The Guru Tradition: India’s Spiritual Heritage

The Guru Tradition: India’s Spiritual Heritage discusses the natures and roles of both the guru and the 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 who have impacted the spiritual fabric of both East and West --Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Sri Aurobindo, Ramana Maharshi, and Paramahansa Yogananda-- are juxtaposed and discussed alongside this paradigm. This study is conducted from the perspective of Advaita Vedānta, the Indian philosophical system of nondualism.

Aviva Robibo is an independent scholar of Indian philosophy and religion. She is a scholar-practitioner and a certified teacher of meditation.