Guru Purnima
The full moon which appears in the Hindu month of Aadi (Aashada) (July-August) is observed as the auspicious day of Guru Purnima, a day sacred to the memory of the great sage, Vyasa. Indeed, we are all indebted to this ancient saint who edited the four Vedas, wrote the 18 Puranas, the Mahabharata and the Srimad Bhagavata.
On this day, all spiritual aspirants and devotees worship their guru and all disciples perform a ‘puja’ to their respective spiritual preceptor or ‘Gurudeva’.
Moreover, this day is of great importance to the farmers, for it heralds the setting in of the much-needed monsoon rains, as the drenching of the cool rain on the earth after the hot summer makes everything grow and become green and lush again. It is also considered as a very beneficial time for all spiritual practices. Traditionally, spiritual seekers are taught to intensify and take seriously their spiritual ’sadhana’ from this day.
The period ‘Chaturmas’ (“four months”) starts on this day. In puranic times, this was the period when wandering spiritual masters and their disciples used to settle down at a place to study and discourse on the Brahma Sutras composed by Vyasa, and engage themselves in Vedantic discussions.
In Tiruvannamalai, the spiritual centre of the universe, millions perform giri pradakshina and walk around the holy mountain Arunachala with the earnest hope of gaining spiritual wealth from the Guru of Gurus, the timeless embodiment of the Self in the form of an earthly mountain. May we all surrender to his Holy Feet on this Guru Purnima and realize the true Arunachala who shines in the depth of every heart!
JAI SHRI GURUDEV.
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