Description
Book SynopsisWorking with Bengali mentors, especially his close friend A. B. Ghose, Sir John Woodroffe became the pseudonymous orientalist Arthur Avalon, famous for his tantric studies at the beginning of the twentieth century. Best known for
The Serpent Power, the book which introduced ''Kundalini Yoga'' to the western world, Avalon turned the image of Tantra around, from that of a despised magical and orgiastic cult into a refined philosophy which greatly enhanced the prestige of Hindu thought to later generations of westerners.
This biographical study is in two parts. The first focuses on Woodroffe''s social identity in Calcutta against the background of colonialism and nationalism - the context in which he ''was'' Arthur Avalon. To a very unusual degree for someone with a high position under the empire, Woodroffe the British High Court Judge absorbed the world of the Bengali intellectuals of his time, among whom his popularity was widely attested. His admirers were attracted by
Trade Review'Excellent, painstaking biography.' - Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
'Kathleen Taylor has not only produced a biography worth waiting for but also, as the title suggests, shed light on some wider issues regarding the study and practice of Tantra in Bengal in the early decades of the twentieth century.' - Contemporary South Asia
'Excellent, painstaking biography.' - Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
'fascinating work ... relevant to all of those working on South Asian Studies, or interested in a well-grounded analysis of the encounter between 'East and West' that goes beyong the one-dimensional' - IIAS Newsletter
'Kathleen Taylor has not only produced a biography worth waiting for but also, as the title suggests, shed light on some wider issues regarding the study and practice of Tantra in Bengal in the early decades of the twentieth century.' - Contemporary South Asia
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations, Preface, Acknowledgements, Abbreviations, INTRODUCTION, PART 1 SIR JOHN WOODROFFE 1865-1936 A biographical study, PART 2 ARTHUR AVALON The Creation of a Legendary Orientalist, Appendices, Notes, Bibliography, Index
