by Yogi Ananda Satyam (Salvatore Familia)
On July 28th, the Ashram’ s teachers, members and students celebrated its annual Guru Purnima. This sacred event is where we give honor to the Guru in recognition of the essential role the Guru plays in our spiritual life, a role captured succinctly by Manu:
Of him who gives natural birth and him who gives knowledge of the Veda,
the giver of sacred knowledge is the more venerable father.
Since second or divine birth insures life to the twice-born in this world and the next.
The sacred knowledge referred to by Manu is the liberative vision of liberated (moksha) which is the fullest culmination of the Yoga path. Without a compassionate teacher who perfectly embodies the path to guide the student, liberation would be difficult, if not impossible, to accomplish. At this sacred celebration we gave honor to such a teacher, GuruMa, who has devoted her life to transmitting this way to life to those of us who desire it.
For those of you who were unable to attend I want to say a few words about the celebration. The turnout for this event was remarkable, with the Ashram filled to near capacity: 38 members, students and family. It began with the traditional blowing of the conch followed by Krys Crimi reading an essay by GuruMa titled “Guru Purnima.” In brief the essay mentions the etymology of Guru: “gu” meaning darkness or ignorance and “ru” meaning light or knowledge. Thus, the Guru means “one who leads from ignorance to knowledge.” It continues “The Guru in life’s spiritual journey faithfully imparts wisdom to the seeker remembering that at one time the Guru was a disciple, a follower . The Guru awakens the knowledge that lays dormant and is able to awaken the powers that are within to become effective. No progress on the spiritual path can be accomplished without the grace of the Guru.”
The celebration continued with various members and students shar ing stories, anecdotes and reflections on their relationship with GuruMa and her teachings. These personal reflections, at time humorous and profound, struck a cord of familiarity to most, if not all listeners. They attested to the uniquely transformative effect of GuruMa and the yoga path in our lives.
Yogi Ananda Viraj spoke on the history of the Guru tradition in India and with his usual clarity, insight and wit, discussed the meaning of the Guru in the spiritual development of the yoga student. John MacLaury led us in a stirring traditional chant titled “Guru Sthrothram“; and Larry, Don and Dave played an instrumental. The formal celebration concluded with a gesture of respect and thankfulness by everyone bowing at the havan and then prasad was served. When that concluded we all went to the Ashram Recreation Center and enjoyed a delicious meal prepared by various members.
A weekly class in yoga is not enough for the spiritual aspirant to learn about the path. Sadhana is an endeavor that requires sacrifice, surrender and humility, and these can only be learned by careful attention to the teachings of the Guru. We are fortunate to have the direct presence of GuruMa through her instruction and the manifestation of those teachings in the sanga, karma yoga activities, and sacred celebrations such as Guru Purnima. In conclusion, I want to quote GuruMa, once again, in a poem that captures the essence of the Guru-Disciple relationship:
The watchful eye
The care-filled touch
Words of wisdom lead me on
from the unreal to the real
incessantly it was given
patiently I waited
For my Guru to lead me on.— Gurani Anjali
Namaste,
Yogi Ananda Satyam