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115-569: He wrote an estimated 100 books, all in the last 30 years of his life. He was mentioned in past editions of Who's Who in America , in Religious Leaders of America , and in similar publications. His works have remained in print more or less continuously since 1900. William Walker Atkinson was born in Baltimore, Maryland , on December 5, 1862, to Emma and William Atkinson. He began his working life as

230-466: A Persian geographical term for the people who lived beyond the river Indus (Sanskrit: Sindhu )", more specifically in the 6th-century BCE inscription of Darius I (550–486 BCE). The term Hindu in these ancient records is a geographical term and did not refer to a religion. The word Hindu is found as heptahindu in Avesta – equivalent to Rigvedic sapta sindhu , while hndstn (pronounced Hindustan )

345-441: A "single world religious tradition" was also popularised by 19th-century proselytising missionaries and European Indologists, roles sometimes served by the same person, who relied on texts preserved by Brahmins (priests) for their information of Indian religions, and animist observations that the missionary Orientalists presumed was Hinduism. These reports influenced perceptions about Hinduism. Scholars such as Pennington state that

460-416: A Hindu life, namely acquiring wealth ( artha ), fulfilment of desires ( kama ), and attaining liberation ( moksha ), are viewed here as part of "dharma", which encapsulates the "right way of living" and eternal harmonious principles in their fulfilment. The use of the term Sanātana Dharma for Hinduism is a modern usage, based on the belief that the origins of Hinduism lie beyond human history, as revealed in

575-438: A Hindu". According to Wendy Doniger , "ideas about all the major issues of faith and lifestyle – vegetarianism, nonviolence, belief in rebirth, even caste – are subjects of debate, not dogma ." Because of the wide range of traditions and ideas covered by the term Hinduism, arriving at a comprehensive definition is difficult. The religion "defies our desire to define and categorize it". Hinduism has been variously defined as

690-492: A Hindu's class, caste, or sect, and they contrasted with svadharma , one's "own duty", in accordance with one's class or caste ( varṇa ) and stage in life ( puruṣārtha ). In recent years, the term has been used by Hindu leaders, reformers, and nationalists to refer to Hinduism. Sanatana dharma has become a synonym for the "eternal" truth and teachings of Hinduism, that transcend history and are "unchanging, indivisible and ultimately nonsectarian". Some have referred to Hinduism as

805-414: A Hindu. As Ramacharaka, he helped to popularize Eastern concepts in America, with Yoga and a broadly-interpreted Hinduism being particular areas of focus. The works of Yogi Ramacharaka were published over the course of nearly ten years beginning in 1903. Some were originally issued as a series of lectures delivered at the frequency of one lesson per month. Additional material was issued at each interval in

920-765: A basis for what Atkinson called "New Psychology" or "New Thought". Titles include Thought Vibration or the Law of Attraction in the Thought World, and Practical Psychomancy and Crystal Gazing: A Course of Lessons on the Psychic Phenomena of Distant Sensing, Clairvoyance, Psychometry, Crystal Gazing, etc. Although most of the Atkinson titles were published by Atkinson's own Advanced Thought Publishing Company in Chicago, with English distribution by L. N. Fowler of London, England, at least

1035-411: A biographical draft is sent to biographees for pre-publication checking. In cases where notable individuals decline to submit biographical data, Marquis proceeds to compile all of the information to be published. In 1999, Forbes magazine published an article by Tucker Carlson , in which he reported that Marquis profited through direct mail marketers . Forbes adopted Who's Who in America as

1150-421: A category with "fuzzy edges" rather than as a well-defined and rigid entity. Some forms of religious expression are central to Hinduism and others, while not as central, still remain within the category. Based on this idea Gabriella Eichinger Ferro-Luzzi has developed a 'Prototype Theory approach' to the definition of Hinduism. To its adherents, Hinduism is a traditional way of life. Many practitioners refer to

1265-543: A distinct Hindu identity in the interaction between Muslims and Hindus, and a process of "mutual self-definition with a contrasting Muslim other", which started well before 1800. Michaels notes: As a counteraction to Islamic supremacy and as part of the continuing process of regionalization, two religious innovations developed in the Hindu religions: the formation of sects and a historicization which preceded later nationalism ... [S]aints and sometimes militant sect leaders, such as

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1380-483: A few of his books in the "New Psychology" series were published by Elizabeth Towne in Mount Holyoke, Massachusetts, and offered for sale in her New Thought magazine The Nautilus . One such title, for which Atkinson is credited as the author, with the copyright internally assigned to Towne, is The Psychology of Salesmanship, published in 1912. The probable reason that Atkinson made an assignment of copyright to Towne

1495-676: A great appeal in the West , most notably reflected in the popularisation of yoga and various sects such as Transcendental Meditation and the Hare Krishna movement . Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion, with approximately 1.20 billion followers, or around 15% of the global population, known as Hindus . It is the most widely professed faith in India , Nepal , Mauritius , and in Bali , Indonesia . Significant numbers of Hindu communities are found in

1610-497: A grocer at 15 years old. He married Margret Foster Black of Beverly, New Jersey , in October 1889, and they had two children. Their first child died young. The second later married and had two daughters. Atkinson pursued a business career from 1882 onwards and in 1894 he was admitted as an attorney to the Bar of Pennsylvania . While he gained much material success in his profession as a lawyer,

1725-676: A half-dozen saddle-stitched paper pamphlets under the Vishita name. All of them dealt with clairvoyance, mediumship, and the afterlife. Like Ramacharaka, Vishita was listed as a regular contributor to Atkinson's Advanced Thought magazine, but his books were published by the Advanced Thought Publishing Company, not by the Yogi Publication Society, which handled the Ramacharaka titles. Swami Panchadasi titles Despite

