Guru and Disciple

Author(s): Dada Bhagwan
Publisher: Mahavideh Foundation

Page 42

The Guru and the Disciple
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Dadashri: The disciple is needy and greedy for sure. What I mean to say is that the disciple is generally greedy. That poor fellow has the greed of, 'It would be good if I could get this Gnan.' His greed is to gain gnan from the guru; there is that much greed on his part. But is the guru not greedy also? How can we afford to have that? Not only does he not progress himself, but he also makes it difficult for his disciple to do so. This is what is happening in India now.
Exploitation by the guru
There are no other problems if the guru is good. To find a pure guru in this era of current time cycle, a guru that is not business-minded; is considered tremendous punya (merit karma). What do the gurus do otherwise? They will find the disciple's weaknesses and then play on them, making life miserable for him. Whom can the poor disciple disclose his weakness to, if he cannot even disclose them to his guru?
Questioner: Right now, there are certain gurus, considered gurus in the eyes of the world, but in reality, they are actually exploiting their disciples.
Dadashri: Maybe one or two gurus are for real, but despite their honesty and sincerity, they have limited skills. Deceitful gurus on the other hand, are very clever and they employ all kinds of guises.
Questioner: Any man who wants to be free takes support of a guru, but then he is not able to free himself from that guru. Therefore, eventually he will have to be free from that guru too; don't you think so?
Dadashri: Yes. I came across a businessperson in Surat who asked me to save him from his guru who told him that he would destroy him. He was afraid of what might happen to him and came to me for help. I asked him, "What sort of dealing do you have with him that he used such strong language towards
The Guru and the Disciple
you? Do you have some relation of 'give and take' with him? He can only speak this way if there is some 'give and take'." He then told me, 'My guru says that unless I send him 50,000 rupees, he will destroy me.' I asked him if he dealt in money with his guru or engaged in a business of lending money to him. He told me, "There is no lending of money but my guru tells me that unless I give him money, things would go very badly for me. Therefore, out of fear, I would give him money. So far, I have given him 125,000 rupees and, on top of that, he wants 50,000 more. I do not have that much money now. This guru is telling me that he would destroy me.'
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I told him to come with me; I told him that I would protect him. Then I said, 'You will not be destroyed. I will protect you from whatever your guru does to you, but from now on, do not send anything there. If you feel love towards the guru, then send something. If you feel an overwhelming love, then send something, but do not send anything out of fear. Otherwise, the guru will become even more demanding. Do not be afraid. Do not think negatively about your guru. This guru has taken away from you because of your mistake. He has not taken because of his mistake.'
The guru took away his money because of this disciple's mistake, is that not so? It is because of this disciple's greed (lalacha). Surely, he must have had some greed in him in order to keep such a guru! That is why he would give money to him, is that not true? Therefore, it is because of his own greed that he has been deceived. And these gurus will not let go of anything that comes into their hands. Such are the gurus of the Kaliyug; they are not concerned about their next birth in the lower life form or what may happen to them as a consequence of their actions. They just have to find a prey. But what does the guru say? "He is my devotee," is that not what they say? At least it is good they call him a devotee and not a victim or prey; like hunters do!
Then I asked him if he had done anything in the name of his guru. He replied, 'Yes, I went and threw his photographs I used