B. S. S Bhagavan

Assistant Professor

Research Scholar, Department of English

Vikrama Simhapuri University, Kakutur, Nellore, A.P.

bhagavanbss@vsu.ac.in

Dr. R. Prabhakar

Associate Professor, Head, Department of English

Research Supervisor, Vikrama Simhapuri University,

Kakutur, Nellore, A.P.

prabhakarjoli@gmail.com

Abstract:

The objective of this paper is to analyse R.W Emersons Transcendentalism and non-dualistic Indian thought. This paperattempts to study the purpose of human life according to R.W Emerson and its affinity with Vedantic concept of JeevanMukti. The 19^th century American Society witnessed new trends in art, culture, religion and philosophy. New England young intellectuals embraced new thoughts and ideas and attempted to redefine American Religious Culture, Philosophy and Literature. This religious philosophical and literary movement was known as Transcendentalism in the history ofAmerican literature. The Transcendentalists revolted against established traditions and tried to construct new philosophy. The young intellectuals advocated divinity of man, purity of human heart and individualism. The young intellectuals propagated their ideas through their literary works under the leadership of R.W Emerson. This paper upholds all parallelisms in American Transcendentalism and Advaita Vedanta.

Keywords: Swedenborgian, Transcendentalism, Advaita Vedanta, Idealism, phenomenal world, illusion, Maya vaada,YogaNidra, Soteriological.

Introduction:

The unitarian theology which emphasized on the significance of external evidence in the spiritual enlightenmentcould not win the hearts of 19^th century American young intellectuals. Calvinism which advocated the doctrine of “original sin” could not satisfy the spiritual quest of new England intellectuals. A group of learned scholars under the leadership of R.W Emerson rebelled against orthodox Christianity and preached new religious philosophy. Thetranscendentalists introduced Spiritualism and redefined the orthodox theology with their new ideas.

R.W Emerson in his first work the Nature advocated oneness of man, nature and God. In his divinity schooladdress condemned historical Christianity and articulated the impersonality of God. In his essay “Over Soul” published in1841 Emerson propounded the divinity of man. According to him

the God (Over soul) contains all beings in him and all creatures leave in him. All individual souls are part and parcel ofthe over soul and all the souls are connected to one another. Thus, Emerson with his doctrine of Over soul advocated new spiritualism.

Emerson articulated the concept of “God within” and strongly advised whole humanity to realize the god within or true self and to experience oneness with the absolute. According to him history, traditions, religion and scriptures play no role in the individual spiritual evolution. Emerson strongly believed that every man has essential resources which to attain spiritual enlightenment. The transcendentalists strongly advocated self-reliance as the means of self-realization.

Transcendentalism says that man due to his ignorance misidentifies himself with ego and neglects in his true self. The individual can realize God within only through spiritual regeneration and obeying the intuition. Emerson explainedthe limitations of human intellect and suggested his contemporaries to depend upon intuition. The Transcendentalists rejected the authority of religious institutions and scriptures on individual the young intellectuals propounded newtheology based on the ideas which they imbibed from various religions and cultures. Oriental Mysticism, German Idealism, British Romanticism and Ancient Greek Philosophy shaped the philosophy of Transcendentalists.

R.W Emerson was born in the family of religious priests and was introduced to harsh realities of the world in his childhood after the death of his father. He pursued his graduation in Harvard university and completed religious studies in Harvard divinity school. The Harvard university introduced Indian thought to young Emerson. Emersons aunt Mary Moody encouraged Emerson to delve into Vedantic literature. He acknowledges the depth of Hindu religious thought and developed passion for Vedic literature. He confessed the greatness of Indian philosophy. “India teaches through its clouds of legends, has yet a simple and grant religion, like a queenly countenance seen through a rich veil. It teaches tospeakthe truth, love others as you, and to despise trifles. The East is grand, and makes &Europe a land of trifles”. (Journals. Vol. VII. Pp.120-30). Emerson realized the affinity between his thoughts and Vedanta philosophy and used few ideas to strengthen his philosophy. Frequent reference to Vedantic concepts and quoting lines from Vedic literature doesn’t mean that Vedanta philosophy shaped Emerson’s thought.

