The Guru Disciple

Relationship
A collection of talks and stories by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

The Guru Disciple Relationship

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
First Edition July 2015
Compilation, Layout & Design: Sarina Mahboobani
Illustrations: Adriraj Paul
Acknowledgements: Kallol Das
All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in
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including photocopying, recording or by any information
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A unique flavor of love is the Guru-disciple

relationship. If there is no love then there is
neither Guru nor disciple.
No one can come in between a Guru and a
disciple, nor is there any space
for jealousy or anger.
Where there is no Guru and disciple there is no
world, and what the world needs is
the Guru and disciple.
Knowledge is what happens when the Guru and
disciple sit together.
- Sri Sri -

Mannatha sri jagannatha, madguru sri jagadguru,

madatma sarva bhutatma, tasmai sri gurave
namah

My Lord is the Lord of the creation. My Master

is the Master of the universe. My soul is the soul of
every living being. I bow down to
the glory of my Gurudev.

Prologue
You are lost on the street. There is rain, thunder, wind and cold;
you need shelter. You look around and you find a door. You come
to the door because it is more inviting, more charming, more
joyful than anything out on the street.
When you enter the door of the Master, you come home. You see
the world from a new perspective. From inside you can still hear
the thunder and see the rain, but it no longer disturbs you. Inside
there is warmth and security. The world looks much more
beautiful not a nasty place, but a place filled with love,
cooperation, compassion. Your fear drops away.
When you can see the whole world through the eyes of the
Master, it is a sign that you have come to the Master; you have
entered the door. This is the purpose of having a Master.
If you are still seeing the world as before, then you have not yet
come to the Master. You are still standing out in the street; cold
and wet. You are only looking at the door, you have not yet
entered.
What does it mean to see through the eyes of the Master?
Just this: Every situation that you face, you think, If this
situation comes in front of the Master, how would he handle it?
If this complication arises for the Master, how would he take it?
If someone blamed the Master, what would he do?
The key is to feel the presence of the Master. The Master is the
presence, not a relationship. Relationships can be broken, mended,
and broken again. There is craving and aversion in every
relationship. This is the wheel of sansara, the misery of the world.

All relationships go topsy-tuvy, whereas the presence is vast,

infinite, stable and centered.
Dont make the master a wordly relationship. Oh, he looked at
me. He didnt look at me. He said this. He didnt say that.
Somebody else is close, I am not close. All this garbage comes
into it.
Just enter the door of the Master and come home. Only the
presence of the Master will bring fulfillment to your life and to
all of your relationships.

Table of Contents
Who is a Guru?..............................................................................9
Guru Disciple Stories

The
The
The
The

first story of Guru Purnima......11

Seat of the Guru.15
Slap of Joy.19
Guru Who Took all the Blame.........................24

Being a Devotee..29
Stories of Devotees
What Even God Cannot Do.33
Devotion that Made God Turn Around.36

Significance of Guru Purnima.40

Who is a Guru?

Who is a Guru?
Guru is that principle which is wisdom and love. You also call that
person a Guru, in whom, there is no gap between life, wisdom and
love. Often one recognizes wisdom but sees a gap between wisdom
and ones own life. The purpose of becoming a disciple is to bridge
that gap. Being with the Guru means the spontaneous integration
of life and wisdom.
You need a mirror to see your own face, right? You cannot see it
on a pillar or a wall. You can only see it in the mirror. The Guru is
the mirror that shows you your true Self. He is there to show you
your highest possibility, and to see you blossom in your highest
possibility.
We are in a world where emotion catches emotion. If some people
have an emotion, others catch that emotion. Similarly, wisdom
catches wisdom. In the company of wise people, your quality of
consciousness also shifts. Wisdom is not information, it is a
quality of consciousness that shifts in the mind, and that is
bestowed by the Guru Principle, by acknowledging the Guru in life.

There are a lot of beautiful Guru disciple stories. Ive not read
them all, only heard a little bit here and there. But the essence is
how the quality of consciousness gets shifted, and the shift is a
gift. I will tell you some stories.

