1. Definition and etymology

2. History
    Unifying Hinduism  Western colonialism and Hindu reform movements  Western colonialism  Hindu reform movements 

3. Major proponents
    Ram Mohan Roy and the Brahmo Samaj  Vivekananda (1863–1902)  Gandhi  Sarvepalli Radhakrisnan 

4. Philosophy
    Politics  Nationalism  Social activism  Religion  Unity of Hinduism  Universalism  Vedanta and nondualism  Sruti versus "experience" 

5. Smarta Tradition

6. Influence
    Vedanticization  Diversity and pluralism  Hindu inclusivism – Hindutva and "Dharmic religions"  Inclusivism and communalism  Influence on western spirituality 

7. Appraisal and criticism
    Appraisal  Criticism 

8. Criticism of neo-Hinduism label
    Criticism of Paul Hacker  Neglect of inherent development of religions  The "myth of Neo-Hinduism" 

9. See also

10. Notes

11. References

12. Sources
     Printed sources  Web-sources 

13. Further reading
     Scholarly 

14. External links

Neo-Vedanta, also called Hindu modernism,{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=258}} neo-Hinduism,{{sfn|King|2002|p=93}} Global Hinduism{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=265}} and Hindu Universalism,^[1] are terms to characterize interpretations of Hinduism that developed in the 19th century. Some scholars argue that these modern interpretations incorporate western ideas{{sfn|Halbfass|2007a|p=307}} into traditional Indian religions, especially Advaita Vedanta, which is asserted as central or fundamental to Hindu culture.{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}}

The term "Neo-Vedanta" was coined by Paul Hacker, in a pejorative way, to distinguish modern developments from "traditional" Advaita Vedanta.{{sfn|Madaio|2017}} Other scholars have described a Greater Advaita Vedānta{{sfn|Allen|2017}}{{refn|group=note|Allen has coined the term while drawing on the work of Balasubramanian,. See Balasubramanian, R., 2000, "Introduction" in History of Science, Philosophy and Culture in Indian civilization: Volume II Part 2 Advaita Vedanta. Delhi: Centre for Studies in Civilizations.}}, which developed since the medieaval period. What is important to note here is that many of these traditions, which were influential among Neo-Vedantins, did not derive from vedantic lineages, i.e., the "Advaita Vedanta" of Shankara. As the scholar J. Madaio points out "...it is possible to speak of sanskritic and vernacular advaitic texts (which are either explicitly non-dualistic or permit a non-dualistic reading) and 'Advaita Vedanta' texts which originate within sampradayas that claim an Advaita Vedantic lineage. This, then, avoids the obfuscating tendency to subsume advaitic but non-vedantic works under a 'Vedanta' or 'Advaita Vedanta' umbrella."{{sfn|Madaio|2017|p=4}} Drawing on this broad pool of sources, after Muslim rule in India was replaced by British rule, Hindu religious and political leaders and thinkers responded to western colonialism and orientalism, contributing to the Indian freedom struggle and the modern national and religious identity of Hindus in the Republic of India. This societal aspect is covered under the term of Hindu reform movements.

Among the main proponents of such modern interpretations of Hinduism were Vivekananda, Aurobindo and Radhakrishnan, who to some extent also contributed to the emergence of Neo-Hindu movements in the West.

Neo-Vedanta has been influential in the perception of Hinduism, both in the west and in the higher educated classes in India. It has received appraisal for its "solution of synthesis",{{sfn|Larson|2012|p=320}} but has also been criticised for its Universalism. The terms "Neo-Hindu" or "Neo-Vedanta" themselves have also been criticised for its polemical usage, the prefix "Neo-" then intended to imply that these modern interpretations of Hinduism are "inauthentic" or in other ways problematic.{{sfn|Halbfass|2007b|p=587}}

Definition and etymology

According to Halbfass, the terms "Neo-Vedanta" and "Neo-Hinduism" refer to "the adoption of Western concepts and standards and the readiness to reinterpret traditional ideas in light of these new, imported and imposed modes of thought".{{sfn|Halbfass|2007a|p=307}} Prominent in Neo-Vedanta is Vivekananda, who's theology, according to Madaio, is often characterised in earlier scholarship as "a rupture from 'traditional' or 'classical' Hindusim, particularly the 'orthodox' Advaita Vedanta of the eight century Samkara."{{sfn|Madaio|2017|p=2}}

The term "Neo-Vedanta" appears to have arisen in Bengal in the 19th century, where it was used by both Indians and Europeans.{{sfn|Halbfass|2007a|p=307}} According to Halbfass the term was invented by a Bengali, Brajendra Nath Seal (1864–1938), who used the term to characterise the literary work of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (1838–1894).{{sfn|Halbfass|2007a|p=307}}

The term "neo-Vedanta" was used by Christian missionaries as well as Hindu traditionalists to criticize the emerging ideas of the Brahmo Samaj, a critical usage whose "polemical undertone [...] is obvious".{{sfn|Halbfass|1995|p=9,21(n33)}}

The term "Neo-Vedanta", according to Ayon Maharaj, "is misleading and unhelpful for three main reasons":^[2]{{rp|46}}

First, a vague umbrella term such as "Neo-Vedanta" fails to capture the nuances of the specific Vedantic views of different modern figures.... Second, the term "Neo-Vedanta" misleadingly implies novelty.... Third, and most problematically, the term "Neo-Vedanta" is indelibly colored by German indologist Paul Hacker's polemical use of the term.^[2]{{rp|46-47}}

The term "neo-Hinduism" was used by a Jesuit scholar resident in India, Robert Antoine (1914–1981), from whom it was borrowed by Paul Hacker, who used it to demarcate these modernist ideas from "surviving traditional Hinduism,"{{sfn|Halbfass|2007a|p=307}} and treating the Neo-Advaitins as "dialogue partners with a broken identity who cannot truly and authentically speak for themselves and for the Indian tradition".{{sfn|Halbfass|1995|p=9}} Hacker made a distinction between "Neo-Vedanta" and "neo-Hinduism",{{sfn|King|2002|p=93}} seeing nationalism as a prime concern of "neo-Hinduism".{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=194}}

