Akhilananda

Swami Akhilananda was born on 25 February 1894 as Nirode Chandra Sanyal in Netrakona in British India (now in Bangladesh).[1]

At the age of 25, Akhilananda joined the Ramakrishna Order. In November 1926, he went to Boston to assist Swami Paramananda.[2] He established the Vedanta Society of Providence in 1928 and the Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of Boston in 1941.

Akhilanaanda wrote several books, including Hindu Psychology, Its Meaning for the West.[3] This book had a significant impact on the inter-faith dialogue of the US of that time. In his review, Seward Hiltner wrote about the methods described in the book: "These methods, and the conceptions which underlie them, revolve about 'how lower human propensities can be transformed into higher qualities'." [4] Concluding his review, he said, "This is a fascinating book. But we should not be beguiled into overlooking the extent to which its fundamental assumptions clash with our best understanding of the Christian view of life."

Akhilananda wrote also the Hindu View of Christ, which fostered greater understanding of the teachings of Jesus from the standpoint of Vedanta. Jan Jongeneel has highlighted the intersections and refers to Akhilananda's Hindu View of Christ along with other works of the swamis of the Ramakrishna Mission.[5]

Akhilananda died on 23 September 1962.[6]

Works
  • Hindu Psychology, Its Meaning for the West, Introduction by Gordon Allport, Routledge, New York, 2000. ISBN 978-1138007413.
  • Hindu View of Christ, Branden Books, 1949.ISBN 978-1428603387
  • Modern Problems and Religion, Bruce Humphries, 1964.ISBN 0828311463.
  • Time and Eternity: The Vedantic Viewpoint, Journal of Bible and Religion, Vol. 27, No. 2 (Apr., 1959), pp. 114–117. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1459971. (Retrieved 2017-2-8)
  • Mysticism and Altruism, Journal of the American Academy of Religion, (1948) XVI (2): 89–93.(Retrieved 2017-2-8)

References
  1. Elva Nelson, A Monk for All Seasons, Llumina Press, 2007
  2. See p. 44 of Elva Nelson, A Monk for All Seasons.
  3. Swami Akhilananda, Hindu Psychology, Its Meaning for the West, Routledge, New York, 1948.
  4. S. Hiltner, Review of Mental Health and Hindu Psychology, The Journal of Religion, Vol. 33, No. 1 (Jan., 1953), p. 78. found at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1199752.pdf
  5. Jesus Christ in World History: His Presence and Representation in Cyclical ... By Jan A. B. Jongeneel
  6. See p. 233 of Elva Nelson, A Monk for All Seasons.


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