Mentorship refers to a personal developmental relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps a less experienced or less knowledgeable person. A commonly used word or process in today's world.
We all know that we need a guide or a mentor to understand this world better and move towards achieving our goals in a more meaningful way. Trickiest part here is, the selection of a mentor or a guide. We generally observe this in colleges where we need to seek a guide. We typically ask a question "who is good?". This depends on our mental state defining good, on the mental state of the person who is giving the answer and his perspective on good. We do not know the impact of it till we cross quite an amount of distance and most of the times, end up repenting.
"All that glitters is not gold."
We never remember this kind of proverbs till we reach final stages of life. Why does this happen? Why do we get attracted to few simple things and decide on disastrous life course? What should be our selection criteria?
Here I quote what Sai Master said about True Masters or Mentors or Guides - Not all can discern a true Master, For there are several clever ones who can successfully deceive people - “wolves in the lamb’s coat”, as the Bible says.
Simple.
First understand what we need. Understand the value of what we need. Then go to the person whom we are attracted and ask questions, but genuinely seeking answers and with focus on our objectives. Do not fall for the glitter or paraphernalia around that person. Rarely knowledgeable persons exhibit themselves, that too for a cause.
To give a parallel here, Sai Master has written the following in Sri Sai Leelamrutam as an introduction as to why do we need to follow Sai Baba and how do we follow HIM?
To most of us, the study of the lives of perfect masters is even more effective. For human nature being such, even when we live with a sage, we tend to focus our attention more on his physical frame than on his realization which is the essence of it all. Even the apostles of Christ faltered when their boat was tossed by a storm and the Christ chid them as those of “little faith”. Arjuna confesses to such an error in regard to Krishna in the Bhagavadgita. But when we study the life of a Master, we unfalteringly focus our attention on the Supreme wisdom-in-action which is the Master. Thereby, we are trained to do the same when we eventually contact a living Master, as it happened in the case of Sai Baba; or our contact with the Master might remain at a purely spiritual level and alchemise us, as happened in the case of Sri Ramana Maharshi. For when a devotee asked the sage how he happened to realize without the help of a guru, he said that he too had one, though not in the form which the devotee expected
In this context, the life of Sri Sai Baba of Shirdi, I feel, is unique. He does not merely teach about the omnipresent Spirit. Indeed, his verbal teaching is minimal. For there are scriptures galore to do that. But mere verbal teaching cannot strike deep root in the hearts of common folk. Sri Sai Baba has therefore taught through direct experiences. He baptized mostly through the Holy Ghost. He showed unerring, at-one-ment with all gods of Hindus, all saints, all creatures and even with so-called inanimate objects. He was ever aware of what transpired within and without his devotees everywhere. His devotees had no choice but to be aware of an omnipresent and omniscient Baba. The result is that at one stroke, their conduct and attitude to fellow-creatures were bound to conform to the highest codes of altruism. Wherever the devotee was, he was made to recognize that Baba was, in spirit, with him indeed. The implications of this aspect of Baba are rich beyond measure.
Beside this, the manifestation of the Spirit as Sri Sai Baba is unique in another respect. No one knows his caste, creed, or parentage. This anonymity lent a strange facet to his teaching. To the Hindus he was an orthodox brahmin with sacred fire, enjoining the worship of the many gods and the devout study of various Hindu scriptures; he even named the mosque as Dwarakamai and planted the Tulasi in its frontyard and then allowed himself to be worshipped by his devotees in the Hindu fashion. To the moslems, he was a moslem, a pir, living in a mosque, observing the discipline enjoined for a fakir, always uttering the Islamic Allah Malik, guiding moslem seekers like Abdul Baba along the Islamic line. To the Parsis, he was the sacred fire-worshipper. His life, too, is a living manifestation of the Sermon of the Christ and of the eight fold path of the Buddha. Thus, in him were have a perfect model of harmony of all religions for whom this world, with all its sectarian and religious antagonisms, has been looking forward.
May we follow the above, and find a true Guide or Mentor in our lives.
JAI SAI MASTER !
To read " Sai Baba The Master " - Use this link - http://saibharadwaja.org/books/saibabathemaster/saibabathemaster.aspx
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