History

Although neo-Vedanta proper developed in the 19th century in response to western colonialism, it has got deeper origins in the Muslim period of India.{{sfn|Nicholson|2010}}

Unifying Hinduism

Well before the advent of British influence, with beginnings that some scholars have argued significantly predate Islamic influence,
|title=Untitled [review of Unifying Hinduism, by Andrew Nicholson]
|journal=Journal of the American Academy of Religion |date=17 July 2014 |volume=82 |issue=3 |pages=879–883 |doi=10.1093/jaarel/lfu052}}|title=Untitled [review of Unifying Hinduism, by Andrew Nicholson]
|journal=Literature and Theology |date=9 August 2011 |volume=25 |issue=4 |pages=474–477 |doi=10.1093/litthe/frr030 |issn=1477-4623}} hierarchical classifications of the various orthodox schools were developed.{{sfn|Nicholson|2010}} According to Nicholson, already between the twelfth and the sixteenth century,{{quote|... certain thinkers began to treat as 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.{{sfn|Nicholson|2010|p=2}}}}

The tendency of "a blurring of philosophical distinctions" has also been noted by Burley.{{sfn|Burley|2007|p=34}} Lorenzen locates the origins of a distinct Hindu identity in the interaction between Muslims and Hindus,{{sfn|Lorenzen|2006|p=24-33}} and a process of "mutual self-definition with a contrasting Muslim other",{{sfn|Lorenzen|2006|p=27}} which started well before 1800.{{sfn|Lorenzen|2006|p=26-27}} Both the Indian and the European thinkers who developed the term "Hinduism" in the 19th century were influenced by these philosophers.{{sfn|Nicholson|2010|p=2}}

Within these so-called doxologies Advaita Vedanta was given the highest position, since it was regarded to be most inclusive system.{{sfn|Nicholson|2010}} Vijnanabhiksu, a 16th-century philosopher and writer, is still an influential representant of these doxologies. He's been a prime influence on 19th century Hindu modernists like Vivekananda, who also tried to integrate various strands of Hindu thought, taking Advaita Vedanta as its most representative specimen.{{sfn|Nicholson|2010}}

Western colonialism and Hindu reform movements

Western colonialism

With the colonisation of India by the British, a darker era in the history of India began. Prior to this, Muslim rule over North India had had a drastic effect on Hinduism (and Buddhism) through systematic persecution. While the Indian society was greatly impacted, its economy however continued to remain one of the largest in the World.{{sfn|Maddison|2006}} Muslim rule over Southern India was also relatively short-lived before the 17th century. In contrast to the Muslim rulers, the British actively engaged in destroying the Indian economy as well.{{sfn|Maddison|2006}}{{sfn|Dharampal|1971}} The economic destruction wrought by restrictive British policies and Industrial revolution in Europe, led to the dismantling of the prevailing decentralized education systems in India in the 18th century.{{sfn|Dharampal|1971}} The British state-supported education system, after the English Education Act of 1835, emphasized western religions and thoughts at the cost of indigenous ones.

The British also nurtured and were involved, post 1813, in the aggressive propagation of Protestant Christianity.{{sfn|King|2002}} This was concomitant with the British propaganda machine's involvement in the spreading anti-Hindu sentiments.

Hindu reform movements

In response to the British rule and cultural dominance, Hindu reform movements developed,{{sfn|Michaels|2004}} propagating societal and religious reforms, exemplifying what Percival Spear has called

of our time. Spear identifies five types of distinctive responses:

1. a "military" or openly hostile response—taking up arms against the intruders;
2. a "reactionary" response—the attempt to reconstitute the older political order, for example, the North Indian Rebellion (formerly called the "mutiny") in 1857–58;
3. a "westernizing" response—assimilating to the new values;
4. an "orthodox" response—maintenance of the older religion with appropriate reform; and
5. the "solution of synthesis"—the effort to adapt to the newcomers, in the process of which innovation and assimilation gradually occur, alongside an ongoing agenda to preserve the unique values of the many traditions of Hinduism (and other religious traditions as well)."}}}}

Neo-Vedanta, also called "neo-Hinduism"{{sfn|King|2002|p=93}} is a central theme in these reform-movements.{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}} The earliest of these reform-movements was Ram Mohan Roy's Brahmo Samaj, who strived toward a purified and monotheistic Hinduism.{{sfn|Michelis|2004}}

Major proponents

Neo-vedanta's main proponents are the leaders of the Brahmo Samaj, especially Ram Mohan Roy,{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=190-192}} while Vivekananda, Gandhi, Aurobindo and Radhakrishnan are the main proponents of neo-Hinduism.{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=194}}

Ram Mohan Roy and the Brahmo Samaj

The Brahmo Samaj was the first of the 19th century reform movements. Its founder, Ram Mohan Roy (1772–1833), strived toward an universalistic interpretation of Hinduism.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=46}} He rejected Hindu mythology, but also the Christian trinity.{{sfn|Harris|2009|p=268}} He found that Unitarianism came closest to true Christianity,{{sfn|Harris|2009|p=268}} and had a strong sympathy for the Unitarians.{{sfn|Kipf|1979|p=3}} He founded a missionary committee in Calcutta, and in 1828 asked for support for missionary activities from the American Unitarians.{{sfn|Kipf|1979|p=7-8}} By 1829, Roy had abandoned the Unitarian Committee,{{sfn|Kipf|1979|p=15}} but after Roy's death, the Brahmo Samaj kept close ties to the Unitarian Church,{{sfn|Harris|2009|p=268-269}} who strived towards a rational faith, social reform, and the joining of these two in a renewed religion.{{sfn|Kipf|1979|p=3}} The Unitarians were closely connected to the Transcendentalists, who were interested in and influenced by Indian religions early on.{{sfn|Versluis|1993}}

