeless Yogasutra advises us to follow “Ekatatvaabhyasa” • One needs to go consistently and persistently as deep as possible on the singular path one has chosen towards transformation and liberation. • This is the same with any living system of knowledge as the tendency to go hopping from one tradition to another only leads to one becoming a puddle digger. • Such a person never gets to the source of water, nor of the life-enriching teachings.
Guru-Sishya relationship • The Guru-Sishya relationship is a “One-to-One” relationship that encompasses every human relationship under the sun. • This is based on an intimate, dynamic, and experiential connection that ignites, sustains and drives one's Yogasadhana towards fruition. • It is based on a sense of freedom and individual choice rather than dogma and bondage.
Gurukula, the womb of the Guru • The Sishya becomes an integral part of the Guru’s extended spiritual family. • The safe “space” for spiritual enfoldment is the Gurukula, the womb of the Guru where the Sishya is nourished. • Inner growth is facilitated in a loving, yet disciplined manner.
• Just as a mother enables her child to grow in her womb, the Guru enables their Sishya to grow spiritually in a safe and nourishing environment. • Inner growth is natural and adequate time is given for it to occur in a spontaneous and Sahaja manner. • Neither artificial, nor externally forced. • Facilitates individual growth into universal nature.
• Ever since the founding of the East India Company in London in 1600 and the Dutch East India Company two years later, there has been a growing impact of Western secular imperialism upon the age-old religious traditions of India. • This has led to progressive undermining of the native Indic value system through the introduction of Western-style (science-oriented and essentially materialistic) education combined with new technologies. (Georg Feuerstein, The Yoga Tradition)
The Guru never holds on to the Sishya nor lets them hold on to them. • Sishya is not meant to be a replica of the Guru. • Helped to become the "best" they that they can be. • This is true freedom. • This is true growth. • This is true love. Without such a relationship, can true spiritual growth manifest?
Degeneration of the system • However as with any other human hierarchical system, degeneration has set in. • Misuse and abuse of power by many ‘leaders’ led to a breakdown of this system. • Generalized distrust has crept into this sacred relationship. • Modern mega Gurus are the antithesis of this concept as they lack an intimate direct connection with their followers who just put them on a pedestal and “hero worship” them.
The Guru Brand™ • Modern Yoga has so many "Brands" that lack substance. • More based on external packaging than content. • This is just mass hysteria and "rock star" tendencies clothed in spiritual terms. • They are basically just “Spiritual MBAs” and “Spiritual CEOs”. • Disciples have become sheep to be counted and used to create empires.
Truly, the ancient Rishis would turn over in their graves if they could see the advertisements in modern Yoga journals, promising “power over others”, “magnetic personalities”, “enhanced sexuality” etc. through “Yoga” in exchange for a few dollars. The Clash of the Judeo-Christian materialistic & intellectual tradition with the ascetic, intuitive Yoga tradition has produced un-imaginable confusion, mis-information and distortion. - Ammaji Yogacharini Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani, In “The History of Yoga from Ancient to Modern Times”
The “Dead Guru” phenomenon • Follower worships their dead guru and justify everything they think, say and do as being “approved by the Guru”. • Nothing but "Bhranti-darshan" that Maharishi Patanjali quotes as an obstacle to spiritual progress. • Plain spiritual escapism! • Real Yoga begins only when we take up our responsibility (Swadharma) in life.
The modern ANTI-GURU movement • Tries to bypass this time-tested methodology and make it seem redundant. • Terms like post-modern Yoga and post lineage Yoga are brandied around as if no one needs guidance on the path anymore. • Rooted in glorification of individual ego. • Tendency to “think” we know what is “best” for us. • This to me is no more than an excellent illustration of the saying, 'The blind trying to lead the blind'.
• This lacks rationality as the very soul of the teachings is lost when the teachings are debased into mere techniques and theoretical concepts rather than being transformative tools of self-realization. • This has resulted in people trying to ‘DO” Yoga rather than “BE” Yoga.
Why do “Yoga Scholars” fear Yoga Lineages…? Satish K Sharma • The importance of lineage can’t be underestimated. • It ensures that the accumulation of spiritual wisdom, of many lifetimes of experimentation are not lost. • Served two purposes – the preparation of the individual and the transferral of the body of knowledge so carefully and painstakingly acquired and refined by the lineage. • If there is one thing supremacists and colonialists hate, its indigenous institutions and history bears witness to the corruption and deconstruction of such knowledge traditions by those who would conquer. • “Post lineage Yoga” is an “asura sutra” …………..
Modernity dragging us downhill ……… Acharya Birju Maharaj • We are being dragged away from our Yogic Guru-Shishya parampara in the name of research, reasoning, logic, authenticity (against doubts created by some people), different lineages, different scriptures, different paths...etc. • If we will not be aware, we surely will be dragged to disaster and asked to endlessly keep proving that, what is not at all required to be proven. • Most of the Nobel laureates are proven to be wrong for their research, depending on the wind of material markets. • Yogic wisdom will face the same problem after being completely taken over and en-cashed by such materialistic people.
“If I were everything each of my students wanted me to be, I would be a monster”. - Swami Gitananda Giri
• Yoga is a state of being and the attainment of this exalted “state of being” requires Guru Krupa. • Modern Yoga that bypasses the Guru-Sishya Parampara is NOT Yoga anymore. • It is just a cheap plastic imitation that lacks life, light and soul. • It may "look" like Yoga, but is NOT the real deal anymore.
Yoga will survive ! • But the age-old, well-tested Yoga tradition, which has great vitality, will easily survive public opinion. • Furthermore, as the more flamboyant and questionable teachers drop out of sight as the students themselves become more realistic and mature, Yoga will very likely gain in strength over the years to come. (Georg Feuerstein, The Path of Yoga)
Importance of a living Guru-Sishya Parampara
Importance of a living Guru-Sishya Parampara
Importance of a living Guru-Sishya Parampara