Guru Purnima (Byash Puja)

Guru Purnima or Biyas Puja is celebrated on purnima, in the month of Ashar (i.e. in the month of July, according to English Calendar.)

The status of a teacher in Indian culture is highly esteemed. The tradition of prefixing shree five times before a king, six times before parents and hundred eight times before a teacher, was prevalent in our culture till few decades ago. But today the ardent relationship between the teacher and the taught of previous years, seems to have deteriorated to the lowest level. Today the students who study in schools and colleges paying hefty fees, consider their teachers no more than mere servants who deliver lectures in order to make both ends meet. The respect the students had for their teachers in ancient times is now a thing of the past, but surely, a thing of pride for all of us. Education then had not been commercialized. No student was deprived of education because of his poverty, and without discrimination of any kind, all students received education from the same teacher sitting together around a tree.

"Simple living and high thinking” was the motto of all ancient educational centres, and to sacrifice for the good of humanity, was the ideal they all strived for. The learned ancient philosophers like Kapil, Kanad, Gautam, Pannani, and Sankarcharya, who received education from their gurus in gurukuls, are still revered by the world because of their wide range of knowledge and wisdom.

The hermits like Kabirdas and many others, have placed more value to teachers than to Gods. Therefore, the teachers still occupy a prominent place in Indian culture. The day on which all teachers are paid due respect with reverence is called Guru Purnima or the Biash Puja.

Biash, a very learned teacher philosopher of ancient India, has given this world many valuable books on science and many other branches of learning. It has been said that "Biashochist jagat Sarvam", meaning the literary writings after Biash is but a grain of what he has already written. He has simplified the veda by differentiating and dividing it into Mantra, Brahma, Aranayak and Upanishad. The Mantra has further been categorized into Rig ved, Yajur ved, Sam ved and Atharva ved. In order to make vedas comprehensible even to a lay man, he divided them into eighteen Puranas. Therefore, this festival is dedicated to him and celebrated to commemorate his birthday. It is a befitting tribute to a learned scholar like him, is considered to be the incarnation of Narayana.

On this auspicious day, the religious minded students pay their heartfelt respects to their teachers. The day being very important for all the students to express their gratitude to their teachers, even the dhami, jhakris, Oja bijiuwa pay their respect to their gurus from whom they learnt the art of witchcraft. But unlike other students, these witch doctors have a particular way of worshipping their gurus. They establish a thaan playing on their dhengro, and dance throughout the night to express their gratitude to their gurus from whom they inherit their mysterious power.

This festival of Guru Purnima is a great festival that encourages a healthy and cordial relationship between the teacher and the taught, which is, an indirect encouragement for the spread of education in the society