Indian Gurus: Uncovering The Power of the Sacred Feminine

Introduction

Scholars and practitioners alike in the field of religious studies have for years now been engaged in a myriad of disputatious debates regarding the role of women in religion or spirituality. Congruent summations drawn from the debates highlight that women are required to play second fiddle to men due to the patriarchic dictums upheld by both conventional and contemporary society. This assertion has, however, been challenged in the Indian society with women taking up guru roles that were predominantly limited to men.

Definition of Indian Guru-ship

By definition, a guru is said to be a teacher who guides students towards attaining a set level of knowledge. In the Sanskrit culture, the guru is viewed as a parent of both the mind and the soul who helps individuals mold their inchoate values while attaining both specific and experiential knowledge (Goldberg). The guru further serves as a source of inspiration that helps people understand the meaning of life.

A brief history of gurus

A review into the history of Indian guru-ship highlights that it first began in the mid-1st millennium BCE with the formulation of the Upanishads, which are defined as speculative commentaries into Hinduism scriptures. The Guru-ship was embraced in India due to the fact that it took up the responsibility of providing religious instruction using tutorial methods. The gurus actively transmitted moral teachings of the Vedas to the pupils, who were mostly male. Lucia highlights that the pupils were expected to live at the home of the guru, whereby they served with devotion and obedience.

The position of the guru in the Indian society was improved upon the rise of the Bhakti movement, which called for unwavering devotion to a deity that was personalized. At this instance, the guru shifted from being just a teacher into a sect leader with people worshiping them (Lucia).The gurus were also viewed to be the living vessel of spiritual truth, with sects such as the Vallabhacharya instructing the devotees to offer their property, mind, and body to the guru.

Domination of male guru-ship

The Indian society was not exempt from the patriarchal dictums as they embraced male gurus alone. This, however, came to change with the introduction of key categories in the Upanishads, such as transcendence, which required feminist theological praxes to be used in the attainment of key duties like devotion and duty (Olivelle). The Upanishads set forth the foundation for the advent of concepts regarding the consciousness of universal goodness and the urgency of action.

The interpretation of renunciant roles by female writers of the Upanishads played a role in introducing the shared language of intersubjectivity with service recipients and followers (Olivelle). This essay presents an analysis of how females were able to balance their gendered experiences as gurus against their socio-biological roles as women. The analysis is guided by the thesis that while women have been historically marginalized in Indian guru-ship, the inclusion of women gurus has proved to be fruitful for Indian communities and for communities internationally, as in the case of Mata Amritanandamayi.

Historical Texts of Upanishads

As mentioned, the advent of female guru-ship is based on the historical texts of Upanishads, which are said to be four genres of texts that contain interpretations into the sacred scriptures called the Vedas. The Vedas are divided into four components, namely:

· Rigveda

· Yajurveda

· Samaveda

· Atharvaveda

Owing to the fact that the Upanishads are found in the concluding portions of the Vedas, they are viewed as being foundational texts into theological discourses of a myriad of traditions embraced in the Hindu culture (Olivelle). The concept of the guru in the Upanishads has faced a infinite amount of changes, with scholars arguing that it morphed from a teacher disbursing knowledge to a set number of students sitting around him towards a philosopher who created an ephemeral connection between an individual with their soul and body (Olivelle). The Upanishads all present a vision in which the universe is interconnected using a single principle called the diversity in the cosmos (Olivelle). The texts further highlight that diversity resides in the unchanging core of the human individual, which thus introduces the concept of fluidity among gurus and the importance of allowing women to play their role in spirituality.

Lucia highlights that the authorship of the texts is unknown or uncertain, although women such as Gargi and Maitreyi were involved in dialogues that were credited in the Upanishads. There is evidence that shows that women were allowed to pursue interests in religion and philosophy, although they never attained the position of gurus (Lucia). The aforementioned scholars displayed facility in philosophic issues while eclipsing men in public debate. The setting up of the public debates was, however, guided by the srauta solemn ritual system, which institutionalized avenues of spiritual development for both men and women (Lucia). As a result, the debates allowed for the creation of the Upanishads, which are lauded as progressive proponents of gender equality in spirituality.

Theological View

Adopting a theological view into the concept of divine spirituality is important in confirming the thesis that women inclusion has thus far been fruitful. To begin with, the Hindu religion believes that the male and female couple is equal with a god being divine because of their goddess. For instance, Krishna has Rukmini while the god Ram has Sita(Pandya). The connection between the two genders was first introduced in the Upanishad, which highlights that providing women with equal status to men is substantial in the short- and long-term success of an organization.

