Definition of GURU

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In Hinduism, a guru is a personal spiritual teacher. In ancient India, knowledge of the Vedas (a body of liturgical literature) was transmitted orally from guru to pupil. The rise of the bhakti movement, which emphasizes the love of devotees for a personal god, further increased the importance of gurus, who were often looked on as living embodiments of spiritual truth and were identified with the deity. Gurus prescribe spiritual disciplines to their devotees, who follow their dictates in a tradition of service and obedience. Men or women may be gurus, though generally only men have established lineages.

Examples of guru in a Sentence

He has been a guru to many young writers. She's a self-proclaimed financial guru. Fitness gurus call it the hottest new exercise trend of the year.

Recent Examples on the Web

Many gurus write books about how to manage employees. — James R. Hagerty, WSJ, "Susan Ellis Advised Organizations on How to Manage Their Volunteers," 1 Mar. 2019 The opening of Australia’s starriest skincare guru Melanie Grant’s first location in the northern hemisphere. — Rachel Marlowe, Vogue, "Australia’s Favorite Celebrity Facialist Opens a New Skin-Care Studio in Los Angeles," 22 Feb. 2019 It's been under a year since Netflix reacquainted us with the saga of Rajneeshpuram, the enigmatic cult city lead by spiritual guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh—and with Ma Anand Sheela, his Machiavellian assistant. — Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, "Priyanka Chopra Is Developing a Wild Wild Country Movie. Here's What We Know So Far.," 31 Jan. 2019 Wake Forest assistant coach Jamill Jones attacked digital marketing guru Sandor Szabo around 1:15 a.m. Sunday in Queens, causing him to fall and hit his head on the sidewalk, police said. — Fox News, "Police: College hoops coach threw punch killing NYC tourist," 9 Aug. 2018 Alec Ross, 46 Running mate: Julie Verratti, Silver Spring brewery owner, LGBT activist Résumé: Author, innovator, tech entrepreneur, former tech guru to President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. — Washington Post Staff, Washington Post, "Meet the Democrats running for Maryland governor," 13 June 2018 Other names that have been on the payroll include Brad Parscale, Trump’s digital guru during the campaign, who did $184,000 worth of work for the super PAC arm of the group. — Annie Linskey, BostonGlobe.com, "President Trump’s super PAC falls well short of super," 3 May 2018 Such a value would be not too far off $1 million—where the frequently mocked, frizzy-haired self-help guru James Altucher expects Bitcoin to be in 2020. — Lionel Laurent, Bloomberg.com, "What Bitcoin Is Really Worth May No Longer Be Such a Mystery," 19 Apr. 2018 And Luke Yaklich, the intense fiery defensive guru. — Jeff Seidel, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan gets to Final Four the right way in college basketball's scandalous year," 25 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'guru.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.