1840-406: A paradigmatic example of Hinduism's mystical nature". Pennington, while concurring that the study of Hinduism as a world religion began in the colonial era, disagrees that Hinduism is a colonial European era invention. He states that the shared theology, common ritual grammar and way of life of those who identify themselves as Hindus is traceable to ancient times. All of religion is contained in

1955-417: A reason of spirit but fantasy and creative imagination, not conceptual but symbolical, not ethical but emotive, not rational or spiritual but of cognitive mysticism. This stereotype followed and fit, states Inden, with the imperial imperatives of the era, providing the moral justification for the colonial project. From tribal Animism to Buddhism, everything was subsumed as part of Hinduism. The early reports set

2070-450: A religion, a religious tradition, a set of religious beliefs, and "a way of life". From a Western lexical standpoint, Hinduism, like other faiths, is appropriately referred to as a religion. In India, the term (Hindu) dharma is used, which is broader than the Western term "religion," and refers to the religious attitudes and behaviours, the 'right way to live', as preserved and transmitted in

2185-488: A shared context and of inclusion in a common framework and horizon". Brahmins played an essential role in the development of the post-Vedic Hindu synthesis, disseminating Vedic culture to local communities, and integrating local religiosity into the trans-regional Brahmanic culture. In the post- Gupta period Vedanta developed in southern India, where orthodox Brahmanic culture and the Hindu culture were preserved, building on ancient Vedic traditions while "accommoda[ting]

2300-463: A single whole the diverse philosophical teachings of the Upanishads, epics, Puranas, and the schools known retrospectively as the 'six systems' ( saddarsana ) of mainstream Hindu philosophy." The tendency of "a blurring of philosophical distinctions" has also been noted by Mikel Burley . Hacker called this "inclusivism" and Michaels speaks of "the identificatory habit". Lorenzen locates the origins of

2415-576: A source for compiling information on post-graduate success when it began ranking America's most prestigious colleges in 2007. Forbes stopped referencing Marquis Who's Who in 2013, replacing it with various of its own lists, such as Power Women, 30 Under 30, CEOs on the Global 2000, Nobel and Pulitzer prize winners, Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellows, those elected to the National Academy of Sciences , and winners of major Arts awards. Two statisticians with

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2530-464: A theistic ontology of creation, other Hindus are or have been atheists . Despite the differences, there is also a sense of unity. Most Hindu traditions revere a body of religious or sacred literature , the Vedas, although there are exceptions. These texts are a reminder of the ancient cultural heritage and point of pride for Hindus, though Louis Renou stated that "even in the most orthodox domains,

2645-493: A well-known New Thought publisher and businessman, and teamed up with him. In December, 1901 he assumed editorship of Flower's popular New Thought magazine, a post which he held until 1905. During these years he built for himself an enduring place in the hearts of its readers. Article after article flowed from his pen. Meanwhile, he also founded his own Psychic Club and the Atkinson School of Mental Science. Both were located in

2760-443: A worldwide appeal, transcending national boundaries and, according to Flood, "becoming a world religion alongside Christianity, Islam and Buddhism", both for the Hindu diaspora communities and for westerners who are attracted to non-western cultures and religions. It emphasises universal spiritual values such as social justice, peace and "the spiritual transformation of humanity". It has developed partly due to "re-enculturation", or

2875-489: Is also popularly held to be one (if not all) of the Three Initiates who anonymously authored The Kybalion , which certainly resembles Atkinson's other writings in style and subject matter. Atkinson's two co-authors in the latter venture, if they even existed, are unknown, but speculation often includes names like Mabel Collins , Michael Whitty, Paul Foster Case , and Harriett Case. A major collection of Atkinson's works

2990-467: Is among the holdings of a Brazilian organization called Circulo de Estudos Ramacháraca. According to this group, Atkinson has been identified as the author or co-author (with individuals such as Edward E. Beals and Lauron William de Laurence ) of 105 separate titles. These can be broken down roughly into the following groups: These works treat themes related to the mental world, occultism , divination , psychic reality, and mankind's nature. They constitute

3105-496: Is claimed, Atkinson co-wrote with Bharata a series of books they attributed to Bharata's teacher, Yogi Ramacharaka. This story cannot be verified and—like the "official" biography that falsely claimed Atkinson was an "English author"—may be a fabrication. No record exists in India of a Yogi Ramacharaka, nor is there evidence in America of the immigration of a Baba Bharata. Furthermore, although Atkinson may have travelled to Chicago to visit

3220-639: Is commonly known can be subdivided into a number of major currents. Of the historical division into six darsanas (philosophies), two schools, Vedanta and Yoga , are currently the most prominent. The six āstika schools of Hindu philosophy, which recognise the authority of the Vedas are: Sānkhya , Yoga , Nyāya , Vaisheshika , Mimāmsā , and Vedānta . Classified by primary deity or deities, four major Hinduism modern currents are Vaishnavism (Vishnu), Shaivism (Shiva), Shaktism (Devi) and Smartism (five deities treated as equals). Hinduism also accepts numerous divine beings, with many Hindus considering

3335-635: Is found in Advanced Thought , billed as A Journal of The New Thought, Practical Psychology, Yogi Philosophy, Constructive Occultism, Metaphysical Healing, Etc. This magazine, edited by Atkinson, advertised articles by Atkinson and Theron Q. Dumont—the latter two were later credited to Atkinson—and had the same address as The Yogi Publishing Society, which published the works attributed to Yogi Ramacharaka. Advanced Thought carried articles by Swami Bhakta Vishita, but when it came time for Vishita's writings to be collected in book form, they were not published by

3450-460: Is found in a Sasanian inscription from the 3rd century CE, both of which refer to parts of northwestern South Asia. In Arabic texts, al-Hind referred to the land beyond the Indus and therefore, all the people in that land were Hindus. This Arabic term was itself taken from the pre-Islamic Persian term Hindū . By the 13th century, Hindustan emerged as a popular alternative name of India , meaning

