Neo-Vedanta, also called Hindu modernism, neo-Hinduism, Global Hinduism and Hindu Universalism, are terms to characterize interpretations of

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

that developed in the 19th century. The term "Neo-Vedanta" was coined by German Indologist Paul Hacker, in a pejorative way, to distinguish modern developments from "traditional"

Advaita Vedanta ''Advaita Vedanta'' (; sa, अद्वैत वेदान्त, ) is a Hindu sādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience, and the oldest extant tradition of the orthodox Hindu school Vedānta. The term ''Advaita'' ...

. Scholars have repeatedly argued that these modern interpretations incorporate Western ideas into traditional Indian religions, especially

, which is asserted as central or fundamental to

Hindu culture Hinduism () is an Indian religion or ''dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global po ...

. Other scholars have described a Greater Advaita Vedānta, which developed since the medieval period. Drawing on this broad pool of sources, after Muslim rule in India was replaced by that of the East India Company, Hindu religious and political leaders and thinkers responded to Western

colonialism Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their reli ...

and

orientalism In art history, literature and cultural studies, Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects in the Eastern world. These depictions are usually done by writers, designers, and artists from the Western world. In particular, Orientalist p ...

, contributing to the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged from Bengal ...

and the modern national and religious identity of

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

s in the

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. This societal aspect is covered under the term of Hindu reform movements. Among the main proponents of such modern interpretations of Hinduism were

Vivekananda Swami Vivekananda (; ; 12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta (), was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the intr ...

Aurobindo Sri Aurobindo (born Aurobindo Ghose; 15 August 1872 – 5 December 1950) was an Indian philosopher, yogi, maharishi, poet, and Indian nationalist. He was also a journalist, editing newspapers such as ''Vande Mataram''. He joined th ...

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

, both in the west and in the higher educated classes in India. It has received appraisal for its "solution of synthesis", 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.

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". Prominent in Neo-Vedanta is

, whose 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 eighth century Shankara." The term "Neo-Vedanta" appears to have arisen in Bengal in the 19th century, where it was used by both Indians and Europeans. Brian Hatcher wrote that "the term ''neo-Vedanta'' was first coined by Christian commentators, some of whom were firsthand observers of developments in Brahmo theology... engaged in open, sometimes acrimonious debates with the

Brahmos The BrahMos (also designated as PJ-10) Halbfass wrote that "it seems likely" that the term "Neo-Hinduism" was invented by a Bengali,

Brajendra Nath Seal Sir Brajendra Nath Seal ( bn, ব্রজেন্দ্রনাথ শীল; 3 September 1864 – 3 December 1938) was a Bengali Indian humanist philosopher. He served as the second vice chancellor of Mysore University. Life Brajendra ...

(1864–1938), who used the term to characterise the literary work of

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (also Chattopadhayay) CIE (26 or 27 June 1838 – 8 April 1894) was an Indian novelist, poet, Essayist and journalist. Staff writer"Bankim Chandra: The First Prominent Bengali Novelist" ''The Daily Star'', 30 June 201 ...

(1838–1894). 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". Ayon Maharaj regards the continued scholarly use of the term "Neo-Vedanta" as only a "seemingly benign practice". Maharaj asserts that the term Neo-Vedanta "is misleading and unhelpful for three main reasons": The term "neo-Hinduism" was used by a Jesuit scholar resident in India,

Robert Antoine Robert Antoine (1914 in Belgium – 1981 Calcutta, India) was a Belgian Jesuit priest, missionary in India. Professor of Comparative Literature at the Jadavpur University, he was a Sanskritist and musician. He was co-founder, with Pierre Fall ...

(1914–1981), from whom it was borrowed by Paul Hacker, who used it to demarcate these modernist ideas from "surviving traditional Hinduism," 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". Hacker made a distinction between "Neo-Vedanta" and "neo-Hinduism", seeing nationalism as a prime concern of "neo-Hinduism".

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. Michael s. Allen and Anand Venkatkrishnan note that Shankara is very well-studies, but "scholars have yet to provide even a rudimentary, let alone comprehensive account of the history of Advaita Vedanta in the centuries leading up to the colonial period."

