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Oṁ Bodhisattvīnāṁ Bhakvanākīśāya, Śrīsīdeveśvara Mahādevākīśāya, Hindutaraṁ Samrāṭ Satguru Svāmījī Madhavānanapurījī Mahārājā Kīśāya, Viśvaguru Mahāmaṇḍala Īśvara Paramātmā Svāmījī Maheśvarānpurījī Gurudevākīśāya. Oṃ Sahanā Vavatu, Sahanau Bhunaktu, Sahavīryaṃ Karavāvahai, Tejasvināvadhītamastu, Mā Vidviṣāvahai, Oṃ Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ, Śāntiḥ. Oṁ Gurave Namaḥ. Ucāraṇome Praṇām, Koṭi Koṭi Praṇām, dear Guru brothers and Guru sisters. Today is Thursday, it is Guruvar, the day dedicated to Śrī Gurudev. Early this morning was the moment of the full moon, as we heard yesterday from Swamijī. It was the Jayāṣṭapur Nīmā. Swamiji spoke about the anniversary of Kabīrdās Jī Mahārāj, a great saint more known in the north of India. In the south and east, they are celebrating the anniversary of Lord Jagannāth. In Jagannāth Purī in Orissa, today and over the last few days, there is a great festival, a festival of bhakti and devotion to the Lord. I am grateful for this opportunity, this time and space, to express my deepest thankfulness and gratitude to our Gurudev for his patient guidance, divine wisdom, great love, and infinite mercy, which he constantly showers upon all disciples. I believe I do not speak only for myself; many of you can identify with this expression. I especially wish to say this on behalf of those bhaktas watching the webcast now or later, who have been thirsty for Swamijī's darśan for many months but are physically far away and cannot approach him as we can here in Jhadan. This expression also belongs to them. It is a great moment when Gurudev arrives and bhaktas have waited for him, separated by long months. It was the same for us here in Jhadan at the beginning of May when Swamiji returned from his Australia tour after many months. For every bhakta, Gurudev's coming is a moment of joy. The lotus of the Anāhata fully opens, the mind becomes peaceful, the Ātmā feels bliss, and the intellect is erased in a positive sense. During that long separation, if any doubts or problems arose, at the moment of Gurudev's darśan they are completely removed. Every problem finishes because the intellect has no chance against the solid truth of the bhakti flowing from the anāhata. This is the greatness of our Gurudev, who shares this divine knowledge and radiance with all of us. He travels around the world to give us his darśan, and the same happens here in India. He often visits his and holy Gurujī's bhaktas spread throughout Rajasthan or Gujarat over long distances. On such a day, Swamījī may have up to ten programs, with long hours of driving between them. Sometimes he stops for a full satsaṅg, and sometimes for just five minutes because a family of bhaktas has not seen him for a year. He stops, they have time for his darśan, to greet his lotus feet, offer a flower mālā, and receive prasād from his hand. This makes them blissful and happy, and they will remember it for the entire next year until his next visit. The same occurs internationally; Swāmījī visits countries or provinces sometimes just for one family of disciples, be it in Dubai, Toronto, or parts of Australia. This is his mercy. This darśana increases our Guru Bhakti. Guru Bhakti makes us better humans. It all begins at the first meeting with Swamījī. For every sincere disciple, this is a very special and unique moment in life, the moment where the transformation of the disciple begins. A sincere disciple is not one who took the mantra, practiced for a few months or years, and disappeared, but one for whom the spiritual path and guidance of the realized Master is a lifelong task and priority. If you ask a hundred such sincere bhaktas about their first experience with Swāmījī, you will hear a hundred unique stories, each individual and special. Even if they met him at the same time and place, each experience is different. I ask for a little patience to briefly share my story of meeting Swamiji, to narrate this miracle. I