The festival of Guru Purnima is celebrated in India to honour spiritual gurus and teachers. Read on and learn more about the significance of Guru Purnima.The term “Guru” is derived from two Sanskrit words, “gu” meaning darkness and “ru” meaning the person who removes such darkness. This darkness also includes ignorance. Guru is the teacher who helps in removing such ignorance of mankind.
This day is marked as paying tribute and respect to our Guru or
teachers. As in the name this day is celebrated on a full moon day or “Purnima”. This is mainly the festival of the Hindus, Jain and the Buddhists.
The role of the Guru is equated to the powers of the Sun. Just as the Sun dazzles the moon by its light even during darkness, the disciples also like the moon, cannot shine without the light of knowledge from their Guru.
The Guru is believed to be the connection between man and God. It is through the Guru that one can attain the blessings of God. So Guru is worshipped as the living God.
Importance of Guru Purnima
As the festival is celebrated by the Hindus, Jain and the Buddhists, there are various legends behind the celebration of this auspicious day.
Significance of Guru Purnima According to Buddhism
According to the Buddhist folklore, on this day, Gautam Buddha, after attaining enlightenment, delivered His sermon for the first time to his five companions in Sarnath. After hearing the sermons His five companions also achieved the enlightenment. Then
>Lord Buddha asked them to go to different directions of the world and start preaching the principles of “Dharma”. On this day, Gautam Buddha as the Guru taught his disciples the principles of “Dharma”, so this day is celebrated by the Buddhist is showing honour and respect to Lord Buddha.
Significance of Guru Purnima According to Hinduism
According to the Hindu legends, on this day, the great sage and the writer of
Mahabharata, Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa, was born. He had done legendary works of collecting all the hymns of Vedas and dividing the Veda into four major parts, namely Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva. He taught this Vedic hymns to his four disciples, and so on this day he is honoured as a Guru and paid homage by people all over. Therefore, the day of Guru Purnima is also referred as Vyas Purnima.
Yogic Legend on Guru Purnima
The Yogic legend goes like this. On this day the Adi Guru or Shiva, began with the transmission of Yoga to his seven disciples, who later were honoured as Saptrishis. The Hindus consider Lord Shiva to be the earliest of all Gods. He has been immortal from time immemorial. Later on the Saptrishis spread this knowledge across the whole world. This knowledge helps mankind to learn how to evolve consciously. This knowledge is the foundation of the basic postures of Yoga which has become popular with time.
Significance of Guru Purnima According to Jainism
The Jains pay veneration to
Lord Mahavira, the 24th Tirthankara who became Guru to his first disciple, Gautam Swami.
So this day is celebrated to pay respect to the teachers and Gurus of the individuals.
Celebration of Guru Purnima
Guru Purnima is celebrated on a full moon day. It falls on the month of “Asadh” that is June or July. Because it is the month of shower, it is of great significance to the farmers who pay homage to the Rain Gods.
To mark this day more special, various cultural as well as spiritual programmes are held by the organisations. They also arrange for Kirtans and Bhajans in reverence to the various spiritual teachers.
This day is considered as the most auspicious day to start up with the spiritual lessons from the spiritual Gurus. It is believed to be the best day when the spiritual teachers possess the divine power. So everyone seeks these divine blessings from their respective teachers on this day. In return they worship and offer sweets to their spiritual Gurus on this day.
What is the significance of Guru Purnima festival? Which are the popular stories behind the festival of Guru Purnima? How is Guru Purnima celebrated? Discuss here.