On a  full moon night or Purnima, one can step out of their house without a torch since the light of the moon will be enough to guide them through the darkness. In the same way our “Gurus” guide us through our dark times and fill our life with the light of knowledge, guidance and experience. In sanskrit, ‘gu’ means darkness and ‘ru’ means remover of darkness. Today is Guru Purnima, a day to thank our Gurus and mark the birth anniversary of Ved Vyasa, one of the greatest ancient Hindu Gurus of all time and a symbol of Guru-Shisya tradition. Your Guru can be your teacher, your friend, your mother, your father or just a stranger.

My Guru, my late father Shri Virendra Krishna Aggarwal, who was a well known textile businessman and my pillar of strength through the difficult moments of my life, taught me the most important lesson of life which is my guiding light. He used to say “No matter how big a challenge is, if approached with proper calculations it can be resolved”. He showed me the importance of work-life balance and encouraged me to work in the Education and Employability sector despite coming from a business background. When I began my journey in the field of education, he quoted the words of Swami Vivekanand“Educate and raise the masses and thus alone a nation is possible. We want that education by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, intellect is expanded and by which one can stand on one’s own feet”. Today in 2020, when I look through all these years, I want to thank him for making me what I am today, and hope that I have stood by the principles and vision he entrusted me with and passed the same to over 20,000 students trained at Panacea People, an education institution which I started in 2002 with the principles and vision of my father.

A guru is an epitome of a selfless individual who devotes his life for the future of his students. At Panacea,  I have witnessed that nothing satisfies a teacher more or makes him happier when he receives a thank you call from his students after they succeed in their life. Today, I’ld also take this occasion to thank my father, my teachers and all the seniors who have given my life a proper direction in all these past years. 

Therefore, on this auspicious day, let us take out time to thank our Gurus. Give them a call, whatsapp, a text message or include them in our prayers if they have left the Earth and joined the light of the moon, still guiding us from above, like my father. Let’s look at the moon tonight and remember our Gurus.