Influence of Indian Philosophy on Emerson

1. Influence of Indian Philosophy on Emerson

2. Name: Rajyaguru Dhvani Dipakbhai
Paper Name: American Literature
Code: 108
Subject: Influence of Indian Philosophy on
Emerson
Roll no: 04
Email Id: dhvanirajayguru22@gmail.com
Department: Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji
University, Bhavnagar.

3. Brief Information of Emerson:
• Ralph Waldo Emerson, (born May 25, 1803, Boston, Massachusetts,
U.S.—died April 27, 1882, Concord, Massachusetts), American
lecturer, poet, and essayist, the leading exponent of New England
Transcendentalism.
• In decade of 1830s his personal manifestos—Nature, “The American
Scholar,” and the divinity school Address—had rallied together a
group that came to be called the Transcendentalists, of which he was
popularly acknowledged the spokesman.
• Emerson helped initiate Transcendentalism by publishing
anonymously in Boston in 1836 a little book of 95 pages entitled
Nature.
• Having found the answers to his spiritual doubts, he formulated his
essential philosophy, and almost everything he ever wrote afterward
was an extension, amplification, or amendment of the ideas he first
affirmed in Nature.

4. Transcendentalism
As Russell Goodman has noted(Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy):
Transcendentalism is an American literary,
philosophical, religious, and political movement of the
early nineteenth century, centered around Ralph Waldo
Emerson.
Other important transcendentalists were Henry David
Thoreau, Margaret Fuller, Lydia Maria Child, Amos
Bronson Alcott, Frederic Henry Hedge, Elizabeth
Palmer Peabody, and Theodore Parker.
They were critics of their contemporary society for its
unthinking conformity, and urged that each person find,
in Emerson’s words, “an original relation to the
universe” . Emerson and Thoreau sought this relation in
solitude amidst nature, and in their writing.
Henry David Thoreau
Margaret Fuller
Elizabeth Peabody

5. How World’s Philosophies stimulated
Emerson:
As Russell Goodman(East-West Philosophy in 19th Century America- Jstor) states
Julie Ellison writes,
"is not in the object of study, be it man, nature, soul, or art, but in the interpreting mind
that brings them all under its control.”
Emerson was a philosophical original, and he transformed everything he touched. He
sought both instruction and provocation from people, texts and cultures the world over.
He was stimulated by English and German Romanticism,German Philosophy-
Germaine de Staël (Anne-Louise-Germaine Necker) (1766–1817), the Biblical criticism
of Herder and Schleiermacher, and the skepticism of Hume, he operated with the
sense that a new era was at hand.
As Russell Goodman has noted(Stanford Encyclopedia of
Philosophy):

6. Bhagavad Geeta
In her research Shiva Durga mentions that:
In one lecture R.W. Emerson states, “The first thing we have to say respecting what are called
new views here in New England, at the present time, is, that they are not new, but the very
oldest of thoughts cast into the mould of these new times”.
This is as per the Bhagavad Gita 4.1-4.8. (ज्ञान कर्म सन्यास योग)
इर्ं वििस्वते योगं प्रोक्तिानहर्व्ययर्् ।
वििस्वान्मनिे प्राह र्नुरिक्ष्वाकिेऽब्रिीत् ॥ (१)
In this Sri Krishna tells Arjun that he instructed this (Bhagavad Gita) Yogic knowledge,
which is imperishable, to the Sun God Vivasvan and from him through Manu, the
progenitor of mankind, this knowledge was handed in disciplic succession.
We see here that Yogic knowledge of the Bhagavad Gita is imperishable. Only it is
revealed to the world through „Great Souls‟ .

7. BG 4.2
एिं पिम्पिाप्राप्तवर्र्ं िाजर्मयो विदुुः ।
स कालेनेह र्हता योगो नष्टुः पिन्तप ॥ (२)
It states “The supreme Yogic knowledge was received in disciplic succession and understood by
saintly kings. But in the course of time the succession was broken and therefore appears to be
lost”. BG 4.3 states “That same Yogic science is being explained by me to you”. Both R.W.
Emerson and the Bhagavad Gita consider „New views‟ thus to be only the oldest thoughts cast into
new times.
R.W. Emerson further states in his lecture that ,
“The light is always identical in its composition, but it falls on a great variety of objects, and by so
falling is first revealed to us, not in its own form, for it is formless, but in theirs; in like manner,
thought only appears in the objects it classifies. What is popularly called Transcendentalism
among us, is Idealism;”
We see here that thought and the formless appears only in the form of objects it classifies; the
Bhagavad Gita classification of Jati Dharm and Swadharm as seen in the sub head of “Self
Reliance‟ is based on "own thought‟, “own nature‟ and “own work‟ ..So this concepts of the
Emerson comes from Bhagavad Gita.

8. In To the idealist (Pg 2): R.W. Emerson states, “Mind is the
only reality, of which men and all other natures are better or
worse reflectors”.
This is as per BG 6.5-6.7
बन्धुिात्मात्मनस्तस्य येनात्मैिात्मना वजतुः ।
अनात्मनस्तु शत्रुत्वे ितेतात्मैि शत्रुित् ॥ (६)
which describe that one must progress to perfection with the
help of one‟s mind. The mind can be both the friend and enemy
of the conditioned soul. For one who has conquered the mind
has reached already Brahman. Hence “Mind is the only
reality‟ and as per state of mind (Sattvic, Rajasic and Tamasic)
persons are “better or worse reflectors‟ of this.

