Date : July 17, 2025
Long long before Mother’s Day and Father’s day, we have had Guru’s day! That is Guru Purnima, the birthday of Veda Vyasa. Our traditions trace our teachers back to our Acharyas, and Vyasa prior to them, all the way up to Narayana and Shiva.
Everybody has teachers but traditionally each Indian has had a Guru also. A teacher is one who enables the students to understand a specific subject matter. On the other hand, a Guru is one who guides a person to lead a proper and fulfilling life.
Dr.Jayakumar(Chief Guest) gave examples of famous gurus from history.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was inspired by his mother Jijabai, teacher Dadaji Kondadev and his Guru Samarth Ramadas. It is this inspiration that made him establish the powerful Maratha empire that protected India from Islamic Rule for 200 years from the 1600s.
Chandragupta Maurya, the founder of the Mauryan Empire, ruled around 321 to 297 BCE, unifying much of India. His Guru was none other than the famous Kautilya Chanakya, whose magnum opus on Arthashastra, written 2,300 years ago, is still a guide on Governance to many world leaders.
The Vijayanagaram Empire which spanned approximately what would be Karnataka, Kerala Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Orissa of today, protected the southern part of India from Islamic rulers. This empire was established by Harihara & Bukka in the 1600s. Their guru? Vidyaranya Muni of Sringeri Matha.
The famous Arjuna of Mahabharata himself had a Guru in Bhagwan Shri Krishna.
In Tamilnadu, Subramanya Bharathi, (1882-1921), a pioneering Tamil poet, writer, and independence leader, popularly known as Bharathiyar, had his Guru in the Acharya of Sringeri.
Once, a man went to a Swami to seek Sannyasa. He was advised that a Sanyasi’s life was not appropriate for him and that he had the right qualifications to serve and lead the country. That man is none other than our own Prime Minister, Shri. Narendra Modi, and his guru was Swami Atmasthananda of Ramakrishna Math.
Our most revered Sri Rama of Ramayana had Vashishtha Muni as his guru!
Therefore, in Sanatana Dharma, it is well known that each person must have a guru. Anybody living in India will be exposed to this tradition and the time will come when each of us will look for a Guru. This tradition is unique to South Asian cultures.
The speech was followed by presentations of several programs by students of Advaith Academy. One group presented a skit depicting the life of Drona and Ekalavya. Several students sang shlokas from the Bhagavad Gita and Guru Stotram. All teachers were recognised and given gifts on this auspicious occasion.