grew up in a happy childhood filled with games and sports, with little schoolwork, little housework, and few responsibilities, as my parents took care of everything. It was nice but left me unprepared for life. When I entered secondary school and began facing reality, I started having problems finding my place in society. Some friends began attending religion classes; I was a convinced atheist and thought they would wake from their dreams. At university, I studied biology. One subject was the evolution of life, including the origin of life on this planet. We studied different scientific theories. It was clearly stated that the hypothesis of a divine origin is not possible to investigate, as God is not an entity we can grasp, measure, or investigate. The conclusion was that there is no God. I passed the exam, thus becoming a certified atheist with a university exam on the subject that there is no God. At that time, my personal problems with materialistic life culminated in a crisis. Due to permanent mental tension, I developed strong headaches and backaches. Near the university, there were classes of Yoga in Daily Life. I attended one and immediately felt better, so I started going regularly and practicing. The philosophy mentioned alongside the āsanas, prāṇāyāma, and relaxation gave answers to my life questions. I began reading more books. After several months, I attended my first weekend seminar with Swāmījī in the Strelka āśram, Mahāprabhujī's āśram. I was quite attracted to Swamiji's personality; it was something special I had never seen before. Yet, due to my strong atheistic background, I could not understand the social events and expressions of worship, so I had mixed feelings. On Sunday afternoon, when the seminar finished, I walked from the ashram to the main road to hitchhike to Prague. I was walking on the edge of the road with my big backpack (it was November, so I had many clothes) when I suddenly heard a car honking from behind. I turned and, to my surprise, saw Swamiji driving. I am not sure if the car had a smoked front glass or if Swamijī wore sunglasses, but I am very sure I saw his sparkling eyes looking at me, his smile, one palm in blessing and the other on the steering wheel as he honked in greeting. He passed by in this way. I was completely stunned, unable to understand the feelings that arose from my heart—something I had never known before. I could not comprehend how this great spiritual master (by then I knew Swamī was a great master) was greeting some anonymous tourist on the road. He was essentially greeting the backpack visible from behind. This miraculous experience began the transformation of my life, giving it a definite direction. I began practicing yoga and life systematically, walking the path of Guru Bhakti, which has brought me to this very moment and spot. This is what I understand as the miracle of Guru Tattva and Guru Bhakti. How else is it possible for a certified atheist to become a full-time spiritual seeker? That is the miracle of Guru Tattva. Guru Bhakti makes us better by enabling us to overcome or sacrifice some of our limitations, borders, and preferences. We often see this in yoga centers and ashrams. We come from very different backgrounds, societies, mentalities, nationalities, and age groups, so naturally we may have misunderstandings or even clashes. The yoga sādhanā we do, as part of the purification process, brings up our weaknesses, negative qualities, and bad habits. The clashes can increase, but through Guru Bhakti we are able to cross these barriers, bringing us closer. Imagine Gurudev as a sun, a mighty sun of our small cosmos, full of light, knowledge, wisdom, and mercy. We are small, unimportant electrons in the nearby cosmos, inspired by the sun and wanting to get closer. We are attracted by the Guru Tattva and powered by Guru Bhakti, which draws us toward the Master. The greater the initial distance between two people, the bigger the problems between them. But as we draw closer and closer to