3565-545: Is necessarily religious" or that Hindus have a universally accepted "conventional or institutional meaning" for that term. To many, it is as much a cultural term. Many Hindus do not have a copy of the Vedas nor have they ever seen or personally read parts of a Veda, like a Christian, might relate to the Bible or a Muslim might to the Quran. Yet, states Lipner, "this does not mean that their [Hindus] whole life's orientation cannot be traced to

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3680-688: Is not sufficient reason for inclusion. Similarly, wealth or social position are not criteria. Purchase of the book is never a factor in the selection of biographees". A 2005 New York Times feature describes some aspects of the selection process: "An editorial team of 70, including 12 researchers, make the call on who's notable and who's not". Marquis calls its selection criteria "stringent" and claims that biographical data on candidates for listing are reviewed by its editors to confirm that its requirements are met. Their chief executive, Gene M. McGovern, told The New York Times that "the fundamental standards here are position and accomplishment". Once selected,

3795-553: Is privately owned. Erica Lee is the first woman CEO since the founding of Marquis Who’s Who. According to Forbes , she was selected as one of the 10 leaders In Innovation by The CEO Forum Group in 2021. Marquis publications include: Marquis Who's Who states that selection of individuals for listing in its publications "is based on reference value. Individuals become eligible for listing by virtue of their positions and/or noteworthy achievements that have proved to be of significant value to society. An individual's desire to be listed

3910-503: Is rather an umbrella term comprising the plurality of religious phenomena of India. According to the Supreme Court of India , Unlike other religions in the World, the Hindu religion does not claim any one Prophet, it does not worship any one God, it does not believe in any one philosophic concept, it does not follow any one act of religious rites or performances; in fact, it does not satisfy

4025-403: Is still the legal definition of a Hindu today. Hindu beliefs are vast and diverse, and thus Hinduism is often referred to as a family of religions rather than a single religion. Within each religion in this family of religions, there are different theologies, practices, and sacred texts. Hinduism does not have a "unified system of belief encoded in a declaration of faith or a creed ", but

4140-493: Is that his "New Psychology" books had initially been serialized in Towne's magazine, where he was a freelance writer from 1912 at least through 1914. These include Atkinson's teachings on Yoga and Oriental philosophy, as well as New Thought and occult titles. They were written in such a way as to form a course of practical instruction. Yogi Ramacharaka titles When Atkinson wrote under the pseudonym Yogi Ramacharaka, he claimed to be

4255-562: Is the earliest self-designation of Hinduism. According to Arvind Sharma , the historical evidence suggests that "the Hindus were referring to their religion by the term vaidika dharma or a variant thereof" by the 4th-century CE. According to Brian K. Smith, "[i]t is 'debatable at the very least' as to whether the term Vaidika Dharma cannot, with the proper concessions to historical, cultural, and ideological specificity, be comparable to and translated as 'Hinduism' or 'Hindu religion'." Whatever

4370-687: Is the largest tradition of Hinduism. Vaishnavism is the devotional religious tradition that worships Vishnu and his avatars, particularly Krishna and Rama. The adherents of this sect are generally non-ascetic, monastic, oriented towards community events and devotionalism practices inspired by "intimate loving, joyous, playful" Krishna and other Vishnu avatars. These practices sometimes include community dancing, singing of Kirtans and Bhajans , with sound and music believed by some to have meditative and spiritual powers. Temple worship and festivals are typically elaborate in Vaishnavism. The Bhagavad Gita and

4485-704: The Agamas such as the Pancaratrika to be invalid because it did not conform to the Vedas. Some Kashmiri scholars rejected the esoteric tantric traditions to be a part of Vaidika dharma. The Atimarga Shaivism ascetic tradition, datable to about 500 CE, challenged the Vaidika frame and insisted that their Agamas and practices were not only valid, they were superior than those of the Vaidikas. However, adds Sanderson, this Shaiva ascetic tradition viewed themselves as being genuinely true to

4600-754: The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition , where the authentic Indian yogi Swami Vivekananda attracted enthusiastic audiences, he is only known to have taken up residence in Chicago around 1900 and to have passed the Illinois Bar Examination in 1903. Atkinson's claim to have an Indian co-author was not unusual among the New Thought and New Age writers of his era, who often embraced a vaguely exotic theme of "orientalism" in their writings and credited Hindus, Buddhists, or Sikhs with possession of special knowledge and secret techniques of clairvoyance, spiritual development, sexual energy, health, or longevity. In 1875,

4715-496: The Hindu texts . Sanātana Dharma refers to "timeless, eternal set of truths" and this is how Hindus view the origins of their religion. It is viewed as those eternal truths and traditions with origins beyond human history– truths divinely revealed ( Shruti ) in the Vedas , the most ancient of the world's scriptures. To many Hindus, Hinduism is a tradition that can be traced at least to

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4830-439: The Hindu texts . Another endonym for Hinduism is Vaidika Dharma ( lit.   ' Vedic dharma ' ). Hinduism entails diverse systems of thought, marked by a range of shared concepts that discuss theology , mythology , among other topics in textual sources. Hindu texts have been classified into Śruti ( lit.   ' heard ' ) and Smṛti ( lit.   ' remembered ' ). The major Hindu scriptures are

4945-550: The Metropolitan Life Insurance Company used inclusion in Who's Who in America in a study conducted 1950–1961, which concluded that people listed in the publication lived longer than their unlisted peers. Hinduism Traditional Hinduism ( / ˈ h ɪ n d u ˌ ɪ z əm / ) is an umbrella term for a range of Indian religious and spiritual traditions ( sampradaya s ) that are unified by

5060-467: The Theosophical Society , as well as various " Guru -isms" and new religious movements such as Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , BAPS and ISKCON . Inden states that the attempt to classify Hinduism by typology started in the imperial times, when proselytising missionaries and colonial officials sought to understand and portray Hinduism from their interests. Hinduism was construed as emanating not from

