News from Mark Griffin - Awaken Now!Sanskrit Recitation Course

 

~ Verse 14 ~

The word Guru is composed of two sacred
syllables. Gu, which represents the darkness and
Ru, which represents light. Gu is maya and Ru is
the destruction of maya. Gu is the state which is
beyond the three gunas, and Ru is emptiness. The
Guru is he who gives the experience of darkness
melting into light, maya dissolving into clarity
and formation revealing wisdom.

14

Gukaaras tvandha
goo - kaa - rus  tvun - dhu
Note: the 'v' is soft; the 'dh' is aspirated. Gukaaras means: the syllable GU
(break)
karash cha
ku - rush  chu
Note: cha means 'and'
(break)
rukaaras
roo - kaa - rus
Note: rukaaras means: the syllable RU
(break)
teja uchyate
tay - ju  ooch - yu - tay
Note: teja is a beautiful word meaning light. We'll see it again in verse 40 (where it means lights the flame of knowledge).
(break)
now glue....
Gukaaras tvandha karash cha, rukaaras teja uchyate
(break)
Ajñaana graasakam
u - gnyaa - nu  graa - su - kum

Note: whenever 'a' is placed before a word it gives it the opposite meaning; so here we have it before jñaana, which is knowledge – hence, ajñaana means ignorance.

jñ ~ there are several correct ways to say this. It's acceptable to pronounce it like 'gnya' or as 'jnya', or even better yet, somewhere between 'gnya' and 'jnya'.

(break)
brahma gurur eva
bru + (h) – mu  goo - roor  ay - vu
Note: brahma here actually means Brahman, the supreme consciousness.
(break)
na samshayaha
nu  sum - shu - yu - hu
Note: this expression means 'without a doubt'. We also see it in verses 5, 73, 76, 82.

Here, the word ends with a visarga; our next to last vowel in samshaya was an 'a', which is pronounced like a dull 'u' sound. So we kind of bounce on that once again, ever-so gently and delicately... even more so than I do...

(break)
Glue these...
Ajñaana graasakam brahma, gurur eva na samshayaha
(break)
Gukaarah
goo - kaa - ruh
Note: Gukaarah means: the syllable GU. The difference between the endings in this verse is just a grammatical thing.
(break)
prathamo varno
pru - t(h)u - mo  vur - no
Note: remember the 'th' is not a sound like "that", but rather just indicates the t is with air. Also, no need to roll the 'r' in prathamo quite as much as I did.
(break)
maayaadi guna
maa - yaa - dee  goo - nu

Note: mayaa is maya / illusion.  In your pronunciation of maayaa, watch out not to make the vowel into a dipthong like 'ai'. Keep the maa clean as one sound, then the yaa clean as a second sound.

(break)
bhaasakah
bhaa - su - kuh
(break)
... glue...
Gukaarah prathamo varno, maayaadi guna bhaasakah
(break)
Rukaaro
roo - kaa - ro
Note: Rukaaro means: the syllable RU. The difference between the endings in this verse is just a grammatical thing.
(break)
dvitiyo
dvee - tee - yo
Note: if you have trouble with the combination sound 'dvit', just start by saying 'du' and then 'vit', and say them more and more quickly until you squish them together into one sound. Dvi means two. As in two syllables, the second syllable.
(break)
brahma
bru + (h) – mu  
Note: brahma here actually means Brahman, the supreme consciousness.

Let the 'h' be a subtle breath, so it's subtly different than a word like brama would be.

(break)
maayaa bhraanti
maa - yaa bhraan - tee
Note: again, maayaa is illusion
(break)
vinaashanam
vee - naa - shu - num
(break)
...glue...
Rukaaro dvitiyo brahma, maayaa bhraanti vinaashanam
(break)
Gukaaram cha
goo - kaa - rum chu
(break)
gunaa  titam
goo - naa  tee - tum
Note: Guna means qualities or attributes. It is the three gunas of tamas, rajas and sattva out of which the entire manifest creation is built. Tita means beyond.
(break)
rukaaram
roo - kaa - rum
(break)
rupa varjitam
roo - pu  vur - ji - tum
Note: rupa means form, as we saw in verse 3. Varjitam means beyond.
(break)
glue glue glue...
Gukaaram cha gunaa titam, rukaaram rupa varjitam
(break)
Gunaatita
goo - naa - ti - tu
Note: Guna means qualities or attributes. It is the three gunas of tamas, rajas and sattva out of which the entire manifest creation is built. Tita means beyond.
(break)
svarupam cha
swa - roo - pum  chu
Note: sva means own; rupa means form. The own form of the guru is beyond the gunas.
(break)
yo dadyaat sa
yo  dud - yaat  su
(break)
guruh smrtah
goo - roo +(h) smrit - ah
Note: the 'r' in smrtah is the vowel form (and can be rolled just a bit).
(break)
and finally, glue this last phrase together...
Gunaatita svarupam cha, yo dadyaat sa guruh smrtah
(break)
Now repeat the entire verse all together:
Gukaaras tvandha karash cha, rukaaras teja uchyate; Ajñaana graasakam brahma, gurur eva na samshayaha. Gukaarah prathamo varno, maayaadi guna bhaasakah; Rukaaro dvitiyo brahma, maayaa bhraanti vinaashanam. Gukaaram cha gunaa titam, rukaaram rupa varjitam; Gunaatita svarupam cha, yo dadyaat sa guruh smrtah.
Gukaaras tvandha karash cha, rukaaras teja uchyate; Ajñaana graasakam brahma, gurur eva na samshayaha. Gukaarah prathamo varno, maayaadi guna bhaasakah; Rukaaro dvitiyo brahma, maayaa bhraanti vinaashanam. Gukaaram cha gunaa titam, rukaaram rupa varjitam; Gunaatita svarupam cha, yo dadyaat sa guruh smrtah.
The word Guru is composed of two sacred syllables. Gu, which represents the darkness and Ru, which represents light. Gu is maya and Ru is the destruction of maya. Gu is the state which is beyond the three gunas, and Ru is emptiness. The Guru is he who gives the experience of darkness melting into light, maya dissolving into clarity and formation revealing wisdom.
(break)

<< previous verseGuru Gita Class home pagenext verse >>

Full Screen View of Verse