Why a Master?

‘Master' is a title befitting any individual who has attained great skill or capacity in a particular area. In spirituality the term generally describes one who has mastered himself or herself. In fact only someone who has attained self-mastery is truly capable of training others. In the Sahaj Marg tradition, the Master is the living spiritual representative, prepared and appointed by his Master to carry on the spiritual duties after his passing. So there is only one living Master at a time, who is both the spiritual representative and president of Shri Ram Chandra Mission. A true master brings the disciple to God, not to himself.

In the living tradition of Sahaj Marg, the Master utilises transmission or pranahuti - the most subtle divine energy of the Ultimate for the transformation of humanity. Masters come to serve, dedicating their lives to spiritual service. Truly speaking, the external master or guru can be described as the reflection of the inner teacher within the heart of each one of us. This is true of masters of all the great traditions, as described by the words of Swami Vivekanada:

The guru is the bright mask which God wears in order to come to us. As we look steadily on, gradually the mask falls off and God is revealed.

Kamlesh D. Patel is the current living spiritual Master and president of SRCM. The masters of Sahaj Marg have all been married, fathers and householders, serving as living examples of the spiritual truth that the highest spiritual attainment can be achieved in the course of ordinary human life, provided one is fortunate enough to find and follow a capable living master.

"In a sense the guru, for that is how we call the spiritual guide in the Indian tradition, is the bridge from here to the hereafter; from this human life into the eternal spiritual existence; from this mundane world to the Brighter World."

- Chariji