Vedanta for Modern Man edited by Christopher Isherwood

Published by George Allan And Unwin, London, 1952, hardcover, index,410 pages, no dust jacket, condition: very good.

A landmark 1951 anthology edited with a comprehensive introduction by the acclaimed Anglo-American novelist Christopher Isherwood. The book is a collection of essays exploring how the ancient Indian philosophy of Vedanta applies to the spiritual, intellectual, and practical dilemmas of the modern Western world.

The book bridges Eastern mysticism and Western intellectual thought.

The Eternal Self:

It examines the relationship between Atman (the individual soul) and Brahman (the ultimate reality).

Practical Spirituality:

Essays focus on how non-dualistic principles can resolve modern existential anxiety.

Interfaith Unity:

It emphasizes that different religions are diverse paths to the same ultimate truth.

Christopher Isherwoodbest known for his fiction like Goodbye to Berlinwas a dedicated disciple of Swami Prabhavananda, a monk of the Ramakrishna Order. Together, they famously translated the Bhagavad Gita and various Upanishads into English.

The essays in Vedanta for Modern Man originally appeared in the journal Vedanta and the West. The anthology features contributions from prominent 20th-century intellectuals, writers, and spiritual leaders, including:Aldous Huxley (author of Brave New World and The Perennial Philosophy)Gerald Heard (historian and philosopher)Rabindranath Tagore (Nobel Prize-winning poet)Swami Vivekananda (the monk who introduced Vedanta to the West)Jawaharlal Nehru (the first Prime Minister of India).