Guru Disciple Stories

The First Story of Guru Purnima

Long time ago, there were four elderly men who were seeking
answers.
The first one was miserable and he wanted to know how to get
out of his misery.
The second one wanted more progress and success, and wanted to
know how to get that.
The third one wanted to know the meaning of life.
And the fourth one had all the knowledge but still he lacked
something, and he did not know what that was.
So these four people were wandering for answers and they all
landed up in one place where there was a Banyan tree. Under the
Banyan tree, a young man was seated with a big smile on his
face, and suddenly all of them thought that this person could give
us the answer. The same thought came to all of them from within,
that this person is going to solve my problems, and so all four of
them sat there and they got their answers.
The young man who was sitting under the Banyan tree with a
smile did not say a word, yet all of them got what they wanted.

This is the first story of Guru Purnima. That was a full moon day,
and that is how the Guru Parampara (lineage of the Guru order)
started. All these four elderly people became Gurus.
They all got what they wanted:
1. Misery was gone.
2. Abundance and happiness arrived.
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3. The seeking stopped.

4. The knowledgeable one got a Guru to express himself.

That fourth man had everything, he had all the knowledge but he
did not have a Guru to connect to. So the inner connection to the
Guru happened. Thats why Adi Shankaracharya said, 'Mouna
Vyakhya prakatitha, para, Brahma thathwam yuvanam'.
(Meaning: I praise and salute Dakshinamrthy (The first Guu), who
explains the true nature of the supreme Brahman through his state
of silence)

Symbolism of the story:

In the story, the teacher is young because the spirit is always

young, whereas the students are old.
There are so many similes associated with this. Seeking makes
you old. Seeking for the world, or for liberation, or for anything,
makes you old. So the disciples were old, and the Master was
young.
What is the symbolism of the Banyan tree? A Banyan tree grows
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on its own. It does not need anybodys care or protection. If the

seed of a Banyan tree gets inside the crack of a stone, where there
is not much water, it will grow there also. All it needs is a little
mud and very little water. Sometimes it does not need even that.
And a Banyan tree give oxygen all the time. This is one tree that
gives oxygen 24 hours. So the Banyan tree which only gives,
symbolizes the Guru Principle.
Guru means the one who removes darkness, misery, loneliness &
lack, and brings abundance, because lack is only in the mind. So
the Guru removes the lack and brings freedom.

13

In the presence of the Satguru,

knowledge flourishes, sorrow diminishes, joy
wells up for no reason, talents manifest &
abundance dawns.
To the degree you feel connected to the Master,
these qualities manifest in your life.
Sit with your eyes closed and feel your
connection with the Master.
- Sri Sri -

The Seat of the Guru

This is a beautiful story from the Puranas.
Lord Shiva is the Guru of the entire creation. He is
called Adiguru the Guru that is present from the beginning of
time, and the Guru that is beyond time.
When Lord Shiva had a son Karthikeya, he was sent to school
to study and receive education from Lord Brahma. So when
Karthikeya went to Lord Brahma, he asked him, Please tell me the
meaning of Om'.
Lord Brahma said, "First learn the alphabets! You are directly
asking me for the meaning of Om".
Karthikeya said, "No, I want to know the highest knowledge first".
Now Lord Brahma knew all about the alphabets, but he did not
know the meaning of Om. This is because his knowledge was
limited to the A part of Om. The U sound belonged to Lord
Vishnu, and M sound belonged to Lord Shiva. So, Lord Brahma
did not completely know about Om.
So Karthikeya said to Lord Brahma, "If you do not know the
meaning of Om, how will you teach me? I will not study under
you." And Karthikeya went back to his father.
Lord Brahma told Lord Shiva, "You alone can handle your son. I
cant handle him. Whatever I say, he says the exact opposite of
that. I wont be able to teach him. So you decide what is best and
handle him".
Hearing this, Lord Shiva asked Karthikeya, "What happened, son?
Lord Brahma is the creator of the entire universe. You must learn
from him".
15

To this Karthikeya replied, "Then you tell me, what is the meaning
of Om?"
Lord Shiva smiled and said, "Even I dont know".
Karthikeya then said, "Then I will tell you because I know the
meaning of Om".
"Then tell me the meaning, since you know it", Lord Shiva said.
"I cant tell you like this. You have to give me the place of the
Guru. Only if you put me on the pedestal of the Guru can I tell
you", said Karthikeya.
Guru means he has to be on a higher position or platform. The
teacher has to sit on a higher place and the student has to sit
down and listen to him.
Now how does this get resolved? Where to seat Karthikeya, for
there is nothing above Lord Shiva! He is the highest. What to do?
Lord Shiva too didnt know what to do. Then Goddess Parvati
(Shivas consort) said to Lord Shiva, "Lift him onto your shoulders".
So Lord Shiva lifted him on his shoulders and kept him high. And
in the ear of Lord Shiva, Karthikeya gave him the meaning of the
ultimate truth the meaning of Om!

