GuruKulam

Gurukulam means living with the teacher, Guru being teacher and Kula being home, this system belongs to a long line of guru's and disciples. From ancient time Guru's gave knowledge from word of mouth the great saints are part of this GuruKulam system, it is an unbroken chain, where the tradition keeps the teachings alive. Gods, saints, sages, masters and swamis are like rivers of knowledge with so many tributaries, through initiation there is a transfer of energy; the spark is given and then the knowledge of the student can grow through spiritual practice. To light a candle you need another candle so to speak. I have this system in my mind now, as I am preparing to journey back to India to my Guru; Swami Govindanada, to begin my advanced practice and teacher training on the 15th of Jan. It was a hard feat this evening as I said goodbye to my husband to go off on his Christmas dinner party with friends, knowing that the indulgence would be no good for my preparations even though there was a vegetarian option, staying home and lightly cooking my broccoli! But to go and embark on this course in its full glory of tradition, knowing everything that can be potentially gained from it, is a real privilege and I have to keep that in mind this festive season. Having recently been in touch with SwamiJI and him asking if I am preparing accordingly, I have to be strong, in fact as I told him I feel like I have been preparing for this since completing my first round of teaching training. Being a yoga teacher means living as a yogi, this means daily practice, asana and pranayama, daily meditation, daily Bagavad Gita reading and of course the yogi diet, as well as trying to keep up studies. How can I teach yoga properly and transfer that spark of knowledge if I am not living as yogi? So sometimes being a yoga teacher as much as it really is a wonderful and beautiful thing, it can also be a hard and lonely path, but it is my duty and one that I relish in.
I am so looking forward to being back with SwamiJi, receiving more purification and to follow his teachings implicitly as I know the benefits they will bring. However it is not good to just follow blindly, but from the practice there are sparks of light, awakenings, signs on the path that we are going in the right direction, knowledge is not all obtained all at once and yoga goes so deep the knowledge is a never ending fountain, so how can we expect to gain it all at once. No we have to keep on learning, it is said that a quarter of knowledge comes from the teacher, a quarter from fellow students, a quarter from oneself and the last quarter from time itself. So here I am my heart is open, my mind is open, with the Guru’s grace I hope for a very exciting learning experience that I can share with all of you, lets pass on the light.
With seasons wishes to you all,
Om Loka Somasta Sukhino Bhavanto
May all beings find peace and harmony
Om shanti shanti shanti
You can find Swami Govindanada at this site for courses and yoga vacations
http://www.sivanandapeetham.org/
nicky ☺