The Benefits of Having a Guru
The single most common factor that emerged in the interviews conducted with disciples of various Gurus, was that they felt that having a Guru kept their spiritual practises on a fast track in a way that they know they could not have done on their own.
Most of them had tried meditation on and off for quite some time before finding a Guru and struggled to have regularity with little or no convincing results. Once practising under the guidance of a Guru, their practise was not only regular, but their progress was fast, certain and profound, flowing over into every area of their life. Things they had been struggling to overcome in their Yoga practises or within themselves, seemed to dissolve away relatively quickly and with a feeling of ease. Some even commented that they did not think they would be still meditating now if it were not for the Gurus guidance.
Kavita Parshotam from Palmerston North, a disciple of Paramahansa Yogananada, explains the benefits she has found in having a Guru: "You stop seeking and searching various different paths and you have this one goal that you can wholeheartedly follow, trusting your Guru to take you to the final goal of Yoga."
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