A brief summary of the ICT based education conducted by the Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda University.

"Swami Vivekananda, the nineteenth-century Hindu monk who introduced Vedåanta to the West, is undoubtedly one of modern India's most influential philosophers. Unfortunately, his philosophy has too often been interpreted through reductive hermeneutic lenses. Typically, scholars have viewed him either as a modern-day exponent of âSaçnkara's Advaita Vedåanta or as a "Neo-Vedåantin" influenced more by Western ideas than indigenous Indian traditions. In Swami Vivekananda's Vedåantic Cosmopolitanism, Swami Medhananda rejects both of these prevailing approaches to offer a new interpretation (...) of Vivekananda's philosophy, highlighting its originality, contemporary relevance, and cross-cultural significance. Vivekananda, the book argues, is best understood as a cosmopolitan Vedåantin who developed novel philosophical positions through creative dialectical engagement with both Indian and Western thinkers. Inspired by his guru Sri Ramakrishna, Vivekananda reconceived Advaita Vedåanta as a nonsectarian, life-affirming philosophy that provides an ontological basis for religious cosmopolitanism and a spiritual ethics of social service. He defended the scientific credentials of religion while criticizing the climate of scientism beginning to develop in the late nineteenth century. He was also one of the first philosophers to defend the evidential value of supersensuous perception on the basis of general epistemic principles. Finally, he adopted innovative cosmopolitan approaches to long-standing philosophical problems. Bringing him into dialogue with a galaxy of contemporary philosophers, Medhananda demonstrates the sophistication and enduring value of Vivekananda's views on the limits of reason, the dynamics of religious faith, and the hard problem of consciousness"--. (shrink)

In the past several decades, numerous scholars have contended that Swami Vivekananda was a Hindu supremacist in the guise of a liberal preacher of the harmony of all religions. Jyotirmaya Sharma follows their lead in his provocative book, A Restatement of Religion: Swami Vivekananda and the Making of Hindu Nationalism (2013). According to Sharma, Vivekananda was “the father and preceptor of Hindutva,” a Hindu chauvinist who favored the existing caste system, denigrated non-Hindu religions, and deviated from his guru (...) Sri Ramakrishna’s more liberal and egalitarian teachings. This article has two main aims. First, I critically examine the central arguments of Sharma’s book and identify serious weaknesses in his methodology and his specific interpretations of Vivekananda’s work. Second, I try to shed new light on Vivekananda’s views on Hinduism, religious diversity, the caste system, and Ramakrishna by building on the existing scholarship, taking into account various facets of his complex thought, and examining the ways that his views evolved in certain respects. I argue that Vivekananda was not a Hindu supremacist but a cosmopolitan patriot who strove to prepare the spiritual foundations for the Indian freedom movement, scathingly criticized the hereditary caste system, and followed Ramakrishna in championing the pluralist doctrine that various religions are equally capable of leading to salvation. (shrink)

On the philosophy of the Hindu spiritual leader Swami Abhedananda, 1866-1939, disciple of Ramakrishna, 1836-1886.

The ideal of a universal religion -- Principles and practices of Vedanta -- Self-realization through knowledge -- Self-realization through control of mind -- Self-realization through selfless work -- Self-realization through love of God -- Great teachers of the world.

A new finding of lecture by Swami Vivekananda.

This article defends the cosmopsychist doctrine of the Indian philosopher-mystic Sri Aurobindo, arguing that it has distinct advantages over rival panpsychist positions. After tracing the dialectical trajectory of recent philosophical debates about panpsychism up to the present, I bring Aurobindo into dialogue with Miri Albahari, who has defended a form of panpsychist idealism based on the classical Advaita Vedānta philosophy of Śankara. I critique Albahari's panpsychist idealism from an Aurobindonian standpoint, arguing that its Śankaran metaphysical commitments and eliminativist implications make (...) it an unsatisfactory account of consciousness. I then summarize Aurobindo's cosmopsychism and explain its distinctive solution to the individuation problem, which is widely considered to be the most serious problem for all forms of cosmopsychism. According to Aurobindo, Divine Consciousness individuates into multiple creaturely consciousnesses through the twin processes of 'self-limitation' and 'exclusive concentration'. I conclude the paper by addressing several potential objections to Aurobindo's cosmopsychism. (shrink)

This article argues that the Indian philosopher-mystic Sri Aurobindo espoused a sophisticated form of cosmopsychism that has great contemporary relevance. After first discussing Aurobindo’s prescient reflections on the “central problem of consciousness” and his arguments against materialist reductionism, I explain how he developed a panentheistic philosophy of “realistic Adwaita” on the basis of his own spiritual experiences and his intensive study of the Vedāntic scriptures. He derived from this realistic Advaita philosophy a highly original doctrine of evolutionary cosmopsychism, according to (...) which the Divine Saccidānanda is “involved” in everything in the universe and gradually manifests itself at each stage of the evolutionary process from matter to life to mind, and ultimately, to Supermind—the final stage that is yet to come, upon the attainment of which we will attain knowledge of our true divine nature as Saccidānanda. I then reconstruct Aurobindo’s novel solution to the individuation problem, according to which the Divine Saccidānanda individuates into various distinct consciousnesses by playfully limiting itself through a process of “exclusive concentration.” Finally, I highlight the continued relevance of Aurobindo’s evolutionary cosmopsychism by bringing him into conversation with Itay Shani, a contemporary proponent of cosmopsychism. (shrink)

An Intellectual Exploration into the Infinite and the Eternal.

v. 1. Nāradabhaktisūtra -- v. 2. Pātañjalayogasūtra -- v. 3. Brahmasūtra -- v. 4. Padyānuvāda.

Chiefly on Vedanta philosophy and sociocultural heritage of India, by a devotee of the Ramakrishna order.

A reproduction of the original book VEDANTA IN PRACTICE by Swami Paramananda first published in 1909. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. (...) We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. (shrink)

In this book, Muthuraj Swamy discusses how conflicts are usually caused by factors other than religious factors at the grassroots level, and how dialogue is an elitist phenomenon that does not percolate to the grassroots, who do not need it in the first place.

This booklet contains teachings and instructions selected from the letters of Swami Ramakrishnananda which provide the much needed consolation for the struggling spiritual aspirants. The author, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna is a great thinker, forceful speaker, and above all, an illumined soul.

Commentary by Swami Tejomayananda. In this short and beautiful composition, Adi Sankara, the Master, has condensed the essence of Vedanta in just 31 verses, which are very useful to all serious seekers.

Né à Calcutta, Swâmi Vivekânanda (1863-1902) fut fasciné dans sa jeunesse par la modernité occidentale. Sa rencontre avec le grand mystique Râmakrishna changea le cours de sa vie. Il devint son principal disciple et après la mort du maître, il renonça au monde pour parcourir l'Inde en ermite errant. Sa participation au premier Congrès mondial des religions fut pour lui le départ d'une intense activité missionnaire qui introduisit la philosophie védantique en Amérique. Dans cet ouvrage de référence, il décrit et (...) analyse trois formes majeures de yoga : le Karma-Yoga, ou " yoga de l'action désintéressée ", le plus répandu en Occident ; le Bhakti-Yoga, ou " yoga de la dévotion " à une divinité, particulièrement populaire en Inde ; et le Râja-Yoga, " le roi des yogas ", discipline ascétique totale que seuls quelques rares initiés maîtrisent sans danger. (shrink)

This six volume set from the International Library of Psychology explores the interface between pschology and religion looking at a number of areas. The relevance of Hindu belief systems and thier perception are also looked at.

Writings and discourses on spiritual life and Hindu philosophy; translated into Gujarati.