Finding a guru?

[Kristoffer]

Are there any centers, or any kind of less commercial gurus that take with them seeking people form across the globe? If not, how can you find a guru?

How does this, in case, work? Do they take much paid? How does this work?

All help are appreciated! ^^

 

[Kirran]

A real satguru, a realised teacher, won't require money from you, won't brag or preach. You just need to find a satguru, get involved in communities and traditions where you might come across people who are Self-realised.

 

[StarryNightshade]

Two things:

1.) While one can go and look for a guru, one really has to be careful. In my opinion, it's generally better to have someone come to you, rather than to strictly go looking for someone. The person who lives simply and has a lot of wisdom to give is more of a guru than the person who lives extravagantly, but has little in the way of wisdom.

2.) I'm a bit confused by your 2nd question. Do you want to make money as a guru? Or are you asking how they make money in general?

In either case, being a guru is not always like being the Hindu equivalent of a televangelist. I guarantee that most people who can be called "guru" don't conduct $200 seminars, require hefty donations from people, or drive Bentleys.

 

[Kirran]

If somebody is bragging about how spiritual they are and driving a Bentley, they ain't your guru

 

[shivsomashekhar]

A real satguru, a realised teacher, won't require money from you, won't brag or preach. You just need to find a satguru, get involved in communities and traditions where you might come across people who are Self-realised.

We may be mixing up two different things. A successful Guru, a Guru who works for you, is one who says the right things at the right time...things you want to hear. The Guru does not have to be self-realized. More importantly, there is no way you can ever know if someone is self-realized. It is always conjecture, based on your predefined image of the self-realized man..that he will not travel in Bentleys (some brands of cars are acceptable, some are not), not wear silk, etc. All of these are our own conceptions and have no basis in fact.

There are affluent Gurus around the world who have amassed large fortunes and they obviously have millions of disciples. Disciples who do not care about the lavishness of their Guru. It is not a factor.

 

[spiritualhitchhiker]

I heard somewhere that Guru comes into your life when you are ready.

 

[Kirran]

We may be mixing up two different things. A successful Guru, a Guru who works for you, is one who says the right things at the right time...things you want to hear. The Guru does not have to be self-realized. More importantly, there is no way you can ever know if someone is self-realized. It is always conjecture, based on your predefined image of the self-realized man..that he will not travel in Bentleys (some brands of cars are acceptable, some are not), not wear silk, etc. All of these are our own conceptions and have no basis in fact.

There are affluent Gurus around the world who have amassed large fortunes and they obviously have millions of disciples. Disciples who do not care about the lavishness of their Guru. It is not a factor.

True. I'm taking guru to mean satguru. After all, anybody can be your guru, it just means teacher. In school I had a few maths gurus, a biology guru, a physics guru.

 

[Kristoffer]

This is all very interesting! Thank you for so many (good) replies!

2.) I'm a bit confused by your 2nd question. Do you want to make money as a guru? Or are you asking how they make money in general?

In either case, being a guru is not always like being the Hindu equivalent of a televangelist. I guarantee that most people who can be called "guru" don't conduct $200 seminars, require hefty donations from people, or drive Bentleys.

- No, Im not talking about making money myself. I was wondering about the gurus that live of being a guru (the commercial and popular ones). but others of you already answered me on that question!

But, as some of you say, how do the one being a guru live while being a guru without taking paid for it? Is the common guru a man who either lives in a normal city (and then also have a work), or one who lives outside of the society, and therefore doesn't need money?

What kind of society does you mean when you talk about getting involved in a society that have gurus in it?

Thx for very good advices, by the way!

 

[Kristoffer]

A real satguru, a realised teacher, won't require money from you, won't brag or preach. You just need to find a satguru, get involved in communities and traditions where you might come across people who are Self-realised.

- Have you any kind of advice of which kind of societies that can have satgurus in them? And how to know who/which person to ask?
- What would you do yourself if you was to find a satguru to follow in your life? I would like to hear your different viewpoint about which kind of societies and what kind of people you would have sought if you were to: a) differ your life totally and follow a guru (like being an disciple), or b) just to have as a mentor beside on your ordinary life today? Related to this question I also wonder about if a guru can be a father/mother with many small children, or are there only "old people" that can be satgurus?

As you can tell, Ive got a to of questions on this subject! All advices are appreciated!

 

[Kirran]

Well, where one might find a guru varies widely. I guess the stereotypical image is that the guru is either a sadhu or a monastic. I imagine this stereotype often, although not universally of course, holds true.

As for societies - well, if you involve yourself with other spiritual aspirants travelling similar paths, visit monastic orders, become a renunciate, you may come across more spiritually advanced people. Maybe. Or maybe not.

If (hopefully when) I find a satguru who I am willing to follow, I will basically follow them utterly. It's easier, I suppose, because I've already renounced a lot of things for the yogic path. Yeah, a guru can have kids, family, etc. Can be young, or old. Varies. But as certain lifestyles are more conducive to spiritual progression, it's more likely that highly advanced spiritual individuals will be living such lifestyles.

I think we all have questions!

