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Guru-Shishya Relationship in Indian Culture: The Possibility 

of a Creative Resilient Framework 

M.K. Raina 

Psychology Developing Societies 2002; 14; 167 

DOI: 10.1177/097133360201400109 

The online version of this article can be found at: 

http://pds.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/14/1/167 

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The Indian perspective says that the aim of human life is to grow by inner and outer experience 

till man lives in god, realises his spirit, becomes divine in knowledge, in will and in the joy 

of his being. In the course of achieving this transforming experience, the guru holds a special 

place. The guru-disciple interaction touches deep and regressed layers of the two main features 

of the relationship, surrender of the shishya and intimacy with the guru. Real teaching is 

believed to occur when the disciple has disciplined himself and is tuned to the wavelength of 

the guru. Teaching, example, and influence play significant roles in mentoring. One very 

distinctive characteristic of guru-shishya relationship is its poly-variant nature. It indicates 

the all encompassing quality of this relationship. Dynamics of the relationship 

its basis was a complete transformation of the shishya by the guru. 

Guru 1-Shishya 

2 Relationship in 

Indian Culture: The Possibility of a 

Creative Resilient Framework 

M.K. RAINA* 

indicate that 

National Council of Educational Research and Training, New Delhi 

India’s cultural and philosophical tradition has nursed an introspective 

image of man and the ideal community which envisions man as trained 

to be free to move towards a planned liberation or transcendence and 

experience of ultimate reality-Brahamanubhava or personal encounter 

with God-a communion with God. Such an outlook considers 

individuals to be capable of transcending a state of being, having a life 

of realisation, a gnosis, an inner intuitive vision of God, when man 

achieves absolute freedom from the blind servitude to ordinary experience. 

It is a subtle interwovenness with realities of the spiritual world. 

~- This article was completed while the author was a visiting scholar at 

Center for Creative Studies at the University of Georgia. 

1 God realised spiritual preceptor; teacher or guide. 

2 Disciple or student. 


http://pds.sagepub.com by hethem tamang on September 2, 2009 

the Torrance

168 

It is analogous to Plato’s vision of an inner harmony with the world 

inspired and sustained by the spiritual in us (Radhakrishnan, 1969). 

The assertion of a higher than a mental life of self-transcendence has 

been the heart of the Indian matter. 

Man is there to affirm himself, in the Universe, that is his first business, 

but also to evolve and finally to exceed himself. That is how Sri 

Aurobindo spells the ascent of man and the upward journey. The Indian 

seers held that the aim of man’s life was to grow by an inner and outer 

experience till he could live in God, realise his spirit, become divine in 

knowledge, in will, in the joy of his being. This is the deeper intention, 

the dominant motive in all creative strivings in India (Mitra, 1949). 

The recognition of the sovereignty of the spirit, above all, has been a 

distinctive contribution of Indian thought and tradition. Simply stated, 

is the dominant 

in India, true religious tradition, not magical mysticism, 

factor linked to spiritual self-realisation. In the process of achieving 

transforming experiences, spiritual self-realisation, awakening and liberating 

of consciousness, meditation, which is considered to be the &dquo;key 

to mutation&dquo; opens up the possibilities otherwise sealed (Ghose, 1985, 

1986). Meditation is the mountain path of self-discovery and for the 

search of inner milieu. To achieve that state of being, one requires the 

help and guidance of a realised soul, who is more of an elder than a big 

brother, the Guru. In Indian traditions, the guru has special sanctity 

and significance since he is the source of all learning and to him, truth 

is the only norm and learning to live truthfully is the peak of all excellence 

and value. Even Gods had Brihaspati, the divine sage, as their 

Mentor. 

While extolling the greatness of his guru, Sankara (in Sarasvati Svami, 

1991) says in one passage: &dquo;If you say that the guru transforms the 

minds that are like brass into shining gold (like the philosopher’s stone 

that turns base metals like brass into gold), it would not be an adequate 

measure of the true extent of the guru’s greatness. The philosopher’s 

stone can turn only brass kept in the alchemist’s shop into gold. But 

the disciple who is transformed by the guru into gold becomes a guru 

and turns others also into 

himself, attaining purnatva (completeness) 

gold. So the guru is nobler than the philosopher’s stone. 

It is significant to note that along with the zero and yoga, the guru 

is arguably the most popular among India’s contributions to the rest 

of the world. The guru tradition may be even older than Indian history. 

A steatite seal, for instance, discovered at Mohenjo-daro shows a figure 



seated beneath a peepul tree wearing a horned head-dress and in a yogic 

pose that suggests he is either Shiva-Pasupati, Lord of the Beasts, or 

one of his shamans. 

Interestingly, according to the Hindu tradition, Shiva as Dakshinamurti 

is the primordial guru. Seated beneath a peepul tree-the same 

species under which Siddhartha Gautama attained mahabodhi or enlightenment-the 

handsome, eternally young Dakshinamurti instructs a 

group of ancient yogins, all skin and bone, in the &dquo;language of silence&dquo; 

and yet manager to clear their doubts (Nadkarni, 1992). 

The Concept of &dquo;Guru&dquo; 

The concept of guru is timeless and is found in many well-known and 

fundamental books on religion, philosophy and spirituality (Goel, 1985; 

Mehta, 1984). The word is derived from two roots, Gu, meaning darkness 

or ignorance, and Ru, meaning light, complete annihilation. Hence, 

guru means one who can lead us from darkness to light; from untruth 

to Truth; and from death to Immortality. It also means the great person 

who can torture, kill, or eat his disciple’s ignorance and elevate his 

character and ultimately lead him to the path of salvation. He is an 

incarnation of God in human form for the Shishya. God is universal; 

the Guru is in personal relationship (Misra, 1991). A true Guru, according 

to Baba (1992) is the embodiment of Brahmananda (transcendental 

bliss). The illustrious poet Kalidasa speaks of the guru as thus: 

He converts darkness into light 

and he makes the invisible God visible. 

As a spiritual guide he unfolds the spiritual knowledge and without 

him none can be initiated into the higher mysteries of the spiritual 

world (Chaubey, 1976; Prabhupada, 1984). The concept of guru as 

spiritual friend and guide with all its melioristic and pejorative aspects 

has, since its inception, undergone many changes, conditioned largely 

by circumstances social, economic and cultural. In examining the 

earliest and pre-Buddhistic literature of India, it will appear that highly 

personal concepts had also cosmic overtones which were then lost in 

later periods. To get at the root of the concept, Liedecker (1986) believes 

it is necessary to lay away some of the traditional well-worn ideas in 



169

170 

comparative religion textbooks and various forms of theism and priest- 

craft and, if possible, practice a little empathy 

with the man of the 

Vedic period. In Vedic times (1500-500 B.C.), when man’s encounter 

with the sacred mysteries took place through ritual, the guru was more 

a guide to their correct performance and an instructor in religious 

duties. A teacher deserving respect and a measure of obedience, he was 

not yet a mysterious figure of awe and venerated incarnation of divinity 

(Kakar, 1991). &dquo;Nature, inclusive of man, can be the teacher, the guru. 

Everyone is both teacher and taught&dquo; (see Hudson, 1980). In the later 

Upanishadic era (800-500 B.C.), as Kakar (1991) shows, the guru starts 

to replace Vedic ritual as the path to spiritual liberation. He now 

changes from a known and dweller in Brahman to being the only 

conduct to Brahman. He is astute and compassionate, demanding from 

the disciple, the exercise of his reason rather than exercise in submission 

and blind obedience. In the Upanishadic view, the senior Shankaracharya 

of Kanchi, Svami Chandrasekharendra Sarasvati (1991) who is 

100 years old and one of the most revered sages of India, defines the 

guru as one who has crossed worldly existence, and at the same time, 

takes others across. This definition is drawn from the Sanskrit, from 

the great Adi Shankara’s Vivekachudamani. Adi Sankaracharya saw 

gurus as &dquo;calm, tranquil, great souled saints who inspire the well-being 

of people just as the season of spring cause trees to flower, without a 

trace of ego&dquo;. &dquo;He is reservoir of mercy who teaches out of compassion 

to the multitude. He is sympathetic to the conditions of the student 

and is able to act with empathy toward him&dquo; (Cenker, 1983). 