"Greater Advaita Vedanta"

Unification of Hinduism

Well before the advent of British influence, with beginnings that some scholars have argued significantly predate Islamic influence, hierarchical classifications of the various orthodox schools were developed. According to Nicholson, already between the twelfth and the sixteenth century, The tendency of "a blurring of philosophical distinctions" has also been noted by

Mikel Burley Mikel Burley is a scholar of religion and philosophy, known for his work on the Hindu and Buddhist traditions. Biography Burley gained his B.A. in 1993 from the University of Essex, his M.A. from the University of Nottingham in 1997, and Ph.D. ...

. Lorenzen locates the origins of 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. Both the Indian and the European thinkers who developed the term "Hinduism" in the 19th century were influenced by these philosophers. Within these so-called '' doxologies'' Advaita Vedanta was given the highest position, since it was regarded to be most inclusive system.

Vijnanabhiksu Vijñānabhikṣu (also spelled ''Vijnanabhikshu'') was a Hindu philosopher from Bihar, variously dated to the 15th or 16th century, known for his commentary on various schools of Hindu philosophy, particularly the Yoga text of Patanjali. His scho ...

, a 16th-century philosopher and writer, is still an influential proponent 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.

Influence of yogic tradition

While Indologists like Paul Hacker and Wilhelm Halbfass took Shankara's system as the measure for an "orthodox" Advaita Vedanta, the living Advaita Vedanta tradition in medieval times was influenced by, and incorporated elements from, the yogic tradition and texts like the '' Yoga Vasistha'' and the ''Bhagavata Purana''. The ''Yoga Vasistha'' became an authoritative source text in the Advaita vedanta tradition in the 14th century, while Vidyāraņya's ''Jivanmuktiviveka'' (14th century) was influenced by the ''(Laghu-)Yoga-Vasistha'', which in turn was influenced by

Kashmir Shaivism Kashmir Shaivism or Trika Shaivism, is a nondualist tradition of Shaiva-Shakta Tantra which originated sometime after 850 CE. Since this tradition originated in Kashmir it is often called "Kashmiri Shaivism". It later went on to become a pan- ...

. Vivekananda's 19th century emphasis on ''nirvikalpa samadhi'' was preceded by medieval yogic influences on Advaita Vedanta. In the 16th and 17th centuries, some

Nath Nath, also called Natha, are a Shaiva sub-tradition within Hinduism in India and Nepal. A medieval movement, it combined ideas from Buddhism, Shaivism and Yoga traditions in India.hatha yoga Haṭha yoga is a branch of yoga which uses physical techniques to try to preserve and channel the vital force or energy. The Sanskrit word हठ ''haṭha'' literally means "force", alluding to a system of physical techniques. Some haṭha ...

texts also came within the scope of the developing Advaita Vedanta tradition.

Company rule in India and Hindu reform movements

Company rule in India

The influence of the Islamic

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

on the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...

was gradually replaced with that of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sou ...

, leading to a new era in Indian history. Prior to the establishment of Company rule, Mughal rule in Northern India had a drastic effect on

(and

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

) through various acts of persecution. While Indian society was greatly impacted by Mughal rule, the Mughal

economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with th ...

however continued to remain one of the largest in the world, thanks in large part to its proto-industrialization. Muslim rule over Southern India was also relatively short-lived before the 17th century. The policies of the East India Company coincided with the decline of proto-industrialization in former Mughal territories. The economic decline caused in part by restrictive Company policies in their Indian territories and the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

in Europe led to the eventual dismantlement of the dominant decentralized education systems in India in the tail end of the 18th century. The new education system drafted by the East India Company emphasized

Western culture Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''. image:Plato Pio-Cle ...

at the expense of Indian cultures. The East India Company was also involved in supporting the activities of

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

missionaries in India, particularly after 1813. These missionaries frequently expressed anti-Hindu sentiments, in line with their Christian ways of thinking.

Hindu reform movements

In response to Company rule in India and the dominance of Western culture, Hindu reform movements developed, propagating societal and religious reforms, exemplifying what

Percival Spear Thomas George Percival Spear (1901–1982) was a British historian of modern South Asia, in particular of its colonial period. He taught at both Cambridge University and St. Stephen's College, Delhi. Personal life and education Born in B ...

has called Neo-Vedanta, also called "neo-Hinduism" is a central theme in these reform-movements. The earliest of these reform-movements was Ram Mohan Roy's Brahmo Samaj, who strived toward a purified and monotheistic Hinduism.

Major proponents

Neo-vedanta's main proponents are the leaders of the Brahmo Samaj, especially Ram Mohan Royis the main proponents of neo-Hinduism.