5175-544: The UK-oriented publication of the same name (published by A.C. Black since 1849 and, notably, including substantial biographies since 1897), the first edition of the publication contained concise biographies of more than 8,500 "distinguished Americans". Albert Marquis wrote that the book's objective was to "chronicle the lives of individuals whose achievements and contributions to society make them subjects of widespread reference interest and inquiry." Originally independent, it

5290-560: The Vaidika dharma . The word 'Vaidika' in Sanskrit means 'derived from or conformable to the Veda' or 'relating to the Veda'. Traditional scholars employed the terms Vaidika and Avaidika, those who accept the Vedas as a source of authoritative knowledge and those who do not, to differentiate various Indian schools from Jainism, Buddhism and Charvaka. According to Klaus Klostermaier, the term Vaidika dharma

5405-1253: The Vedas , the Upanishads , the Puranas , the Mahabharata (including the Bhagavad Gita ), the Ramayana , and the Agamas . Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include karma (action, intent and consequences), saṃsāra (the cycle of death and rebirth) and the four Puruṣārthas , proper goals or aims of human life, namely: dharma (ethics/duties), artha (prosperity/work), kama (desires/passions) and moksha (liberation/freedom from passions and ultimately saṃsāra ). Hindu religious practices include devotion ( bhakti ), worship ( puja ), sacrificial rites ( yajna ), and meditation ( dhyana ) and yoga . Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and many Hindus do not claim to belong to any denomination. However, scholarly studies notify four major denominations: Shaivism , Shaktism , Smartism , and Vaishnavism . The six Āstika schools of Hindu philosophy that recognise

5520-525: The occultist L. W. de Laurence . Atkinson died November 22, 1932, in Los Angeles , California , at the age of 69. Atkinson was a prolific writer, and his many books achieved wide circulation among New Thought devotees and occult practitioners. He published under several pen names, including Magus Incognito, Theodore Sheldon, Theron Q. Dumont , Swami Panchadasi, Yogi Ramacharaka , Swami Bhakta Vishita, and probably other names not identified at present. He

5635-457: The pizza effect , in which elements of Hindu culture have been exported to the West, gaining popularity there, and as a consequence also gained greater popularity in India. This globalisation of Hindu culture brought "to the West teachings which have become an important cultural force in western societies, and which in turn have become an important cultural force in India, their place of origin". The Hindutva movement has extensively argued for

5750-487: The "land of Hindus". Among the earliest known records of 'Hindu' with connotations of religion may be in the 7th-century CE Chinese text Record of the Western Regions by Xuanzang , and 14th-century Persian text Futuhu's-salatin by 'Abd al-Malik Isami . Some 16–18th century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts mention Hindu and Hindu dharma to distinguish from Muslims without positively defining these terms. In

5865-539: The "orthodox" form of Hinduism as Sanātana Dharma , "the eternal law" or the "eternal way". Hindus regard Hinduism to be thousands of years old. The Puranic chronology , as narrated in the Mahabharata , Ramayana , and the Puranas , envisions a timeline of events related to Hinduism starting well before 3000 BCE. The word dharma is used here to mean religion similar to modern Indo-Aryan languages , rather than with its original Sanskrit meaning. All aspects of

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5980-604: The 18th century, the European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus. The use of the English term "Hinduism" to describe a collection of practices and beliefs is a fairly recent construction. The term Hinduism was first used by Raja Ram Mohan Roy in 1816–17. By the 1840s, the term "Hinduism" was used by those Indians who opposed British colonialism, and who wanted to distinguish themselves from Muslims and Christians. Before

6095-413: The 1910s, Atkinson put his attention into another pseudonym, that of Theron Q. Dumont. This entity was supposed to be French, and his works, written in English and published in Chicago, combined an interest in New Thought with ideas about the training of the will, memory enhancement, and personal magnetism. In 1903, the same year that he began his writing career as Yogi Ramacharaka, Atkinson was admitted to

6210-566: The 19th and 20th centuries by Hindu reform movements and Neo-Vedanta, and has become characteristic of modern Hinduism. Beginning in the 19th century, Indian modernists re-asserted Hinduism as a major asset of Indian civilisation, meanwhile "purifying" Hinduism from its Tantric elements and elevating the Vedic elements. Western stereotypes were reversed, emphasising the universal aspects, and introducing modern approaches of social problems. This approach had great appeal, not only in India, but also in

6325-471: The Bar of Illinois. Perhaps it was a desire to protect his ongoing career as a lawyer that led him to adopt so many pseudonyms—but if so, he left no written account documenting such a motivation. How much time Atkinson devoted to his law practice after moving to Chicago is unknown, but it is unlikely to have been a full-time career, given his amazing output during the next 15 years as a writer, editor, and publisher in

6440-591: The Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism and Folk religion typology, whether practising or non-practicing. He classifies most Hindus as belonging by choice to one of the "founded religions" such as Vaishnavism and Shaivism that are moksha-focussed and often de-emphasise Brahman (Brahmin) priestly authority yet incorporate ritual grammar of Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism. He includes among "founded religions" Buddhism , Jainism , Sikhism that are now distinct religions, syncretic movements such as Brahmo Samaj and

6555-466: The British began to categorise communities strictly by religion, Indians generally did not define themselves exclusively through their religious beliefs; instead identities were largely segmented on the basis of locality, language, varna , jāti , occupation, and sect. "Hinduism" is an umbrella-term, referring to a broad range of sometimes opposite and often competitive traditions. The term "Hinduism"

6670-458: The Marathi poet Tukaram (1609–1649) and Ramdas (1608–1681), articulated ideas in which they glorified Hinduism and the past. The Brahmins also produced increasingly historical texts, especially eulogies and chronicles of sacred sites (Mahatmyas), or developed a reflexive passion for collecting and compiling extensive collections of quotations on various subjects. The notion and reports on "Hinduism" as

