Commandment 24:
Leave not The Teacher
To be born as human is considered to be a luck. Only the human form is a replica of the Divine form. No other form is as complete as the human form. No other form in creation has as much potential as the human form. The Divine can be experienced in its completeness in all its seven planes only in the human form. Even the Devas avail of the opportunity of being born as humans to have tangible physical experience. The Devas are in the subtle planes and therefore miss the physical plane. In human form there is astronomy, astrology, all cosmic, solar and planetary intelligences. In it there are the 4 Kumaras, the 7 Seers, the 14 Manus, the 27 constellations, the 12 sun signs and so on. Human form enables experiencing all the seven planes of awareness. There is no better statement to speak of human form than the biblical statement, “God made man in his own image and likeness.” Incarnating souls take to different forms in each incarnation, and to be born as human is a great opportunity. It gives opportunity to realise God within and all around. This opportunity cannot be thrown away, say the seers. It is a great luck bestowed on the soul when it receives human form in an incarnation.
The Highest Luck is to Find the Teacher
When a human turns to look for truth, the truth of his being, it is considered to be a twice lucky situation. He is not only human, he also decided to know the truth instead of engaging in other activities. To know oneself, to know God is the highest purpose that a human can think of. Other purposes are far inferior to the purpose of knowing the truth. Thus the seeker of truth is considered twice lucky, for he is in search of the universal laws, patterns, forces and forms. He tries to know the sounds, numbers, colours and patterns. He tries to understand the vibration of the sound, the velocity of the colour, the potency of the number and the economy of the matter. A true seeker is the seeker of the unknown. It is the greatest adventure. To be engaged in such an adventure is considered to be the noblest purpose, since it leads to fulfilment. It leads to self-realisation. It leads to realisation of God.
When such a seeker finds a Teacher he is considered thrice lucky. He is human, he is seeking Truth, and he found the Teacher. It is the best that can happen to anyone. Therefore the grand Initiate Sankara says, “That one is thrice lucky.” The Teacher enables the student to navigate towards the Truth. He helps him as a guide. He cushions him in the pitfalls. He encourages when the student is in despair. He accompanies the seeker on the travel to Truth from time to time. He remains a friend whom the seeker can rely upon. But the Teacher does not let the student lean on him heavily. The Teacher enables the student to stand by himself, enables him to progress, holds him when the student falls, restitutes him and encourages him to walk.
The Teacher Guides the Soul
In the East there is a wrong understanding that the student can heavily lean upon the Teacher, shedding all his personal loads on the teacher. The Teacher guides the soul and the student reinforcing his soul energy has to organise his personality problems. The Teacher’s connection to the student is on a soul to soul basis. He does not meddle with the personality of the student. He lets the student handle his personality, but supports the soul. It is a very fine and delicate activity of help that the teacher does. He does not influence the student. He never controls the student. Teachers who control and influence are not the right teachers. The true Teacher informs and guides. He never interferes with the freedom of the soul. When invoked, the Teacher transmits his strength to the seeking soul so that the soul with the additional strength handles its life, organises the personality and progresses in the soul life with the cooperation of the personality. The most valuable gift of God to a true seeker is the appearance of a Teacher in his life. The student should know how to interact with the Teacher, what to seek from the Teacher, what not to seek, how not to act with him. If not, the Teacher becomes silent or even disappears.
Doubters cannot Travel with the Teacher
In the West there is much feeling that there is no need for a Teacher, that the truth seeker can find the truth with his own will. While this is true, it is difficult and is almost impossible. Hercules, Socrates, Plato, Pythagoras and the like all have their Teachers. Many times the nature also plays the role of a teacher. The Teacher is like a guide in a dark, dangerous jungle who holds the torch and leads the student. To walk in the jungle by oneself is uncertain, for all dangers cannot be foreseen. The East suffers from excessive reliance on the Teacher. The West suffers from the pride of self-pursuit. Pride itself becomes a great impediment to truth. The golden midway is to know the purpose of a Teacher and to know how to interact with him. Such one gets fulfilled. It is to such ones Sanat Kumara is giving the advice, “Leave not the teacher.” The teacher is like a wooden piece that keeps you afloat in a journey of river. He is more than a wooden piece. He could be the boat, the ship, the flying machine according to your orientation. Doubters cannot travel with the Teacher. This is because the doubter holds not to the energy of the Teacher. The doubter is like the one who holds on to a wooden piece in a stream of river that has strong currents. If he leaves the wooden piece doubting it, drowning happens for sure. “Doubters perish”, says Lord Krishna. Jesus tells his followers “Doubt me not.”