R.W Emerson in his first work nature articulated the basic tenants of his philosophy. He propounded his spiritualism in the last three chapters in his work. For him the nature is the best spiritual teacher and universal mind reflects in thenature. “Have mountains, and waves, andskies, not significance but what we consciously give them when we employthem as emblems of our thoughts? The world is emblematic” (Works.Vol.I.P.32) according to Emerson the god speaks through nature he suggests mankind to read the divine mind through literature. God reveals his mind through theelements of the nature. He says “as gravity, centripetence, repulsion, polarity, undulation, has a counterpart in the intellect” (Works. Vol. III. P.211). Emerson’s work nature defines the world as mere reflection of the absolute being.

Emerson refers every empirical object as an apocalypse of the mind. He believes that individual can understand the divine design by decoding the nature for him the oversoul (God) is the cause and the world is mere appearance it isneither real nor unreal. In this work he writes “It is the uniform

effect of culture on the human mind, not to shake our faith in the stability of particular phenomena as of heat, Water, azote; but to lead us to regard nature as phenomenon, not substance; to attribute necessary existence to spirit; to esteem nature as an accident and an effect” (works. Vol. P.49).

For idealists the matter is nothing and they give importance to ideas. Therefore, idealism advocates that the phenomenal world is the buy product of human mind and sensations. He says “Mind is the only reality, of which men and allother natures are better or worse reflectors” (Works. Vol. P. 33. “The Transcendentalist”). Like an idealist Emerson considers the oversoul as absolute truth and source of the creation. He accepted the idealism of Vyasa and admired the Vedanticphilosophy which defined the transient and immutable as eternal and temporal and visible as unreal. Vedanta treats allempirical objects as unreal. Emerson also emphasizes the same in his works “Things we now esteem fixed shall, one byone, detach themselves like ripe fruit from our experience, and fall, The landscape, the figures, Boston, London are facts as fugitive as any institution past, or any institution past, or any whiff of mist or smoke, and so is society andso is theworld. The soul looketh steadily, forwards, creating a world before her, leaving worlds behind her. She has no dates, nor rites, nor persons, nor specialties, nor men. The soul knows the only the soul; the web of events is tiling flowing robe inwhich she is clothed.”

Emerson in his work nature expounds the universal soul as all pervasive impersonal and attribute less absolute truth. This very idea echoes Vedantic concept of Nirguna Brahma. For Emerson and Vedanta, the world is mere appearance and universal being manifests itself with various names and forms in the world. Therefore, both Emerson and Vedanta suggest to overcome the delusive power of the world to realize the absolute truth. Thus, Emerson’s doctrine of illusion and Vedantic concept of Maya advocated similar ideas. According to the both there is only one reality and that exists in all beings. For Emerson and Vedanta nothing exists except the absolute every being emanates from the absolute and exists in it. Therefore, the subjective and objective distinction doesn’t prevail. Vedanta says Ekam Advitiyam Brahma similarly Emerson also articulated oneness of Man, Nature and God in “Nature”.

Emerson strongly criticized the assumptions of materialists and propagated spiritualism like an idealist for him the spirit is the cause and the world is the effect. He considers the matter as dead mind. These idealistic tendencies in himmade the scholars to believe the influence of Plato’s Idealism on Emersons Philosophy. Emerson in his works clearly mentioned the influence of eastern thought on Plato, he called Plato as half Orientalist. According to Emerson Plato succeeded in maintaining perfect balance between the orient and the oxidant. Emerson writes “The unity of Asia and the detail of Europe; Plato came to join… The excellences of Europe Asia are in his brain”(works, Vol. IV. P.40.Plato).Emerson’s reading of Plato inspired him to study Vedanta philosophy after 1845 Emerson extensively read Vedantic literature including Upanishads, Bhagavad Geeta and Bhagavad Purana. Isha Upanishad introduced the concept ofBrahma to Emerson which lend support in formulating his doctrine of oversoul. Bruhadaranyaka Upanishad introducedthe nature of the world, Bhagavad Geeta provided concepts like compensation (Karma), balancing mind (Stitapragna) and Bhagavata purana and Vishnu purana supplied the concept of maya to Emerson. Vedanta philosophy strengthenedEmerson’s idealism which he propounded in his first work Nature. Emerson clearly defined transcendentalism asIdealism when he says “What is popularly called Transcendentalism among us is idealism; Idealism as it appeared” (Works. Vol. 329-30, “The Transcendentalist”). Like Vedanta Emerson echoes many idealistic views in his work Nature he says ”Idealism saith: matter is a phenomenon, not a substance. Idealism acquaints us with the total disparity between the evidence of our own being and the evidence of the world’s being, the one is prefect, the other, incapable of myassurance, the mind is a part of the nature of things; world is a divine dream, from which we may presently awake to theglories and certainties of day” (Works. Vol, I, P. 62, “Nature”).

Unlike materialists the idealists define the world as phenomenal. idealism defines the absolute being as ultimate reality which is beyond all constrains and attributes. Vedanta and Emerson argue that individual cannot comprehend theinfinitude with finite mind. Taitreya Upanishad says that mind cannot comprehend the power by which it is able to think. Kena Upanishad similarly describes as there the eye goes not,speech goes not, nor the mind; we know not, we understandnot how one would teach it. Both Emerson and Vedanta articulate that the absolute being infinite and attribute less can be realized through experience, they further argue that no one can explain or disseminate knowledge of the absolute because the language can’t describe the nature of the absolute. Thus, both condemn the role of religious scriptures, institutions and rituals in realization of God. In self-reliance he says “And now at last the highest truth on this subject (self -reliance) remains unsaid; probably cannot be said; for all that we say is the far-off remembering of the intuition” (Works. Vol.11. –Pp. 68-69, “Self- Reliance). Emerson and Vedanta advocate that one can realize the absolute only through intuition. For them God dwells in every being and realizing God within is the purpose of human life. The one who depends upon external sources can’t realize the God within. For them the individual soul is identical with the universal soul. Upanishads propound the doctrine of Ahambrahmaasmi (I am the absolute), the doctrine of Tatvamasi (Thou art that), Aiyam Brahma (The self is Brahma) and Pragnanam Brahama (Brahma is consciousness), all these doctrines establish the fact that man is none other than the Absolute but he is not able to recognize his true self due to his ignorance. Theultimate purpose of life is to realize the true self and to relay upon the self, Emerson rightly called it Self-reliance.

Emerson and Vedanta affirm that every being emanates from the absolute. Emerson writes in his essay “…within man is the soul of the whole; the wise silence; the Universal beauty, to which every part and parcel is equally related; the eternal ONE” (Works. Vol. 11. P. 269, “The Over-soul). Emerson through all his works advocates the doctrine ofinfinitude of a private man. Man being finite can’t comprehend God within due to his ignorance. Emerson and Vedantastrongly advocate oneness of man and God and argue that the individual can attain self-realization by defending upon Godwithin therefore Emerson’s self-reliance means God reliance. Both Emerson and Vedanta consider the nature as the best means to realize the absolute. Emerson writes “The Idealist says, God paints the world around your soul, the spiritualist saith,yea, but God is within you, the self of self Creates the world through you… (Journals. Vol. IV. 78.) Both Vedanta and Emerson attributed soteriological value to the phenomenal world. According to both men can realize the God byunveiling the illusive screen of name and form, like Vedanta Emerson through his Idealism preached spiritualism and divinity of man.

Conclusion:

R.W Emerson initially relayed upon Berkelian Idealism and Swedenborg’s philosophy. After reading Vedantic literaturein 1845 Emerson depended upon Advaita Vedanta to enrich his philosophy. Emerson like Vedantic preached spiritualism and divinity of man through his works till his last breath.

References:

1. Alcott, Amos B. Ralph Waldo Emerson: Philosopher and Seer. Boston, 1882.
2. Cabot, James Eliot. A Memoir of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Boston, 1887.
3. Cary, Elizabeth Luther. Emerson, Poet and Thinker. Concord, Mass. 1903.
4. Cooke, George Willis. Ralph Waldo Emerson: His Life, Writings, and Philosophy. Boston, 1881.
5. Guernsey, Alfred H. Ralph Waldo Emerson: Philosopher ad Poet. New York, 1881.
6. The Complete Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Centenary. ed. 12 Volumes. Boston and    New York. 1903-1994.
7. The Letters of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Ed. Ralph L. Rusk. 6 Vols. New York, 1939.
8. The Selected Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Ed. Brooks Atkinson. The Modern Library, New York, 1968.
9. Uncollected Lectures by Ralph Waldo Emerson, Ed. Clarence Gohdes. New York, 1938.10.Young Emerson Speaks. Ed. A.C. Mc Giffert, Jr, Boston, 1938.