Rammohan Roy's ideas were "altered ... considerably" by Debendranath Tagore, who had a Romantic approach to the development of these new doctrines, and questioned central Hindu beliefs like reincarnation and karma, and rejected the authority of the Vedas.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=46-47}} Tagore also brought this "neo-Hinduism" closer in line with western esotericism, a development which was furthered by Keshubchandra Sen.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=47}} Sen was influenced by Transcendentalism, an American philosophical-religious movement strongly connected with Unitarianism, which emphasized personal religious experience over mere reasoning and theology.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=81}} Sen strived to "an accessible, non-renunciatory, everyman type of spirituality", introducing "lay systems of spiritual practice" which can be regarded as prototypes of the kind of Yoga-exercises which Vivekananda populurized in the west.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=49}}

The theology of the Brahmo Samaj was called "neo-Vedanta" by Christian commentators,{{sfn|Halbfass|1995|p=9}}{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=192}} who "partly admired [the Brahmos] for their courage in abandoning traditions of polytheism and image worship, but whom they also scorned for having proffered to other Hindus a viable alternative to conversion".{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=192}} Critics accused classical Vedanta of being "cosmic self-infatuation" and "ethical nihilism".{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=192}} Brahmo Samaj leaders responded to such attacks by redefining the Hindu path to liberation, making the Hindu path available to both genders and all castes,{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=192}} incorporating "notions of democracy and worldly improvement".{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=193}}

Vivekananda (1863–1902)

According to Gavin Flood, Vivekananda (1863–1902){{sfn|Flood|1996|p=257}} (Narendranath Dutta) "is a figure of great importance in the development of a modern Hindu self-understanding and in formulating the West's view of Hinduism".{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=257}} He played a major role in the revival of Hinduism,{{sfn|Dense|1999|p=191}} and the spread of Advaita Vedanta to the west via the Ramakrishna Mission.{{refn|group=note|His interpretation of Advaita Vedanta has been called "Neo-Vedanta".{{sfn|Mukerji|1983}}}}

In 1880 Vivekananda joined Keshub Chandra Sen's Nava Vidhan, which was established by Sen after meeting Ramakrishna and reconverting from Christianity to Hinduism.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=99}} Narendranath (a.k.a. Narendra) became a member of a Freemasonry lodge "at some point before 1884"{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=100}} and of the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj in his twenties, a breakaway faction of the Brahmo Samaj led by Keshub Chandra Sen and Debendranath Tagore.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=99}}{{sfn| Sen|2006|pp=12–14}}{{sfn|Banhatti|1995|p=8}}{{sfn|Badrinath|2006|p=20}} From 1881 to 1884 he was also active in Sen's Band of Hope, which tried to discourage the youth from smoking and drinking.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=99}} It was in this cultic{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=31-35}} milieu that Narendra became acquainted with western esotericism.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=19-90, 97-100}} His initial beliefs were shaped by Brahmo concepts, which included belief in a formless God and the deprecation of idolatry,{{Sfn|Bhuyan|2003|p=5}}{{Sfn|Chattopadhyaya|1999|p=29}} and a "streamlined, rationalized, monotheistic theology strongly coloured by a selective and modernistic reading of the Upanisads and of the Vedanta".{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=46}} He propagated the idea that "the divine, the absolute, exists within all human beings regardless of social status",{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=258}} and that "seeing the divine as the essence of others will promote love and social harmony".{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=258}}

During this period, he came in contact with Ramakrishna, who eventually became his guru, and fitted into his broadening views on spirituality and liberation.

Vivekananda's acquaintance with western esotericism made him very successful in western esoteric circles, beginning with his speech in 1893 at the Parliament of Religions. Vivekananda adapted traditional Hindu ideas and religiosity to suit the needs and understandings of his western audiences, who were especially attracted by and familiar with western esoteric traditions and movements like Transcendentalism and New thought.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=119-123}} An important element in his adaptation of Hindu religiosity was the introduction of his four yoga's model, which includes Raja yoga, his interpretation of Patanjali's Yoga sutras,{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=123-126}} which offered a practical means to realize the divine force within which is central to modern western esotericism.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=119-123}} In 1896 his book Raja Yoga was published, which became an instant success and was highly influential in the western understanding of Yoga.{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=125-126}}{{sfn|Michelis|2004|p=149-180}}

In line with Advaita vedanta texts like Dŗg-Dŗśya-Viveka (14th century) and Vedantasara (of Sadananda) (15th century), Vivekananda saw samadhi as a means to attain liberation.{{sfn|Comans|1993}}

Gandhi

Gandhi (1869–1948) has become a worldwide hero of tolerance and striving toward freedom. In his own time, he objected to the growing forces of Indian nationalism, communalism and the subaltern response.{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=8-10}}{{refn|group=note|"Subaltern" is the social group who is socially, politically, and geographically outside of the hegemonic power structure of a country. In the Indian colonial and post-colonial context this entails the hegemony of upper-class visions on Indian history, such as the Vedic origins of Hinduism, and the alternative visions{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=9}} such as Dravidian nationalism and the Dalit Buddhist movement.}} Gandhi saw religion as an uniting force, confessing the equality of all religions.{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=10}} He synthesized the Astika, Nastika and Semitic religions, promoting an inclusive culture for peaceful living.{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=10}} Gandhi pled for a new hermeneutics of Indian scriptures and philosophy, observing that "there are ample religious literature both in Astika and Nastika religions supporting for a pluralistic approach to religious and cultural diversity".{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=10}}

The orthodox Advaita Vedanta, and the heterodox Jain concept Anekantavada provided him concepts for an "integral approach to religious pluralism".{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=10}} He regarded Advaita as a universal religion ("dharma"{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}}) which could unite both the orthodox and nationalistic religious interpretations, as the subaltern alternatives.{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}} Hereby Gandhi offers an interpretation of Hindutva which is basically different from the Sangh Parivar-interpretation.{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}} The concept of anekantavada offered Gandhi an axiom that "truth is many-sided and relative".{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}} It is "a methodology to counter exclusivism or absolutism propounded by many religious interpretations".{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}} It has the capability of synthesizing different percpetions of reality.{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}} In Gandhi's view,

Anekantavada also gives room to an organic understanding of "spatio-temporal process",{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}} that is, the daily world and its continued change.{{refn|group=note|Compare Gier (2012), who pleads for a process-philosophy instead of a substance-philosophy.{{sfn|Gier|2012}}}} The doctrine of anekantavada is a plea for samvada, "dialogue", and an objection against proselytizing activities.{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=11}}