The female gurus are often classed based on their behavior as they are expected to follow male behavioral models even though they were not initiated by male gurus. In the ideal category of a guru, the female guru has to understand the experience of divine providence and embody reality (Pechilis). This plays a momentous role in ensuring that they are able to attain self-realization. The second classification focuses on the message postulated by the guru when it comes to the divinity of the inner self as well as the importance of the devotees attaining self-realization (Pechilis). This category requires the female guru to guide the devotee. The third theological role is that the female guru should be ascetic, whereby they are pure in spirit and body. This role requires the female guru to be pure through a lack of self-interest and or desire (Pechilis).

Deductions from theology show that most female gurus associate themselves with received tradition because of the compelling belief that conventional methods are efficacious. By connecting themselves with the tradition, the female Hindu does not have to be viewed as patriarchal (Pechilis). Moreover, the female gurus tend to be innovative within the context as they try to maintain a dialogue with their tradition and recognize a kinship with it.

The teachings of the Upanishad and the classification of female gurus based on their behaviors have allowed for female gurus to deemphasize their sexuality by avoiding marriage or subordinating. Most of them argue that mysticism is not morality and that they are not locked by the findings. Rather, the female gurus chase morality since it offers them a constitutive authority over other people through loyalty and trust (Pechilis). The purity and perfection theological angle is signal by the ascetism, which permits women to attain a set level of public religious status.

Pechilis highlights that the attainment of purity has to be accompanied by a gesture that allows the female gurus to express their feelings and eminence of being divine. Through the ascetism, female gurus are able to reject major aspects of society that are used to define womanhood. They are distinguished from Hindu saints through the use of the bhakti and shakti ideologies, which focus on the ability of the guru to connect to teachings and students as well as their inchoate ability to identify with the goddess (Pechilis).

The ultimate teaching of theology is that the female guru is universal, and they can be divine as with the goddess as long as she is pure. The theology shows that the Western assertion that the male is universal, and the female is limited is not factual (Pechilis). The Hindu female gurus challenge this assertion by noting that they can distinctively blend the authority/formality of classical tradition with the spontaneous nature of interactive encounters and personal experience as shown in the case of Mātā Amritānandamayī Devi.

Case Study

Born in 1953 to a family of fishermen, Mātā Amritānandamayī Devi is one of the top gurus in India. During her formative years, Amma gathered scraps from neighbors for her family's goats and cows, which exposed her to intense poverty and suffering (Pandya). She slowly became empathetic to the plight of the poor, which led to her parents scolding her.

Despite the backlash, Amma began embracing others without caring about their gender or affiliation. She argued that a continuous stream of love flowed from her to all creation, which led to her starting the form of giving called Darshana, whereby she hugged people. This form of embrace has thus far picked with Amma hugging over 33 million people throughout the world (Goldberg; Persson). When prompted, Amma opines that her Darshana has helped people find peace in their minds and souls, thus connecting them with the universe. What is more, Amma upholds the teachings of the Upanishad by being pure and also by deemphasizing her sexuality. The attainment of morality has allowed her to exercise authority over her followers and the world at large.

Conclusion

Overall, divine feminism is a concept that has to be embraced by every part of society. The preceding essay highlights that the idea that feminism is universal is substantial in creating an equal society whereby everyone is treated fairly. Also, the paper highlights that embracing the female gender is important in the overall progression of society and religions.

Works Cited

Goldberg, E. "Indian Female Gurus in Contemporary Hinduism: A Study of Central Aspects and Expressions of Their Religious Leadership." 2010.

Lucia, Amanda. "Guru Sex: Charisma, Proxemic Desire, and the Haptic Logics of the Guru-Disciple Relationship." Journal of the American Academy of Religion (2018).

—. "Innovative Gurus: Tradition and Change in Contemporary Hinduism." International Journal of Hindu Studies (2014).

Olivelle, Patrick. Upanishad. 2020. 9 December 2020 <https://www.britannica.com/topic/Upanishad>.

Pandya, S. P. "Contemporary Female Gurus, their Movements and Followers: The case of Amma and Mata Amritanandamayi Mission. ." International Journal for the Study of New Religions (2015).

Pechilis, Karen. "Introduction: Hindu Female Gurus in Historical and Philosophical Context." 2010.

Persson, Anna. "Devotees' relating to Amma." 2010.