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 a universalistic interpretation of Hinduism. He rejected Hindu mythology, but also the Christian trinity. He found that

Unitarianism Unitarianism (from Latin language, Latin ''unitas'' "unity, oneness", from ''unus'' "one") is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian branch of Christian theology. Most other branches of Christianity and the major Churches accept the Trinity, doctri ...

came closest to true Christianity, and had a strong sympathy for the Unitarians. He founded a missionary committee in Calcutta, and in 1828 asked for support for missionary activities from the American Unitarians. By 1829, Roy had abandoned the Unitarian Committee, but after Roy's death, the Brahmo Samaj kept close ties to the Unitarian Church, who strived towards a rational faith, social reform, and the joining of these two in a renewed religion. The Unitarians were closely connected to the

Transcendentalists Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that developed in the late 1820s and 1830s in New England. "Transcendentalism is an American literary, political, and philosophical movement of the early nineteenth century, centered around Ralph Wal ...

, who were interested in and influenced by Indian religions early on. 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''. Tagore also brought this "neo-Hinduism" closer in line with Western esotericism, a development which was furthered by Keshubchandra Sen. Sen was influenced by Transcendentalism, an American philosophical-religious movement strongly connected with Unitarianism, which emphasized personal religious experience over mere reasoning and theology. 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. The theology of the Brahmo Samaj was called "neo-Vedanta" by Christian commentators, who "partly admired he Brahmosfor 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". Critics accused classical Vedanta of being "cosmic self-infatuation" and "ethical nihilism". 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, incorporating "notions of democracy and worldly improvement".

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 Indian nationalism is an instance of territorial nationalism, which is inclusive of all of the people of India, despite their diverse ethnic, linguistic and religious backgrounds. Indian nationalism can trace roots to pre-colonial India, ...

communalism Communalism may refer to: * Communalism (Bookchin), a theory of government in which autonomous communities form confederations * , a historical method that follows the development of communities * Communalism (South Asia), violence across ethnic ...

and the subaltern response. Gandhi saw religion as a uniting force, confessing the equality of all religions. He synthesized the '' Astika'', ''Nastika'' and ''Semitic religions'', promoting an inclusive culture for peaceful living. 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". The orthodox Advaita Vedanta, and the heterodox Jain concept

Anekantavada ( hi, अनेकान्तवाद, "many-sidedness") is the Jain doctrine about metaphysical truths that emerged in ancient India. It states that the ultimate truth and reality is complex and has multiple aspects. According to Jainism, ...

provided him concepts for an "integral approach to religious pluralism". He regarded Advaita as a universal religion ("dharma") which could unite both the orthodox and nationalistic religious interpretations, as the subaltern alternatives. Hereby Gandhi offers an interpretation of ''Hindutva'' which is basically different from the ''

Sangh Parivar The Sangh Parivar (translation: "Family of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh" or the "RSS family") refers, as an umbrella term, to the collection of Hindu nationalist organisations spawned by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which r ...

''-interpretation. The concept of ''anekantavada'' offered Gandhi an axiom that "truth is many-sided and relative". It is "a methodology to counter exclusivism or absolutism propounded by many religious interpretations". It has the capability of synthesizing different percpetions of reality. In Gandhi's view, Anekantavada also gives room to an organic understanding of "spatio-temporal process", that is, the daily world and its continued change. The doctrine of anekantavada is a plea for ''samvada'', "dialogue", and an objection against proselytizing activities.

Maa Anandamayi

Maa Anandamayi was a major force in the further popularization of Neo-Vedanta. As a schoolboy, Maa Anandamayi 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". She was educated by Christian missionaries, and wrote a master thesis on Vedanta and ethics. She presented her view of Hinduism as ''the'' view of Hinduism.Central in his presentation was the claim that religion is fundamentally a kind of experience, ''anubhava'', reducing religion "to the core experience of reality in its fundamental unity". For Maa Anandamayi, Vedanta was the essence and bedrock of religion.

Philosophy

Politics

Nationalism

Vivekananda "occupies a very important place" in the development of Indian nationalism''The theory of nationalism by Swami Vivekananda''
, The New Indian Express, 16 November 2013 (first published in ''Vedanta Kesari'', Ramakrishna Math, Chennai). as well as Hindu nationalism, and has been called "the prophet of nationalism", pleading for a "Hindu regeneration". 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. According to Bijoy Misra, a private blogger,

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" with Advaita Vedanta as its central doctrine. It presents Neo-Vedanta was influenced by Oriental scholarship, which portrayed Hinduism as a "single world religion", and denigrated the heterogeneity of Hindu beliefs and practices as 'distortions' of the basic teachings of Vedanta.