Kathaupanishad records: Mere thinking and contemplation are of no 

avail. Without initiation one can not know God. Unless you learn of 

God from some master soul you shall not experience Him. 

In Chadogaya Upanishad, we have: 

From the pious and the holy who are just like Guru we have heard 

that without a master soul we can neither know nor experience the 

true nature of the soul. 

In Manduka Upanishad, 

we read: 

It behoves a Brahmin to disengage himself from the desires for the 

fruit of the karmas and acquire a spirit of detachment, for God is 

’ A class of literature and part of the Veda, concerned especially with the mystical 

teachings on the nature of Brahman; also termed Vedanta. 



self-existent and cannot be attracted by deeds of merit. To know him, 

he must, like a true seeker and disciple, go to a guru, who is adept in 

the knowledge of Brahman and is fully embedded in Brahman. 

In Bhagvat Gita,4 we have: . 

The practice (of spirituality) can best be done at the feet of a master 

soul, fully conversant with the reality for such alone can guide 

properly. 

In short, the sacred books repeat that man cannot gain salvation except 

through the Master of Truth. &dquo;The Guru is often revered as the divine 

as God 

soul, directly in communication with God. He is worshipped 

himself&dquo; (Jha, 1980). 

The guru has been praised and eulogised by well-known saints like 

Namdev, Kabir, Nanak, Baba Muktanand, etc., who had a high level 

on them. 

of spiritual experiences because of the mercy of the guru 

&dquo;Guru and Govind (i.e., Lord Krishna) stands before me&dquo; says the 

fifteenth-century saint-poet Kabir, and asks, &dquo;Whose feet should I 

touch?&dquo; The answer is, &dquo;the Guru gets the offering. He shows the way 

to Govind&dquo; (Gold, 1987). They also realised that Sadhna5 can only be 

carried out under the supervision and guidance of a qualified and a 

realised mentor. In the religious cults, esoteric truths can only be transmitted 

by one divinely appointed to receive them in the first instance. 

These secrets are stored in the guru. Therefore, practical initiation is 

not possible without a guru (Neki, 1973; Prabhupada, 1984; Singh, 

1983). 

With the spread of tantric cults around 1000 A.D. as Kakar (1991) 

has noted, the guru not only shows the way to the Lord, but is the 

Lord: 

&dquo;There is no higher god than guru,&dquo; tantric texts tell us. &dquo;No higher 

truth than the guru.&dquo; &dquo;The guru is father, the guru is mother, the 

guru is the God Shiva. When Shiva is angry, the guru is the Savior. 

But when the guru is angry, there is no one who can save you&dquo; 

(Steinmann, 1986). The guru is now an extraordinary figure of divine 

4 A holy scripture, containing teachings 

5 

Spiritual discipline. 

of Lord Krishna. 



171

172 

mystery and power, greater than the scriptures and the gods, and all 

that the disciple requires to realise his own godlike nature, his extraordinary 

identity as Lawrence Babb (1987) puts it, is to merge his 

substantial and spiritual being with that of the guru. The ambiguities 

of thought and the agonizings of reason can be safely sidestepped 

since the way is no longer through Upanishadic listening, reflection, 

and concentration but through a complete 

and willful surrender- 

the offering of tana, mana, and dhana (body, mind, and wealth) in 

the well known phrase of North Indian devotionalism. The responsibility 

for the disciple’s inner transformation is no longer that of the 

disciple but of the guru. &dquo;One single word of the guru gives liberation,&dquo; 

says a tantric text. &dquo;All the sciences are masquerades. Only 

the knowledge flowing out of the guru’s mouth is living. All other 

kinds of knowledge are powerless and cause of suffering.&dquo; (pp. 

43-44) 

There are also instances available which indicate that the necessity, 

authority and tradition of guru has been challenged. Kakar (1991) 

elaborates: 

Let me not give the impression that the triumphant procession of 

the liberation/salvation guru in Hindu tradition has gone completely 

unchallenged. 

In traditional texts there are at least two instances 

questioning the need for a guru, admittedly an insignificant number 

compared to hundreds of tales, parables, and pronouncements extoll- 

ing him. The first one is from the Uddhavagita in the sixth-century 

text of Bhagvata Purana where Dattatreya, on asked to account for 

his self-possession and equanimity, lists elements of nature, the river, 

certain animals, and even a prostitute (from whom he learned autonomy 

from the sensual world) as his twenty-four gurus. The parable 

of Dattatreya ends with the exhortation, &dquo;Learn, above all, from 

the rhythms of your own body.&dquo; The second incident is an episode 

from the Yogavasistha, a text composed 

between the ninth and 

twelfth centuries in Kashmir, wherein Princess Cudala, setting out 

on her inner journey of self-exploration, deliberately eschews all 

gurus and external authorities, and reaches her goal through a seven 

stage self-analysis. (pp. 44-45) 



The Guru-Shishya Relationship: 

Its Evolution 

The guru-shishya relationship plays a central role in the development 

and transmission in Hinduism; its roots go back to the Vedic period, 

wherein the guru, occupying a hermitage as a vanaprastha (the third 

stage of a Hindu life where the house-holder relinquishes worldly attachments 

and prepares to become a sanyasi), lived with his students. The 

Vedas6 describe the guru as a source and inspirer of the knowledge of 

the self and as the one who blesses the disciple and enhances his spiritual 

life (D’Souza, 1986). 

The guru must have gained importance initially from the fact that 

the knowledge-philosophical, religious, speculative, mystic, and 

cosmological-that was available had not been written down, it had to 

be acquired personally from someone. The mode of transmission of 

knowledge was essentially oral and was spread over a wide range; from 

music to medicine and from philosophy to actual judicial processes. 

For several centuries, the Vedas survived in the oral form. The Vedic 

hymns and verses were passed on from generation to generation by 

the Brahmin-adigurus’ to the brahmin-shishyas, often their sons, who 

in turn became gurus to the brahmins of the next generations. The 

survival of the Vedas, Upanishads and Puranas8 and various other reli- 

gious texts in the oral form for several generations 

173 

was one of the 

most important factors contributing to the growth and development 

of the guru-shishya tradition. The guru’s word was the Veda and he 

alone was the repository of the Vedic knowledge, which in those days 

meant all knowledge (Jha, 1980). He had a special role to play in the 

oral tradition. He was an indispensable link in the process of communication, 

irrespective of the content of the message involved. The 

institution of a guru was not confined to subjects considered obscure, 

nor were the teaching-learning processes understood to be mere exchanges 

or transactions of commodities. Whether it was in the home 

of the guru as in early times, or as in the renowned educational centres 

like Varanasi or Takshasheela during Buddhist times, education was 

guru-oriented. 

Perhaps a story of a guru-shishya relationship may illustrate this. 

