All those whose intelligence has been stolen by hallucination follow the Gurus.+

Sage Sankara’s wisdom is not teaching or philosophy but Advaita is the universal wisdom. Advaitic wisdom is neither a teaching nor a theory but it is mere guidance to those who are seriously seeking the ultimate truth or Brahman. Grasp the ultimate truth at any time, at any age, if the seeker has the spiritual maturity and capacity to grasp it. 

Advaitic wisdom is pure spirituality. Advaitic wisdom is nothing to do with religion and yoga.

Hindu religious literature is full of such aphorisms as ' there is no higher deity than the Guru; the Guru is the ultimate Truth and Deity. God and Avatars (incarnations) are secondary to the Guru in importance; there is no higher refuge, no higher target, no higher destination than the Guru; the Guru is God Himself; God and the Guru are one; he who makes a distinction between the Guru and God is ignorant and stupid and scores of similar others. They abound both in Sanskrit and in modern Indian languages.

All Guru-oriented paths and practices belong to religion and yoga. Do not be a slave of the Guru's ornamental words if you do you will be caught up in a hallucination.  Do not waste time with those who propagate half-baked knowledge. All those whose intelligence has been stolen by hallucination follow the Gurus.

Vedas bar human worship: ~

"They are enveloped in darkness, in other words, are steeped in ignorance and sunk in the greatest depths of misery who worship the uncreated, eternal prakrti -- the material cause of the world -- in place of the All-pervading God, But those who worship visible things born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and the like) in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time.":~  (Yajur Veda 40:9.)

Then why worship and glorify the Gurus and Yogis (human form)   in place of God when Veda bars such activities and also warns people who indulge in such activities are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time.

The Soul, the 'Self' reveals ‘what is real’ and ‘what is unreal” when the seeker is receptive and ready

Do not believe in a thing because you have read about it in a book. Do not believe in a thing because wise man has said it was true. Do not believe in words because they are hallowed by dualistic knowledge Find out the truth for yourself. Use Soulcentric reason, which leads to the realization of the truth, which is beyond form, time, and space

Advaitic wisdom can never be gained by argument and provocation. Discard all the accumulated dualistic knowledge by realizing the world in which you exist, exists because of ignorance. 

Get rid of the ignorance by realizing the world in which you exist is created out of single clay and that single clay is the Soul, which is present in the form of consciousness. Realizing the ‘Self’’ is not you but the Soul is Self-realization. The Soul is the cause of the universe and it itself is uncaused.

Katha Upanishad says:~ Fools dwelling in darkness, but thinking themselves wise and erudite, go round and round, by various tortuous paths, like the blind led by the blind. (Ch~ II-5 P-14)

Yoga Vasistha says:~  Self-knowledge or knowledge of truth is not had by resorting to a Guru (preceptor) nor by the study of scripture, nor by good works: it is attained only by means of inquiry inspired by the company of wise (Gnani). One’s inner light alone is the means, naught else. When this inner light is kept alive, it is not affected by the darkness of inertia. 

The Guru is useless so long as the ultimate truth is unknown, and the Guru is equally useless when the ultimate truth or Brahman has already been known.

A Guru is needed in the religious and the yogic path.  There is no need for a Guru to acquire Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana.

That is why  Bhagavan Buddha said: ~ “Believe nothing because a wise man said it, Believe nothing because it is generally held. Believe nothing because it is written. Believe nothing because it is said to be divine. Believe nothing because someone else said it. But believe only what you yourself judge to be true

 Advaitic Wisdom consists in knowing the truth, that everything (mind or physical existence) is the consciousness.  Freedom (ultimate truth) is always there yet one does not know it.  But to those whose reason is turned away from physicality and who have attained the serenity of the Soul or the consciousness, the Self, is quite near to realizing the ultimate truth or Brahman or God in truth. 

People born in different sects and castes remain as its follower. Most of the sect is founded by some gurus, thus the Indian belief system is a Guru Cult, i.e. believes in the worship of the Guru as the Supreme Deity.

All Guru-centric paths are not meant for those who are not seeking the truth.   Gurudom is nothing to do with ultimate truth or Brahman. Self-knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana is nothing to do with physical Guru.  : ~Santthosh Kumaar