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. The various religious faiths of the world are regarded to help people to attain God-realization, the experience of God or the Ultimate. According to some authors, this is expressed in the

Rig Veda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts ('' śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one ...

, "

Truth Truth is the property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth 2005 In everyday language, truth is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise correspond to it, such as belief ...

one 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

; only It is called by different names," Gospel of Ramakrishna, page 423 The

Ramakrishna Ramakrishna Paramahansa ( bn, রামকৃষ্ণ পরমহংস, Ramôkṛṣṇo Pôromohôṅso; , 18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886),——— — also spelled Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, born Gadadhar Chattopadhyaya,, was an In ...

movement has these concepts to popular awareness in India and the West. An example is Aldous Huxley's book, The Perennial Philosophy, in which are gathered quotes from the religions of the world that express, for him, the universality of religion by showing the same fundamental Truths are found in each of the world's religions.

Vedanta and nondualism

According to Benavides, neo-Vedanta is closer to Ramanuja's qualified non-dualism than it is to Shankara Advaita Vedanta. Nicholas F. Gier notes that neo-Vedanta does not regard the world to be illusionary, in contrast to Shankara's Advaita. According to Michael Taft, Ramakrishna reconciled the dualism of formless and form. Ramakrishna regarded the Supreme Being to be both Personal and Impersonal, active and inactive. According to Anil Sooklal, Vivekananda's neo-Advaita "reconciles Dvaita or dualism and Advaita or non-dualism". Radhakrishnan acknowledged the reality and diversity of the world of experience, which he saw as grounded in and supported by the absolute or Brahman. 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". Gandhi endorsed the Jain concept of

, 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. 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''). According to Sarma, who stands in the tradition of

Nisargadatta Maharaj Nisargadatta Maharaj (born Maruti Shivrampant Kambli; 17 April 1897 – 8 September 1981) was an Indian guru of nondualism, belonging to the Inchagiri Sampradaya, a lineage of teachers from the Navnath Sampradaya and Lingayat Shaivis ...

, Advaitavāda means "spiritual non-dualism or absolutism", in which opposites are ''manifestations'' of the Absolute, which itself is immanent and transcendent.

''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. 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. Understanding is called '' anubhava'', knowledge or understanding derived from (personal) experience.V.S.Apte, ''The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary''
/ref> ''Anubhava'' removes '' Avidya'', ignorance, regarding Brahman and Atman, and leads to ''

moksha ''Moksha'' (; sa, मोक्ष, '), also called ''vimoksha'', ''vimukti'' and ''mukti'', is a term in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism for various forms of emancipation, enlightenment, liberation, and release. In its soteriologic ...

'', liberation. In neo-Vedanta, the status of ''sruti'' becomes secondary, and "personal experience" itself becomes the primary means to liberation.

Smarta tradition

According to Ninian Smart, Neo-Vedanta is "largely a smarta account." In modern times Smarta-views have been highly influential in both the Indianiskcon.org, ''Heart of Hinduism: The Smarta Tradition''
and Western understanding of Hinduism. According to iskcon.org, Vaitheespara notes adherence of Smartha Brahmans to "the pan-Indian Sanskrit-Brahmanical tradition": The majority of members of Smarta community follow the Advaita Vedanta philosophy of Shankara. Smarta and Advaita have become almost synonymous, though not all Advaitins are Smartas. Shankara was a Smarta, just like Radhakrishnan. Smartas believe in the essential oneness of five ( panchadeva) or six (

Shanmata ''Shanmata'' ( sa, षण्मत, Ṣaṇmata) meaning "Six Sects" in Sanskrit, is a system of worship, believed by the Smarta tradition to have been founded by Adi Shankara, circa 500 BC Hindu philosopher. It centers around the worship of th ...

) deities as personifications of the Supreme. According to Smartism, supreme reality, Brahman, transcends all of the various forms of personal deity. God is both Saguna and Nirguna: 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."

Influence

Neo-Vedanta was popularised in the 20th century in both India and the west by

, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, and Western orientalists who regarded Vedanta to be the "central theology of Hinduism".