6785-507: The Vedanta, that is, in the three stages of the Vedanta philosophy, the Dvaita, Vishishtâdvaita and Advaita; one comes after the other. These are the three stages of spiritual growth in man. Each one is necessary. This is the essential of religion: the Vedanta, applied to the various ethnic customs and creeds of India, is Hinduism. — Swami Vivekananda This inclusivism was further developed in

6900-458: The Vedas or that it does not in some way derive from it". Though many religious Hindus implicitly acknowledge the authority of the Vedas, this acknowledgment is often "no more than a declaration that someone considers himself [or herself] a Hindu," and "most Indians today pay lip service to the Veda and have no regard for the contents of the text." Some Hindus challenge the authority of the Vedas, thereby implicitly acknowledging its importance to

7015-446: The Vedas, or were invalid in their entirety. Moderates then, and most orthoprax scholars later, agreed that though there are some variations, the foundation of their beliefs, the ritual grammar, the spiritual premises, and the soteriologies were the same. "This sense of greater unity", states Sanderson, "came to be called Hinduism". According to Nicholson, already between the 12th and the 16th centuries "certain thinkers began to treat as

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7130-403: The Vedic period, between c.  500 to 200 BCE , and c.  300 CE , in the period of the second urbanisation and the early classical period of Hinduism when the epics and the first Purānas were composed. It flourished in the medieval period , with the decline of Buddhism in India . Since the 19th century, modern Hinduism , influenced by western culture , has acquired

7245-467: The Vedic tradition and "held unanimously that the Śruti and Smṛti of Brahmanism are universally and uniquely valid in their own sphere, [...] and that as such they [Vedas] are man's sole means of valid knowledge [...]". The term Vaidika dharma means a code of practice that is "based on the Vedas", but it is unclear what "based on the Vedas" really implies, states Julius Lipner. The Vaidika dharma or "Vedic way of life", states Lipner, does not mean "Hinduism

7360-721: The West's view of Hinduism". Central to his philosophy is the idea that the divine exists in all beings, that all human beings can achieve union with this "innate divinity", and that seeing this divine as the essence of others will further love and social harmony. According to Vivekananda, there is an essential unity to Hinduism, which underlies the diversity of its many forms. According to Flood, Vivekananda's vision of Hinduism "is one generally accepted by most English-speaking middle-class Hindus today". Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan sought to reconcile western rationalism with Hinduism, "presenting Hinduism as an essentially rationalistic and humanistic religious experience". This "Global Hinduism" has

7475-493: The West. In any case, with or without a co-author, Atkinson started writing a series of books under the name Yogi Ramacharaka in 1903, ultimately releasing more than a dozen titles under this pseudonym. The Ramacharaka books were published by the Yogi Publication Society in Chicago and reached more people than Atkinson's New Thought works did. In fact, all of his books on yoga are still in print today. Atkinson apparently enjoyed

7590-656: The World , Who's Who in Science and Engineering , Who's Who in American Politics , etc. Often, Marquis Who's Who books are found in the reference section of local libraries, at corporate libraries, and are also used for research by universities. In 2005, while Marquis was owned by News Communications, Inc., publishers of The Hill ; The New York Times referred to the sixtieth edition of Who's Who in America as "a librarian's Vanity Fair ". Marquis states in its preface that Who's Who in America "endeavors to profile

7705-632: The Yogi Publishing Society. Instead they were published by The Advanced Thought Publishing Co., the same house that brought out the Theron Q. Dumont books and published Advanced Thought. In the 1890s, Atkinson became interested in Hinduism . After 1900, he devoted a great deal of effort to the diffusion of yoga and Oriental occultism in the West. It is unclear whether he actually ever subscribed to any form of Hindu religion or merely wished to write on

7820-608: The above has a basis in fact, The Kybalion bears notable structural resemblances to The Arcane Teachings , an anonymous set of six books attributed to Atkinson. A full description of the similarities between the two works can be found on the Kybalion page. With Edward Beals, which may have been another pseudonym, Atkinson wrote the so-called "Personal Power Books"—a group of 12 titles on humanity's internal powers and how to use them. Titles include Faith Power: Your Inspirational Forces and Regenerative Power or Vital Rejuvenation . Due to

7935-547: The ancient Vedic era. The Western term "religion" to the extent it means "dogma and an institution traceable to a single founder" is inappropriate for their tradition, states Hatcher. Sanātana Dharma historically referred to the "eternal" duties religiously ordained in Hinduism, duties such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings ( ahiṃsā ), purity, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, generosity, and asceticism. These duties applied regardless of

8050-447: The authority of the Vedas are: Samkhya , Yoga , Nyaya , Vaisheshika , Mīmāṃsā , and Vedanta . While the traditional Itihasa-Purana and its derived Epic-Puranic chronology present Hinduism as a tradition existing for thousands of years, scholars regard Hinduism as a fusion or synthesis of Brahmanical orthopraxy with various Indian cultures, having diverse roots and no specific founder. This Hindu synthesis emerged after

8165-508: The case, many Hindu religious sources see persons or groups which they consider as non-Vedic (and which reject Vedic varṇāśrama – 'caste and life stage' orthodoxy) as being heretics (pāṣaṇḍa/pākhaṇḍa). For example, the Bhāgavata Purāṇa considers Buddhists, Jains as well as some Shaiva groups like the Paśupatas and Kāpālins to be pāṣaṇḍas (heretics). According to Alexis Sanderson ,

8280-435: The central deity worshipped, the traditions and the soteriological outlook. The denominations of Hinduism, states Lipner, are unlike those found in major religions of the world, because Hindu denominations are fuzzy with individuals practising more than one, and he suggests the term "Hindu polycentrism". There are no census data available on demographic history or trends for the traditions within Hinduism. Estimates vary on

