The Guru in the Nimbarka Tradition: Journal of Vaishnava Studies

Abstract

Obedience to the guru has been called one of the foundation stones, if not the very cornerstone, of all Vedantic life and practice. Though the place of jnana (knowledge) tends to receive much of the emphasis among Vedantins with regards to what is necessary for salvation, John C. Plott affirms that “it is hard indeed to find a passage in the whole (Upanisadic) literature where [jnana] is enjoined without the help of a guru, a teacher, an acarya.”
Though the traditional Vedantic position is that obedience to the guru is a preliminary factor toward the
attainment of Brahman, Nimbarka tradition develops the position, from the earliest texts through contemporary biographies, that self-surrender to a guru (gurupasatti) is not only an essential factor but an independent means (sadhana) toward the attainment of Brahman.