KATHA UPANISHAD - 36. Swami Advayananda.

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Saturday, 02 Sep 2023 06:30.

Chapter 1. Section - 2: (25 Mantras): THE CHOICE:

(“A Leap into the Beyond”):  Bhashyam by Sri Swami Adi Sankaracharya ji.

Post - 36.

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THE GURU & DISCIPLE RELATIONSHIP

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Mantram -1.2.7: Wonder Teacher & Wonder Disciple

1 

Shravanaaya api bahubhih  =  Even just for hearing of It, many find

yah na labhyah  =   the Self to be unavailable to them;

2 

shrunvantah api bahavah   =  And if they do manage to hear of It, many cannot  

yam na vidyuh;  =   comprehend the meaning of the Self;

3 

aashcharyah vaktaa   =   It is a wonder to find that rare expounder (of the Self)

kushalah asya labdhaa  =   who is proficient to teach It well;

4 

aashcharyah jnaataa   =  it is also a wonder to find that rare listener (of the Self) 

kushala anu-shishtah.  =  who is proficient to grasp this teaching.

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A Teaching Hard to Obtain

1-2 

Many may get the good fortune to go to listen to such a teacher, but even 

amongst them there would be one rare soul who actually gets touched by the teaching and 

seeks to advance.


Acharyaji told us humorously of many people who go to Vedanta lectures just to get 

away from their troublesome families. They sit in the back row and have a good sleep! 

Others come but their minds are so agitated that they cannot understand anything that is 

said. They, too, doze off midway through the talk, unable to connect with the teacher.

A Teacher & Disciple Hard to Obtain

3-4 

Aascharya: “awe-inspiring, a wonder”. In the midst of this pitiful situation, there 

arises one among millions who seeks to escape from this life of sense enslavement. He is so 

rare as to be a wonder in this world. A good, proficient Teacher who can teach about the 

Self is equally a wonder. Both are Kushalah, rare and proficient.


Yama is amazed to have discovered one like Nachiketas, who really towers above the 

generality of mankind. Yama raises him aloft as an example of the rarity of spiritual 

aspiration in this world of materialism and sense pleasures.

In taking the true teacher and a true disciple as “Wonders”, we have to be careful 

that these do not refer to outward signs. Pujya Gurudev describes it beautifully: “A teacher 

is not a wonder because of the length of his beard, or because he sleeps not, eats not or 

dresses not. Many aspirants have fallen into this mistake of judging the outer-show, only to 

find in the end inner hollowness!


The Wonder Teacher is one who is both proficient in expressing himself to an 

audience of seekers, and also one who has experienced the Truth of the Self within him. The 

Wonder Disciple is he who has a genuine desire and thirst for God and God alone to find the 

ultimate fulfillment in his life. 

*****

Next

1.2.8: Principles in Spiritual Teaching

To be continued

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know the self, know the self in Nature, know the self in Jiva, Further Oneness.

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