our sun, to our Gurudev, we also get closer to each other. This is how it helps our relations. Perhaps when we are close enough, we will recognize that the essence of the other electrons is the same—it is the Guru Bhakti. Then we may realize Gurujī's famous saying: "In all and all in one and behind all this miracle is the Guru Tattva and Guru Bhakti." Many scriptures try to describe this. It is said that to understand Guru Tattva completely is possible only after self-realization, when we merge with the Guru Tattva. For us, the most known is perhaps the Guru Gītā, part of the Skanda Purāṇa. One section, certain ślokas singing the glory of the Master, is known as the Guru Stotram. Searching online yields many links, as many yoga schools and ashrams sing it. There are variations in the number and selection of ślokas, but the aim is always to describe the guru-mahimā. As an offering to Gurudev, I would also like to sing the Guru Stotram. Śrīpādam bhaktavānāṁ kīcayā sattva-gurudeva kīcayā brahmānandam paramasukhadam kevalam jñānamūrtiṁ dvandvātītaṁ gaganasadṛśaṁ tattvamasyādi lakṣyam ekaṁ nityaṁ vimalam acalaṁ sarvadā sākṣibhūtaṁ bhavātītaṁ triguṇarahitaṁ sadguruṁ taṁ namāmi. Nityam śuddham nirābhāsam nirākāram nirañjanam, nityabodham cidānandam gurur brahma namāmyaham. Gurur brahma gurur viṣṇu gurur deva maheśvaraḥ, gurukḥ sākṣāt paraṁ brahma tasmai śrī gurave namaḥ. Yad satyena jagat satyam, yad prakāśena bhāti tat, yad Ānandena nandanti, tasmai Śrī Gurave namaḥ. Ajñānātimirāndhasya jñānāñjanaśalākayā, cakṣurunmīlitaṁ yena tasmai Śrī Gurave namaḥ. Akhaṇḍa maṇḍalākāraṁ vyāptaṁ yena carācaram, tatpadaṁ darśitaṁ yena tasmai Śrī Gurave namaḥ. Sarva śruti śiro ratna virajita padāmbuja, vedāntāmbuja sūryo yaha, tasmai śrī gurave namaḥ. Caitanya śāśvatākṣāntu vyomatīto nirañjana, bindu nādā kalātītā, tasmai śrī gurave namaḥ. Sthāvaraṃ jagaṃ aṃśeha, tatāśeva carācaraṃ. Vyāptam yena jagacarvam, tasmai śrīguravē namah. Jñāna-śakti samārudhā, tattva-mālā vibhūṣitā. Bhukti-mukti pradātā ca, tasmai śrīguravē namah. Aneka janma samprapta karma bandha vidāhine, Ātma jñāna pradānena, tasmai śrīguravē namah. Nāgaro rādhikam tattvam, nāgaro rādhikam tapaḥ, Tattvam jñānāt param nāsti, tasmā Śrī Gurave Namah. Mannata śrī jagannātou mad-guru śrī jagat-guru mamātmā sarva-bhūtātmā. Tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ. Dhyāna-mūlam-gurur-mūrtiḥ, pūjā-mūlam-gurur-padam, mantra-mūlam-gurur-vākyaṃ, mokṣa-mūlam-gurur-kṛpā. Gurur-ādhira-anādiśca gurur-paramadevatām, Guru Parataramnasti, Tasmai Śrī Kaurave Namaha. Śiṣyāṇāṁ Mokṣa Dhanāya, Lilayā Dehadhāriṇe, Sadehā Pividehāya, Tasmai Śrī Kauravē Namaha. Akhaṇḍānanda Bodhāya, Śiṣyasantāpahāriṇe, Sacchidānanda Rūpāya, Tasmai Śrī Kauravē Namaha. Guru Stotramidam Sayam, Prātaḥstāyaḥ Paṭhet, Savimukto bhavet lokāt sadgurukṛpāyātrivam. Om vodasrīdipnam bhavānā kī cae satā gurudeva kī cae. This is a beautiful stotram describing the gurumahimā. I cannot translate it as I do not speak Sanskrit, but I learned the meaning word by word and would like to give you a glimpse of its beauty. Brahmānandam paramasukhadam kevalam... Śrī Gurudev is eternal bliss. He enjoys and confers supreme happiness. He is the embodiment of wisdom, the witness of everything, transcending all emotions and mental stages. Ekam nityam vimalamacchalam sarvadi saksibhutam bhavatitam trigunarahitam sadgurum tam namami. My prostrations to Śrī Gurudev, who is complete oneness, unmovable, eternal, without impurity, beyond the three guṇas, beyond time and space. Nityam śuddham nirābhāsam, nirākāram nirañjanam, nityabodham cidānandam, gurum brahma namāmyaham. My prostrations to this Gurudev, who is eternally pure, shining, without taint, formless, and the absolute Brahman. Gurur Brahmā, Gurur Viṣṇu, Gurur Devo Maheśvaraḥ, Gurur Sākṣāt Paraṁ Brahma, Tasmai Śrī Gurave Namaḥ. This we all know. Gurudev is Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Śiva. He creates in us the jijñāsā (spiritual awakening), nourishes and protects it, and destroys our bad habits and