THE HOUR FLITS BY

The Centenary Year of Swami Gahanananda is passing by. Are we who are the disciples of the Swami going to allow it to pass without making a significant impact in our lives? I know, numbers are but numbers and spread their charm over children caught up in their maze and many a wiseacre will say that we ought not to bother too much about these silly things like centenary and the like that keep coming up now and then, rather we ought to remember that we have more important things to attend to in our lives like our routine duties to our families and selves. But a saner attitude to adopt would be to utilise this grand occasion to transform our lives and give them a spiritual direction, a new orientation of selfless living and service where egotism does not hold centre-stage and collective well-being is paramount in our estimation. To be a spiritual preceptor is an onerous task but to be a disciple is an even greater discipline for while the Guru is an adept, the disciple is a novice who is groping his way through the maze of life. Is it not incumbent on the disciple to do the utmost for his Guru and is it asking too much of him to make the occasion of the Centenary Year of his Guru an event worthy of remembrance which will serve his whole life as an inspirational memory and guide him well through the vicissitudes of life? Here is a point to ponder as to what we may yet do to celebrate this momentous moment in our lives for the hour is not yet up and the sails are on high wind, the grace of the guru in full flow awaiting just the opportune moment to touch our lives yet again and send us careering towards our divine end. How we will respond to the requirements of the hour will largely be the indicator of our spiritual attitude, our devotion to the one that gave us spiritual life and will determine the future course of our movement towards the eventual end where the Guru and God are one. With fond hopes that these lines will strike sympathetic chords in many an aspirant soul and impel them on to affirmative action, I end this appeal with goodwill to all and invoking on all the blessings of Gurudev at this propitious hour. Jai Gurudev! Jai Thakur!