Sarvepalli Radhakrisnan

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was a major force in the further popularization of Neo-Vedanta.{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=194-196}} As a schoolboy, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was inspired by Vivekananda's lectures, in which he found "an ennobling vision of truth and harmony as well as a message of Indian pride".{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=194}} He was educated by Christian missionaries, and wrote a master thesis on Vedanta and ethics.{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=195}} In later life, he became vice-president and president of India.{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=195}} According to Rinehart, he presented his view of Hinduism as the view of Hinduism.{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=195}} Central in his presentation was the claim that religion is fundamentally a kind of experience,{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=195}} anubhava,^[3] reducing religion "to the core experience of reality in its fundamental unity".{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=195}}{{refn|group=note|The notion of "religious experience" can be traced back to William James, who used the term "religious experience" in his book, The Varieties of Religious Experience.{{sfn|Hori|1999|p = 47}} Wayne Proudfoot traces the roots of the notion of "religious experience" further back to the German theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768–1834), who argued that religion is based on a feeling of the infinite. The notion of "religious experience" was used by Schleiermacher to defend religion against the growing scientific and secular citique.{{sfn|Sharf|2000}} The term was popularised by the Transcendentalists, and exported to Asia via missionaries.{{sfn|King|2002}} It was adopted by many scholars of religion, of which William James was the most influential.{{sfn|Sharf|2000|p = 271}}}} For Radhakrishnan, Vedanta was the essence and bedrock of religion.{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=196}}

Philosophy

Politics

Nationalism

Vivekananda "occupies a very important place" in the development of Indian nationalism^[4] as well as Hindu nationalism,{{sfn|Sharma|2011|p=73-126}}{{sfn|Sharma|2013}} and has been called "the prophet of nationalism", pleading for a "Hindu regeneration".{{sfn|Sen|1997|p=75}} According to S.N. Sen, his motto "Arise, Awake and do not stop until the goal is reached" had a strong appeal for millions of Indians.{{sfn|Sen|1997|p=75}} According to Bijoy Misra, a private blogger,

In the colonial India, "salvation" could be the freedom from foreign rule. Indians credit Swami Vivekananda to have sown the early seeds of nationalism culminating in India's freedom.^[5]}}

Social activism

According to Bijoy Misra, a private blogger,

Religion

Unity of Hinduism

Neo-Vedanta aims to present Hinduism as a "homogenized ideal of Hinduism"{{sfn|Yelle|2012|p=338}} with Advaita Vedanta as its central doctrine.{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}} It presents

Neo-Vedanta was influenced by Oriental scholarship, which portrayed Hinduism as a "single world religion",{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}} and denigrated the heterogeneity of Hindu beliefs and practices as 'distortions' of the basic teachings of Vedanta.{{sfn|King|1999|p=135}}{{refn|group=note|The same tendency to prefer an essential core teaching has been prevalent in western scholarship of Theravada Buddhism,{{sfn|McMahan|2008}} and has also been constructed by D.T. Suzuki in his presentation of Zen-Buddhism to the west.{{sfn|McMahan|2008}}{{sfn|McRae|2003}}}}{{refn|group=note|David Gordon White notes: "Many Western indologists and historians of religion specializing in Hinduism never leave the unalterable worlds of the scriptures they interpret to investigate the changing real-world contexts out of which those texts emerged". He argues for "an increased emphasis on non-scriptural sources and a focus on regional traditions".{{sfn|White|2006|p=104}}}}

Universalism

Following Ramakrishna, neo-Vedanta regards all religions to be equal paths to liberation, but also gives a special place to Hinduism, as the ultimate universal religion.

Vedanta and nondualism

According to Benavides, neo-Vedanta is closer to Ramanuja's qualified non-dualism than it is to Shankara Advaita Vedanta.{{sfn|Benavides|1993}} Nicholas F. Gier notes that neo-Vedanta does not regard the world to be illusionary, in contrast to Shankara's Advaita.{{sfn|Gier|2012|p=268-269}}{{refn|group=note|Gier: "Ramakrsna, Svami Vivekananda, and Aurobindo (I also include M.K. Gandhi) have been labeled "neo-Vedantists," a philosophy that rejects the Advaitins' claim that the world is illusory. Aurobindo, in his The Life Divine, declares that he has moved from Sankara's "universal illusionism" to his own "universal realism" (2005: 432), defined as metaphysical realism in the European philosophical sense of the term."{{sfn|Gier|2012|p=268-269}}}}

According to Michael Taft, Ramakrishna reconciled the dualism of formless and form.{{sfn|Taft|2014}} Ramakrishna regarded the Supreme Being to be both Personal and Impersonal, active and inactive.^[8]{{refn|group=note|Ramakrishna: "When I think of the Supreme Being as inactive - neither creating nor preserving nor destroying - I call Him Brahman or Purusha, the Impersonal God. When I think of Him as active - creating, preserving and destroying - I call Him Sakti or Maya or Prakriti, the Personal God. But the distinction between them does not mean a difference. The Personal and Impersonal are the same thing, like milk and its whiteness, the diamond and its lustre, the snake and its wriggling motion. It is impossible to conceive of the one without the other. The Divine Mother and Brahman are one."^[6]}} According to Anil Sooklal, Vivekananda's neo-Advaita "reconciles Dvaita or dualism and Advaita or non-dualism".{{sfn|Sooklal|1993|p=33}}{{refn|group=note|Sooklalmquoytes Chatterjee: "Sankara's Vedanta is known as Advaita or non-dualism, pure and simple. Hence it is sometimes referred to as Kevala-Advaita or unqualified monism. It may also be called abstract monism in so far as Brahman, the Ultimate Reality, is, according to it, devoid of all qualities and distinctions, nirguna and nirvisesa ... The Neo-Vedanta is also Advaitic inasmuch as it holds that Brahman, the Ultimate Reality, is one without a second, ekamevadvitiyam. But as distinguished from the traditional Advaita of Sankara, it is a synthetic Vedanta which reconciles Dvaita or dualism and Advaita or non-dualism and also other theories of reality. In this sense it may also be called concrete monism in so far as it holds that Brahman is both qualified, saguna, and qualityless, nirguna (Chatterjee, 1963 : 260)."{{sfn|Sooklal|1993|p=33}}}}