According to the Chandogya Upanishad, even Indra, King of the gods, 

6 A class of literature; the most sacred scriptures of Hinduism. 

7 One who has knowledge of Brahma; a member of the highest caste. 

8 A class of literature concerned especially with legendary history. 



174 / 

had to live with his teacher for 101 years, practising self discipline 

before Prajapati prepared him to receive the highest knowledge of the 

Self. The entire account is typical of a number of important characteristics 

in the guru-shishya relationship. After the preparatory stages 

which involve an ethical, austere, disciplined life, the guru teaches the 

shishya through a progressive technique. Prajapati, after having given a 

course of successively higher instructions of the self as the body, on 

the self in dreams, and on the self in deep dreamless sleep, and having 

found that the inquirer 

in each case could realise that this was not the 

truth about the self that he was seeking, ultimately gave Indra the 

ultimate and final instruction about the self which is that &dquo;this body is 

the support of the deathless and bodiless self. The self as embodied is 

affected by pleasure and pain, the self when associated with the body 

cannot get rid of pleasure and pain, but pleasure and pain do not touch 

the bodiless self&dquo;. 

A true guru, therefore, is more than one who hands over the sacred 

thread (upanayana) and whispers the sacred formula (mantra); a true 

guru in the fullest form is one who, while reorienting the shishya’s 

moral codes and teaching doctrine, also transposes the shishya’s being 

to a higher level. A true guru is said to be on a double plane: at the 

apex of his self he enjoys that experience which surpasses common 

experience, however, on the common experiential level, the guru strives 

to draw the disciple’s inner eye to his own level, i.e., to his own degree 

of wisdom. As the Taitiriya Upanishad tells us: 

The teacher is the first letter. The student is the last letter. Knowledge 

is the meeting place. Instruction is the link. 

Too often, too much attention is given to this Upanishadic viewpoint 

of the guru-shishya relationship and the conclusion drawn that salvation 

in Hinduism implies a total denial of the secular. A more balanced 

view of the guru-shishya relationship may be found in the BhagvatGita. 

As one hears the 

It stands as a classic of the guru-shishya relationship. 

tumult of the drums and cymbals, the shouts of the warriors, the neighs 

of the horses, the cacophony of the quarrelling cousins and the multiplicity 

of theological voices and interpretations, one may forget the 

central theme of the Holy Song which is that Shishya Arjuna is being 

led by Guru Krishna to higher levels of spiritual understanding. 

The Gita highlights Arjuna’s spiritual ascent from darkness to light 

(D’Souza, 1986). 



175 

With the passage of time, as so many diverse propositions came to 

be codified, the notion was put forward that the guru alone could 

guide one through the maze, that he alone could judge the various 

stages of development, the capabilities of the shishya and accordingly 

prescribed the device, whether this be a mantra,9 mala1° an exercise in 

meditation, an asana&dquo; or whatever was suited for him. Brahmin priests 

enjoyed the supreme place on account of the excellence of their knowledge 

(Nikrukta Smriti) 12 and it gave rise to purohit-hood.&dquo; The priests 

were naturally the original gurus, and other such as KshatriyaSI4 and 

Vaishyas15 were his shishyas. They were also the gurus of music and 

dance which formed part of the sacrificial rituals. This indicates that 

there was no clear cut distinction between teacher or purohit in the 

beginning of the tradition. However, the idea differentiating the two 

begins to crystallise as one moves from the scriptures to specific sects 

and religious movements (MacMullen, 1976). 

It was considered essential for a guru to impart education which 

could lead the pupil to the path of salvation, because that was the pur- 

pose of education at that time. During the time of the Upanishads, the 

ashram’6 system was established. A teacher who taught the student in 

brahamcharya17 ashram was different from the gurus of the rest of the 

ashrams. In the grahastha18 ashram the guru was a purohit who led the 

householder in the performance of his religious activities; in vanaprastha 

ashram’9 only he could become a guru who realised the oneness of 

atma 20 with paramatma,-’’ who knew the path of salvation. Thus, the 

guruship of the first ashram was confined to a teacher, that of the 

second to a purohit and of the third to an ascetic who had renounced 

9 A sacred prayer of text; a mystical clause or phrase meditated upon and recited in 

praise of a deity. 

10 Sacred thread with one hundred [sic] eight beads used to recite a mantra. 

11 Yogic postures. 

12 

Literally means explained or etymological interpretation of the word. 

13 A hereditary family priest. 

14 A member of the second varna; a warrier. 

15 A member of the third varna; a commoner; one engaged in trade or agriculture. 

16 A stage or a period in an individual’s life which consists of twenty-five years. According 

to Hindu norm an individual’s life span is of hundred years. 

17 

A period of twenty-five years in early life demarcated for learning and celibacy. 

18 House dwelling; getting married and having children. 

19 Forest dwelling; leaving the worldly things to lead a saint like life. 

20 The individual soul; self or essence. 

21 

God, the supreme soul. 



176 / 

all worldly attachments. With the advent of Tantrika cult2z the fundamental 

concept of the guru changed. A founder or inventor of a sect 

or creed began to be called a guru. Thus preaching rather than teaching 

became the fundamental essence of guruship. 

For the followers of the 

tantrika sect, the giver of mantra was a guru, whereas, a Vedic guru 

was essentially a teacher. With the advem of tantrism, specificity began 

in the guru-shishya relationship. A tantric guru could not give his mantra 

to a person who belonged to a different sect. These secret mantras 

were communicated to the ear of the disciples and were called biajakasaras 

or the gurumantra. It was in these tantrik sects that the lineage of 

guruship began to be established (Mangalwadi, 1977). Consequently, 

the followers of one sect began to regard their own guru as superior. 

The gurus are given equal importance and respect in the area of 

music and the performing arts also. By all accounts, the Indian musical 

tradition exalts the guru in a manner which could only be rivalled by 

the esteem he is held in the field of metaphysics, yoga, tantra, etc. It is 

a fundamental premise that the final authority in everything &dquo;musical&dquo; 

is the guru. The philosophy of gharaanas23 has the guru as the point of 

musical convergence. Ritualism was (and is still) consciously employed 

in the practice, teaching or making of the music. The aim is to achieve 

the maximum and efficient concentration of both physical and psychological 

forces active at various levels of the human psyche (Ranade, 

1984). In a way the musical tradition indicates the beautiful blending 

of the religious, yogic and tantric traditions. One needed to perfect 

the camel-posture if one wanted to realise an aalap24 to sing (in praise 

of a deity). Specific items of musical behaviour are associated with the 

mantra, mudra,2s or asana. By singing or performing for the guru, a 

special type of psychological equipoise in coordination is sought. 

In the religious sense, a deity is regarded as the first guru and the 

guru as the spiritual preceptor or the guide. He was the purusha,26 the 

embodiment of the founder deity-the deity incarnate, through whom 

alone salvation is possible. Bhakti (devotion), Bhagwanta (the adorable), 

22 Science related to supernatural powers. 

23 A statement of a closed and coherent musical point of view that governs reinterpretation 

and redistribution of musical elements; their interrelationships and derived 

details within the system. 

24 

Musical sound produced by the adjustment in the vocal cords before the actual singing 

begins. 

25 

Gestures made by hand to indicate various emotions. 

Ego connected with subjectivity. 

26 



177 

Bhakta and the Guru are four essentials of religion, of which the relationship 

between the guru and bhakta is an important aspect. 

In the Islamic tradition, it is emphasised that a murid (shishya) must 

follow the instructions of his murshid (guru) unquestioningly. Logic 

and reasoning are to be suspended, for divine love like mundane love 

does not admit rationality. Striving with one’s heart and soul, to achieve 

the goal though practice as explained by the murshid and being patient 

in harvesting the fruits of one’s endeavours are prescribed. 

A murshid 

tries to develop in the murid the intuitive powers because these reveal 

the secrets beyond the reach of men of mere intellect. 

Similar emphasis on the need of the guru is put in the Sikh and 

Christian religions. Guru Nanak emphatically declared that the importance 

of the guru can be known from Brahma, Narad and Ved Vyas. 

