August 2006
In The Light Of The Guru
Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji
By Christopher Miglino
In India, where it seems as if everyone has a guru, the word “saint” is used so often it makes you wonder why there are so few in the western religions. As in many other eastern cultures, in India the guru is an integral part of spiritual development. A guru — or teacher — can help you progress on your spiritual journey, guiding you to see the light within yourself and helping you to “burn” your karma.
Few westerners can relate to a guru-disciple relationship, and even fewer actively seek it. Many are skeptical of the guru-disciple dynamic, especially when they see followers bowing down to their gurus and touching their feet, listening to everything they say as if the gurus knew their lives. But the relationship a disciple develops with a guru is very personal and in most cases cannot be explained. It is experiential — not logical; once the disciple feels the guru’s unconditional love, he is forever grateful for the glimpse of this light. The disciple savors the moment to bow to his teacher and the many teachers before him for sharing this love. He savors the moment to sit at the guru’s feet in silence.
Such is the love that I have experienced with H.H. Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji, lovingly known as Pujya Swamiji. Pujya Swamiji has spent his entire life on the spiritual path. He left his home at age eight, under the guidance of his master, and lived in the Himalayas where he practiced mediation and yoga, some days maintaining tree pose for 11 hours at a time. He remembers his first days in the Himalayas as a young child, alone with monkeys and other wild animals, as very frightening. But he also recalls being comforted by an outside voice that said, “I am with you; you need not be afraid.”
Pujya Swamiji’s motto in life is, “In the service of God and humanity.” His Parmarth Niketan Ashram at the foot of the Himalayas is a spiritual haven, open to any who are interested in yoga and mediation. It is a sanctuary filled with divine grace, beauty, serenity and bliss.
Pujya Swamiji’s entire life consists of giving of himself and helping others to give to those less fortunate. He is founder/chairman of India Heritage Research Foundation (IHRF), an international, non-profit, humanitarian foundation that sponsors and runs schools, hospitals, orphanages and many other humanitarian projects. One of his latest efforts is to build both medical and educational facilities in Tibet.
There are many spiritual teachers who can help on the journey in this life. I feel especially grateful to have met Pujya Swamiji, who is the inspiration out of which the company that owns this magazine was created.
Pujya Swamiji will be visiting Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago in September and Seattle in November of this year. For more information, visit parmarth.com, or ihrf.com or Email.
Christopher Miglino is CEO of Conscious Enlightenment, Inc, publisher of this magazine.
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