negative qualities. Yatsatyena jagatsatyam yad prakāśena bhāti tat yad ānandena nandanti tasmai śrī gurave namaḥ. My adorations to Śrī Gurudev, whose truth makes the whole world true, whose light illuminates the whole world, and whose bliss is the happiness of all beings. Ajñānātimirāndhasya... I was blinded with the cataract of ignorance. Gurudev applied the medicine of jñāna, divine knowledge, and opened my eyes. This applies not only to self-realization but to every disciple who realizes he is living in ignorance, for which we also need a guru—to come to know that we know nothing. My salutations to this Gurudev, who revealed to me the state of truth, which is infinite, pervades the whole universe, and never changes. All the crown jewels of the Vedas abide at the feet of the Master. He is the Sun that makes the lotus of the Vedānta blossom. This means that without gurus, sages, ṛṣis, and munis, we would have no Vedas. The Vedas are the knowledge of the cosmos, but someone had to receive that knowledge and give it to mankind—these are the gurus and sages. From them comes the Vedānta, Advaita, and Sanātana Dharma. Chetanya Śhāśhvata Śhānto Vyoma Tito Nirañjana Bindu Nāda Kālātīta Tasmai Śhrī Gurave Namaha. His consciousness is in eternal peace. He is absolutely pure and transcends time, space, the zero (bindu), and the primary sound of Oṁ. He is beyond everything. Sthāvaraṁ caṅgamaṁ caiva tathā caiva carācaram, vyāptaṁ yena cakracarvam, tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ. Śrī Gurudeva revealed to me that state which pervades everything in this world—everything movable, unmovable, animate, or inanimate. Gurudev is a mighty source of power and knowledge (śakti and jñāna), adorned with the garland of the elements. The Guru Tattva is the highest, and he gives as prasāda both spiritual progress and worldly prosperity. This we all know. Those sincerely interested in spiritual progress and doing their sādhanā, especially those who have lived in the ashram, can feel over a few years that they were spiritually different before. Similarly, bhaktas active in the world, involved in business, are not poor; they prosper with Gurudev's blessing. Gurudev burns to ashes the karmas accumulated through many lives and bestows upon us the knowledge of ātmā jñāna. On one hand, he stops our suffering by removing the hardest karmas; positively, he influences us with the boon of jñāna. Nāgaror Rādhikām Tattvaṁ nāgaror rādhikāṁ tapaḥ tattvaṁ jñānaṁ param. There is no tattva (truth) higher than the Guru. There is no tapas higher than the Guru, higher than Guru-sevā. The Guru is the highest of the devas, and there is nothing higher than the Guru. Mannata śrī jagannātou mad-guru śrī jagat-guru mamātmā sarva-bhūtātmā. My Lord is the Lord of the universe. My Gurudev is the Guru of the whole world. My ātmā is the ātmā of all beings. This is the teaching we receive from our Gurudev. Dhyāna Mūlaṁ Guru Mūrtiḥ, Pūjā Mūlaṁ Guru Padam, Mantra Mūlaṁ Guru Vākyaṁ, Mokṣa Mūlaṁ Guru Kṛpā. Again, this is the basic formula of successful discipleship. Dhyāna Mūlaṁ Guru Mūrthy: the root of meditation is the form of the Guru. Advanced disciples, at the beginning of meditation, often remember experiences with Gurudev that led them to jñāna or bhakti. Concentrating on that memory, they enter meditation. Pūjāmūlaṁ Guru Pādam: The best pūjā is prostration to the holy feet of the Master. If you see the Master ten times a day, do not miss the chance to greet him ten times. We do not know after how many lives we got this chance now, what tomorrow will bring, what the rest of this life holds, or in which future lives we will meet him or not. Therefore, greeting the master at every opportunity is the best pūjā. Mantra mūlaṁ guru vākyaṁ: O Bhagavān, please give us the understanding, the power of vichāra (vichāra śakti), to understand the guru vākya—not only what is directly spoken, but also what is between the lines, the inner message from Gurudev to the disciple on the subtle level. When we