A student can put the teacher to his own way of examination. If he likes the teacher and decides to follow, he should not look back. Before he makes a decision he has all the freedom to observe the teacher. But once the decision is consciously made to follow, better follow without doubt. Doubt holds the student, if he decides to follow and doubts.
Follow Teacher’s Instructions
Many times the students cannot understand the actions of the Master or the teacher. He can never gage the teacher with his own limited understanding. The student would be doing a great mistake, if he is trying to understand the Master. Instead he can understand what is being taught and follow what is being instructed with a due understanding. He can also seek understanding from the teacher, but never try to understand what the teacher is. Understand his teaching and follow the teacher after due understanding. When once inner understanding takes place the student feels it comfortable to follow the instructions of the teacher, even if he does not understand much. The teacher walked in those areas of life, which the student did not. It is therefore not possible always to understand the teacher. To a student who tries to understand the teacher, the teacher smiles and says, “Understanding leads to misunderstanding. Follow what I say. You will follow me.” Many times the teacher attacks the logic of the student by posing contraries to the understanding of the student. A student is a student. A teacher is a teacher. The teacher has reversed all inversions. The student is still in inversions. The student’s understanding is upside down, which he knows not until the inversions he has, are reversed.
Working with the teacher is in one way playing with fire. At the same time in another way, it is the most joyful functioning. When the student relishes the beauty of the teacher and his way of working, he joyfully follows the teacher even up to and beyond the gates of death and birth.
Remember, a true teacher leads you to the truth, which is beyond all concepts, beyond trinity and even beyond the universal consciousness, to be one with the universal existence called Brahman. The three Logos of the trinity also are not considered as destination, because the Truth is even beyond. Do not leave the teacher until you have found the key to that One Existence and One Awareness, which is universal and is beyond the trinity.
Deepak and his Beloved Teacher
A classical story is narrated regarding the teacher-student relationship. It is as under: Once upon a time, there lived a teacher in Central India who was known to be a realised one. He had many students that were learning from him. After thirty years of teaching the teacher told his disciples that he can teach no more, for he was sick and the sickness would grow to an extent making him non-functional. He told the students that they may find their way with the knowledge given and follow the path to reach the truth. He also told them that he would continue to bless wherever he is, and as long as they have orientation towards him he would continue to help them. He further informed the students that he was going to reside the rest of his life in Benares (Varanasi) and daily take bath twice in the holy river Ganges in the morning and in the evening. The students enquired what the sickness that he would encounter be and if they could be of any help to him. The teacher said that he would suffer leprosy of very advanced nature, that his body would stink and smell horribly with impure secretions and that he would prefer to live alone. He instructed the students to find their way and blessed them all. Next day morning the teacher was on his journey to Benares and he found one among the students who wanted to follow him. His name was Deepak. The teacher discouraged him saying that he can no more teach and that he can no more help in any way the student. He also made clear that he cannot take good care of the student in matters of food and rest. He was not himself sure of any shelter. He therefore said that he cannot be of any help and insisted that the student should not follow. The student Deepak said, “Master, you gave your life to us, you gave your energy to us, you gave not only much knowledge, but you have given us daily feed besides the feed of wisdom, you took care of us as your own children. When we fell sick you helped us, when we were sick due to ignorance you helped us, you gave us many keys to wisdom. To me you are the Truth. You are the embodiment of Truth. I need to know no other Truth than you. You are my Truth, you are my God. I wish to be with you and serve you and give whatever possible comfort that I can give you. I will look for a place for you. I will daily take you to the Ganges for bath. I will bring you back. I will cloth you and make you comfortable. I will cook and serve you. Please allow me to follow you.”
The Master said, “You are asking for trouble. It is difficult to serve a teacher. It is much more difficult to serve a teacher who is sick. My sickness is, as I know, a horrible one. No one can stand by my side when the sickness totally manifests. The secretions from my body and from the wounds of leprosy would not only be disgusting but would be frightening. You are the most delicate of my students. You are like my youngest son. I can’t accept that you suffer by your service to me. My suffering is my suffering. You cannot co-suffer with me, much less you can really serve me. I do not know how I would behave when I am fully sick.” Deepak conceded, “Master, I cannot dare to say that I can serve you. You are the server, we are the served. But bless me to be of some assistance to you. I know that a pupil cannot assist a mountain, but my heart craves for you. I cannot let you go alone. I cannot leave you to yourself, especially when you say, how deep the sickness and suffering is going to be.”
