Editors’ Note
At the heart of nearly every spiritual tradition is the figure of the spiritual guide or leader whom seekers turn to for guidance and inspiration and choose to follow as disciples. In this issue of SUFI, various facets of the role of the guide are explored across different spiritual paths,
by Alireza Nurbakhsh
A guide is only a channel to aid the traveler in arriving at the truth. Guides by definition, therefore, cannot be the objects of spiritual quests; their only function is to show followers the right path in a wilderness full of dangers and pitfalls. We cannot overcome our shortcomings by ourselves.
by Jay Valentine
Teacher-Student Relationships in Tibetan Buddhism. The importance of a strong relationship with an authentic teacher is absolutely essential. In the esoteric traditions, the lama comes to be the student’s physical and spiritual connection to the lineage of masters
by H. Talat Halman
The Space Where Sufism Happens. The disciple must become a lover of the Master’s sainthood, so that he can depart from the power of his own longing, and the desirer (murid, i.e. the disciple) can become the one desired (murad, the Master). — Gharib
Interview by Safoura Nourbakhsh
Dr. Javad Nurbakhsh was the master of the Nimatullahi Sufi Order for 55 years before his passing on October 10, 2008. It is still difficult for most of his disciples to talk about him in the past tense. His photographs continue to grace the walls of the khaniqahs,
Monuments and Heritage sites[/caption]
by Angela Burt
In Search of the Authentic Guru in the Gaudiya Vaishnava Tradition. The qualities and qualifications of a guru who is worthy of offering guidance and who can help the disciple to become free from material existence
by Dani Kopoulos
It’s one of the first times I came to see you. I’ve been out in the mud and I come running when I’m called. As I cross the threshold, all at once the image of a baby goat comes to mind. I see quite clearly I am the runt, the ugly one with mud on its hooves and brambles in its mane.
Director Paola Di Florio in conversation with Sholeh Johnston
AWAKE: The Life of Yogananda charts the life of one of the 20th century’s most influential spiritual figures, Paramahansa Yogananda, a Hindu Swami who brought Yoga to America for the first time in the early 1920s.
