God or Guru? Jesus in the Thought of Swami Prabhupāda

Abstract

The article God or Guru? Jesus in the Thought of Swami Prabhupāda by Ravi M. Gupta explores how A. C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda positioned Jesus Christ within Gauḍīya Vaishnava theology. Rather than dismissing Jesus as a religious outsider, Prabhupāda recognizes him as a śaktyāveśa-avatāra—a divinely empowered figure—comparable to a guru. The article highlights a theologically inclusive framework that reveres Jesus while maintaining doctrinal consistency within Vaishnava metaphysics, thus fostering interreligious appreciation without dilution of core principles.