The guru is considered as a vast ocean, a holy place of pilgrimage, a 

ship, a sailor, a touchstone, a guide, a mediator, etc. He helps the shishya 

to go through the experience of self-realisation by being with him in 

various forms. Thus, in the physical form, the guru also appears as a 

human being. When the shishya is able to withdraw his attention and 

focus it upon his inner astral form he (the guru) guides him. When the 

shishya transcends the astral and goes to the religion of Brahman or causal 

form, the guru also appears in the causal form. Finally when all those 

that cover the physical body, sensory perceptions and mind are removed 

and the shishya discovers his reality as the immortal soul or the 

JeevA tma27 the guru also appears in the form of a radiant soul to guide 

the disciple in his onward journey. Finally, when the disciple arrives 

at the level of total consciousness of Sat Lok28 he discovers that his 

guru was indeed the total consciousness with whom the shishya then 

merges and unites. The guru’s role, therefore, is not confined to the 

oral instructions given in the physical form alone. He remains with 

the disciple till the end of his spiritual journey. It is because of this 

that the devotion of the guru is equated with the devotion to God 

(Puri, 1976). The master also, like the others, leaves the physical frame 

in time, but remains with his devotees in the astral form as long as the 

devotee has not crossed the astral plane. The guru is like a bridge between 

the realm of individuals who are seeking (but are still in ignorance) 

and the realm of the absolute, the realm of wisdom, of freedom 

(moksa). Swami Sivananda (1980) expresses this point: 

27 Word is used for individual soul. 

28 The world where only truth exists, also ultimate truth. 



178 

The guru is the Moksa-dvara. He is the gateway to the transcendental 

Truth-Consciousness. But, it is the aspirant who has to enter through 

it. The guru is a help, but the actual task of practical sadhana falls 

on the aspirant himself. 

The guru-shishya unity and merger as explained in Kashmir Saivism29 

indicates that only that initiation is real where when the contact of the 

guru and shishya takes place the guru is united with the shishya and the 

shishya is united with the guru at the time of initiation. In this real 

initiation, the guru becomes one with the shishya and the shishya becomes 

one with the guru. The disciple loses his old false identity and finds his 

true self by identifying with the spiritual masters to whom he now 

&dquo;belongs&dquo;. He seeks to efface his own identity 

in that of his master. 

That he should have supreme devotion (parabhakti) for the spiritual 

teacher as one does for God, is still stressed today. As Sri Yogendra 

(1973) writes, &dquo;The position of a guru therefore is a distinguished one 

and assumes the importance and reverence due not only to a father 

but even to a god (gurudeva).&dquo; Swami Muktananda (1969) elaborates 

this same point: 

A disciple should inculcate guru-bhakti, which means pure love for 

the Guru. One who honors and serves the Guru, with mind, body, 

and speech; who demands nothing in return; who is ever intent on 

obeying every command of the Guru in its entirety; who lives continuously 

in the thought of the Guru-such a person receives the 

blessings of the entire Godhead. 

should never find 

any fault in his guru or his guru’s activity. It is that contact by which 

all contacts become divine and must take place between each and every 

master and each and every disciple. When this occurs, initiation becomes 

For this supreme contact to take place, the shishya 

29 

According to the tenets of Kashmir Saivism, the highest contact between a guru and 

shishya is known as Maha Sambandah ; which took place between Lord Shiva and his 

shishya Sadasiva. Next is Antarala Sambandah, which took place between Sadasiva and 

his shishya Anantabhattaraka; the third contact took place between Anantabhattaraka 

and Srikanthanatha and is known as Divya Sambandah (which means divine contact). 

In the fourth contact, Srikanthanatha took the place of divinity and Santakumara Risi 

took the place of the Shishya. This and lastly the fifth contact of the guru with shishya 

took place between Santakumara Risi as guru and mortal beings (manusya) as shishya. 

This contact has occurred many times in the Universe (Lakshman Jee, 1985). 



eal. However, Kakar (1991) interprets this relationship in a psychoanalytic 

framework: 

179 

If there is one demand made by the guru on the disciple, it is of sur- 

render, an opening up and receptivity of the latter’s psyche which 

is sometimes sought to be conveyed through (what men imagine to 

be) the imagery of female sexual experience. Saraswati writes, &dquo;When 

you surrender to the guru, you become like a valley, a vacuum, an 

abyss, a bottomless pit. You acquire depth, not height. This surrender 

can be felt in many ways. The guru begins to manifest in 

you; his energy begins to flow into you. The guru’s energy is continuously 

flowing, but in order to receive it, you have to become a 

womb, a receptacle.&dquo; (p. 53) 

This statement clearly indicates that the conception of the guru in 

Indian traditions is far more complex than just a teacher or preceptor. 

However, there are some commentators who realise that while it is 

easy to conceive of the guru as a purusha (person) embodied physically 

and mentally it is more difficult to conceive of him as a tattva (principle) 

or as a sabda (word) and even more so to conceive of him as nadabindukalatit 

(beyond sound, space or time) i.e., devoid of all dimensionsabsolute 

(Neki, 1973, 1976) all knowing and powerful. However, as 

Kakar (1991) notes: 

It is easier to understand that the guru disciple interaction touches 

deeper, more regressed layers of the psyche which are generally not 

reached by psychoanalysis. The devotee, I believe, is better (but 

also more dangerously) placed than the analysand 

to connect with- 

and correct-the depressive core at the base of the human life from 

which a self first emerged and which lies beyond words and interpretations. 

(p. 59) 

The Guru’s Role 

The role of the guru as revealed in the Upanishads is something most 

revolutionary. According to this role, the guru was to make the pupil 

stand on his own feet, to make him completely independent. The guru 

was to make himself superfluous-such was the great vision of teachers 



180 

as revealed in the magnificent teachings of the Upanishads. They lived 

in an atmosphere of absolute freedom and provided the same to the 

pupils (Mehta, 1984). At the same time, the guru was the spiritual 

father of his pupils and was morally responsible for their drawbacks 

(Panchatantra). The birth, which the teacher, well versed in the Vedas, 

procured for his shishya through Savitri3° was real, exempt from age 

and death. Muktananda (1983) describes the ideal guru’s behaviour: 

A true guru breaks your old habits of fault finding, of seeing sin, of 

hating yourself. He roots out the negative seeds that you have sown 

as well as your feelings of guilt .... You will never hear the guru 

criticize you. Instead, when you are in his company, you will experience 

your own divinity. You will never be found guilty in the guru’s 

eyes. You will find in them only the praise of your hidden inner 

God. 

The guru used to study the qualities of the aspirant and subject him to 

an initial &dquo;entrance-exam&dquo; to determine whether the seeker is fit to be 

a disciple (shishya) and becoming aware of his taste, temperament and 

capabilities, 

and select for him a suitable course of instructions. This 

was done because the individual could achieve the integrated personality 

only if proper attention is paid to the psychological make up and world 

view of the individual. This is illustrated by a story of six aspirants of 

knowledge who went out in search of a teacher. They found one such 

teacher by the name of Pippalada. These six aspirants placed their 

problems before him, seeking knowledge and understanding. 

was no ordinary teacher. He said to them: 

But he 

Remain here for another year with Austerity, Purity, and Faith. 

Ask then anything you desire, and if I know, I will tell, what you 

want to know. 

Here, the guru also shows an intellectual honesty of the highest order 

besides having a desire to observe some qualities in his prospective 

shishyas. The latent and overt assumptions here are that character is 

basic; education is the build up with knowledge 

and skills on this base. 

