SAD GURU : His Holiness Swami Gitanandaji Maharaj

"Brahmaanandam Paramasukhadam
Kevalam Jnaanamurthim
Dvandvaathitham Gaganasadrsam
Thathwamasyaadi Lakshyam
Ekam Nithyam Vimalam Achalam
Sarvadhee Saakshibhutham
Bhaavaatheetham Trigunarahitham
Sadgurum Tham Namaami"

The Guru is God Himself manifesting in a personal form to guide the aspirant. Grace of God takes the form of Guru. To see the Guru is to see God. The Guru is united with God. He inspires devotion in others.

Brahmaananda and man:
The Upanishads attempt to give men a faint idea of the measure of that Brahma-ananda. The Taithireeya Upanishad assumes the height of human ananda as the unit for estimation. A person having all the wealth he desires, all the renown man can earn, all the learning that can be gained, perfect health, perpetual youth, and undisputed sovereignty over the entire globe---his Ananda is an understandable base from which to proceed. A hundred times this Maanushi-ananda is the Ananda of celestial singers (Gandharvas); a hundred times that is the Ananda of the souls of departed beings dwelling in heavenly regions. Hundred-fold of this is the Ananda of the divine entities (Ajanma-ja). A hundred times is the Ananda of the gods (Deva); the Lord of the Gods, Indra, is ever in Ananda that is a hundred times more than that of the Gods, Brhaspathi, the preceptor of Indra, has Ananda a hundred times more than Indra; and Prajapathi, the Lord of Creatures, has a hundred-fold Ananda when compared to Brhaspathi. Hiranyagarbha (the Cosmic Golden Manifestation) is the source of a hundred times more Ananda. The Supremest Ananda,the Brahma-Ananda, which is the characteristic of the Guru, is that of Hiranyagarbha.