Guru Vs Guru

As time nears my wedding date, I have started giving more ears to what the experienced have to say. Not long ago, we were sitting in Hayes at Soniya Di’s place where she was mentioning about the pride a wife takes in her husband. “Bhaiya, irrespective of the caliber that her husband carries, a woman considers her man to be the crown of her head. Things change after marriage, earlier you can make fun of your friends but as soon as they get married, you’ll notice the difference. You crack the same joke as before, husband might not feel offended but wife won’t be able to tolerate that because her husband is her pride”.

I did notice this behavior thereafter. So beautifully this pride rests in women that I couldn’t resist relating this to my spiritual journey. I feel this is also true to every human. Irrespective of the level of correctness of my belief system, I am so attached to my beliefs. Like a wife who takes pride in her husband, I too take pride in my beliefs. The only friends wife has made are the one’s who have accepted wife with her husband. This behavior I think everyone understands, but don’t know why this doesn’t get replicated in spiritual journeys? A lady might take pride in her own husband but at the same time is cautious about understanding the pride woman opposite her is taking. Don’t know why people fail to implement this spiritually?

X who believes God is everywhere can’t tolerate Y who is trying to see God in his Guru. I cannot accept or offer respect to someone’s Guru but doesn’t mean my God is absent in his Guru. Don’t know why this gets missed, If I admire my mentor similarly does he admire his mentor. I believe this simple thought can prevent Guru Vs Guru fights going around.

Tula marathi yete ka?

“Acha twaanu Marathi nahin aundi” and both of us laughed. The other day, after exchanging greetings in Marathi with Hema ji I finally said “ Mala Marathi yete naahi” signaling that I don’t know much of Marathi. I have learnt few basic dialogues from Marathi, Kannada, Telegu and other Indian languages from my Infosys batchmates who came from different parts of India. And the few lines that I have picked up I tend to use these wherever possible. Perhaps this was another occasion when I was trying to prove my Marathi skills to one of the sister saints who was born and brought up in Mumbai and is Marathi by mother tongue. After listening to my dialogue, she smiled and checked in Punjabi ‘So you don’t know Marathi?’ and both of us laughed.
Both of us at that moment appreciated the hands of the potter who is molding our clays in order to bring humans out of us. It is saddening to see at times people around fighting over the languages, however at the same time comes a feeling of gratitude for the spiritual guide who taught a Punjabi guy to admire Marathi and a Marathi gal to accept Punjabi. One of the traits of spiritual living is Acceptance. Accept – The other being as such. I guess there also exists another generous acceptance where you accept the things what other does. Probably that’s what Hema ji too has picked up - She wasn’t just okay with me being a Punjabi and she being a Marathi. She picked up the finest form of acceptance – she picked up what I spoke. This acceptance in her isn’t just confined to her speech, but every aspect of her living. And it’s again something she has learnt while growing up.
Had it not been your grace my Allah, I too would have confined myself in the barriers of languages, dressing styles, eating habits, colors of the skin etc and yet call myself a spiritual being. Also, thanks to the potter who picked me up and is shaping a true human out of this clay. I know I need to be shaped a lot to be able to love other beings as my own self, to respect others, to help others, to be kind to others, to be generous, to be a listener, to be a peacemaker, to be … Task is too much but I do have faith in you O Murshid, and of course with God's grace whenever I die I should be able to reply “yes” to this question from a famous book -

“Have you ever had a teacher ..........Someone who during your formative years has made you look at life differently? ....... Someone who would look at you and see a raw but precious gem? Someone who would love you not only for what you are but for what you could become?”