The teacher also has to be pure, who can mould the disciple to purity 

and moral grit (Chaitnya, 1982). The acharya, it is laid down, must 

30 The Creator, God. 



181 

have three qualifications (Sarasvati Svami, 1991): First, he must be well 

versed in a system of thought, in a system of philosophy (acinoti hi 

sastrarthan). Second, he has to apply what he has learned in his practical 

life (svayam acarate). Third, he must not only teach his disciples the 

sastra in which he is proficient, he must make them live according to 

its teachings (acare sthapayatyati). One who is merely proficient in a 

subject or system is a &dquo;vidvan&dquo; but such a person does not have the high 

status of an acarya. A man whose life is based on the sastra in which he 

is learned but is not a teacher of the sastra is an &dquo;anusthata&dquo;. If he goes 

a step further and has realisation of the teaching of the sastra he has 

learnt, he is an &dquo;anubhavi&dquo;-but yet he is not entitled to the high title 

of &dquo;acarya&dquo;. He who does not set an example through his own life of 

what he teaches is no more than a pracaraka. The acarya is one who is 

all three-an anusthata, anubhavi, and pracaraka (p. 69). 

Other qualities which the guru used to identify in the sbishya are 

reasoning ability, regard for the subject and his guru, discipline, and 

self-control. As the guru was required to identify certain qualities in 

the shishya, the shishya was also supposed to identify certain qualifications 

in his guru. In a way, both tested each other. &dquo;Test me thoroughly 

before you accept me, as a money-lender tests before accepting it&dquo;, 

said Sri Ramakrishna to his disciple Vivekanand (Bhattacharya, 1986). It 

was expected from the guru that he should be able to exercise a subtle 

and permanent influence on the young students sitting at his feet for 

their lessons (Altekar, 1965). For testing the guru long lists enumerating 

the qualifications of an ideal guru are found in the scriptures: he should 

provide education and training for the fullest possible blooming of the 

disciple’s personality and possibilities; he should love a disciple like 

his own child; he should teach him attentively without asking anything 

from him; he should not use the student for his own purpose to the 

detriment of the disciple’s education. He should be a creative personality, 

who is able to discover the talent and encourage its growth and 

create individual teaching according to the capacity of each student. 

Once both the guru and the shishya tested each other and found that 

their association could be fruitful, then the guru initiated the shishya 

into the mysteries of learning through Upanayana Samskara. The rite 

of Upanayana (literally &dquo;leading near&dquo;, the guru, for the instructions) 

is the most important of all the samskaras. It indicates that the child is 

born into a full membership of society and lays down the formation 

of a planned life. It marks admission to a sacred and a secret knowledge 



182 / 

and the need for complete harmony between him and the guru. It is 

the first step in the evolution of the personality. The most striking 

feature of this ceremony lies in the belief that by its very nature the 

initiate is given a culture and spiritual birth and hence is termed as 

&dquo;Dwija&dquo; (twice born). 

The items involved in Upanayana Samskara have psychological as 

well as educational significance; touching of the heart symbolises the 

mental and emotional communion between the guru and the shishya. 

The guru touches the chest of a boy with his fingers upwards and 

repeats the words. &dquo;Thou heart shall dwell in my heart; my mind shalt 

follow with thy mind; in my word thou shalt rejoice with the heart. 

May I be beloved to thee. Let us dwell here in breath~ and life.&dquo; For 

himself, the teacher prays that he may through his pupils &dquo;become 

rich in holy lustre&dquo;. After this the most sacred Savitri Mantra is taught 

to the student by his guru which means: &dquo;Let us meditate on the most 

excellent light of Savitri, the Creator. May he stimulate our Intellect.&dquo; 

it: Initiation is the 

start of a relationship where the mind of the disciple more and more 

flows with the mind of the guru. As the mind of the disciple gradually 

becomes more refined, so his mind and his guru’s mind meet to form 

a common will. The guru progressively.whittles away egotistical tendencies 

in the disciple and helps the disciple to find himself and in the 

process, as Neki (1973) puts it, .the &dquo;unequals&dquo; end up as &dquo;co-equals&dquo;. 

Such a prayer is particularly apt for a celibate student, seeking intellectual 

development in the proper direction. After this, the guru asks 

the student to kindle the sacred fire, the symbol of warmth, austerity 

and brilliance. It also indicates that the guru will help evolve the spiritual 

and intellectual contents in the shishya in such a way that his heart is 

always kindled by the fire of love and his words are full of concern to 

establish a profound unity in life by unfolding the fountain of divinity 

inherent in him and to evolve the best of his creative and constructive 

genius. It is an encounter which makes both equal partners. It may be 

judged from the conduct and exclamation of Atara Kalama when the 

future Buddha had finished his education under him: 

As Swami Satyananda (1977) eloquently expressed 

Happy friend we are in that we look upon such a vulnerable one, 

such a fellow ascetic as you. The doctrine which I know, you too 

know, and as I am so you are, you are so am I. Pray sir, Let us be 

joint warders of this company. 



The Shishya’s Role 

/ 183 

An aspirant of spirituality, self-realisation, knowledge, education and 

training after careful investigation could decide the worthiness of the 

master as explained in the earlier section. Once the guru is decided, the 

shishya was to surrender himself completely to his authority and direction 

without any mental reservation whatsoever; for the guru alone 

knows the turns and twists of the spiritual path and is in a position to 

act as an unerring guide. This aspect of the relationship is explained by 

Kakar (1991) as follows: 

If there is a second word besides surrender with which the gurudisciple 

relationship can be captured, it is intimacy. As Lawrence 

Babb (1987) remarks of his interviews with the devotees of Sai Baba, 

&dquo;What emerges as one general theme in these accounts is the same 

kind of visual, tactile, and alimentary intimacy that is so central to 

the devotional Hinduism in general. The devotees long to see him, 

to hear him, to be near him, to have private audiences with him, to 

touch him (especially his feet) and to receive or consume, or use in 

other ways substances and objects that have been touched by him 

or that originate from him.&dquo; This striving for intimacy not only 

marks the disciple’s response to the devotional, but also to the knowledge, 

guru. Pupul Jayakar (1987), in talking of her response to the 

&dquo;intellectual&dquo; Krishnamurti says, &dquo;I was driven by the urge to be 

with him, to be noticed by him, to probe into the mysteries that 

pervaded his presence. I was afraid of what would happen, but I 

could not keep away. (pp. 57-58) 

At any rate, surrender of the disciple (shishya) is beautifully expressed 

by Venkateshananda Swami (1980): 

I can go to the guru and say, &dquo;I am your disciple, you are my guru, 

when I am prepared to do exactly what he tells me to do .... This 

surrender cannot be forced either by the guru or even by the disciple 

himself. It (simply) has to happen .... Until there is total and complete 

surrender on the part of the seeker, the Guru is not born. 

When there is this surrender something happens in the seeker who 

suddenly becomes a disciple (probably has been disciplining himself 

all the way through) and the Guru is born.&dquo; (p. 18) 



184 

After initiation, the shishya becomes the recipient of the guru’s training 

through the process of Sravana (hearing) of the texts, reflection and 

continued profound meditation on the import of what has been taught 

as the highest and was considered the learned. He also engages in the 

disciplines of Karma (service) and jnana (knowledge), which lead to 

insightful learning in child like simplicity, meditation and self-surrender 

to the guru. Swami Krishnananda (1983) has an amusing classification 

of would-be disciples according to their ability to comprehend spiritual 

teaching and the time required to &dquo;catch it&dquo;. The best type of disciples 

are like gunpowder or gasoline-they catch fire immediately. Second 

class disciples are like firewood or charcoal-they will catch fire if one 

takes the trouble of leading them carefully for some time. Third class 

are like watery banana stems-no matter what efforts one takes, these 

people still will not &dquo;catch&dquo; the fire of spiritual teaching. If a guru is 

quite an elitist, he will accept only the best type of disciples. Swami 

Krishnananda, however, implies that he is willing to struggle to ignite 

second class disciples as well. The third type cannot truly be called 

disciples; at best, they are followers or devotees. Unfortunately, the 

overwhelming majority of people are in the third category. 