Radhakrishnan acknowledged the reality and diversity of the world of experience, which he saw as grounded in and supported by the absolute or Brahman.^[10]{{refn|group=note|name="Neo-Vedanta|Neo-Vedanta seems to be closer to Bhedabheda-Vedanta than to Shankara's Advaita Vedanta, with the acknowledgement of the reality of the world. Nicholas F. Gier: "Ramakrsna, Svami Vivekananda, and Aurobindo (I also include M.K. Gandhi) have been labeled "neo-Vedantists," a philosophy that rejects the Advaitins' claim that the world is illusory. Aurobindo, in his The Life Divine, declares that he has moved from Sankara's "universal illusionism" to his own "universal realism" (2005: 432), defined as metaphysical realism in the European philosophical sense of the term."{{sfn|Gier|2013}}}} Radhakrishnan also reinterpreted Shankara's notion of maya. According to Radhakrishnan, maya is not a strict absolute idealism, but "a subjective misperception of the world as ultimately real".^[7]

Gandhi endorsed the Jain concept of Anekantavada,{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=190-191}} the notion that truth and reality are perceived differently from diverse points of view, and that no single point of view is the complete truth.{{sfn|Dundas|2004|p=123–136}}{{sfn|Koller|2004|p=400–407}} This concept embraces the perspectives of both Vedānta which, according to Jainism, "recognizes substances but not process", and Buddhism, which "recognizes process but not substance". Jainism, on the other hand, pays equal attention to both substance (dravya) and process (paryaya).{{sfn|Burch|1964|p=68–93}}

According to Sarma, who stands in the tradition of Nisargadatta Maharaj, Advaitavāda means "spiritual non-dualism or absolutism",{{sfn|Sarma|1996|p=1}} in which opposites are manifestations of the Absolute, which itself is immanent and transcendent.{{sfn|Sarma|1996|p=1-2}}{{refn|group=note|Sarma: "All opposites like being and non-being, life and death, good and evil, light and darkness, gods and men, soul and nature are viewed as manifestations of the Absolute which is immanent in the universe and yet transcends it."{{sfn|Sarma|1996|p=1-2}}}}

Sruti versus "experience"

A central concern in Neo-Vedanta is the role of sruti, sacred texts, versus (personal) experience. Classical Advaita Vedanta is centered on the correct understanding of sruti, the sacred texts. Correct understanding of the sruti is a pramana, a means of knowledge to attain liberation.{{sfn|Myers|2013|p=104-105}}{{sfn|Rambachan|1984}}{{sfn|Dalal|2009|p=22}} It takes years of preparation and study to accomplish this task, and includes the mastery of Sanskrit, the memorisation of texts, and the meditation over the interpretation of those texts.{{sfn|Dubois|2013}} Understanding is called anubhava,{{sfn|Rambachan|1991|p=5}} knowledge or understanding derived from (personal) experience.^[8]{{sfn|Myers|2013|p=105}} Anubhava removes Avidya, ignorance, regarding Brahman and Atman, and leads to moksha, liberation. In neo-Vedanta, the status of sruti becomes secondary, and "personal experience" itself becomes the primary means to liberation.{{sfn|Rambachan|1991|p=1-14}}

Smarta Tradition

According to Ninian Smart, Neo-Vedanta is "largely a smarta account."{{sfn|Smart|2009|p=186}} In modern times Smarta-views have been highly influential in both the Indian{{sfn|Smart|2009|p=186}}^[9] and western^[10] understanding of Hinduism. According to iskcon.org,

Vaitheespara notes adherence of Smartha Brahmans to "the pan-Indian Sanskrit-Brahmanical tradition":{{sfn|Vaitheespara|2010|p=91}}

The majority of members of Smarta community follow the Advaita Vedanta philosophy of Shankara.^[16] Smarta and Advaita have become almost synonymous, though not all Advaitins are Smartas.^[16] Shankara was a Smarta,^[11] just like Radhakrishnan.{{sfn|Fort|1998|p=179}}{{sfn|Minor|1987|p=3}} Smartas believe in the essential oneness of five (panchadeva) or six (Shanmata deities as personifications of the Supreme.{{citation needed|date=November 2013}} According to Smartism, supreme reality, Brahman, transcends all of the various forms of personal deity.{{sfn|Espin|2007|p=563}} God is both Saguna and Nirguna:^[19]

Lola Williamson further notes that "what is called Vedic in the smarta tradition, and in much of Hinduism, is essentially Tantric in its range of deities and liturgical forms."{{sfn|Williamson|2010|p=89}}

Influence

Neo-Vedanta was popularised in the 20th century in both India and the west by Vivekananda,{{sfn|Michaelson|2009|p=79-81}}{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}} Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan,{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}} and western orientalists who regarded Vedanta to be the "central theology of Hinduism".{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}}

Vedanticization

Neo-Vedanta has become a broad current in Indian culture,{{sfn|King|2002|p=135}}{{sfn|Sinari|2000}} extending far beyond the Dashanami Sampradaya, the Advaita Vedanta Sampradaya founded by Adi Shankara. The influence of Neo-Vedanta on Indian culture has been called "Vedanticization" by Richard King.{{sfn|King|2011|p=69}}

