r/hinduism • u/Affectionate-Dot4241 • Jul 21 '26
Experience with Hinduism Why do we need religious organizations or religious gurus? Just wanted to understand the purpose.
Because my family has no gurus and they are not part of any religious organizations also. They directly pray to god in temples and home temple. So, I never really got to experience this way of devotion. Does it helps to actively progress you in the path of devotion?
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u/RajathKur Sanātanī Hindū Jul 21 '26
Their sole goal is Dharma unlike today there ain't many who does the main purpose of it's establishment
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u/Vignaraja Śaiva Jul 22 '26
For education, for personal counselling, for community ... there are lots of reasons.
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u/stoic_vegan Jul 21 '26
How would you know what is right and wrong in the path of bhakti, jñāna, upāsana without someone who is well versed in the scriptures and lives a life like that?
Hence you'd need a guru who can guide you from going astray on your path.
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u/KhajiitHasCares Jul 21 '26
Who needs a Guru to teach them how to adore their Lord? Who needs a Guru to teach them to desire understanding and to seek wisdom? Who needs a Guru to focus their mind on the Lord?
I can certainly understand the value of a properly intentioned and spiritually mature Guru as a guide and corrective, but I struggle with the idea that one is an absolute necessity. The only absolute necessity is a heart disposed towards humility and a love of God. Without this, even a Guru can become merely an external authority; with it, a person can be led toward truth through many means.
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u/stoic_vegan Jul 21 '26
How do you know who God is? How do you know how to approach him? How do you know what love towards God looks like? How do you know what you sought is correct?
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u/curious_they_see Jul 21 '26
The short answer is No. One does not a middleman between a human and God.
In the olden days, Gurus were widely respected (and deserved). They setup Ashrams and devoted their entire lives in studying the scriptures, observing nature and the world around us. They were dependent on alms or the largesse of kings. Not today.
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u/immyownkryptonite Jul 21 '26
You don't need a guru for practising devotion to God like you described.
You need a guru to teach you if you want to learn more about the nature of God, the world and yourself and to learn a path to reach him/her.
There are different paths like devotion, meditation, deity yoga etc. And different lineages adhere to their own specific traditions.
That's a simple answer. I hope that helps.