Real teaching (and real progress on the spiritual path), as McMichael 

(1986) notes, can occur only when the disciple has disciplined himself 

so that he is tuned to the guru’s wavelength; if not, the message will 

not come across clearly as when a radio is not properly tuned into a 

station. As Venkateshananda Swami (1980) explains: 

You know that you are not on the exact wavelength for a certain 

station when it starts crackling. If one is not on the guru’s wave- 

.length, the same thing happens within. The master says something 

and there is a crackling within, a strange form of inner resistance ... 

a bit of alignment is needed ... because if you’re not on the same 

wavelength it is not possible for him to communicate with you. 

Finally, one must have a desire for liberation (moksa) so intense, that 

one would never want to be reborn again, even under the best circumstances. 

Unless the desire to reach the goal is compelling, one will 

probably discontinue progress on the spiritual path. 

As for the methods of teaching adopted by the guru, Sri Aurobindo 

writes: 



185 

He has no method and every method. His system is a natural organization 

of the highest processes and movements, of which nature is 

capable. Applying themselves even to the pettiest details, and to 

actions, the most insignificant in their appearance, with as much 

care and thoroughness as to the greatest, they in the end leave all 

into the Light and transform all. 

While explaining the instruments of the work of the guru, Sri Aurobindo 

writes in his Synthesis of Yoga (1972); 

Teaching, example, influence-these are the three instruments of 

the guru. But the wise teacher will not seek to impose himself or his 

opinions on the passive acceptance of the receptive mind; he will 

throw only what is productive and sure as a seed which will grow 

under divine fostering within. He will seek to awaken much more 

than to instruct; he will aim at the growth of faculties and the experience 

by a natural process and free expansion. He will prescribe a 

method as an aid, as a utilisable device, not as imperative formula or 

a fixed routine. And he will be on his guard against any turning of 

means into a limitation against the mechanizing of process. 

Shishyas fell into four categories in accordance with the motive by 

which they were actuated in seeking a particular teacher. The worldweary 

and forlorn wanted health and vigour; those who had a thirst 

for knowledge and a consuming curiosity sought enlightenment; those 

who had a worldly end came in pursuit of means to secure that end 

and the men of vision sought the highest spiritual end. The four classes 

stood apparently in an ascending order of importance as explained in 

the Bhagavat Gita and the man who sought the highest end was considered 

the noblest. 

The Relationship: Past 

The relationship between the guru and the shishya was regarded as filial 

in character, based on complete understanding and cordiality (Mehta, 

1984; Mitra, 1964; Singh, 1983). Working in accordance with the born 

tastes and aptitudes was considered much better than going against 



186 

the grain and copying another’s conduct. The guru had a humanist 

attitude towards shishya. The gurus were full of life and showed a living 

interest in men and things. They possessed minds that were perfectly 

open and therefore, ready to respond to even the slightest whisper of 

life (Mehta, 1984). Probably that is why they could encourage the 

spirit of free inquiry in their students. Complex metaphysical issues 

were ably handled in this way in the Upanishads; the pupil asking 

questions which emerged from his own serious encounters with the 

problems; and the guru giving answers which not only met the specific 

points but also opened up fresh perspectives on the problems. The 

guru used to make the disciple understand the importance of his own 

thoughts, feelings and motivations. To the difficult subjects they provided 

a touch of intimacy this way. Upanishads, that the great thinkers 

and seers produced, were written in response to the questions of shishyas. 

In fact, the literal meaning of the word Upanishad is sitting down (of 

the shishya), near (the guru), for a confidential communication and the 

perspective evolution of meaning made the Upanishads a sacred session 

doctrine (Chaitanya, 1982), where probing and sustained inquiry completed 

the response, to refine itself and deeper perception. The usual 

method of argument was from simple to complex-from concrete to 

abstract, from known to unknown (Maitryi Upanishad). To utilise 

reason in order to show the inadequacy of reason was a difficult undertaking 

but the guru displayed a remarkable mastery over this technique 

of transcending the mind with the help of the mind. That the teacher 

and the disciple moved within the range of the mind is clear from the 

following words of the pupils, when they address the guru: 

Though indeed are our father 

who hath taken us to the other shore of 

the nescience (Prasna Upanishad). 

Besides having the power to reason, the aspirant of knowledge was to 

display an attitude of reverential homage towards the guru. He was 

required by customs and traditions to serve the guru. Hindu script ures 

make deferential homage and manual service the marks of an earnest 

student. There is the story of Satyakam Jabala who was asked by his 

guru to tend his herds in the forest and not to return to the asharma 

for training in the holy scriptures till the 400 cows placed in his charge 

had multiplied to 1,000. There is another instance, where Aruni was 

instructed by his guru to see that his fields were properly watered. As 



187 

the water was flowing out of a breach which Aruni could not repair, 

he was able to carry out his teacher’s instructions only by lying across 

the breach for the whole night. Both Satyakam and Aruni showed exceptional 

devotion, earnest regard and power of endurance and received 

from their gurus instructions in all branches of knowledge, including 

esoteric knowledge about the Absolute (Kabir, 1961). It may be pointed 

out here that obedience was to be extended even to the guru’s wife and 

son. The shishya had the duty of dedicating himself to their service by 

every exertion of mind and speech, body and action. In the Kuchelopakhayana, 

for example, there is a story about how Krishna and 

Kuchela, when they were shishyas, were ordered by the guru’s wife to 

procure fuel from the forest and they were exposed 

to a severe storm 

and showers the whole night. The guru went in search of them and 

commended their whole hearted devotion. The important point to 

notice is, not that the boys were induced to hardships in this way but 

the concern of the guru for the shishyas and the single minded devotion 

of the shishyas. This devotion is the essential quality to realise one’s 

innate capacities. Therefore, Sankara (1980) seems to regard the grace 

of the guru as more essential than the grace of God in guiding the 

shishya along the path towards ultimate enlightenment ... which he 

interpreted as &dquo;the tranquility of the senses&dquo;. Lal Ded (in Kaul, 1973; 

p. 12) a renowned Kashmiri mystic, narrates the tranquility of the 

senses as follows: 

My guru gave but one precept 

&dquo;From without withdraw your gaze within, 

&dquo; 

And fix it on the inmost Self.&dquo; 

I, Lalla, took to heart this one precept, 

And therefore naked I began to dance. 

It was with the guru’s grace that the shishya could move from the 

initial stage of meditation to a transcendent level, contemplating its 

import within the inner self. 

A very distinctive and remarkable characteristic of this relationship 

is that it can be expressed in a number of ways. This can be best explained 

by the story of Manikkavacakar, a Tamil poet and mystic who 

was a great devotee of Lord Shiva. Manikkavacakar’s enslavement and 

possession by Shiva is the concept of the guru-shishya relationship. 

He had a very decisive conversion experience at the port of Perunturai, 

where he met a guru, whom he took to be Shiva in the form of a 



188 

human teacher and to whom Manikkavacakar committed himself as a 

disciple. Another time Manikkavacakar casts himself in the role of a 

young woman in love with her lover bridegroom Shiva. This romantic 

model also permits ample scope for the play of strong emotions and 

forgetfulness of self. Both of the above situations indicate the total 

possession of Manikkavacakar the disciple, by Shiva, the guru. Clothey 

and Long (1983) interpreted that both the roles provide scope for intense 

emotions of ecstasy and madness, indicating that the guru-shishya relationship 

does not necessarily occur on a unitary plane. 