An example of this "Vedanticization" is Ramana Maharshi, who is regarded as one of the greatest Hindu-saints of modern times,{{refn|group=note|A comparable change of reception can be seen in the status of Meister Eckhart, who has come to be celebrated the most noted western mystic.}}, of whom Sharma notes that "among all the major figures of modern Hinduism [he] is the one person who is widely regarded as a jivanmukti".{{sfn|Sharma|2005|p=208}} Although Sharma admits that Ramana was not acquainted with Advaita Vedanta before his personal experience of liberation,{{sfn|Sharma|2005|p=213}} and Ramana never received initiation into the Dashanami Sampradaya or any other sampradaya,^[13] Sharma nevertheless sees Ramana's answers to questions by devotees as being within an Advaita Vedanta framework.{{sfn|Sharma|2005}}{{refn|group=note|Ramana himself observed religious practices connected to Tamil Shaivism, such as Pradakshina, walking around the mountain, a practice which was often performed by Ramana.{{sfn|Cornille|1992|p=83}} Ramana considered Arunachala to be his Guru.{{sfn|Cornille|1992|p=83}}{{sfn|Poonja|2000|p=59}} Asked about the special sanctity of Arunachala, Ramana said that Arunachala is Shiva himself.{{sfn|Venkataramiah|1936|p=Talk 143}}In his later years, Ramana said it was the spiritual power of Arunachala which had brought about his Self-realisation.{{sfn|Godman|1985|p=2}} He composed the Five Hymns to Arunachala as devotional song.{{sfn|Cornille|1992|p=83}} In later life, Ramana himself came to be regarded as Dakshinamurthy,{{sfn|Frawley|1996|p=92-93}}{{sfn|Paranjape|2009|p=57-58}} an aspect of Shiva as a guru.}}

Diversity and pluralism

In response to the British dominance and the British critique of Hinduism, various visions on Indian diversity and unity have been developed within the nationalistic and reform movements.{{sfn|King|2001}}{{sfn|Rambachan|1994}}

The Brahmo Samaj strived towards monotheism, while no longer regarding the Vedas as sole religious authority.{{sfn|Rambachan|1994}} The Brahmo Samaj had a strong influence on the Neo-Vedanta of Vivekananda,{{sfn|Rambachan|1994}} Aurobindo, Radhakrishnan and Gandhi,{{sfn|King|2001}} who strived toward a modernized, humanistic Hinduism with an open eye for societal problems and needs.{{sfn|King|2001}} Other groups, like the Arya Samaj, strived toward a revival of Vedic authority.{{sfn|Rambachan|1994|p=38}}{{refn|group=note|The Arya Samaj "teaches that the Vedic religion is the only true religion revealed by God for all."{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=39}} The Arya Samaj was founded by Dayanand Saraswati (1824-1883), who "was the solitary champion of Vedic authority and infallibility".{{sfn|Rambachan|1994|p=38}}}} In this context, various responses toward India's diversity developed.

Hindu inclusivism – Hindutva and "Dharmic religions"

In modern times, the orthodox measure of the primacy of the Vedas has been joined with the 'grand narrative' of the Vedic origins of Hinduism. The exclusion of Jainism and Buddhism excludes a substantial part of India's cultural and religious history from the assertion of a strong and positive Hindu identity. Hindutva-ideology solves this problem by taking recourse to the notion of Hindutva, "Hinduness", which includes Jainism and Buddhism. A recent strategy, exemplified by Rajiv Malhotra, is the use of the term dharma as a common denominator, which also includes Jainism and Buddhism.{{sfn|Springer|2012}}

According to Larson, Malhotra's notion of "the so-called "Dharma” traditions"{{sfn|Larson|2012|p=314}} and their "integral unity" is another example of "neo-Hindu discourse".{{sfn|Larson|2012|p=314}} Malhotra, in his Being Different, uses the term "Dharmic tradition" or "dharmic systems", "referring to all the Hindu, Buddhist, Jaina and Sikh traditions".{{sfn|Larson|2012|p=313}} He proposes that those traditions, despite their differences, share common features, the most important being "Dharma".{{refn|group=note|According to Paul Hacker, as described by Halbfass, the term "dharma" "assumed a fundamentally new meaning and function in modern Indian thought, beginning with Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in the nineteenth century. This process, in which dharma was presented as an equivalent of, but also a response to, the western notion of "religion", reflects a fundamental change in the Hindu sense of identity and in the attitude toward other religious and cultural traditions. The foreign tools of "religion" and "nation" became tolls of self-definition, and a new and precarious sense of the "unity of Hinduism" and of national as well as religious identity took root".{{sfn|Halbfass|1995|p=10}}}} They are also characterised by the notion of "Integral Unity", which means that "ultimately only the whole exists; the parts that make up the whole have but a relative existence. The whole is independent and indivisible",^[14] as opposed to "Synthetic Unity", which "starts with parts that exist separately from one another".^[14]{{refn|group=note|According to Malhotra, "the four Dharma systems also share these general presuppositions":{{sfn|Malhotra|2013|p=382-383}}

• "They all lead to the transcendent principle expressed variously as brahman, nirvana and kevala";{{sfn|Malhotra|2013|p=382-383}}
• "They facilitate the attainment of an extraordinary and direct experience (such as the highest yogic samadhi), leading to the realization of the transcendent principle at the personal level (sometimes even at the embodied level as jivanamukta or avalokateçvara);{{sfn|Malhotra|2013|p=382-383}}
• "They facilitate a harmonious relation between the phenomenal and material mode of life (samsara) with the goal of spiritual liberation (paramartha) variously";{{sfn|Malhotra|2013|p=382-383}}
• "They all share praxis, including symbols, foods, customs, social values, sacred geography, family values, festivals and so on."{{sfn|Malhotra|2013|p=382-383}}}} Malhotra has received strong criticism of his ideas, for 'glossing over'{{sfn|Yelle|2012|p=338-339}} the differences between and even within the various traditions of India.{{sfn|Larson|2012}}{{sfn|Yelle|2012}}

In response, Malhotra explains that some of his critics confused "integral unity" with "homogeneity", thinking that Malhotra said all those traditions are essentially the same, when he actually wrote that Dharmic traditions share a sense of an "integral unity" despite differences.{{sfn|Malhotra|2013}}{{refn|group=note| According to Larson,

And according to Yelle,

In a response, Malhotra explains that some of his critics confused "integral unity" with "homogeneity", and that all those traditions are essentially the same, but that they share the assertion of an "integral unity":{{sfn|Malhotra|2013}}

Yoga." His concern about homogenization would have been legitimate if Being Different had proposed an integration of all Dharma traditions into a single new tradition. This is simply not my goal. Looking for commonality as a standpoint from which to gaze at a different family does not require us to relinquish the internal distinctiveness among the members of either family.{{sfn|Malhotra|2013|p=375-376}}}}}}