manage this, then will come Mokṣa. Mokṣa comes only through Guru Kṛpā; there is no other way. This is the cosmic law. Gurudev is the beginning of the universe, but he himself is beginningless. He is the highest of the devas, and there is nothing higher than him. My adorations to Śrī Gurudev, who, for the sake of the bhaktas, took this līlā śarīra, this body of māyā, upon himself to liberate the disciples. Even while living in that body, he is not at all attached to it because his essence is videhī—the yogic body, subtler than the physical, a condensation of higher śiṣya, santa, parīṇa. Sacchidānanda Rūpāya tasmai śrī gurave namaḥ. He came to remove obstacles and suffering from us, the disciples, and to bring us to infinite bliss (Ākhaṇḍānanda Bodhāya), and to bring us to his own stage, which is Saccidānanda—Sat Cit Ānanda. The literal meaning is that by repeating this Stotram in the morning, noon, and evening, one will surely get liberated from this mortal loka. The actual meaning is not that we must repeat it three times as the only way to liberation. The meaning is that we should think about Gurudev, relate to him, concentrate on him, tune in to him, and realize the words and the mahimā described in this stotram. We will not receive Guru Kṛpā by merely repeating something while doing bad karmas. We must realize the teaching; once realized, Guru Kṛpā will come automatically. This stotram is beautiful and inspiring. We are the luckiest of the lucky that for us, it is not merely reading something from thousands of years of historical sources, but something living because we have a living master—a Sadguru of the highest realization, who is Trikāldarśī, Brahmaniṣṭha, Śrotriya, the successor of a great guru lineage leading to Lord Śiva. It is upon us to utilize this chance, practice our sādhanā, and walk the path of Guru Bhakti, for this is what will save us in the Kali Yuga, in times of storms, deviations, and doubts. Guru Bhakti is that magnetic force which will bring us back to the sun of Gurudev. To support that, we should always try to have Guru Darśan, Satsaṅg, and continuous practice of the Guru Mantra. This was my little offering in praise of our Gurudev. I hope many bhaktas can share these feelings. For many days, I had something inside that I was unable to formulate as I wished. This is what is offered to our Master. Once again, thank you, Swamiji. Thank you for everything. Hari Om. Quite beautiful. There is one thing Niranjan Purī said that reminds me of a small anecdote. It was the fact of the festival in Jagannāth Purī, and there is a story relating to the English language. There is a word in English called "juggernaut," meaning something unstoppable, with such momentum it keeps going. It comes from Jagannāth. When the British were in India, they observed the festival, which involves a huge wooden chariot with wheels about 12 or 15 feet high, weighing many tons. On it, they place the idol of Jagannāth, and hundreds of people pull it towards the ocean for a bath. This thing weighs so much that it takes all their effort to start it. Once it starts moving, you should not be in the way, as you cannot stop it due to its weight and momentum. For me, this is a beautiful symbol of our spiritual sādhanā journey. Often, it is very hard to get started. But once things start moving, you should hope that you practice the other things—the yama and niyama—so that nothing in the path gets crushed by this juggernaut. As it moves, keep purity in your life so it does not damage things along the way. Another aspect is that they must get the chariot to the ocean. You can imagine at the end it must cross the sand, meaning they must push it faster and faster to gain momentum so it does not get stuck. It is a perfect analogy for our spiritual journey: as you go along, you must keep it going, adding more and more to it so we can reach that ocean—to become one of those drops that enters the ocean of bliss. Thank you very much for sharing your feelings, thoughts, and wisdom.