Why is the grace of a guru important ?

Why is the grace of a guru important ?




While there are many generic Paths to God, Gurukrupayog (the Path of Guru’s Grace) is the most
important from the point of view of achieving the ultimate in spiritual evolution.
In every aspect of life it is best if we have a guide or a teacher to understand, learn and progress.
Making spiritual progress too is no exception to this Universal rule and it is only by the grace of the
eternal Guru Principle (the Teaching Principle of God), acting through a Guru in human form that
a student makes rapid spiritual progress.
No matter what spiritual Path we are on, if we try and do it on our own, we can reach only up to a
particular spiritual level. Beyond this, the Guru’s grace is an absolute necessity to take us to the
next level.
Definition of Gurukrupayog
The word krupa has been derived from the Sanskrut word ‘krup’, which means ‘to be
compassionate’. Krupa denotes compassion, initiation or a blessing. Accordingly, Gurukrupayog is
the spiritual path, where through the Guru’s grace, the Jiva (embodied soul) is united with God.
Importance of Gurukrupayog
1. Time to progress
The most important advant-age of following Gurukrupayog is the time taken to grow spiritually. By
serving a Guru’s mission of spreading Spirituality, a seeker acquires His grace and makes rapid
spiritual progress.
While there is no worldly comparison to acquiring a Guru’s grace, the following example will help
in understanding the spirit of the previous sentence. Imagine a student who is poor, but by sheer
hard work he catches the eye of a billionaire, who then gives him a scholarship to a top university
and takes care of his career prospects.
Just as a student would be saved from years of making a slow climb up the corporate ladder, so
also a seeker who earns the grace of a Guru bypasses years of Sadhana (spiritual practice) in
any other spiritual path.
With Sadhana through any other path, we can progress on an average at the rate of 0.25% per
year. If we undertake Sadhana as advised by the Guru, we can progress upto 2-3 % annually. If a
disciple is able to acquire Guru’s grace, then spiritual progress of even 5-8% per year is possible.
2. Progressing beyond a certain level
There is a well known saying in Sanskrut : ‘Gurukrupa hi kevalam shishya param-mangalam’.
Which means that only by the grace of the Guru can the disciple attain his ultimate benefaction,
that is, spiritual progress.
It is impossible to reach the level of a Saint (that is, the 70% spiritual level) and dissolve our mind
and intellect, unless we have the grace of a Guru.
No matter what spiritual path one follows, other than Gurukrupayog, no path can purify the Mental,
Causal and Supracausal bodies 100%. Consequently, none of these paths have the capacity to
help us attain Moksh (the Final Liberation)
Other spiritual Paths such as Path of Action(karma yoga), Path of (gyanayoga) and Path of Devotion(Bhaktiyoga) are significant in a seeker’s life only till he is blessed by a Guru. Thereafter, since the disciple undertakes Sadhana only as advised by the Guru, only Gurukrupayog remains. All Paths to God
finally culminate in a seeker acquiring the grace of a Guru to finally merge into God.
How does Guru’s grace function ?
The Guru’s grace can function through 2 mechanisms :
Sankalp (Resolve) : Only when a Guru makes a Sankalp - ‘May this disciple progress spiritually’,
does the disciple make real spiritual progress. This itself is termed as Gurukrupa.

Even a mere thought like, ‘May it occur’ in the mind of the Guru is sufficient for the occurrence of
an event. Nothing else is required.

However, this is possible only in the case of a Saint whose spiritual level exceeds 80%. Sankalp
for Gurus at the spiritual level of 70% is mostly limited to worldly help for their disciples.

Astitva (Presence) : Mere Astitva, proximity or company of the Guru is sufficient for a disciple’s
spiritual practice and the progress to occur automatically. A good example for this is the Sun,
which awakens everyone and makes the flowers bloom, when it rises. This happens simply with
its existence. The Sun does not ask anyone to wake up or the flowers to bloom.

The mission of a Guru of a spiritual level of more than 90% is of this nature.