Vedanticization

Neo-Vedanta has become a broad current in Indian culture, extending far beyond the Dashanami Sampradaya, the Advaita Vedanta Sampradaya founded by

Adi Shankara Adi Shankara ("first Shankara," to distinguish him from other Shankaras)(8th cent. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya ( sa, आदि शङ्कर, आदि शङ्कराचार्य, Ādi Śaṅkarācāryaḥ, lit=First Shanka ...

. The influence of Neo-Vedanta on Indian culture has been called "Vedanticization" by Richard King. An example of this "Vedanticization" is

Ramana Maharshi Ramana Maharshi (; 30 December 1879 – 14 April 1950) was an Indian Hindu sage and '' jivanmukta'' (liberated being). He was born Venkataraman Iyer, but is mostly known by the name Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. He was born in Tiruchuli, T ...

, who is regarded as one of the greatest Hindu-saints of modern times,, of whom Sharma notes that "among all the major figures of modern Hinduism eis the one person who is widely regarded as a '' jivanmukti''". Although Sharma admits that Ramana was not acquainted with Advaita Vedanta before his personal experience of liberation, and Ramana never received

initiation Initiation is a rite of passage marking entrance or acceptance into a group or society. It could also be a formal admission to adulthood in a community or one of its formal components. In an extended sense, it can also signify a transformation ...

into the Dashanami Sampradaya or any other sampradaya, Sharma nevertheless sees Ramana's answers to questions by devotees as being within an Advaita Vedanta framework.

Diversity and pluralism

In response to the developments in India during the colonial era and Western critiques of Hinduism, various visions on Indian diversity and unity have been developed within the nationalistic and reform movements. The Brahmo Samaj strived towards monotheism, while no longer regarding the Vedas as sole religious authority. The Brahmo Samaj had a strong influence on the Neo-Vedanta of Vivekananda, Aurobindo, Radhakrishnan and Gandhi, who strived toward a modernized, humanistic Hinduism with an open eye for societal problems and needs. Other groups, like the

Arya Samaj Arya Samaj ( hi, आर्य समाज, lit=Noble Society, ) is a monotheistic Indian Hindu reform movement that promotes values and practices based on the belief in the infallible authority of the Vedas. The samaj was founded by the sann ...

, strived toward a revival of Vedic authority. 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 Hindutva () is the predominant form of Hindu nationalism in India. The term was formulated as a political ideology by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in 1923. It is used by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), the ...

'', "Hinduness", which includes Jainism and Buddhism. A recent strategy, exemplified by Rajiv Malhotra, is the use of the term ''

dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

'' as a common denominator, which also includes Jainism and Buddhism. According to Larson, Malhotra's notion of "the so-called "Dharma” traditions" and their "integral unity" is another example of "neo-Hindu discourse". Malhotra, in his '' Being Different'', uses the term "Dharmic tradition" or "dharmic systems", "referring to all the Hindu, Buddhist, Jaina and Sikh traditions". He proposes that those traditions, despite their differences, share common features, the most important being "

Dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

". 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", as opposed to "Synthetic Unity", which "starts with parts that exist separately from one another". Malhotra has received strong criticism of his ideas, for 'glossing over' the differences between and even within the various traditions of India. 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.

Inclusivism and communalism

According to Rinehart, neo-Vedanta is "a theological scheme for subsuming religious difference under the aegis of Vedantic truth". According to Rinehart, the consequence of this line of reasoning is

Communalism Communalism may refer to: * Communalism (Bookchin), a theory of government in which autonomous communities form confederations * , a historical method that follows the development of communities * Communalism (South Asia), violence across ethnic ...

, 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." Communalism has become a growing force in Indian politics, presenting several threats to India, hindring its

nation-building Nation-building is constructing or structuring a national identity using the power of the state. Nation-building aims at the unification of the people within the state so that it remains politically stable and viable in the long run. According ...

and threatening "the secular, democratic character of the Indian state". Rinehart notes that Hindu religiosity plays an important role in the nationalist movement, and that "the neo-Hindu discource is the unintended consequence of the initial moves made by thinkers like Rammohan Roy and Vivekananda." But Rinehart also points out that it is

Influence on Western spirituality

Neo-Vedanta has been influenced by Western ideas, 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. In 1785 appeared the first Western translation of a Sanskrit-text. It marked the growing interest in the Indian culture and languages. The first translation of Upanishads appeared in two parts in 1801 and 1802, which influenced

Arthur Schopenhauer Arthur Schopenhauer ( , ; 22 February 1788 – 21 September 1860) was a German philosopher. He is best known for his 1818 work ''The World as Will and Representation'' (expanded in 1844), which characterizes the phenomenal world as the prod ...

