How Thoreau's Walden Pond Mixed with the Ganges and Yoga Came to America with Swami Vivekananda

Gurudeva
“Gurudeva is a generic address to a guru in Hinduism.
Guru is a Sanskrit term for "teacher" or "master,” especially in Indian religions.
The Hindu guru-shishya tradition is the oral tradition or religious doctrine or experiential
wisdom transmitted from teacher to student.
The importance of finding a guru who can impart transcendental knowledge (vidyā)
is emphasized in Hinduism. One of the main Hindu texts, the Bhagavad
Gita, is a dialogue between God in the form of Krishna and his friend Arjuna, a
Kshatriya prince who accepts Krishna as his guru on the battlefield, prior to a
large battle. Not only does this dialogue outline many of the ideals of Hinduism,
but their relationship is considered an ideal one of Guru-Shishya. In the Gita,
Krishna speaks to Arjuna of the importance of finding a guru:
Acquire the transcendental knowledge from a Self-realized master by humble reverence, by
sincere inquiry, and by service. The wise ones who have realized the Truth will impart the
Knowledge to you.
In the sentence mentioned above, guru is used more or less interchangeably
with satguru (literally: true teacher), paratpar Guru and satpurusha. However,
there is a marked difference between them in the spiritual context. The disciple
of a guru is called a śiṣya or chela. Often a guru lives in an ashram or in a gurukula
(the guru's household), together with his disciples. The lineage of a guru,
spread by disciples who carry on the guru's message, is known as the guru parampara,
or disciplic succession.
The role of the guru continues in the original sense of the word in such
Hindu traditions as the Vedānta, yoga, tantra and bhakti schools. Indeed, it is
now a standard part of Hinduism that a guru is one's spiritual guide on earth. In
some more mystical traditions it is believed that the guru could awaken dormant
spiritual knowledge within the pupil. The act of doing this is known as shaktipat.
In Hinduism, the guru is considered a respected person with saintly qualities
who enlightens the mind of his or her disciple, an educator from whom one receives
the initiatory mantra, and one who instructs in rituals and religious ceremonies.
The Vishnu Smriti and Manu Smriti regard the teacher and the mother
and father as the most venerable influences on an individual.
In Indian culture, a person without a guru or a teacher (acharya) was once
looked down on as an orphan or unfortunate one. The word anatha in Sanskrit
means "the one without a teacher." An acharya is the giver of gyan (knowledge)
in the form of shiksha (instruction). A guru also gives diksha initiation which is
the spiritual awakening of the disciple by the grace of the guru. Diksha is also
considered to be the procedure of bestowing the divine powers of a guru upon
the disciple, through which the disciple progresses continuously along the path to
divinity.
The concept of the "guru" can be traced as far back as the early Upanishads,
where the idea of the Divine Teacher on earth first manifested from its early
Brahmin associations.
The guru-shishya tradition is the transmission of teachings from a guru
(teacher,) to a 'śiṣya' (disciple). In this relationship, subtle and advanced knowledge
is conveyed and received through the student's respect, commitment, devotion
and obedience. The student eventually masters the knowledge that the guru
embodies.”
– Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia