Abstract
The emphasis on non-dualism to blend science and spirituality in the contemporary discourse often draws on AdvaitaVedānta concepts. The philosophically hybrid ‘roots of yoga’, are gaining more traction in the academic discourse though rarely discussed are how the AdvaitaVedānta teachings of SwāmīVivekānanda were influenced by his guru, ŚrīRāmakṛṣṇa, who had a remarkable ability to draw parallels between apparently contradictory spiritual systems, as streams toward the one goal. James (Lecture III 1907) envisages pragmatism as likely to displace former philosophical authorities by inviting less abstract and more scientific minds into a reformation of the discipline in which “The Earth of things, long thrown into shadow by the upper ether, must resume its rights.” This ecocritical exploration of James’ views on the pragmatism of Vedanta after his contact with SwāmīVivekānanda opens out for discussion complexity previously lost due to pre-emptive generalisation.
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Gates, S.L. (2021). Pragmatic Non-Duality in William James, Swāmī Vivekānanda and Trika Shaivism. In: Giri, A.K. (eds) Pragmatism, Spirituality and Society. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-7114-5_4
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