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Symbolism of the story is:

The Guru Principle is like a child. There is such sweetness and

innocence in the Guru Principle that even Lord Shiva had to give a
position to the Guru principle which is above Himself.
So the message of the story is that the Guru Principle is like a
child innocent, intelligent, dignified, yet humble. All the qualities
present in an infant are the signs of the Guru Principle. And
honoring that is honoring oneself, and honoring life which is
what Guru Purnima is celebrating and honoring the Guru
Principle, the wisdom, the knowledge, innocence and love.

What is the meaning of Om:

Karthikeya said, Om means love. You are love, I am love.

Everything that is present here is full of love. Love is the essence
and the nectar of it all that exists.
This is what Karthikeya said. So the meaning of Om came from
the seat of the Guru.

To read more about Karthikeya and

the Guru Principle, click on:

www.artofliving.org/wisdom/knowledge-sheets/karthikeya

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There is an element of the

Guru present in every human being.
That wisdom in each one has to be invoked and
awakened. When this element
is awakened, misery in life disappears.
- Sri Sri -

The Slap of Joy

Once upon a time a Guru was sitting in the congregation and
many people came and took his blessings. He was silent most of
the time, but when people came and asked him something, he
said, Oh, youre very lucky!
So a student came to Gurudev and said, I failed in my exam.
Gurudev said, Youre very lucky!
The next person said, Gurudev, I lost my job, and the Guru said,
Youre very lucky!
The third person came and said, None of my friends are talking
to me, everybody has become my enemy, and Gurudev said,
Youre very lucky!
Another gentleman came and said, My wife left me, and the
Guru said, Youre very lucky!
So, everyone kept saying their problems and each time Gurudev
said, Youre very lucky!
And strangely, something would suddenly happen to them and
they would all feel happy and walk away.
Then one gentleman came and said, Gurudev, I am so lucky I
have you in my life. I am so grateful, and Gurudev got annoyed
and gave him one slap! This man, with tears in his eyes and
gratitude started dancing.
There was an onlooker who was sitting there, and he got so
confused! He said, I cant believe what I am seeing. Someone who
says 'I am so grateful' gets a slap, and all those who cry to him,
19

he tells them that they are very lucky!

Usually, people dont have the guts to ask the Guru, so they ask
the other devotees there, Tell me, what is happening. You have
been here for a long time. I cant make out this Gurus behavior.
Its completely illogical.
As usual, devotees have their own interpretation. So, one of the
senior most devotee said, Yes, it is perfect what he has said.
The senior devotee said, Gurudev said to the student that he is
very lucky because he is now studying more.
I remember a very senior gentlemen narrated an incident to me at
the Bangalore Ashram. He said that in 1942 there was only one
surgeon in Bangalore, and this surgeon had failed his MBBS seven
times! This gentleman (who failed seven times) became very well
known for performing the perfect appendicitis operation. Later on
he also got an international honor; but he had failed seven times!
So if someone has failed in an exam, they study more.
For the gentleman who said, I lost my job, the senior devotee
20

said, "Yes Gurudev said the right thing. When you are in a job you
dont think about yourself. Now that you have lost your job, you
have the time to sit back and think about who you are, and what
you want. You have some time to think about your life!
In life to get time itself is a big luck. Getting time to reflect on
oneself, on the divine, on the truth, on Who I am, is a big luck.
The other gentleman whose wife ran away, Gurudev said, Youre
very lucky! So far he was living so insensitively. He did not bother
to see what his wife needs. When someone goes away, then you
realize their value. Then you think about your mistakes. You
become aware of the things you could have done better. So he is
very lucky to become sensitive to womens issues.
Why would a woman run away if you were attending to her
welfare, to her emotional, mental and physical needs? There is
something that you have done wrong. She made you aware that
you have to be sensitive towards women. He understood this and
so he was also happy.

So like this, in every step of life, when you lose something you
become so miserable, but every misery wakes you up.
The first step is to realize that everything is misery. Life is
miserable, life has sorrow. When you start realizing that life is
miserable, then viveka (discrimination) and vairagya
(dispassion) dawns in you. When dispassion dawns in your life,
you are the luckiest!
So first you realize that it is all misery. Then, from It is all misery,
you move to the next step which is, Where is the misery? Wake
up! Life is blissful.
This is where the Guru comes into play. In the Gurus presence
misery vanishes and life becomes blissful . Life is bliss, life is a
game, this understanding dawns.