Polyvariant Nature of Relationship 

It is clearly revealed in the Hindu scriptures that this relationship 

is polyphasic as well as polyvariant in nature. Many varieties of this 

relationship and the types of emotions involved are summarised in 

Table 1. 

Table 1 

Types of Guru-Shishya Relationship 

The polyvariance and multidimensionality of this relationship indicate 

the all-encompassing quality of the guru-shishya relationship. Anyone 

with a proper outlook and makeup could be the guru; may be a father, 

mother, friend, relative, even a lover or enemy. Dattatreya, who has 

an exalted place in the lineage of gurus, says in the Bhagavata that 

among his twenty-four gurus were the earth, water, a python, a wasp, 

a courtesan, a hunter and a little child. He also mentions the lesson he 

learned from each of them (Sarasvati Svami, 1991). The dynamics of 

these relationships indicates that the basis of the relationship was total 

transformation of the shishya by the guru. Table 2 indicates that the 



shishya believed in the guru completely and allowed him to bring about 

the transformations in whatever way he thought was proper. In return, 

the guru provided an atmosphere of benevolence, love and affection. 

Table 2 

Dynamics of Guru-Shishya Relationship 

Table 2 also indicates that the relationship was intense and based on a 

complete understanding on the part of both the guru and the shishya. 

In spite of the fact that the relationships were intense and based on 

respect, affection and understanding, the tradition provided for the 

breaking off to the relationship under exceptional circumstances. 

Rupture of relationship was the result of faults of temper on the part 

of the guru or failing and offensive conduct of the shishya. The system. 

provided freedom, both for the guru as well as for the shishya, to part 

ways. A mistake in the choice of the guru could be rectified at any 



189

190 

time in certain contingencies. One of these was incompetence or lack 

of knowledge on the part of the guru. Another was the transgression 

of law by him. A guru could be deserted also if he used his time to the 

detriment of the shishya’s studies. This was a necessary provision in an 

age when the shishya was by law and customs bound to do the teacher 

service of all kinds, which might, by an unscrupulous guru, be pushed 

far beyond reasonable limits. Another was the guru’s neglect of his 

own study and rituals, his negligence in imparting instructions, and 

commission by him of cardinal sins. There were also cases of shishyas 

going to different gurus, apparently one after another, to learn the different 

branches of knowledge, in which each was proficient because 

the shishya’s aim was not merely learning but knowledge of self. 

Otherwise, the relationship continued even after Samavartana. It is 

the sacrament performed when the student returned from the home 

of his preceptor after completing his studies. Completion of learning 

and return home was a very momentous event in the shishya’s life, because 

he was either prepared for marriage and plunged into the busy 

life of the world or he was to acquire the Vedic knowledge that might 

give him the power to keep off from the turmoil of the world in order 

to lead a life of physical and mental detachments. The majority followed 

the first path and a few the second. In every case, the permission of the 

guru was regarded as necessary. The permission was preceded by the 

shishya’s giving gurudakshina, the proper fees to the preceptor. According 

to the ancient texts, even the earth with its seven continents is not 

sufficient for the gurudakshina. Even though the student is not able to 

pay the guru anything material, he should at least go to him for his 

permission. He would gladly say, &dquo;My child, never mind about the 

money. I am satisfied with thy merits,&dquo; and would instruct him with 

impressive words of which we have many examples in the Upanishads. 

It is thus a relationship of perpetual dedication (Kakar, 1980; Mitra, 

1964; Neki, 1973) and unshakable faith in the teacher (sraddha), implying 

that any lesson (upadesa) given by the guru is for the disciple’s 

good. Only such students have been exhorted to learn by questioning 

their guru again and again. 

The living presence of the guru has behavioural implications, 

in the 

decisions in his later life 

sense, he can help the shishya in making right 

also. Even now, the custom of celebrating guru purnima exists in many 

parts of the country; when the shishyas visit their gurus on a particular 

day, for enlightenment and guidance and offer them gurudakshina after 



paying respect. The gurus help them in solving their worldly problems 

and doubts. 

From the above, it is clear that at the heart of any learning process, 

be it academic excellence, spiritual attainment, or development of the 

inherent potentialities, it is the relationship that exists between the 

guru and the shishya that matters. It involves the dynamic interplay of 

personalities, the central one being that of the teacher and the taught. 

It is also mentioned earlier that this relationship need not necessarily 

involve a teacher and taught in the conventional sense but even mother, 

father, sibling, relative, etc. may be able to act as a guru at one time or 

the other in an individual’s life. Indian history is replete with such 

examples. Gandhi (1955) in his autobiography, The Story of My Life, 

mentioned that his mother, father and brother were his gurus respectively 

in teaching spirituality, practical worldly things and the ability 

to withstand adversities. Srinivasa Ramanujan, probably the greatest 

untrained genius that mathematics has produced in recent centuries 

was made what he was, by his mother. Early in Ramanujan’s life, she 

established with him a &dquo;collaboration&dquo; in magical manipulations of 

mathematical symbols, numbers and matrices of various occult purposes. 

It was as if the joint explorations with the mother in astrology 

and other cognate &dquo;presciences&dquo; provided the design for a joint intellectual 

venture in which all his other collaborations had to be fitted 

(Nandy, 1980). So great was the strength of this relationship that after 

Ramanujan’s death, his mother was paid his pension and not his wife. 

In the case of M.S. Subbulakshmi-the living legend of rasa-lila-we 

notice that it was her husband T. Sadasivam, whose guidance as impressario 

helped the fledgling singer and movie star in the 1940s, achieve 

world frame. 

Another remarkable characteristic of this relationship is its secular 

nature. Ravi Shankar, the world famous Sitarist of India, is a living 

example. Ustad Allauddin Khan, the doyen of Indian music, accepted 

him as his shishya and taught him the sitar, the instrument he loved 

best. Interestingly, Ustad Allauddin Khan, an illustrious musician of 

India, was not only adept at playing various musical instruments, but 

was a guide and master for various generations of musicians belonging 

to different faiths. Pandit Malikarjun Mansur, a famous Hindustani 

classical vocalist, gratefully acknowledges that Manji Khan’s (his guru) 

style had the most abiding impact on his style. This is also the opinion 

of those who were au fait with his mentor’s style. They are, in fact, all 

admiration for the way Mansur, incidentally the Ustad’s only worthy 



191

192 , 

shishya, has imbibed even the spirit of his guru’s approach. All this 

within an incredibly brief period of studentship. 

The quest for knowledge, information and perfection is still carried 

in various spheres of performing arts as well as in the area of science, 

without becoming influenced by caste or regional barriers. A contemporary 

Indian painter, Ghulam Rasool Santosh (1985), who has matured 

from landscape painter to tantric artist to a neo-tantric trend setter, 

unfolds in an exclusive interview how during the early stages of his 

career he was influenced by Bendre, &dquo;a very great but simple person&dquo; 

in his understanding of philosophy and art. 

Similarly, in the field of science, J.C. Bose, a brilliant physicist and 

influential plant physiologist, was influenced, at the age of 16, by Father 

Lofant, an illustrious teacher of physics. Bose was his dearest pupil 

and it was his influence which led to his taking up physics, in spite of 

his own inclination towards the study of living things. 

From this 

teacher, Bose also acquired his skill for experimental demonstration. 

Though this is a case of a Christian impressing a Brahmo, what needs 

emphasising is the strong academic influence Lofant had on Bose. It 

influenced his whole career. 

The Relationship: Present State and Interpretation 

Current developments in Indian society have resulted in the emergence 

of a new class of gurus, as also in the growth of fads and fetishes. 

