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the students. He showers his grace on their heads. He takes their Prarabdha even on his head. He is
the ocean of mercy. All agonies, miseries, tribulations, taints of worldliness, etc., vanish in his
presence.
It is he who transmutes the little Jivahood into great Brahmanhood. It is he who overhauls
the old, wrong, vicious Samskaras of the aspirants and awakens them to the attainment of the
knowledge of Self. It is he who uplifts the Jivas from the quagmire of body and Samsara, removes
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PRELIMINARY
the veil of Avidya, all doubts, Moha and fear, awakens Kundalini and opens the inner eye of
intuition.
The Guru must not only be a Srotriya but a Brahma-Nishtha also. Mere study of books
cannot make one a Guru. One who has studied Vedas and who has direct knowledge of Atman
through Anubhava can only be considered a Guru. If you can find peace in the presence of a
Mahatma, and if your doubts are removed by his very presence you can take him as your Guru.
A Guru can awaken the Kundalini of an aspirant through sight, touch, speech or mere
Sankalpa (thought). He can transmit spirituality to the student just as one gives an orange-fruit to
another. When the Guru gives Mantra to his disciples, he gives it with his own power and Sattvic
Bhava.
The Guru tests the students in various ways. Some students misunderstand him and lose
their faith in him. Hence, they are not benefited. Those who stand the tests boldly come out
successful in the end. The periodical examinations in the Adhyatmic University of Sages are very
stiff indeed. In days of yore the tests were very severe. Once Gorakhnath asked some of his students
to climb up a tall tree and throw themselves head downwards on a very sharp Trident (Trishul).
Many faithless students kept quiet. But one faithful student at once climbed up the tree with
lightning speed and threw himself down. He was protected by the invisible hand of Gorakhnath. He
had immediate Self-realisation. He had no Deha-adhyasa (attachment for his body). The other
faithless students had strong Moha and Ajnana.
There is a good deal of heated debates and controversy amongst many people on the matter
of the necessity of a Guru. Some of them assert with vehemence and force that a preceptor is not at
all necessary for Self-realisation and spiritual advancement and that one can have spiritual progress
and self-illumination through one s own efforts only. They quote various passages from scriptures
and assign arguments and reasonings to support them. Others boldly assert with greater emphasis
and force that no spiritual progress is possible for a man, however intelligent he may be, however
hard he may attempt and struggle in the spiritual path, unless he gets the benign grace and direct
guidance of a spiritual preceptor.
Now open your eyes and watch carefully what is going on in this world in all walks of life.
Even a cook needs a teacher. He serves under a senior cook for some years. He obeys him
implicitly. He pleases his teacher in all possible ways. He learns all the techniques in cooking. He
gets knowledge through the grace of his senior cook, his teacher. A junior lawyer wants the help and
guidance of a senior advocate. Students of mathematics and medicine need the help and guidance of
a Professor. A student of Science, music and astronomy wants the guidance of a scientist and
musician and an astronomer. When such is the case with ordinary, secular knowledge, then, what to
speak of the inner spiritual path, wherein the student has to walk alone with closed eyes? When you
are in a thick jungle, you come across several cross foot-paths. You are in a dilemma. You do not
know the directions and by which path you should go. You are bewildered. You want a guide here
to direct you in the right path. It is universally admitted that an efficient teacher is needed in all
branches of knowledge in this physical plane and that physical, mental, moral and cultural growth
can only be had through the help and guidance of a capable master. This is a universal inexorable
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KUNDALINI YOGA
law of nature. Why do you deny them, friend, the application of this universally accepted law in the
realm of spirituality?
Spiritual knowledge is a matter of Guruparampara. It is handed down from a Guru to his
disciple. Study Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. You will have a comprehensive understanding.
Gaudapadacharya imparted Self-knowledge to his disciple Govindapadacharya;
Govindapadacharya to his disciple Sankaracharya; Sankaracharya to his disciple Suresvaracharya.
Gorakhnath to Nivrittinath; Nivrittinath to Jnanadev. Totapuri imparted knowledge to
Ramakrishna; Ramakrishna to Vivekananda. It was Dr. Annie Besant who moulded the career of
Sri Krishnamurthi. It was Ashtavakra who moulded the life of Raja Janaka. It was Gorakhnath who
shaped the spiritual destiny of Raja Bhartrihari. It was Lord Krishna who made Arjuna and
Uddhava establish themselves in the spiritual path, when their minds were in an unsettled
condition.
Some aspirants do meditation for some years independently. Later on they feel actually the
necessity for a Guru. They come across some obstacles in the way. They do not know how to
proceed further and how to obviate these impediments or stumbling blocks. Then they begin to
search for a Guru.
The student and the teacher should live together as father and devoted son or as a husband
and wife with extreme sincerity and devotion. The aspirant should have an eager, receptive attitude
to imbibe the teachings of the master. Then only will the aspirant be spiritually benefited;
otherwise, there is not the least hope of the spiritual life of the aspirant and complete regeneration of
his old Asuric nature.
It is a great pity that the present system of education in India is not favourable to the spiritual
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