21

Now why did the last person get a slap?

The senior devotee said, Gurudev slapped him because he was

centered in the I, I am grateful. When he gave him a slap he
realized, live as though you dont exist.
Usually people exist and dont live. To exist without living is
ignorance. Living as though you dont exist is enlightenment. That
one slap woke him up.
What is there to be grateful about? Even to be grateful there needs
to be two. The Master said, Hey, wake up. You and me are not two.
Theres only one! Theres no you, and theres no I. There is only
one (divinity) that exists, and this is all a drama, a leela (game).
When you realize this, misery vanishes from life.
This was the message the last gentleman got, and when he got
that slap, he was so happy!
Every challenge is an opportunity and every opportunity is a step
towards the divinity. Thats the moral of the story.

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If Guru is satisfied, your growth is stunned.

If Guru is unsatisfied, hes away from the self.
If Guru is satisfied, what can inspire you to grow?
If hes unsatisfied, he cannot be a Guru.
If hes satisfied, he cannot be a Guru
- Sri Sri -

The Guru Who Took all the Blame

There is a famous story of Eklavya (a character from the Hindu
epic Mahbhrata). Eklavya is considered the epitome of a
disciple.
The story goes, Eklavya wanted to learn archery to save the deer
in the forest from being hunted by leopards. He was the son of a
poor hunter. So he went to Dronacharya (a Master of advanced
military arts) and requested him to teach him archery, but
Dronacharya rejected him because he was the teacher of the
Royal family. He was teaching the royal princes of Bharat (India).
In those days, if you are a teacher of the royal princes then you
cannot take someone else and teach them archery and make
them equal to the prince. It was not considered ethical. It was
forbidden to make anyone as powerful as the prince, as the nation
would not be safe and secure.
So, Eklavya wanted to take Dronacharya as his Guru, but
Dronacharya could not accept him. This was the law of the land,
that you have to exclusively train the princes.
Nevertheless Eklavya accepted Dronacharya as his Guru. So he
went home and made a statue of Dronacharya and he learnt
archery from the statue and became even better than the prince.
He became an expert. He would just hear the sound of the animal
and shoot an arrow at it.
One day, Arjuna, the prince found out about this. He saw that
Eklavya was far better than him. So he went to Eklavya and asked
24

him, 'Who is your Guru?'

Eklavya said, 'Dronacharya is my Guru'.
Arjuna then goes to Dronacharya and shouts at him. 'What is
this? This is cheating. You are supposed to teach only me, but you
taught this man and made him more skilful than me'.
Dronacharya was baffled as to who this student was whom he had
not taught, and who has become a competitor of the prince. Then
they both go and meet this boy. Eklavya leads them to the statue
that he made of Dronacharya which he considered as his Guru.
On seeing this, Dronacharya then says, 'Now you have to give me
some Gurudakshina (a gift as fees for learning)'. And he asks
Eklavya to give him the thumb of his right hand as a gift (without
the thumb there is no archery). Eklavya without a second thought
gives the thumb of his right hand to his Guru.

In this story, the Guru is viewed to have a very cruel attitude. The
boy has learnt on his own, while Dronacharya goes and asks for
his thumb, taking away his archery skill. How bad this Guru was!
25

This is one way to see: the Guru robbed the student of his skill. But
from the other side, if you see, if it were not for this incident,
nobody would have ever known Eklavya.
Though on the outer level it seemed as if Dronacharya had done
injustice to Eklavya, but actually Dronacharya uplifted Eklavya
because this one act made him immortal.
So when people think of devotion, they think of Eklavya, and not
Arjuna.
See the greatness of Dronacharya, he took the blame on him and
uplifted his student. That is why, even if the Guru is wrong, if your
devotion is there, you can never go wrong. But the Guru is not
wrong, it appears he was partial but he uplifted Eklavya and
preserved his Dharma (duty) also.
This is a beautiful story.

26

When one has faith, knowledge flows to them.

