“But this, the shaping of our own destinies, does not preclude our receiving help from outside; nay, in the vast majority of cases such help is absolutely necessary. When it comes, the higher powers and possibilities of the soul are quickened, spiritual life is awakened, growth is animated, and man becomes holy and perfect in the end.

This quickening impulse cannot be derived from books. The soul can only receive impulses from another soul, and from nothing else. We may study books all our lives, we may become very intellectual, but in the end we find that we have not developed at all spiritually.”

This makes complete sense. Even in school, a textbook can only take us to a certain level of understanding, we need a teacher to properly show us the concepts so that we may master them. There are so many gurus in the world to help us advance spiritually. However, choosing a guru is like choosing a religion. It is not traditional to choose more than one guru. Although all gurus will help you grow spiritually, the methods will vary from guru to guru. To prevent confusion between the teachings of the gurus, it is advised to not have more than one guru.

If this is the case, then how must we choose the guru that is right for us? Perhaps it is the ideals of a certain guru that appeal to some. Or, perhaps it is the different sorts of lifestyles certain gurus encourage that appeal to some.

This is a very difficult decision to make as it is a decision that will remain with you for life. But keep in mind that we should question the teachings so that we can test to make sure we are not being taught false spirituality. After all, Swamiji tested Sri Ramakrishna countless times before he began to believe in his guru’s teachings.

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I was recently talking to my roommates, who are both practicing Christians, about the similarities and differences between Hinduism and Christianity.  As a student in Vidyapith, and as a student of Vedanta, I had always heard about Christianity’s similarities to Hinduism — how Christ can be thought of as an ideal karma yogi; how both Christianity and Hinduism stress selflessness; how Christianity emphasizes that we are made in the image of God, and how Vedanta parallels this idea by saying that we are all potentially divine.

But for the first time, my conversation with my roommates revealed some differences — I had never before realized the extent to which some Christians truly believe that only Christians will go to heaven; however, the idea made some sense to me after I thought about it — after all, every religion needs supporters (historically speaking); perhaps spirituality and history got intertwined such that it is now part of the doctrine that conversion is still necessary.

The other interesting idea my roommates brought up is that the ideal Christian is he who lives by every word of the Bible; to pick and choose, my roommate said, is almost like choosing what is convenient for you, rather than what is the right thing to do.

I had always been raised with the idea that in Hinduism, the nice thing is that we can choose which path appeals to us most — the Hindu Gods and Goddesses represent different qualities and ideals that, depending on our personalities, will help us accordingly if we choose them to be our main God. In a similar vein, we can each create a blend of the four yogas to follow depending on what suits us best. As I began thinking of my roommate’s words — does this mean that we are simply doing what is convenient for us? How can we know that doing what “fits our personalities” isn’t just doing what is easiest, and not necessarily what is best, for us?

I asked Swami Tyagananda of the Boston Ramakrishna Vedanta Center this question, and he responded saying that this is why Hinduism stresses the importance of a teacher. Swamiji mentioned the idea from the Upanishads that your mind can be your own best friend, and it can also be your own worst enemy. Our minds have an incredible capacity to justify almost any action we take; until we have enough control on our minds to know when such justification is unwarranted, we need the help of a spiritual guide to show us how to do what is right, rather than what is just convenient and not necessarily right. 

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