What is it about Gurus ?
 

What is it about Gurus ( most of whom seem to come from India ) that so many people from the West follow their every word or bit of advice with blind obedience and devotion?

Not meaning any disrespect, but did they eat from a special tree of knowledge or what ?

What makes what they say, any different from what someone you meet wherever, has to say ? Just because they come from India ? How come one never hears of a Guru from Alaska ? ( just a random choice ) ... or maybe a warmer place ?

If one listens to some of what is being said by a Guru, talk of love, compassion etc... one could hear the same thing, sometimes not always ... from someone who gets a bit sentimental & philosophical , after one too many glasses of wine .:D Isn't wine a drink of the gods ?

just wondering.......

Dream Angel xx

Hehehe. Hmmm... maybe it's just the perception of a guru as a truly "enlightened one" that the West has. Hinduism is seen as mystical religion to many and they may assume that the guru has achieved that level of knowledge and enlightenment. Wine has had that effect on me a time or two - that's why I rarely drink anymore! LOL.

This are good questions, Dream Angel.


Not any disrespect, but did they eat from a special tree of knowledge or what ?

Yes... True gurus do.

The difference lies in their speaking from direct experience in our universal true nature, rather than mere spiritual concepts.

People follow them implicitly because of devotion, a deep kind of bond not seen in ordinary relationships... and because a genuine guru can lead others to that same special tree of Self knowing.

Most gurus come from India because of the deep level of consciousness, which I have observed on many occasions.


Xan

That's actually a very interesting question. I don't know why it is but for some reason the practice of disciplined meditative training to attain higher states of consciousness really started in India and then spread out from there. No other culture did that so far back in antiquity, and most cultures which later did (such as Tibet) were influenced by India. I have no idea really why that was, but India and the countries around it focused on inner mental training and the Western world didn't (at least not to anywhere near the same degree).

For some reason, we in the West ate of the "tree of knowledge" of science about the outer world, and we gained a particular kind of knowledge which allowed us to build highly advanced technology. But we never turned within very much, and never undertook the kind of meditative training that other cultures influenced by Indian mysticism did. They on the other hand did not develop our advanced technology, but focused on an inward turn to states of consciousness.

In Tibet, large proportions of the population sat in caves and watched their minds for a thousand year period. They hardly developed any technology. We in the West did just the opposite. Why it happened that way I do not know, but today we are very blessed that we can eat of the trees of knowledge given by both cultures.

I'd heard it said, Tibet was the earths crown chakra, for thousands of years.
However it's now supposedly located in Peru.

In Tibet, large proportions of the population sat in caves and watched their minds for a thousand year period. They hardly developed any technology.

An old guru of mine used to say, "The East walks with a bigger spiritual foot and the West walks with a bigger material foot. Both have been limping, but now's the time for both coming into balance."


Xan

Yes that's right. The material foot is to make the dream of life a happier dream. The spiritual foot is to wake up from the dream. True Gurus are those who have woken up, and can therefore guide us. At the same time, we also need to make efforts to make this dream of life more pleasant.

Do you think there may be something about the human need to devote to something/someone? I think a lot of us do, whether it's rock stars, TV stars, sports celebrities, gurus or whatever else. I think people are looking for someone to look up to, perhaps due to being disconnected from their own inner hearts. Until people realise what they have inside (including myself here) the temptation may be to admire someone else who appears to have the 'missing qualities.

I'm not sure that following gurus actually means any different on the surface to following a rock star. It's the experience of craving/desiring that other person to complete us.

Obviously I might be wrong but just some thoughts on this.

I don't think it's so much about guru's and western people, but more about humans in general and authorities. Having an authority that tells you what to do or believe saves a lot of trouble for you. Trying to think independently is always the hard way.