Faith brings the knowledge.
Eklavya teaches us how faith can bring
forth the skills within you.
- Sri Sri -

Being A Devotee

Being A Devotee
There are three types of people who come to the Master:
1. The Student
2. The Disciple
3. The Devotee
A student goes to a teacher and learns something, gets some
information and then he walks out of the school. There is no more
information to be given or taken. A student collects information,
but information is not knowledge, it is not wisdom. If just by
having a lot of information one's life would change then that
information is not just information, because information alone
cannot effect a big change.
Then there is the disciple. The disciple follows the example of the
Master. But the disciple is with the Master for the sake of learning
wisdom, for the sake of improving his life, for the sake of
attaining enlightenment. He has a purpose, a cause, so he is not
just collecting information but he is trying to look a little deeper.
He is trying to bring a transformation in his life. He wants to
make sense out of his life. That is a disciple. A disciple is still
centered around himself. So disciples take some time of their own.
According to their capacity they grow, and one day they may get
enlightened.
Then there is a devotee. A devotee is not there even for wisdom.
He is simply rejoicing in love. He has fallen in deep love with the

29

Master, with the Infinity, with God. He does not care whether he
gets enlightened or not. He doesnt care whether he learns a lot of
knowledge or not. But that very moment and every moment, he is
immersed in Divine love and that is enough for him or her. A
devotee is very rare to find.
Students are all over, disciples are a few, but the devotees are rare.
It is nothing great to become God or be God. Whether you want or
not, all of you are already Gods. A stone is also God, you are also
a God, and everything is God. There is nothing great in wanting to
become God because God is already there. But it is great to become
a devotee. Do you see this?
Everything, whether you want it or not is already God. But where
love has flowered totally, that is a devotee. Attraction is
everywhere, love is somewhere, but devotion is again rare.
Devotion is very beautiful.
A student comes to a Master or Guru with tears in his eyes
because there are so many problems. And when he leaves, then
also he is carrying tears in his eyes, but the quality of the tear is
different. It is of gratitude. Still tears flow, but they are tears of
gratitude; of love. It is so beautiful to cry in love. One who has
cried even once in love, knows the taste of what surrender is, and
what devotion is, and the entire creation rejoices this. The entire
creation is longing for only one thing, transformed tears; from
salty tears to sweet tears (of love).
One of Buddhas disciples named Sariputra got enlightened. When
he got enlightened, Buddha told him, Now you go ahead, go into
the world and teach. Carry on my work.
Now Sariputra left Buddha but he was crying and crying and
crying. People asked him, You are enlightened now, why are you
crying?
30

He said, Who cares about this enlightenment, it could have

waited. I didnt even bother about it, neither did I ask for it. The joy
of being at the feet of Buddha was so great, being a devotee was
so great that now I am missing it. I would have preferred that to
this enlightenment.
There is no separation, there is no difference, there is no distance,
yet it has a different flavor, a different joy, that is a devotee. A
devotee will never fall, he cannot fall. There is no chance for it.

31

Stories Of Devotees

What Even God Could Not Do!

When the bridge to Sri Lanka was being built (in the Ramayana),
a lot of monkeys were helping in building it. The monkeys were
picking up stones, writing 'Sri Ram' on the back of the stones and
putting it in the water. As they put the stones in the water, they
would float.
This has a spiritual significance: When the name of the Lord is
with you, you will never sink, you will always float through the
ocean of misery.
So all the monkeys were writing 'Sri Rama', and all their stones
were floating. When Sri Rama saw this, he was so surprised. He
thought, What? These stones are floating! He wanted to try it

33

himself. So he took a stone, wrote 'Sri Rama' on it and put it in the

water, but the stone sank! Sri Rama was surprised.
One monkey was sitting at a distance, watching. Sri Rama went
where he thought nobody was watching (whenever we think
nobody is watching, there is somebody who is watching). So, one
monkey who was watching, he started laughing. Sri Rama was a
little embarrassed. The laughing monkey said to Sri Rama, "Those
who you throw away from your hands, how they will float? They
will only sink!

The moral of the story is:

Devotees are so much more powerful than the Lord himself.

Devotees can do so much more than the Lord himself. When your
heart is filled with love and compassion, you are so powerful.
Never underestimate yourself.

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A devotee is filled!
Every particle of the devotee is
filled with the Divine.
His heart, his mind, his breath, his body,
everywhere it is only the Divine that is present.
A devotees glory is so much more
than God himself.
- Sri Sri -

Devotion Made God Turn Around

Kanakadasa was a great devotee of Lord Krishna. He has written
many beautiful devotional songs in Kannada, and everyone in
Karnataka knows about them.
The story goes, Kanakadasa was not allowed into a temple of Lord
Krishna because he was poor and from a lower caste. So he would
come and go to the back of the temple, on the outside and pray
from there, because the temple was mainly for the rich and upper
class people.
So one day what happened is, while Kanakadasa was praying, the
wall at the back of the temple broke and the statue of Lord
Krishna turned around and faced Kanakasada, giving him
Darshan (an instance of seeing or beholding the image of a deity).