8395-424: The classical "karma-marga", jnana-marga , bhakti-marga , and "heroism", which is rooted in militaristic traditions . These militaristic traditions include Ramaism (the worship of a hero of epic literature, Rama , believing him to be an incarnation of Vishnu) and parts of political Hinduism . "Heroism" is also called virya-marga . According to Michaels, one out of nine Hindu belongs by birth to one or both of

8510-435: The colonial polemical reports led to fabricated stereotypes where Hinduism was mere mystic paganism devoted to the service of devils, while other scholars state that the colonial constructions influenced the belief that the Vedas , Bhagavad Gita , Manusmriti and such texts were the essence of Hindu religiosity, and in the modern association of 'Hindu doctrine' with the schools of Vedanta (in particular Advaita Vedanta) as

8625-442: The concept of dharma , a cosmic order maintained by its followers through rituals and righteous living, as first expounded in the Vedas . The word Hindu is an exonym , and while Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world, it has also been described by the modern term Sanātana Dharma ( lit.   ' eternal dharma ' ), based on the belief that its origins lie beyond human history , as revealed in

8740-810: The countries of South Asia , in Southeast Asia , in the Caribbean , Middle East , North America , Europe , Oceania , Africa , and other regions . The word Hindū is an exonym , and is derived from the Sanskrit root Sindhu , believed to be the name of the Indus River in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent . The Proto-Iranian sound change *s > h occurred between 850 and 600 BCE. According to Gavin Flood , "The actual term Hindu first occurs as

8855-609: The cultural influences such as Yoga and Hare Krishna movement by many missionaries organisations, especially by ISKCON and this is also due to the migration of Indian Hindus to the other nations of the world. Hinduism is growing fast in many western nations and in some African nations . Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority and many practising Hindus do not claim to belong to any particular denomination or tradition. Four major denominations are, however, used in scholarly studies: Shaivism , Shaktism , Smartism , and Vaishnavism . These denominations differ primarily in

8970-648: The deities to be aspects or manifestations of a single impersonal absolute or ultimate reality or Supreme God , while some Hindus maintain that a specific deity represents the supreme and various deities are lower manifestations of this supreme. Other notable characteristics include a belief in the existence of ātman (self), reincarnation of one's ātman, and karma as well as a belief in dharma (duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and right way of living), although variation exists, with some not following these beliefs. June McDaniel (2007) classifies Hinduism into six major kinds and numerous minor kinds, in order to understand

9085-469: The early Sanskrit texts differentiate between Vaidika, Vaishnava, Shaiva, Shakta, Saura, Buddhist and Jaina traditions. However, the late 1st-millennium CE Indic consensus had "indeed come to conceptualize a complex entity corresponding to Hinduism as opposed to Buddhism and Jainism excluding only certain forms of antinomian Shakta-Shaiva" from its fold. Some in the Mimamsa school of Hindu philosophy considered

9200-628: The establishment of a Hindu self-identity took place "through a process of mutual self-definition with a contrasting Muslim Other". According to Lorenzen, this "presence of the Other" is necessary to recognise the "loose family resemblance" among the various traditions and schools. According to the Indologist Alexis Sanderson , before Islam arrived in India, the "Sanskrit sources differentiated Vaidika, Vaiṣṇava, Śaiva, Śākta, Saura, Buddhist, and Jaina traditions, but they had no name that denotes

9315-449: The expression of emotions among the Hindus. The major kinds, according to McDaniel are Folk Hinduism , based on local traditions and cults of local deities and is the oldest, non-literate system; Vedic Hinduism based on the earliest layers of the Vedas, traceable to the 2nd millennium BCE; Vedantic Hinduism based on the philosophy of the Upanishads , including Advaita Vedanta , emphasising knowledge and wisdom; Yogic Hinduism, following

9430-481: The fact that a) their works were released by a series of publishing houses with shared addresses, and b) they wrote for a series of magazines with a shared roster of authors, the editor of all of which was Atkinson. His pseudonymous authors acted first as contributors to the periodicals and were then spun off into their own book-writing careers, with most of their books being released by Atkinson's own publishing houses. One key to unravelling this tangled web of pseudonyms

9545-516: The fields of New Thought, yoga, occultism, mediumship, divination, and personal success. The high point of his prodigious capacity for production was reached in the late 1910s. In addition to writing and publishing a steady stream of books and pamphlets, Atkinson started writing articles for Elizabeth Towne 's New Thought magazine Nautilus , as early as November 1912, while from 1916 to 1919, he simultaneously edited his own journal Advanced Thought . During this same period he also found time to assume

9660-637: The first Puranas were composed. It flourished in the medieval period , with the decline of Buddhism in India . Hinduism's variations in belief and its broad range of traditions make it difficult to define as a religion according to traditional Western conceptions. Hinduism includes a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions; Hindus can be polytheistic , pantheistic , panentheistic , pandeistic , henotheistic , monotheistic , monistic , agnostic , atheistic or humanist . According to Mahatma Gandhi , "a man may not believe in God and still call himself

9775-646: The first five of these as a collective entity over and against Buddhism and Jainism". This absence of a formal name, states Sanderson, does not mean that the corresponding concept of Hinduism did not exist. By late 1st-millennium CE, the concept of a belief and tradition distinct from Buddhism and Jainism had emerged. This complex tradition accepted in its identity almost all of what is currently Hinduism, except certain antinomian tantric movements. Some conservative thinkers of those times questioned whether certain Shaiva, Vaishnava and Shakta texts or practices were consistent with

9890-527: The form of supplementary text books. Ramacharaka's Advanced Course in Yoga Philosophy and Oriental Occultism remains popular in some circles. According to Atkinson's publisher, the Yogi Publication Society, some of these titles were inspired by a student of the "real" Yogi Ramacharaka, Baba Bharata , although there is no historical record that either of these individuals ever existed. In reply to inquiries about Yogi Ramacharaka, this official information

