What Is An Enlightened Master’s (Guru’s) Primary Work?
Question: What is the Guru’s primary work?
Amma: The Guru’s only purpose is to inspire the disciples and help them cultivate the faith and love necessary to reach the Goal. First and foremost, the Guru’s job is to light the flame of Self-enquiry or devotion to God in the disciple. Once lit, the Master’s next job is to keep the flame alive, protecting it from stormy nights and torrential rains of temptations. The disciple will learn the most important lessons of surrender and detachment through the inspiration of the Master’s life and actions. Finally, this will culminate in full surrender and transcendence.”
~ Amma (Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, Amma.org)
While Amma’s approach is pure, deep, and comprehensive, in general, a spiritual guru’s primary work is to guide, mentor, and support individuals on their spiritual journey toward their Self-realization and enlightenment.
The landscape of personal and spiritual development is rich and varied, featuring a wide range of guides, from enlightened spiritual masters to trendy influencers. Understanding the differences among these roles can help individuals navigate their personal growth journeys more effectively. Here’s a breakdown of each:
Enlightened Spiritual Master (A True Guru)
Definition: An enlightened spiritual master is someone who has attained a profound level of spiritual realization and embodies this wisdom in their daily life. They have typically undergone years, often decades, of intense spiritual practice and self-inquiry.
Focus: Their teachings are centered on profound spiritual truths, aiming to lead others toward their own experiences of enlightenment or spiritual awakening. The teachings often transcend religious and cultural boundaries, focusing on universal truths.
Method: Enlightenment is the goal, and the path involves deep meditation, contemplation, and often a renunciation of ego-based desires. The relationship with disciples is deeply spiritual and can involve direct transmission of spiritual energy or insight.
Intuitive Spiritual Teacher
Definition: An intuitive spiritual teacher uses innate intuitive abilities to guide others on their spiritual journeys. They may also draw on various spiritual traditions but with a strong emphasis on intuition as a source of wisdom.
Focus: The focus is on helping others connect with their inner wisdom, intuition, and higher self. They often teach how to develop one’s intuition and use it as a guide in life and spiritual growth.
Method: Their methods may include meditation, intuitive readings, energy healing, and workshops designed to unlock one’s intuitive powers. They provide personalized guidance, often tailored to the individual’s unique spiritual path.
Life Coach
Definition: A life coach is a trained professional who helps clients achieve specific personal or professional goals. While not exclusively spiritual, their work can touch on aspects of personal growth and fulfillment.
Focus: The focus is primarily on setting and achieving goals, overcoming obstacles, and making positive changes in one’s life. Life coaches may employ various techniques from the fields of psychology, business, and personal development.
Method: Methods include one-on-one coaching sessions, goal-setting exercises, accountability partnerships, and motivational interviewing. The relationship is more like a partnership, with the coach providing support and guidance.
Trendy Influencer
Definition: A trendy influencer, in the context of spirituality and personal development, is someone who uses social media and other platforms to share insights, often based on popular or emerging trends in spirituality and wellness.
Focus: Their focus tends to be on accessible, often surface-level aspects of spirituality and personal development that can easily be shared and consumed through social media. This may include affirmations, lifestyle advice, and simplified interpretations of spiritual concepts.
Method: Influencers reach their audience through social media posts, videos, podcasts, and sometimes merchandise. Their methods are highly accessible and designed for mass consumption, but may lack the depth and personalized guidance of more traditional spiritual or personal development paths.
Key Differences
The key differences among these roles lie in their depth of spiritual realization, methods of teaching, focus areas, and how they engage with their followers or students.
Enlightened spiritual masters and intuitive spiritual teachers offer paths to deep, transformative spiritual growth, focusing on inner realization and intuitive development, respectively.
Life coaches provide structured guidance aimed at achieving personal and professional goals, employing a range of psychological and motivational techniques.
Trendy influencers, while offering accessible and engaging content, may not provide the depth of guidance or the personalized approach found in traditional spiritual or coaching relationships.
Choosing between these guides depends on one’s personal needs, goals, and stage of spiritual or personal development.
Spiritual Masters Have Different Styles
Depending upon the Enlightened Master, this role can encompass a wide range of responsibilities and objectives, including:
Teaching: Enlightened Masters provide spiritual teachings, wisdom, and insights derived from their own spiritual experiences and traditions to inspire the devotee or disciple to devote themselves to the person’s notion of God – and to encourage Self-inquiry.
Pure Enlightened Masters may offer instruction in meditation, philosophy, ethics, and practices designed to facilitate spiritual growth. The most valuable Spiritual Masters teach The Dharma and inspire their devotees to be Self-reliant, honest, and devoted to serving and loving humanity in some way.
Mentoring And Counseling: Many Enlightened Masters serve as inspiring mentors, teachers, and role models, offering guidance and support to their disciples or followers. They often help individuals navigate the challenges and obstacles encountered on the spiritual path.
Many Enlightened Masters often serve as spiritual counselors, helping individuals address personal and existential concerns, make ethical choices, and find purpose and meaning in life.
These true gurus inspire their followers by embodying spiritual values and principles in their own lives. Their example motivates others to cultivate similar qualities and virtues.
The most divine Enlightened Masters are so clearly embodiments of The Divine, that even new visitors will fall to their knees and bow to these pure Beings.
Facilitating Self-Realization: Ultimately, a Spiritual Master’s primary work is to assist individuals in realizing their true nature, often referred to as Self-realization or enlightenment. This involves helping individuals transcend ego, attachments, desires, and illusions to experience a deeper connection with The Divine or The Universe.
Spiritual Practices: Enlightened Spiritual Masters may introduce and teach specific spiritual practices, such as meditation, prayer, mantra repetition, or yoga, to help individuals deepen their connection to the divine and expand their spiritual awareness.
In some traditions, Enlightened Masters perform initiation ceremonies or rituals that mark a disciple’s commitment to a particular spiritual path or practice. These initiations are seen as a profound spiritual awakening.
Ashrams & Temples: Enlightened Masters may establish spiritual communities or ashrams where like-minded individuals can come together for study, meditation, and communal living in an environment conducive to spiritual growth. Their overarching goal is to help individuals process the roots of their pain, unattended emotions, and illusory desires and projections, and progress along their spiritual path. The result is that devotees experience greater inner peace, deep healing, wisdom, and spiritual fulfillment.
To begin your path toward Self-realization and enlightenment, explore the living and deceased Enlightened Masters, Masters, and Avatars who have shared their light with the world.
My guru is Amma, also known as Mata Amritanandamayi Devi or The Hugging Saint, found HERE. You can learn more about some of the more popular Enlightened Masters in an article I wrote long ago – HERE.
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Author: Shri Krishna Kalesh
Shri Krishna Kalesh is a mystic who guides people as a Spiritual Guide, Intuitive Reader, Dharma Teacher, and Coach. He has served thousands of people toward their healing and expansion - through personal sessions, mystical readings, courses, and retreats. His mission is to help others source their own boundless creative genius and joy, embody virtue, find clarity, and master their lives. Shri Krishna Kalesh created The Shankara Oracle as a divine portal to The Unlimited, All-Knowing, All-Conscious Universe.