"Only a lighted candle can lighten another one" is what they say, about the importance of Guru. The fact that i am yet in the mire of ignorance says for itself that i am still searching for my Guru! (May be i already met him, there is no way i would know untill the ignorance is removed!)

I have read about many Gurus and their teachings. Read about Ramana Maharshi, C.V.V, Pandit Sriram Sharma Aacharya, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Paramahamsa yogananda, Shiridi Sai, Satya Sai. Also read J. Krishna murthy, Ohso, U.G Krishna murthy and Ekkirala krishamacharya, ekkirala bharadwaja ...etc and I am still reading. They all seem to talk about the same thing. "Happiness is within" or "You are are Brahman" Whether it is the self-analysis of Ramana Maharshi or the Gayatri Sadhana of Sriram sharma aacharya, the aim is to reach the core, to know the knower! But then, they also say that no amount of reading, imagining, analysis and contemplation would be equal to the real "knowing". That moment of knowing is just a snap away at any moment. So near yet so far.

Something is standing in between! "Ya, It’s the Ego! Snub the ego and Drop the "mind" pat comes reply from the much read "intellectual" mind in me! That’s the whole point! While on one hand, the teachings ask us to snub the ego and drop the mind, continuous reading and intellectualization only does the opposite. One gets a feeling that he "knows" and has all the answers. One takes pride in the process of search and looks down upon others who are unlike him to be lesser mortals. One starts to identify himself with the search so much that he refuses to stop the search and refuses to grow beyond!!! Some people even attribute "insult" and "prestige" to the guru himself and drag him down to their level. (After all who can "insult" the ABSOLUTE?! )

Some argue about the need for the search. Some say you need not run around searching for any Guru. When the time comes, the Guru will find you. You need not read any books. The entire search is futile because it is not going to take you to your goal of knowing the ABSOLUTE. So if it is going to "happen" when the "time comes", why search!? 

I agree that the search through the study of various teachings, concepts, however earnest it may be, cannot make one enlightened. But it is nevertheless indispensable part. It is the process of getting ready to be "lighted". It is like drying the wick and keeping it ready so that it can get lighted when it comes in touch with a lighted candle!  When exposed to the same fire, a piece of wood that is well dried catches fire easily than a one soaked in water!  An earnest and effective search, sadhana or self-study, does just the same to a person. When done truthfully and earnestly, it gets him ready for the final show.

 I would be thirty this year. Which means going by the current Indian life expectancy, i am some where in the middle. Whether the glass is half full or half empty has always been a matter of perspective, so lets not debate on that. one should also know that a glass can break any moment! When one adds that dimension, it doesn’t really bother whether it is half full or half empty!  While the clock ticks its way to eternity, my search continues.

My Musings: Some people like UG, OSHO deride the conventional methods of worship. UG even derides the Guru-shishya hierarchy. They may be true to a certain extent. The conventional religion, worship etc may be crutches. But infirm people do need them. My opinion is that a person who has learnt to walk independent of them shouldn’t deride the crutches or the ppl who still use/need them. It would create confusion. If an infirm person tries to leave the crutches without gaining the ability to walk, he would fall and there would be more confusion!!!

Even Aurobindo is supposed to have said that everything that has ever been said or written about the ABSOLUTE is a lie, including the Vedas. Who can ever claim to have described the indescribable? All those have been just attempts to raise the curiosity; they are like trying to explain what "light" or "color" is to a blind person. The experience can never match the words or the imagination they create!!