EDIT: What shiv says is very important. Don't just take the idea of 'Self-realised beings' distinct from others (with such-and-such attributes) on trust. Look into the idea, and see whether it holds true for you. Even if it does, don't assume it is true absolutely. You could be wrong

 

[Kalibhakta]

The guru comes when one is ready. My teacher came to me when I found him on Youtube. Fate *Or in this case, God* places you where you need to be.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Kris, a general advice - There is a lot of information about Hinduism on the internet. Read that. Check Wikipedia for quick reference, Check at a Hindu temple if there is one which you can visit conveniently, check with other Hindus for explanations, post your question here in the forum (you will get a lot of different replies). Why do you need a guru right at the beginning? First savor the various flavors available. Select your guru from the historical personages - Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Hanuman, Sankara, Ramanuja, Nimbarka, Madhva, Chaitanya, Ramana Maharshi, Nisargadatta Maharaj, Shivananda, Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, etc. You are safe with historical gurus who are long dead - they don't cheat, they don't ask for money. My Gurus are Buddha and Sankara, though I respect all others too.

 

[shivsomashekhar]

If somebody is bragging about how spiritual they are and driving a Bentley, they ain't your guru

This is a complex issue.

The opposites can be true too. I have seen Gurus/disciples who put on a great show of humility in their speech, but on probing, they are quite different. They are proud about their knowledge, how their God and their philosophy is superior/more complete than others. They also resent anyone questioning or disagreeing with their views. But on the surface, they are very humble. Interestingly, they believe they are being humble.

On the Bentley theory, we could say, the true Guru is one who sees no difference between a Bentley and a Kia. Both are the same to him and he rides a Bentley only because that is what was given to him by his disciples.

On collecting fat donations, most Gurus - once they attain some level of popularity - create welfare organizations (building temples, Ashrams, Meditation Centers, Hospitals, Schools, etc). This is justified by the idea that the Guru now has celebrity status and can leverage it to raise funds to help the less privileged and to spread divine knowledge and so, there is no nothing wrong in doing it. They call it "service".

In short, there are no clear black and white rules in identifying Gurus. It is purely subjective. Some will choose the person who has given up society and lives a frugal life (loin-cloth, alms..). Others favor Gurus who are famous, with multiple ashrams and collections of Rolls Royce cars.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Well, Shiva, you do have a point there. But my grandfather said think for yourself, Buddha too said the same, and I never needed a guru for 'moksha' and 'enlightenment'. There are too many fakes gurus around.

 

[Kirran]

This is a complex issue.

The opposites can be true too. I have seen Gurus/disciples who put on a great show of humility in their speech, but on probing, they are quite different. They are proud about their knowledge, how their God and their philosophy is superior/more complete than others. They also resent anyone questioning or disagreeing with their views. But on the surface, they are very humble. Interestingly, they believe they are being humble.

On the Bentley theory, we could say, the true Guru is one who sees no difference between a Bentley and a Kia. Both are the same to him and he rides a Bentley only because that is what was given to him by his disciples.

On collecting fat donations, most Gurus - once they attain some level of popularity - create welfare organizations (building temples, Ashrams, Meditation Centers, Hospitals, Schools, etc). This is justified by the idea that the Guru now has celebrity status and can leverage it to raise funds to help the less privileged and to spread divine knowledge and so, there is no nothing wrong in doing it. They call it "service".

In short, there are no clear black and white rules in identifying Gurus. It is purely subjective. Some will choose the person who has given up society and lives a frugal life (loin-cloth, alms..). Others favor Gurus who are famous, with multiple ashrams and collections of Rolls Royce cars.

It is complex. I guess it's down to the individual. But I, personally, think that a real Guru is genuinely humble (so would, upon probing, still be humble) and also compassionate. You're right about the Bentley. Obviously, if somebody buys the Guru a Bentley, why not drive it? But Starry and my point was of course that the Guru wouldn't get a Bentley to be flashy or whatever.

A Guru wouldn't amass personal wealth, in my view. But it can be tough to tell sometimes if their wealth is personal or not

Let's hope I find mine soon, eh?

 

[Fireside_Hindu]

There are too many fakes gurus around.

This has been my feeling for a long time. I think when a guru becomes so popular that their face becomes more important than their message, even if they don't intend to do harm or manipulate, manipulative people will latch onto that influence and work their selfish plans through a guru's organization.

Also, if a devotee gives a guru a car, I believe it is the guru's moral responsibility to politely decline, or immediately give it over to someone who needs it. ( poor family in need of transportation) Also, if you are devoted to a guru and part of your reasoning is his humble nature, what would compel you to gift him something so lavish that it contradicts his very nature?

Part of what makes me nervous about the larger than life internationally known gurus is the way in which their devotees' eyes gloss over when they start talking about their guru. It's really unsettling to me, like they are brainwashed or something. I think anyone you meet has the ability to teach you something important about yourself and help you on to your spiritual journey. Why limit your perspective to a few of the "most popular kids in school".

If someone feels they need a spiritual adviser of some kind, any senior member of a Hindu community can do that for you. Even if you end up jumping from one to another, you'll get more personalized time with each one anyway and you'll walk away with a variety of perspectives to think over.

 

[Kirran]

Aparigraha is, indeed, often taken to mean not accepting gifts, as well as not being envious of the possessions, attributes etc. of others.

I certainly think we can learn from everybody. But I also think that the idea of the satguru, the Self-realised teacher who can guide one on that path, is valid.