The Guru Tradition - India's Spiritual Heritage

The Guru Tradition: India''s Spiritual Heritage discusses the natures and roles of both guru and of the s śiṣya, or disciple, as depicted in the Upaniṣads and Dharma Śāstras. The entirety of this analysis, of guru and disciple, is developed into a paradigm by which both the ancient and modern Guru Tradition can be more thoroughly understood. Four pivotal gurus from the twentieth century (Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Sri Aurobindo, Ramana Maharshi, and Paramahansa Yogananda), who have impacted the spiritual fabric of both east and west, are juxtaposed and discussed alongside this paradigm. This study is conducted from the perspective of Advaita Vedānta, the Indian philosophical system of nondualism.