Inclusivism and communalism

According to Rinehart, neo-Vedanta is "a theological scheme for subsuming religious difference under the aegis of Vedantic truth".{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=196-197}}{{refn|group=note|Though neo-Hindu authors prefer the idiom of tolerance to that of inclusivism, it is clear that what is advocated is less a secular view of toleration than a theological scheme for subsuming religious difference under the aegis of Vedantic truth. Thus Radhakrishnan's view of experience as the core of religious truth effectively leads to harmony only when and if other religions are willing to assume a position under the umbrella of Vedanta. We might even say that the theme of neo-Hindu tolerance provided the Hindu not simply with a means to claiming the right to stand alongside the other world religions, but with a strategy for promoting Hinduism as the ultimate form of religion itself.{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=196-197}}}} According to Rinehart, the consequence of this line of reasoning is Communalism,{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=196-197}} the idea that "all people belonging to one religion have common economic, social and political interests and these interests are contrary to the interests of those belonging to another religion."^[15] Communalism has become a growing force in Indian politics, presenting several threats to India, hindring its nation-building{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=3}} and threatening "the secular, democratic character of the Indian state".{{sfn|Panicker|2006|p=3}}

Rinehart notes that Hindu religiosity plays an important role in the nationalist movement,{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=196-197}} and that "the neo-Hindu discource is the unintended consequence of the initial moves made by thinkers like Rammohan Roy and Vivekananda."{{sfn|Rinehart|2004|p=196-197}} But Rinehart also points out that it is

Influence on western spirituality

Neo-Vedanta has been influenced by western ideas{{citation needed|date=October 2015}}, but has also had a reverse influence on western spirituality. Due to the colonisation of Asia by the western world, since the late 18th century an exchange of ideas has been taking place between the western world and Asia, which also influenced western religiosity.{{sfn|McMahan|2008}} In 1785 appeared the first western translation of a Sanskrit-text.{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=176}} It marked the growing interest in the Indian culture and languages.{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=177}} The first translation of Upanishads appeared in two parts in 1801 and 1802,{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=177}} which influenced Arthur Schopenhauer, who called them "the consolation of my life".{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=178}}{{refn|group=note|And called his poodle "Atman".{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=178}}}} Early translations also appeared in other European languages.{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=183-184}}

A major force in the mutual influence of eastern and western ideas and religiosity was the Theosophical Society.{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=185-188}}{{sfn|Sinari|2000}} It searched for ancient wisdom in the east, spreading eastern religious ideas in the west.{{sfn|Lavoie|2012}} One of its salient features was the belief in "Masters of Wisdom"{{sfn|Gilchrist|1996|p=32}}{{refn|group=note|See also Ascended Master Teachings}}, "beings, human or once human, who have transcended the normal frontiers of knowledge, and who make their wisdom available to others".{{sfn|Gilchrist|1996|p=32}} The Theosophical Society also spread western ideas in the east, aiding a modernisation of eastern traditions, and contributing to a growing nationalism in the Asian colonies.{{sfn|McMahan|2008}}{{refn|group=note|The Theosophical Society had a major influence on Buddhist modernism{{sfn|McMahan|2008}} and Hindu reform movements,{{sfn|Sinari|2000}} and the spread of those modernised versions in the west.{{sfn|McMahan|2008}} The Theosophical Society and the Arya Samaj were united from 1878 to 1882, as the Theosophical Society of the Arya Samaj.{{sfn|Johnson|1994|p=107}} Along with H. S. Olcott and Anagarika Dharmapala, Blavatsky was instrumental in the Western transmission and revival of Theravada Buddhism.{{sfn|McMahan|2008|p=98}}{{sfn|Gombrich|1996|p=185-188}}{{sfn|Fields|1992|p=83-118}}}} Another major influence was Vivekananda,{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=189-193}}{{sfn|Michaelson|2009|p=79-81}} who popularised his modernised interpretation{{sfn|Rambachan|1994}} of Advaita Vedanta in the 19th and early 20th century in both India and the west,{{sfn|Michaelson|2009|p=79-81}} emphasising anubhava ("personal experience"){{sfn|Rambachan|1994|p=1}} over scriptural authority.{{sfn|Rambachan|1994|p=1}}

Appraisal and criticism

Appraisal

According to Larson, the "solution of synthesis" prevailed in the work of Rammohun Roy, Sayyid Ahmed Khan, Rabindranath Tagore, Swami Vivekananda, M.K. Gandhi, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Muhammad Iqbal, V.D. Savarkar, Jawaharlal Nehru, "and many others".{{sfn|Larson|2012|p=320}} Spear voices appraisal of this "solution of synthesis",{{refn|group=note|[S]uch willingness to achieve a synthesis that is neither fearful of the new nor dismissive of the old is 'the ideological secret of modern India'.}}{{refn|group=note|Spear 1958, page 187, in {{sfn|Larson|2012|p=320}}}} while G.R. Sharma emphasises the humanism of neo-Vedanta.{{sfn|Sharma|2003|p=179}}{{refn|group=note|Sri Aurobindo, Vivekananda, Rabindranath, Gandhi and Dayananda have presented Neo-Vedannta Philosophy according to contemporary conditions in India and in the context of the development of thought in the West and East. All these philosophers, with minor differences among them, have maintained what can be called integral humanism. This integral humanism is the philosophy of our age. It alone can supply the philosophical framework for the understanding of the problems of our society.{{sfn|Sharma|2003|p=179}}}}

Criticism

Vivekenanda's presentation of Advaita Vedanta has been criticised for its misinterpretation of this tradition:

According to Anantanand Rambachan, Vivekananda emphasised anubhava ("personal experience"{{sfn|Rambachan|1994|p=1}}) over scriptural authority,{{sfn|Rambachan|1994|p=1}} but in his interpretation of Shankara, deviated from Shankara, who saw knowledge and understanding of the scriptures as the primary means to moksha.{{sfn|Rambachan|1994}} According to Comans, the emphasis on samadhi also is not to be found in the Upanishads nor with Shankara.{{sfn|Comans|2000|p=307}} For Shankara, meditation and Nirvikalpa Samadhi are means to gain knowledge of the already existing unity of Brahman and Atman.{{sfn|Comans|1993}}