36

The people who were doing pooja on the other side were all
startled.
This is a very well known fact here. Even today, in the Udupi
Krishna Temple, you will find that when you enter the temple, the
deity is facing the other way around. There is a broken wall, and it
is from the broken wall only that you can see the deity, which is
called 'The Window of Kanakadasa. This is from where he stood
and prayed.
It is said that from then on, caste and class discrimination was
done away with. There are many people who have fought against
class and caste discrimination. He was one of them, and he was
adored by everybody.

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A holy place is where devotees walk, devotees sit

and devotees think that is a holy place.
If a holy place is devoid of devotees who cry for
the Divinity, it is no more holy.
- Sri Sri -

Significance of Guru Purnima

Significance Of Guru Purnima

Guru Purnima is the day of reflection. It is the New Year for a
spiritual seeker; for one who is on the path. Just like you have the
calendar New Year on 1st January every year, for a spiritual
seeker, the New Year is on Guru Purnima.
It is a day of reflection; to review on one's credits and debits and
look at the balance sheet. It is a day to be grateful for all that we
have achieved in the past year, and a day to resolve to do what
we are here to do in the coming year. That is the essence of Guru
Purnima.
So, this Guru Purnima, feel grateful for all the blessings that you
have received. Be grateful for all the knowledge, and see how
knowledge has transformed life. Without the knowledge we will be
no where - realizing this, feel grateful for all that has come our
way, and celebrate!
Thank all the masters of the tradition who have preserved this
knowledge from ages, and brought it to us. It is very significant.
Just like a beehive - there are so many bees that come and sit on
a beehive because there is this one queen bee. If the queen bee
goes away, the entire beehive disappears. In the same way, in our
body there is a queen bee, which is the soul (atman), and if that
goes, everything else disappears. Where is this atman or self? It
is nowhere and everywhere, and that is what you are!
Like there is fatherhood and motherhood, there is something
called Guruhood as well, and you all have to play the role of
40

A Guru to someone or the other. Anyways, consciously or

unconsciously you are all a Guru to somebody already because
you do give advice, guidance, love and care to people, isn't it? So
now do it consciously, giving your hundred percent without
expecting anything in return. This is living the Guru Principle.
Know that there is no difference between you, the Divine and the
Guru Principle. It all culminates into just one thing - the queen bee.
And meditation is reposing in the atman.
Today, ask for what you want and it will be bestowed. Go for the
highest desire. The best wish is to desire for knowledge and
freedom. Think about everything in your life that you can be
grateful for, and ask what you want for the future. And bless
others; this is the time to bless people. Just receiving is not enough;
we need to also bless those who are in need.

To read more on Guru Purnima click on:

www.artofliving.org/significance-guru-purnima

41

This e-book has been put together by

volunteers of The Art of Living website team.
All content of this book has been taken from
discourses of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
For any suggestions or comments,
please write to us on:
webteam.wisdom@artofliving.org.

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Sri Sris Messages on Guru Purnima

2014

It is a privilege to have access

to wisdom. Today is an
occasion to celebrate life with
knowledge, life in knowledge
and life for knowledge.
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2013

To exist without living, is

ignorance. Living as though
you do not exist, is
enlightenment. Live as though
you are not there!
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2012

A city without streets, a king

without a treasury, a face
without a nose, and a life
without a Guru, are all
considered the same!
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Excerpt from the ebook: Understanding Shiva

Shiva can be split as
Sha+ee+va where:
Sha stands for
shareeram or body

Ee stands for eeshwari

or life giving energy
Va stands for vayu or
motion
Thus Shiva represents the
body with life and motion.
If the 'ee' is removed from
Shiva, it gets reduced to
sha+va or Shava which
means a lifeless body.
Anything with Shiva is
with life, and anything
without Shiva is Shava, or
without life.
So Shiva is auspicious,
Shiva is potential, and
Shiva is life. He is the all
encompassing the
universal soul or
consciousness. Realizing
this Shiva Tattva leads to
Ananda (bliss).

Click Here to
Download Now!

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