10005-558: The history of Hinduism, states Lipner. Bal Gangadhar Tilak gave the following definition in Gita Rahasya (1915): "Acceptance of the Vedas with reverence; recognition of the fact that the means or ways to salvation are diverse; and realization of the truth that the number of gods to be worshipped is large". It was quoted by the Indian Supreme Court in 1966, and again in 1995, "as an 'adequate and satisfactory definition," and

10120-493: The idea of writing as a Hindu so much that he created two more Indian personas, Swami Bhakta Vishita and Swami Panchadasi. Strangely, neither of these identities wrote on Hinduism. Their material was for the most part concerned with the arts of divination and mediumship , including "oriental" forms of clairvoyance and seership. Of the two, Swami Bhakta Vishita was by far the more popular, and with more than 30 titles to his credit, he eventually outsold even Yogi Ramacharaka. During

10235-601: The lack of information on Edward Beals, many believe this is also a pseudonym. Who%27s Who in America Marquis Who's Who , also known as A.N. Marquis Company , ( / ˈ m ɑːr k w ɪ s / or / m ɑːr ˈ k iː / ) is an American publisher of a number of directories containing short biographies. The books usually are entitled Who's Who in... followed by some subject, such as Who's Who in America , Who's Who of American Women , Who's Who in Asia , Who's Who in

10350-581: The leaders of American society; those men and women who are influencing their nation's development". Entries in Marquis Who's Who books list career and personal data for each biography, including birth date and place, names of parents and family members, education, writings and creative works, civic activities, awards, political affiliation, religion, and addresses. The content also is provided online to libraries and other paid subscribers. Founded in 1898 by Albert Nelson Marquis as an American counterpoint to

10465-557: The movement as an editor and author. He was responsible for publishing the magazines Suggestion (1900–1901), New Thought (1901–1905) and Advanced Thought (1906–1916). In 1900 Atkinson worked as an associate editor of Suggestion, a New Thought Journal , and wrote his first book, Thought-Force in Business and Everyday Life , being a series of lessons in personal magnetism, psychic influence, thought-force, concentration, will-power, and practical mental science. He then met Sydney Flower ,

10580-432: The multiple demands of Hinduism." The notion of common denominators for several religions and traditions of India further developed from the 12th century CE. Lorenzen traces the emergence of a "family resemblance", and what he calls as "beginnings of medieval and modern Hinduism" taking shape, at c. 300–600 CE, with the development of the early Puranas, and continuities with the earlier Vedic religion. Lorenzen states that

10695-404: The popularity of his Yogi Ramacharaka and Swami Bhakta Vishita series, the work that Atkinson produced under his third Hindu-sounding pseudonym, Swami Panchadasi, failed to capture a wide general audience. The subject matter, Clairvoyance and Occult Powers , was not authentically Hindu, either. Theron Q. Dumont titles As Theron Q. Dumont, Atkinson stated on the title pages of his works that he

10810-451: The relative number of adherents in the different traditions of Hinduism. According to a 2010 estimate by Johnson and Grim, the Vaishnavism tradition is the largest group with about 641 million or 67.6% of Hindus, followed by Shaivism with 252 million or 26.6%, Shaktism with 30 million or 3.2% and other traditions including Neo-Hinduism and Reform Hinduism with 25 million or 2.6%. In contrast, according to Jones and Ryan, Shaivism

10925-400: The reverence to the Vedas has come to be a simple raising of the hat". Halbfass states that, although Shaivism and Vaishnavism may be regarded as "self-contained religious constellations", there is a degree of interaction and reference between the "theoreticians and literary representatives" of each tradition that indicates the presence of "a wider sense of identity, a sense of coherence in

11040-733: The role of the honorary president of the International New Thought Alliance . Among the last collaborators with whom Atkinson may have been associated was the mentalist C. Alexander , "The Crystal Seer," whose New Thought booklet of affirmative prayer , Personal Lessons, Codes, and Instructions for Members of the Crystal Silence League , published in Los Angeles during the 1920s, contained on its last page an advertisement for an extensive list of books by Atkinson, Dumont, Ramacharaka, Vishita, and Atkinson's collaborator,

11155-479: The same building as Flower's Psychic Research and New Thought Publishing Company. Atkinson was a past president of the International New Thought Alliance . Throughout his subsequent career, Atkinson was thought to have written under many pseudonyms . It is not known whether he ever confirmed or denied authorship of these pseudonymous works, but all of the supposedly independent authors whose writings are now credited to Atkinson were linked to one another by virtue of

11270-536: The same person as T. J. Shelton, who (like Atkinson) wrote on subjects related to health and healing for The Nautilus magazine and was also one of several honorary presidents of the International New Thought Alliance. Discovery of a 1925 letter from Theodore Sheldon to Florence Sabin of Johns Hopkins University provides evidence of Theodore Sheldon's existence as an actual person, apart from William Walker Atkinson. The original copy of this letter

11385-436: The stress and over-strain eventually took its toll, and during this time he experienced a complete physical and mental breakdown, and financial disaster. He looked for healing and in the late 1880s he found it with New Thought , later attributing the restoration of his health, mental vigor and material prosperity to the application of the principles of New Thought. Some time after his healing, Atkinson began to write articles on

11500-484: The subject. According to unverifiable sources, while Atkinson was in Chicago at the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893, he met one Baba Bharata, a pupil of the late Indian mystic Yogi Ramacharaka (1799 – c. 1893). As the story goes, Bharata had become acquainted with Atkinson's writings after arriving in America, and since the two men shared similar ideas, they decided to collaborate. While editing New Thought magazine, it

11615-617: The text of Yoga Sutras of Patanjali emphasising introspective awareness; Dharmic Hinduism or "daily morality", which McDaniel states is stereotyped in some books as the "only form of Hindu religion with a belief in karma, cows and caste"; and bhakti or devotional Hinduism, where intense emotions are elaborately incorporated in the pursuit of the spiritual. Michaels distinguishes three Hindu religions and four forms of Hindu religiosity. The three Hindu religions are "Brahmanic-Sanskritic Hinduism", "folk religions and tribal religions", and "founded religions". The four forms of Hindu religiosity are