In the 21st century, Neo-Vedanta has been criticized by Hindu traditionalists for the influence of "Radical Universalism", arguing that it leads to a "self-defeating philosophical relativism," and has weakened the status and strength of Hinduism.^[16]

Criticism of neo-Hinduism label

Criticism of Paul Hacker

In the 20th century the German Indologist Paul Hacker used the terms "Neo-Vedanta" and "Neo-Hinduism" polemically, to criticize modern Hindu thinkers,.{{sfn|Halbfass|2007b}} Halbfass regards the terms "Neo-Vedanta" and "Neo-Hinduism" as "useful and legitimate as convenient labels",{{sfn|Halbfass|2007a|p=307}} but has criticized Hacker for use that was "simplistic".{{sfn|Halbfass|2007a|p=307}} Furthermore, he asks,

Halbfass wrote that the adoption of the terms

Bagchee and Adluri argue that German Indology, including Hacker, was merely "a barely disguised form of religious evangelism".{{sfn|Bagchee|Adluri|2013|p=215–229}}

According to Malhotra, an Indian-American Hindu writer, it was Paul Hacker who popularized the term 'neo-Hinduism' in the 1950s, "to refer to the modernization of Hinduism brought about by many Indian thinkers, the most prominent being Swami Vivekananda."^[26] In Malhotra's view, "Hacker charged that 'neo-Hindus', most notably Vivekananda, have disingenuously adopted Western ideas and expressed them using Sanskrit."^[26] Malhotra also notes that Hacker was a biased Christian apologist:

Neglect of inherent development of religions

Brian K. Smith notes that "The Neo-Hindu indigenous authorities are often dismissed as 'inauthentic,' their claims to legitimacy compromised by their encounters with modernity", which influenced their worldview and religious positions,{{sfn|Smith|1998|p=324}} but points out that

According to Madaio, the notion that Vivekananda and other Hindu modernists deviate from orthodox, classical Advaita Vedanta, neglects the fact that considerable developments took place in Indian religious thinking, including Advaita Vedanta.{{sfn|Madaio|2017|p=2}}

The "myth of Neo-Hinduism"

Rajiv Malhotra, in his book Indra's Net, has stated that there is a "myth of Neo-Hinduism".{{sfn|Malhotra|2014|p=26}} According to him, there are "eight myths"{{sfn|Malhotra|2014|p=28}} of Neo-Hinduism such as "colonial Indology's biases were turned into Hinduism" (Myth 2){{sfn|Malhotra|2014|p=31}} and "Hinduism was manufactured and did not grow organically" (Myth 3).{{sfn|Malhotra|2014|p=32}} Malhotra denies that "Vivekananda manufactured Hinduism", or that `neo-Vedanta' suppressed "the traditions of the Indian masses." According to Malhotra, there is "an integrated, unified spiritual substratum in ancient India,"{{sfn|Malhotra|2014}} and argues that

According to Malhotra, the 'myth of neo-Hinduism' "is used to fragment Hindu society by pitting its spiritual giants against one another and distorting their subtle and deeply intricate viewpoints."{{sfn|Malhotra|2014}} Also according to him, "the definition of neo-Hinduism has been contrived and [...] gained authenticity, in part because it suits certain academic and political agendas, and in part because it has been reiterated extensively without adequate critical response."{{sfn|Malhotra|2014|p=42}}

See also

• Vijnanabhiksu
• Bengali renaissance
• Hindu reform movements
• Hindu politics
• Hindu nationalism
• Indigenous Aryans
• Out of India theory
• Sanskritization
• Indo-Aryanization
• Hinduism in the West
• Buddhist modernism
• Zen Narratives

Notes

References

Sources

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Web-sources

Further reading

Scholarly

• {{Citation | last =Sharma | first =Jyotirmaya | year =2013 | title =A Restatement of Religion: Swami Vivekananda and the Making of Hindu Nationalism | publisher =Yale University Press | isbn =978-0-300-19740-2 | url =https://www.academia.edu/18844967/A_Restatement_of_Religion_Swami_Vivekananda_and_the_Making_of_Hindu_Nationalism}}
• {{Citation | last =Sharf | first =Robert H. | year =2000 | title =The Rhetoric of Experience and the Study of Religion |journal=Journal of Consciousness Studies |volume=7 |issue=11–12 |pages=267–87 | url =http://buddhiststudies.berkeley.edu/people/faculty/sharf/documents/Sharf1998,%20Religious%20Experience.pdf}}
• {{cite book |author=Rambachan, Anantanand |title=The limits of scripture: Vivekananda's reinterpretation of the Vedas |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |location=[Honolulu] |year=1994 |pages= |isbn=978-0-8248-1542-4 |oclc= |doi=}}
• {{Citation | last =Hacker | first =Paul | year =1995 | editor-last =Halbfass | editor-first =Wilhelm | title =Philology and Confrontation: Paul Hacker on Traditional and Modern Vedānta | publisher =SUNY Press |ref=harv}}
• {{Citation | last =Halbfass | first =Wilhelm | year =1988 | title =India and Europe : An Essay in Understanding | publisher =State University of New York Press}}

Apologetic

• {{Citation | last =Malhotra | first =Rajiv | year =2014 | title =Indra's Net: Defending Hinduism's Philosophical Unity| publisher =HarperCollins Publishers India | isbn =978-9351362449| oclc =871215576 | url =http://indrasnetbook.com/}}

External links

• International Forum for NeoVedantins

• Bithika Mukerji , Neo-Vedanta and Modernity
• Kelamuni, The Neo-Vedanta of Swami Vivekananda: Part One
• Kelamuni, The Neo-Vedanta of Swami Vivekananda: Part Two
• Swami Bhajanananda (2010), Four Basic Principles of Advaita Vedanta

• Frank Morales, Neo-Vedanta: The problem with Hindu Universalism
• DharmaCentral.com, A Devastating Critique of Neo-Hinduism

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