अचक्षुरन्धस्य यथाग्रणीः कृत-
स्तथा जनस्याविदुषोऽबुधो गुरुः ।
त्वमर्कदृक्सर्वदृशां समीक्षणो
वृतो गुरुर्नः स्वगतिं बुभुत्सताम् ॥
acakṣur andhasya yathāgraṇīḥ kṛtas
tathā janasyāviduṣo’budho guruḥ |
tvam arka-dṛk sarva-dṛśāṁ samīkṣaṇo
vṛto gurur naḥ sva-gatiṁ bubhutsatām ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 8.24.50)
[Satyavrata Rāja to Matsya Avatāra:] “As a blind person accepts an eyeless person as a leader, so an ignorant person accepts an unknowing person as a guru. We, who are desirous of understanding our own path [i.e., the proper path for our true selves—bhakti] accept you, whose appearance resembles the sun and who are the illuminator of all eyes [alt., of all the senses, or, of all forms of knowledge], as our guru.”
Commentary
paṇḍito bandha-mokṣa-vid iti, ‘mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te’ iti tvad-ukter bhakty-upadeṣṭaiva budhaḥ, sa eva gurur anyas tv anartha-hetur ity arthaḥ |
(Excerpt from the Sārārtha-darśinī-ṭīkā)
“A learned person (paṇḍita) is one who understands bondage and liberation; as per the statement [in BG 7.14], ‘Those who take shelter exclusively in me [i.e., Bhagavān] cross over māyā,’ only a teacher of bhakti is wise. He alone is guru, whereas others are only a cause of anarthas.”