11730-447: The tradition and scholarly premises for the typology of Hinduism, as well as the major assumptions and flawed presuppositions that have been at the foundation of Indology . Hinduism, according to Inden, has been neither what imperial religionists stereotyped it to be, nor is it appropriate to equate Hinduism to be merely the monist pantheism and philosophical idealism of Advaita Vedanta. Some academics suggest that Hinduism can be seen as

11845-461: The traditional features of a religion or creed. It is a way of life and nothing more". Part of the problem with a single definition of the term Hinduism is the fact that Hinduism does not have a founder. It is a synthesis of various traditions, the "Brahmanical orthopraxy, the renouncer traditions and popular or local traditions". Theism is also difficult to use as a unifying doctrine for Hinduism, because while some Hindu philosophies postulate

11960-481: The truths he felt he had discovered, which were then known as Mental Science. In 1889, an article by him entitled "A Mental Science Catechism ," appeared in Charles Fillmore 's new periodical, Modern Thought. By the early 1890s Chicago had become a major centre for New Thought, mainly through the work of Emma Curtis Hopkins , and Atkinson decided to move there. Once in the city, he became an active promoter of

12075-458: The unity of Hinduism, dismissing the differences and regarding India as a Hindu-country since ancient times. And there are assumptions of political dominance of Hindu nationalism in India , also known as ' Neo-Hindutva '. There have also been increase in pre-dominance of Hindutva in Nepal , similar to that of India . The scope of Hinduism is also increasing in the other parts of the world, due to

12190-440: The various traditions collectively referred to as "Hinduism." The study of India and its cultures and religions, and the definition of "Hinduism", has been shaped by the interests of colonialism and by Western notions of religion. Since the 1990s, those influences and its outcomes have been the topic of debate among scholars of Hinduism, and have also been taken over by critics of the Western view on India. Hinduism as it

12305-460: The west. Major representatives of "Hindu modernism" are Ram Mohan Roy , Swami Vivekananda , Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Mahatma Gandhi . Raja Rammohan Roy is known as the father of the Hindu Renaissance . He was a major influence on Swami Vivekananda, who, according to Flood, was "a figure of great importance in the development of a modern Hindu self-understanding and in formulating

12420-755: The year of Randolph's death, the Ukrainian-born Helena Petrovna Blavatsky founded the Theosophical Society , by means of which she spread the teachings of mysterious Himalayan enlightened yogis, the Masters of the Ancient Wisdom , and the doctrines of the Eastern philosophy in general. After this pioneer work, some representatives from known lineages of Indian and Asian spiritual and philosophical tradition like Vivekananda , Anagarika Dharmapala , Paramahansa Yogananda , and others, started coming to

12535-462: Was acquired by the conglomerate ITT . Macmillan bought ITT's publishing division in 1985. Reed Publishing bought Marquis and National Register from Macmillan in 1991. Reed Elsevier sold Marquis and National Register to Commonwealth Business Media in 2001. News Communications, Inc., which owns The Hill , bought Marquis in 2003. In 2016, the company's assets, including all the trademarks were transferred to Marquis Who's Who Ventures LLC, which

12650-947: Was an "Instructor on the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism, Paris, France"—a claim manifestly untrue, as he was an American living in the United States. The Atkinson titles released under the Dumont name were primarily concerned with self-improvement and the development of mental will power and self-confidence. Among them were Practical Memory Training, The Art and Science of Personal Magnetism, The Power of Concentration , and The Advanced Course in Personal Magnetism: The Secrets of Mental Fascination, The Human Machine', Mastermind". Theodore Sheldon titles The health and healing book, Vim Culture has often been attributed to William Walker Atkinson. Theodore Sheldon does not appear to be

12765-470: Was coined in Western ethnography in the 18th century and refers to the fusion, or synthesis, of various Indian cultures and traditions, with diverse roots and no founder. This Hindu synthesis emerged after the Vedic period, between c.  500 –200 BCE and c.  300 CE , in the period of the Second Urbanisation and the early classical period of Hinduism, when the epics and

12880-546: Was located in Florence Sabin's university archives and makes reference to Ms. Sabin as Theodore Sheldon's childhood teacher from "the banks of Lake Geneva," which is important biographical data about an otherwise unknown writer. While it's possible that Atkinson could have been a ghost writer or contributor to Sheldon's work, the personal nature of Sheldon's correspondence with Florence Sabin would have been very difficult for Atkinson to fabricate, suggesting that Theodore Sheldon

12995-464: Was more than an Atkinson pen name. Magus Incognito titles The Secret Doctrines of the Rosicrucians by Magus Incognito consisted of a nearly verbatim republication of portions of The Arcane Teachings , an anonymous work attributed to Atkinson (see below). Three Initiates Ostensibly written by "Three Initiates," The Kybalion was published by the Yogi Publication Society. Whether any of

13110-479: Was not authentically Hindu, nor did he write on the topic of Hinduism. His best-known titles, which have remained in print for many years after entering the public domain, were "The Development of Seership: The Science of Knowing the Future; Hindoo and Oriental Methods" (1915), "Genuine Mediumship, or Invisible Powers", and "Can We Talk to Spirit Friends?" Atkinson produced more than two dozen Swami Bhakta Vishita books, plus

13225-537: Was provided by the Yogi Publication Society: Note that in at least one point, this "official" account is false: William Walker Atkinson was an American, not "an English author" and L. N. Fowler, an occult publishing house, was the British publisher of books that Atkinson had published under various of his own imprints in Chicago. Swami Bhakta Vishita titles Atkinson's second Hindu-sounding pseudonym, Swami Bhakta Vishita, billed as "The Hindoo Master"

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