, who called them "the consolation of my life". Early translations also appeared in other European languages. A major force in the mutual influence of eastern and Western ideas and religiosity was the

Theosophical Society The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875, is a worldwide body with the aim to advance the ideas of Theosophy in continuation of previous Theosophists, especially the Greek and Alexandrian Neo-Platonic philosophers dating back to 3rd century CE ...

. It searched for ancient wisdom in the east, spreading eastern religious ideas in the west. One of its salient features was the belief in "Masters of Wisdom", "beings, human or once human, who have transcended the normal frontiers of knowledge, and who make their wisdom available to others". 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. Another major influence was

, who popularised his modernised interpretation of Advaita Vedanta in the 19th and early 20th century in both India and the west, emphasising ''anubhava'' ("personal experience") over scriptural authority.

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 Swami Vivekananda (; ; 12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta (), was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the intr ...

, M.K. Gandhi, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Muhammad Iqbal, V.D. Savarkar, Jawaharlal Nehru, "and many others". Spear voices appraisal of this "solution of synthesis", while G.R. Sharma emphasises the humanism of neo-Vedanta.

Criticism

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

Anantanand Rambachan Anantanand Rambachan is a professor of religion at St. Olaf College. Education Rambachan completed his undergraduate studies at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad. He received his M.A. (Distinction) and Ph.D. degrees fr ...

, Vivekananda emphasised ''anubhava'' ("personal experience") over scriptural authority, but in his interpretation of Shankara, deviated from Shankara, who saw knowledge and understanding of the scriptures as the primary means to moksha. According to Comans, the emphasis on samadhi also is not to be found in the Upanishads nor with Shankara. For Shankara, meditation and Nirvikalpa Samadhi are means to gain knowledge of the already existing unity of Brahman and Atman. 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.Frank Morales (February 15, 2013)
"Neo-Vedanta: The Problem with Hindu Universalism"
http://bharatabharati.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/neo-vedanta-the-problem-with-hindu-universalism-frank-gaetano-morales/ (original link)] at website "Bharata Bharati" (http://bharatabharati.wordpress.com/ ) (accessed 8 February 2014).

Criticism of neo-Hinduism label

Criticism of Paul Hacker

In the 20th century the German Indologist :de:Paul Hacker, Paul Hacker used the terms "Neo-Vedanta" and "Neo-Hinduism" polemically, to criticize modern Hindu thinkers. Halbfass regards the terms "Neo-Vedanta" and "Neo-Hinduism" as "useful and legitimate as convenient labels", but has criticized Hacker for use that was "simplistic". 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". 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." In Malhotra's view, "Hacker charged that 'neo-Hindus', most notably Vivekananda, have disingenuously adopted Western ideas and expressed them using Sanskrit." Malhotra also notes that Hacker was a biased Christian apologist: According to David Smith, Hacker's belief was that the ethical values of 'neo-Hinduism" came from Western philosophy and Christianity, just in Hindu terms. Hacker also believed that Hinduism began in the 1870s. He saw Bankin Chattopadhyaya, Aurobindo, Gandhi, and Radhakishnan as its most famous proponents.

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, 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.

The "myth of Neo-Hinduism"

Rajiv Malhotra, in his book '' Indra's Net'', has stated that there is a "myth of Neo-Hinduism". According to him, there are "eight myths" of Neo-Hinduism such as "colonial Indology's biases were turned into Hinduism" (Myth 2) and "Hinduism was manufactured and did not grow organically" (Myth 3). 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," 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." 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."

Notes

References

Sources

Printed sources

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Web-sources

External links

International Forum for NeoVedantins
History

* ttp://kelamuni.blogspot.nl/2008/02/neo-vedanta-of-swami-vivekananda-part.html Kelamuni, ''The Neo-Vedanta of Swami Vivekananda: Part Two''br>Swami Bhajanananda (2010), ''Four Basic Principles of Advaita Vedanta''
Criticism
Frank Morales, ''Neo-Vedanta: The problem with Hindu Universalism''DharmaCentral.com, ''A Devastating Critique of Neo-Hinduism ''
{{Portal bar, Hinduism, India, Religion Hindu philosophical concepts 19th-century Hinduism Advaita Nondualism