The Master said, “None of my sons is coming with me. I prevented them to come with me. I prevented my lady to come with me. Why do you want to prevail?” The student said, “Master, it is purely for my sake, not for your sake. It is for my sake and for my comfort I want to be around you, not that I am really capable of assisting you. Master, I pray that you let me.” The teacher nodded the head and the student followed.
The teacher and the student reached Benares. The student found a humble residence on the banks of Ganges and arranged moderate facilities as per the instructions of the teacher. He started serving the Master in every possible way. The sickness gradually grew and reached its heights. The teacher could neither sleep nor seat comfortably and was in great pain during the day and the night. He nevertheless took bath in Ganges twice daily with the help of the student and was mostly restless. The student cooked and served and was doing his best, but the Master was highly irritated, complaining on every act of the student. He was complaining about food. He was complaining about the student’s handling him. With respect to every act the student did, the Master only expressed resentment. But the student was stable, knowing the sickness was expressing, while his teacher is resting in the inner chamber of his being.
One day the teacher suggested to the student to go and visit the temple of Lord Vishveshvara (Lord Shiva), which is the chief temple of Benares. The student refused to go. He said you are my Vishveshvara. I see Him in you daily. I don’t need to go to the temple. The teacher said, “You are a stupid. I wanted to grant you a great experience of Lord Vishveshvara and you denied it. I don’t need stupids to serve me.” The student remained silent, but remained with the teacher only. During that night when the student was serving the Master, he saw Lord Vishveshvara in the corner of the room who spoke with him as under: “Dear Deepak, I am pleased with your service to the Master. I wish to bless you. I wish to grant you the vision of the truth, if you could kindly come with me for a couple of minutes. Your Master wanted me to do this for you. You did not come to me, so I come to you to bless you.” Deepak said, “Namaskarams to you, O Lord, I cannot come with you. My teacher is my truth. I need no other truth.” Lord Vishveshvara disappeared. Next day morning the teacher got up. He took a stick and has beaten the student saying, “You fool! You denied Lord Vishveshvara! Have you become mad? Why did you do so? If you go away for two minutes, I would not die.” The student said, “Lord Vishveshvara wanted to show me the truth, but I have seen the truth. I am with it and truth is everywhere. I do not have to go to see the truth. Going to see truth is illusion. I know, Master, it is you who is playing the trick on me. I am with the truth, the truth that does not die.” The teacher was silent. The student went on serving the teacher surmounting all the difficulties. He could bear every criticism and insult of the teacher. He understood that it was teacher’s sickness, but not the teacher as such.
The sickness went on for 7½ years and ultimately the sickness receded in another 2½ years. The Master became normal. He smiled at Deepak. Deepak said, “Master, why did you play such a difficult role? Why have you chosen this way to train me?” The Master answered, “It is not like that, Deepak. There was a pending sickness, which I went on postponing over lives and I decided in this life to clear it. I did not pretend the sickness. It was true that I had to take it and complete it one day or the other, which I took upon myself in the past lives through healing the sick. I could postpone it, but it was there always as a waiting dark cloud. I decided to clear it and you stood by me. You are blessed. I depart tonight during the full moon hours, if you permit me to do so.” The student said, “Master, do you need my permission to leave? There is no such thing as leaving. The truth is and is forever. It is omnipresent. I can feel you in me and in the surroundings, even if you disappear from form.” The teacher hugged the student and said, “Yes, it is true. Be blessed to do the acts of Divine as long as you have the form. With or without form, you shall remain with the truth.” That night during full moon hours the Master walked into the river and disappeared. To Deepak the presence of the Master remained within and all-around. He realised the Brahman, the truth and continued the work of teaching and healing as his teacher did.
On that full moon night the teacher appeared along with the trinity in a body of light. The trinity praised Deepak for his unwavering will to be with the truth, with the teacher. Deepak became a great light and served humanity.
Therefore, “Do not leave the Teacher until you have realised the Truth and that you are the Truth; that you and the Teacher are but one and the same.” says Lord Sanat Kumara.
That is how the theme is. There are other philosophies given by the Lord, but for us these constitute the instructional part. Let us try to get inspired to work out these instructions. Let us gain the inspiration and see where we can start. Wherever we are, take to the next step. Don’t look to the top of the mount. Then we start feeling, “Oh! I can’t reach there”. We don’t reach there by just looking to the top! By just looking over there, we only get a reeling sensation. For us, the next step is important. That is how we climb. It is possible if we care for the next step and not look up there.
The syllabus is given. We need to start from the first point and keep moving step by step.
Thank you.
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