“Parading oneself as successful and wealthy, yet the mind eats one from within. No matter what one achieves, the mind does not become still — true peace keeps wandering.” In the entire universe, the authority to give true knowledge belongs only to the Sadguru. God created the cosmos, but even He did not reserve this power for Himself. When the Sadguru strengthens the disciple’s knowledge, the signs of ignorance begin to vanish — attachment, possessiveness, and ego, the unholy trinity. The deluded mind drowns in “*I*” and “*mine*.” Samarth Ramdas lists this mindset: “*My* mother, *my* father, *my* wife, *my* children, *my* house, *my* land, *my* wealth, *my* body.” Carrying the burden of “mine,” the soul wastes its entire life and dies empty-handed. Even after earning immense wealth and enjoying worldly luxuries, peace remains elusive. This state is called ignorance, and only the Sadguru destroys it.
“Across countless births the longing remains: ‘May I find the Sadguru.’ Only through divine coincidence does one meet such a being — and in His presence, peace appears.” Scripture says: “Brahman itself stands in the form of the Guru.” The Guru and Sadguru are not the same. A guru may be a teacher, but a Sadguru is a principle, a divine manifestation acting through a human form. Because this principle appears in a body like ours, we fail to recognise it. Only one with exceptional past karma can recognise, serve, love and surrender to the Sadguru. Saint Dasganu Maharaj’s āratī of Gajanan Maharaj describes the Sadguru as Truth itself, Consciousness itself, and the One who uplifts suffering beings. He removes three kinds of afflictions:
By removing these, the Sadguru makes the seeker prosperous — not worldly, but spiritually.
“Saints and Sadgurus are verily God. They are oceans of knowledge. With every moment they transform the seeker through their compassionate effort.” We praise wealthy people and even tolerate their insults because we depend on them. But the Saint is the true wealthy one: His treasure is eternal, he enriches anyone who approaches, and his wealth is spiritual abundance. Tukaram says: “True wealth belongs to the one whose treasure is Narayana.” How did Tukaram become such a spiritual emperor? He answers: “I simply recited the words of saints with deep reverence.” The path is the same in *Atmonnati Sadhana*. Ramdas Swami too praises saints: “Saints are oceans of peace, showers of compassion, and clouds that rain knowledge.” When the cloud of grace gathers, it showers wisdom. Hearts free of ego blossom; those hardened by pride remain dry. Saints and Sadgurus are one — givers of joy, peace and the highest prosperity.
“By the Guru’s touch, the wicked mind becomes pure, the intellect transforms, and ignorance disappears through awakened discrimination.” Sadguru Narendranath Maharaj teaches that the Guru’s grace cures the deepest disease — bhavaroga, the disease of worldly existence. This disease appears as ego, anger, greed, delusion and envy, which cloud the mind and blind the seeker. In the *Nārada Purāṇa*, Sage Nārada praises Lord Dattatreya: “I worship Dattatreya, the destroyer of all diseases.” All spiritual lineages represent Dattatreya; the Sadguru is His living form. A story of Sri Narasimha Saraswati illustrates the Guru’s power: A young Brahmin, desperate for knowledge, cut off his own tongue in despair. The Goddess directed him to Narasimha Saraswati. When the Guru placed His hand on the boy’s head, the tongue reappeared, and he became a master of all six scriptures. Such is the transforming power of the Guru.
“By chanting the Divine Name, devotion grows. Gradually the form of God is perceived, and dispassion and knowledge awaken.” Narendranath Maharaj exalts nāma-smarana as the most essential tool for spiritual progress. Tukaram swore on Vithoba: “Among all practices, nāma is the simplest.” Eknath Maharaj declared: “There is no sin in the three worlds greater than the Name’s power to destroy it.” Dnyaneshwar Maharaj said: “By constant remembrance of the Lord, past sins are burnt to ashes.” Narendranath Maharaj explains the relationship between soul and the Name as that between hunger and food: every mouthful nourishes, and every repetition of the Name provides inner strength, God-love and freedom from cravings. If these results do not appear, one is committing offenses against the Name, such as criticising saints, doubting the Guru’s words, thinking Shiva and Vishnu are separate, misusing the Name or abandoning righteous duties. When these are dropped, love for the Guru blossoms.
“As one performs real austerity, love for the Guru deepens. Worldly relations loosen their grip, and one longs to remain only in the Guru’s presence.” What is “real” austerity? Narendranath Maharaj explains that it means chanting the Name as instructed, avoiding offenses and living in surrender. When austerity is genuine, the heart softens, love for the Guru grows, worldly attachments weaken naturally and the seeker desires only Guru-sevā and Guru-sannidhya. This silent transformation is the doorway to liberation.
“To discipline the senses, one must remain under the Guru’s guidance. For the Saguna Sadguru is the embodied form of Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh.” Desire (*kāma*) is the enemy of knowledge. It resides in the senses, mind and intellect — and destroys all three. Krishna explains the fall: desire → anger → delusion → loss of memory → loss of discrimination → downfall. Dnyaneshwar Maharaj describes desire and anger as killers of seekers, serpents guarding the treasure of wisdom, and tigers hiding in sense-pleasures. They burn without fire, drown without water, tie without rope and kill without weapons. Only the Guru redirects the senses toward devotion, stabilises the mind and frees the intellect from distortion. Then the journey toward the Supreme becomes safe. Hence the teaching: remain under the Guru’s guidance to discipline the senses.
Sri Sadguru Narendranath Maharaj ki Jay!