Within Advaita Vedānta, the guru is regarded as indispensable because self-knowledge arises through a precise and living transmission of the teaching, rather than through technique, ritual, or solitary study. The guru stands as an interpreter of the Upaniṣads, Bhagavad Gītā, and Brahma Sūtras, unfolding their non-dual vision so that statements such as “tat tvam asi” become clear and doubt-free. This role is not merely academic; the guru is expected to be established in the very knowledge being taught, so that instruction springs from direct understanding rather than from theory alone. In this way, the guru functions as a living embodiment of the teaching, demonstrating in conduct what it means to recognize the identity of ātman and Brahman.

The pedagogical function of the guru is traditionally structured through śravaṇa, manana, and nididhyāsana. Through śravaṇa, the student listens to the systematic exposition of non-duality; through manana, doubts are resolved by careful reasoning under the guru’s guidance; through nididhyāsana, the teaching is steadily contemplated until it is fully assimilated. Alongside these methods, the guru employs logical analysis, examples, and negation to remove habitual misidentification with the body–mind and to dismantle misconceptions born of avidyā. In this sense, the guru’s primary task is the removal of ignorance, revealing that the self is ever free and not truly bound.

The guru also serves as a discerning guide, assessing the student’s readiness and prescribing appropriate disciplines to prepare the mind for subtle inquiry. Instruction in ethical living, meditation, and other forms of sādhana is given to refine and steady the inner instrument so that the non-dual teaching can be properly received. While the guru may offer mantras and other traditional supports, these are always subordinate to the central work of imparting self-knowledge. The outer guru thus acts as a crucial means of knowledge, yet ultimately points the student back to the inner reality that is already complete, making the need for external guidance gradually fall away as the truth of one’s own nature as Brahman becomes evident.