Questioner: ‘One must have a guru. Without a guru one cannot acquire knowledge (gnan- knowledge of the Self)’. Is this principle correct?
Dadashri: Yes it is correct. Now, ‘Guru’ is a quality, the word ‘Guru’ itself is not Guru. It is when one has the qualities of a ‘Guru’ that one is called a Guru. Certain qualities make a Guru and certain other qualities make a Gnani (Avatar). It can be said that if a person has such and such qualities, he is called a guru and God is someone who has such and such qualities.

Questioner: What are the attributes of a true guru?
Dadashri: A true guru has love, the true guru thinks about your own good; that is the true Guru. Where can you find such a guru? Just the mere sight of such a guru will make you surrender yourself to him without any reservations.

‘Whom can you call a guru? It is the one to whom you surrender. The moment you set eyes on him, you will bow your head down to him. That is a guru. A guru is someone who is omniscient, only then can you be liberated, otherwise you would not achieve liberation.

So one cannot do without a guru. Those people who claim that one can do without a guru are contradicting themselves. In this world nothing can work without a guru, be it a technical matter or any other matter. The statement ‘There is no need for a guru’, is not fit to be written. So people ask me ‘Then why do so many people say this?’ I tell them, people do not say this deliberately. They are not at fault. Whatever aversion they may have towards a guru from their previous life, is what they are declaring today.

Questioner: But why do they have an aversion towards a guru?
Dadashri: In their previous life they had quarreled with a guru and today that has turned into an aversion. Aversion of all kinds will seep in. Many have aversion not towards a guru, but towards God. So that is why they negate the need for a guru. But otherwise those who say ‘A guru is not necessary’ are all against the world, because they are going around blaming others for their own mistakes. If a person has a disagreement with a guru, he makes his mind up that no one should ever have a guru. Now if a guru has burned a person, then he may not keep a guru, but he cannot impose his experience on others. If I were to have a bitter experience with a guru, I should not go around saying that no one should have a guru. People should keep their prejudices to themselves; they should not go around telling others. They cannot go around giving advise to people, because in reality the whole world cannot do without a guru. Even to go somewhere, people have to ask for directions, don’t they?

Questioner: Yes, but the question is who should we make a guru?
Dadashri: It should be someone that pacifies you. Do not make them your guru unless your heart is pacified. This is why I have said if you are going to make someone your guru, then choose such a person that will be acceptable in your eyes’.

Questioner: What does ‘acceptable in your eyes’ mean?
Dadashri: When men set out to look for a bride, what do they look for? They look for a girl who will ‘fill (satisfy) their eyes’. And if the girl happens to be a little fat, then her ‘fatness’ becomes imposing, he feels the strain in his eyes; he feels the heaviness. If she is too thin, then he feels bad. You can tell by looking into his eyes. So what does the statement ‘The guru should fill up your eyes’ mean? It means that he should be acceptable in your eyes in every way; his speech should be acceptable and his conduct should be acceptable. Make such a person your guru.

If the guru ‘lives in your heart’, and you like what he says, you should become dependant on him, after which you will not have any grievances. A guru is something very extraordinary. The one you make your guru should make your heart feel at peace and make you forget the entire world. Otherwise there cannot be any glory to a guru.

Questioner: ‘When you surrender everything to the true guru, then everything in your life becomes fulfilled’. How true is this statement in the worldly application?
Dadashri: This is completely true in the worldly sense. If you surrender to the guru, then your life will pass by smoothly. Since you surrender to the guru, you are acting under the instructions of the guru. You will not experience any difficulties, because when you surrender to the guru, you receive his grace.