PART ONE of my Spiritual Teachers Lecture Series 
 
The guru is not a personality. 
The guru is a portal to The Reality
with a personality. 
 
The guru isn't:
a spiritual teacher 
someone who is really good at something 
a pundit / adept 

​The guru can be any of those things, but what makes the guru The Guru has more to do with how they are as opposed to what they do or say.  

In the yogic traditions, the guru is a physical emanation of a more subtle aspect of reality. The guru is two-fold: both a human being, and is also the principle of Divine Revealment [Grace].
 
So, this principle is made manifest in the human form as the guru.
 
This is important to understand because it is exactly through the human-ness of the guru that Divine awareness becomes more and more accessible. Their human-ness is the access-point, and their state of being is what we contact and are ultimately transformed by. 
 
It is unavoidable that we must attempt to understand spiritual traditions in their totality in order to grasp complex concepts such as the guru. The guru isn't an isolated event—it's a dynamic, revelatory principle within the many moving parts of the Play of Consciousness [the universe.] The maya, as the principle of concealment, is just as important as the guru, the principle of revealment. All parts are necessary in order to give rise to this physical realm, and to support the evolution of expression within it. 

In this class, I will attempt to encapsulate important aspects of this spiritual totality. I have been engaged in the guru/disciple relationship for 7 years. During this time, I've been learning and growing in close proximity to him—we don't have an online relationship, or only see each other a few times a year. I see this person more than most of my friends. :) So, I have A LOT of experience in this particular spiritual dynamic, and am excited to explain the context for it, the benefits of it, and the potential pit falls therein [in part 2: red flags to look for in a spiritual teacher]
 
Class Structure: 
The concept of the guru specifically in the hindu yogic traditions
The five functions of the Divine Mother [and what the guru has to do with it.]
Various definitions, breaking down the sanskrit, and the three major types of gurus. 
What happened in the 20th century—addressing the dubious gurus of the 70s-80s-90s to present. 
What is the "inner guru?" & why we can't ONLY rely on it. 
The case for guru yoga
& my own experiences and stories within this dynamic. 
 
What you will gain from this class: 
You will walk away with a new [yet ancient] understanding of this sacred spiritual dynamic. I am confident that it is very likely that you have never heard the guru described in this way before. There are many accounts of the transformation inherent in this dynamic, but few explanations about why. You will walk away from this class understanding why. You will also understand why there have been some gurus who have behaved in unacceptable ways—and yet, were still in undeniably high levels of spiritual attainment. 
​
You will not walk away from this class feeling like this is something you need to engage with. I do not expect anyone to be interested in exploring the guru/disciple relationship. What I am interested in is shining a light on this valuable dynamic, and to set an example for how we should move forward with it in the 21st century.