Guru Lakshanas Continued

deshikAkrtimAsthAya pashoH pAshAnasheShhataH

chhitvA paraM padaM devI nayatyenamato guruH

Because he cuts asunder the cords of pAsa completely and bestows supreme status to the pashus he is the guru.

sarvAnugraha kartrtvAdIshvaraH karuNAnidhiH

AcAryarUpamAsthAya dIkShhayA mokShhayet pashUn

 Being the treasure house of grace and the repository of compassion, he the Iswara takes the form of a teacher and liberates the pasus by way of dIkShhA (Initiation in to the sastra).

siddhAntasAra vettAhaM bIjohamiti bodhakrt

avicchhinnaH sadA hrShhTahRdayo gururucyate.

He is the guru who makes one realishe, “I am the essence of all philosophies, the seed or core of everything, indestructible and ever pleased in the heart

ShhaDadhvAnaM ShhaDAdhAraM ShhoDashAdhAranirNayaM

Yo jAnAti vidhAnena sa guruH kathitaH priye

O my beloved, the one who knows the 6 adhvA-s namely varNa, kalA, pada, mantra tatva and bhuvana and the one who knows the 6 AdhAra cakras namely muladhara, svadhiShhTana, maNipUraka, anAhata vishuddhi and Agnya and the determination of the sixteen AdhAra-s from the mUlAdhArA to AgnyA 6 and the 10 above the AgnyA namely, the bindu ardhendu, rodhinI, nAda, nAdAnta, shakti, vyApikA samana, unmana & dhruvamaNdala in their proper order, he is the guru.

drshyam vinA sthirA drShhTirmanashchAlambanaM vinA

vinAyAsaM sthiro vAyuryasya syAt sa guruH priye

The one whose vision is stable and fixed without even an object to perceive, whose mind is fixed without anything to think about and the one whose prANa is stable effortlessly, he is the guru.

bhUtabhavyau tantramantrau vettiyaH shAktashAmbhavaM

vedhashca ShhaDvidhaM devI sa hi vedhakaro guruH

The one who knows both the past and future, tantra and mantra shAkta and shAmbhava, the six types of vedha, he is the guru who is capable of piercing the subtle chakras.

padamantrakalAvarNa satatvabhuvanAshrayaM

shodhayet yaH ShhaDadhvAnaM sa guruH kathitaH priye

 He is called the guru who is capable of refining the six adhvas namely varNa, kalA, pada, mantra, tatva and bhuvana

jAgrat svapna suShhuptishca turIyaM tadatItakaM

yo vetti panchakaM devI sa guruH kathitaH priye

He is the guru who knows the five states of jAgrat (wakeful) svapna (dream state) suShhupti (deep sleep) turIya (fourth state) turIyAtIta (beyond the fourth)

piNDam padaM tathA rUpam rUpAtItaM catuShhTayaM

yo vA samyagvijAnIti sa guruH kathitaH priye

yo vA parA~nca pashyantI madhyamAM vaikharImapi

catuShhTayaM vijAnAti sa guruH kathitaH priye

AtmavidyAshivasarvamiti tatvacatuShhTayaM

Yo vetti parameshAni sa gururnAparaH priye

ANavaM kArmaNa~ncaiva mAyIya~nca malatrayaM

Yo vishodhayituM shaktaH sa guruH paramomataH

 

The one who knows well the four called piNDa, pada rUpa rUpAtIta is called as the guru. Further, the one who knows the four stages of speech namely parA pashyantI madhyamA and vaikharI; the one who knows the four tatvas called atma tatva, vidyA tatva, shivatatva and sarvatatva; the one who is competent and capable of purifying the threefold impurities of ANavamalaM kArmikamalaM & mAyikamalaM (of the shiShhya) is called the guru O beloved one !

It may be seen that the tantras unambiguously and unequivocally reiterate that only a person who has raised himself to the level of sadashiva / kAmeshvara is competent to initiate others into srividya shastra by way of dIkShhA. Various tantras define the constitution of the word 'dIkShhA' to mean -

'dIyate paramaM jnAnaM kShhIyate pApasancayaH' 

'bestows the ultimate wisdom and completely eradicates the accrued sins'

'dIyate shiva sAyujyaM kShhIyate pAshabandhanaM'
'that which bestows total identification with shiva and removes the pAsha-s'

The above attributes have been elaborately dealt with in the tantras to drive home the fact that the guru is none other than lord sadAshiva himself in human form and not everyone can become a srivdyaguru. It is also amply clear that having obtained diksha from a competent guru does not automatically confer anybody the competence to initiate others.

dIkShhitasya adhikArosti pUjAyAM caiva nishcitaM
gurutve tasya kutrApi nAdhikAraH kathamcana

a dIkShhita has the authority to do puja alone. He does not have the right to don the mantle of guru.

Hence, only the one who has reached the ultimate in this shAstra by way of divya anuShhTAna-s by the grace of shrI and who has ascended the para-apara bhUmikA-s of uttarakaula / uttarashAkta alone is competent to initiate others, having raised himself to the level of sadAshiva / kAmesha.