On the occasion of #GuruPurnima, here are thirty-three meanings of the Sanskrit word ‘guru’ as explained in various texts. With praṇāma‑s to all our guru‑s.
1/10
Meaning #1: “one who swallows ignorance”
Meaning #2: “one who teaches ‘dharma’ and scriptures like Veda‑s”
Meaning #3: “one who is praised by gods, ‘gandharva’‑s, humans, etc.”
Meaning #4: “one who destroys darkness with brilliance”
2/10
Meaning #5: “one who removes the disease of worldly existence”
Meaning #6: “one who is beyond [three] qualities and form”
Meaning #7: “one who releases from the bondage of ‘māyā’”
Meaning #8: “Brahmā (the creator)”
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Meaning #9: “Viṣṇu ”
Meaning #10: “Śiva”
Meaning #11: “Supreme Brahman”
Meaning #12: “Bṛhaspati, the teacher of the gods”
4/10
Meaning #13: “Prabhākara, the teacher of Mīmāṃsā philosophy”
Meaning #14: “Droṇa, the teacher of the Pāṇḍava and Kauravas”
Meaning #15: “one who performs ‘niṣeka’ rituals (garbhādhāna etc.)”
Meaning #16: “one who gives a mantra”
5/10
Meaning #17: “the father” (the mother is ‘gurvī’, feminine form of ‘guru’)
Meaning #18: “any of eleven male elders” (the corresponding female elders are ‘gurvī’s)
Meaning #19: “any of the elders”
Meaning #20: “one who is great”
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Meaning #21: “one who is ageless”
Meaning #22: “one who is large”
Meaning #23: “one who is powerful”
Meaning #24: “one who is honourable”
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Meaning #25: “one whose speech has profound meaning”
Meaning #26: “heavy”
Meaning #27: “Śiva, who grants ‘siddhi’s and burns sins”
Meaning #28: “the illuminator of truth who bestows oneness with Śiva for the attainment of ‘jñāna’”
8/10
Meaning #29: “abundance”
Meaning #30: “a long syllable”
Meaning #31: “the ‘puṣya’ constellation”
Meaning #32: “the velvet bean creeper (‘Mucuna pruritus’)”
9/10
Meaning #33: “the foxtail millet grass (‘Panicum italicum’)”
There are many more. We will stop at 33 as there are 33 ‘devatā’s and the #guru is the embodiment of all ‘devatā’s.