Is our relationship with guru a vertical relationship or a horizontal relationship?
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Transcript
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Is our relationship with the spiritual master a part of the vertical relationship, or is it a relationship with another Jeeva? Yes.
Spiritual master is both a person and a principle. Rather the timeless principle of Guru Tattva manifests through the person of the spiritual master. So our relationship with the spiritual master is essentially spiritual.
And it is actually Krishna Vande Jagat Guru. Krishna is the spiritual master. Ravapath wrote an essay about that he said the Guru is one.
All of the Guru’s manifestations may be many. So we understand that our relationship with the spiritual master it is spiritual, it is a part of a vertical relationship to the extent we see the spiritual master as a representative of Krishna, as a manifestation of Krishna practically. So yes, when I talked about vertical relationship with Krishna, it is the spiritual master is another Jeeva, but by spiritual master’s devotion to Krishna, that Jeeva has been empowered to act as a representative of Krishna.
So in that sense, the spiritual master is a vital part, vital link in our vertical relationship to Krishna. At the same time, the spiritual master is not a substitute for Krishna. Ravapath, in the 18th chapter of the Parpot, he says that the connection is through the disciple’s association, yet the connection is personal.
We connect with Krishna through spiritual master, but still we have a personal relationship with Krishna. So we shouldn’t see the spiritual master just as another Jeeva, and we shouldn’t become attracted to the spiritual master disconnected from Krishna. Now the whole Mandala Aarti that we sing, it is to the spiritual master, but all of it is about how the spiritual master is connected to Krishna.
All the glorification of the spiritual master is not just any of the personal attributes of the spiritual master. It is the devotional attributes of the spiritual master. So to the extent we see the spiritual master as manifesting Krishna’s mercy, manifesting Krishna’s wisdom, manifesting Krishna’s loving guidance, that is a part of our vertical relationship.