Modernity and social forces have made some unauthentic persons to 

arrogate to themselves guruhood in a vain and self exorting spirit which 

at times bring the guru-shishya &dquo;syndrome&dquo; into disrepute. An excellent 

example of how such practices result in conservatism and inaction can 

be found in Samaskara, a novel by Ananthamurthy (1979). The traditional 

role of the guru has changed to suit the convenience and demands 

of modernity. According to Kakar (1991), the contemporary images 

of the Indian guru, the sacred centre of Hindu religious and philosophical 

traditions, are many. He is that stately figure in spotless white 

or saffron robes, with flowing locks and beard, to all appearances the 

younger brother of a brown Jehovah. To be approached in awe and 

reverence, he is someone who makes possible the disciple’s fateful 

encounter with the mystery lying at the heart of human life. He is also 

the Rasputin look-alike, with piercing, yet warm eyes, hypnotic and 



seductive at once, a promiser of secret ecstasies and radical transform- 

ations of consciousness and life. The guru is also the venerable guardian 

of ancient, esoteric traditions, benevolently watchful over the disciple’s 

experiences in faith, gently facilitating his sense of identity and self. In 

most cases, the guru possesses all the modern luxuries and is no more 

a sadhu. He is no more the shishya’s God in mortal flesh. That is why 

certain &dquo;non-guru&dquo; gurus like Krishnamurti (Ghose, 1986), 

193 

one of the 

foremost spiritual teachers of our age, advocated against guruism. 

Kakar’s (1991) analysis indicates: . 

There have been also reluctant gurus, such as Krishnamurti, who 

vehemently denied the need for a guru and in fact saw him the chief 

obstacle to spiritual liberation. For him and some modern educated 

Indians the guru institution as it exists today is a focus of all the 

anti-intellectual and authoritarian tendencies in Hindu society 

(Badrinath, 1990). Yet for the great mass of Hindus, the mystical, 

charismatic, divine guru image continues to be a beacon of the inner 

worlds. The all pervasiveness of this image is due to more complex 

reasons than the mere victory of irrationality over reason, servility 

over autonomy, or of a contemporary dark age over a earlier golden 

era. (p. 45) 

Many religious leaders (gurus) have become &dquo;brokers&dquo; with God and 

settle terms for rehabilitation of souls. &dquo;Guru’s a saviour&dquo; is the maxim 

of today. The emergence of the guru as a performer of miracles, an 

agent for ultimate deliverance and called by 

some as &dquo;Godman&dquo; who 

wears today the halo of the guru, has been deeply influenced by the 

ethos of tantra, a powerful cult of uncertain origin which has flowed 

collaterally with other streams of Hindu scholarships and mysticism 

from antiquity. In the ancient texts, the guru is the embodiment of all 

wisdom, whose pronounced word must be accepted 

as final. But even 

then there was a scope for argument and the guru helped the disciple 

to satisfy his curiosity. It was essentially a one to one relationship. But 

many modern gurus do not feel satisfied by accepting one or fewer 

disciples. 

He wants &dquo;masses&dquo; to follow him and at the same time 

he acts as a recluse; beyond the reach of a common man. We have, as 

Bhattacharya (1986) observers, already entered an era of collective 

gurudom, when a guru living in some town in India or elsewhere commands 

the allegiance of a large number of followers in several parts of 

the world. Ancient sages and seers could visualise the chaos this attitude 



194 

could create and the degradation it could bring to the most glorious 

tradition. Therefore, Guru Gorakhnath had cautioned against mere 

pretenders, verbalists, brilliant dialecticians, goody goody priests, loud 

mouth denigrators or mere body punishers. 

Avoid that teacher who is himself ignorant, who tells lies and who 

debunks other systems. He who cannot acquire peace in himself, 

what can he do for others? (Punekar, 1979) 

Debunking the attempts to romanticise the &dquo;archaic practice&dquo; of institutionalised 

guru-shishya tradition in the field of music, Kalidas (1992) 

notes: 

The guru-shishya parampara has been a fetter to the proper documentation 

of music. It has undermined the development of an adequate 

and universal system of notation, discouraged any dispassionate in- 

tellection on the subject, inculcated unscientific and obscurantist 

values-besides fostering many invented myths and legends in lieu 

of valid history. 

But without paying heed to these words, people seem to be in a mad 

rush to possess a guru, and after independence, this tendency has increased 

on an amazing scale. This need for a guru is interpreted by 

Kakar (1982, 1991) as the shishya’s desperate need for identification and 

idealisation with the master. He considers the guru-disciple relationship 

in many important ways as an extension of the parent-child relationship, 

constituting a developmental second chance for obtaining the required 

nutrients for the cohesion, integration and vigorousness of the 

self, implicit in some older devotional literature and often explicitly 

stated by modern gurus. Emphasis on guruism is also considered by 

some as a tendency for regression to the psychology of the infant who 

helplessly looks to parents for support, a prominent feature of a repressed 

personality. Kakar (1982) believes that &dquo;these processes are the basis 

for the disciple’s own healing transformations&dquo;. A major psychotherapeutic 

factor in the healing by the gurus is the patient’s (in so far 

as the seeker or disciple is also a patient) emotional relationships with 

the guru. Some commentators &dquo;who live at the margins of both Indian 

and western cultures&dquo; (Ghose, 1983), evaluate the eastern world with 

&dquo;western assumption and practices&dquo; and in the process have interpreted 



the guru-shishya relationship 

195 

in terms of the Viennese outlook. A 

disciple in search of self and truth is considered as a patient and therefore, 

incorporates idealised images of the guru which he feels as genuine 

and valuable additions to his own personality. The guru is considered 

to be the prime alchemist of the soul, who brings about the great 

mental and personality change. It is therefore not surprising that some 

Indian psychologists consider the guru-shishya relationship as the most 

acceptable model of psychotherapy in the Indian setting (Neki, 1975). 

Such interpretations, though controversial, establish a psychological 

need for &dquo;possessing&dquo; a guru. 

Though, the guru-shishya relationship is changing in its nature and 

form, still, there is something perennial about it. The National Policy 

on Culture (NPC) tabled in the Indian Parliament in 1992, highlights 

the significance of the time tested system of guru-disciple relationship 

when it mentions: 

Guru-shishya parampara has been a cardinal factor in transference 

of vision and technique in the field of performing arts. This system 

is facing many new challenges and needs to be carefully and imaginatively 

strengthened keeping in view the changed ethos. Besides 

recognizing this system throughout the country, efforts would be 

made to involve state governments, its various agencies, corporate 

sector, public sector undertakings, etc. to provide local support and 

sustenance of literary skill to Gurus in various forms and styles in 

schools of music, dance, theatre, etc. Special attention will be paid 

to such styles, instruments, and forms that might be threatened with 

extinction. (NPC draft document, p. 25, 3.31) 

In many respects, the traditional nature still retains its resilience and 

force which has made it survive and become acceptable. There is something 

that keeps it going and the ancient practice of guru-shishya relationship 

continues. One can come across many examples in diverse 

fields where gurus have taken shishyas under their wings. Such examples 

are many and can be multiplied. Such relationships have, in fact, been 

instrumental in the development of creativeness and exceptional talents 

of different types. There are still genuine and authentic gurus found 

who may like to remain anonymous and teach all through the gentle 

voice of conscience. This dwelling Divine (the guru) builds up inner 



196 

resources and enlightens the inner self of his shishya and in the process 

helps him attain the Upanishadic invocation to God: 

Asato ma sadgamaya 

Tamaso ma jyotirgamaya 

Mrityor ma amritam gamaya 

Lead us from unreal to Real 

Lead us from darkness to Light 

Lead us from death unto Immorality. 

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M.K. Raina is Professor of Educational Psychology at the National Council of Educational 

Research and Training, New Delhi. His main interest is in the study of creativity. His 

recent publication is The Creativity Passion: E. Paul Torrance’s Voyages of Discovering 

Creativity.

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