9. Emerson and Vivekanda
In her research Shiva Durga further mentions that,
Swami Vivekanand also expresses the same view of
Emerson.
He states,
“It (the Vedantic religion‟s) sanction is the eternal nature of
man, its ethics are based upon the eternal spiritual solidarity of
man” and “Our first principle is that all that is necessary for the
perfection of Man and for attaining unto freedom is there in the
Vedas. You cannot find anything new. You cannot go beyond a
perfect unity ….”

10. Chandogya Upnishad
With reference to Dale Riepe(Jstor) we can observe,
Though Emerson did not see a complete Hindu Text, until he was in his
forties, it would be misleading to think that there was no Indian
Influence on him before then.
Because Emerson found the Transcentalism idea and an answer to his
quest for absolute being from Vedanta, as illustrated in the Chandogya-
Upnishad by the story of Shvetaketu and Uddalaka.

11. The story is,
Shvetaketu was the only son of Rishi Uddalaka. When he turned twelve, he was asked by his
father to go and get his education from a Gurukula. When Shvetaketu returned from the
Gurukula after finishing his twelve years rigorous training in all the branches of knowledge,
his father Uddalaka found arrogance in his expression.Once Uddalaka called him by his side
and asked him, “Shvetaketu, my boy, have you, ever sought out the knowledge of that by
which the unheard can be heard, the unseen can be seen, the unknowable can be known?
Uddalaka: “Bring me a fruit from the banyan tree.”
Shvetaketu: “Here is one, Father.”
Uddalaka: “Break it open.”
Shvetaketu: “It is broken, Father.”
Uddalaka: “What do you see there?”
Shvetaketu: “These tiny seeds.”
Uddalaka: “Now break one of them open.”
Shvetaketu: “It is broken, Father.”
Uddalaka: “What do you see there?” Shvetaketu: “Nothing, Father.”
Uddalaka: “My son, you know there is a subtle essence which you do not perceive, but through that
essence the truly immense banyan tree exists. Believe it, my son. Everything that exists has its
Self in that subtle essence. It is Truth. It is the Self, and you, Shvetaketu, are That (tattvamasi).”

12. Veda
As Dale Riepe(Jstor) writes,Emerson records:
"Blessed is the day when the youth discovers that Within and Above are synonymous.”
His receptivity to non-dualistic Vedanta and Upnishad is a remarkable testimony to the fact that
even though men may be separated by a culture, but similar to the thought and each and
everyone- The Self is important not the society..So he discovered unity, analogies and
similarities through the Indian Philosophy.
In her research Shiva Durga mentions that, in his “Compensation” essay (Pg-58) R.W. Emerson
considers Indian mythology to correctly express “A plain confession of the in working of the All
and of its moral aim”. R.W. Emerson‟s concept of Over Soul as Brahman and his Moral
aim‟ is expressed in Dharm, Karam and Bhakti Yog is brought out in this paper in “Self
Reliance‟, “Circles‟, “Over Soul‟ and elsewhere. So Vedic ideas are beyond time and
operative in all time.
Once Swami Paramananda(teacher of Vedanta Philosophy and Indian poet)has pointed out for
Emerson once,
“I believe that there cannot be any borrowing in the higher realms of knowledge..”
That time Emerson replied, “That only shows, my friend how narrowly you have read them.”

13. Maya
As Dale Riepe(Jstor) mentions further,
Besides being highly receptive to the Vedanta view, He was greatly influenced by the notions of Maya and
Karma. The Vedic concept of Maya is seen in his “Illusions‟
Emerson's own understanding of Maya may best be shown by quoting his own short poem having that word as
its title:
Maya
Illusion works impenetrable,
Weaving webs innumerable
Her gay pictures never fail,
Charmer who will believed
By man who thirsts to be deceived..
Illusions like the tints of pearl,
Or changing colors of the sky,
Or ribbons of a dancing girl
That mend her beauty to the eye.
Which means The first illusion that is put upon us in the world is the amusing miscellany of colours, forms and
properties. Our education is through surfaces and particulars... As infants are occupied wholly with surface-
differences, so attitudes of adults remain in the infant or animal estate, and never see or know more..

14. Conclusion:
Emerson was deeply influenced by Indian thought
and that cannot be doubted. Furthermore it must
be said that his writing would have been very
different if he had not known it. Not only American
scholar but Indian critics and world wide scholars
also have been aware of this, noting this and
discovered in Emerson a kindred spirit to which a
voluminous literature attests.

15. References
Biswas, Chandrakanta. “Transcendental Self and Its Knowledge Through Classical Indian and Modern
Western Philosophy.” Rabindra Bharati University, Shodhganga, 2016, pp. 1–199.
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Ralph Waldo Emerson". Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 May.
2021, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ralph-Waldo-Emerson. Accessed 13 April 2022.
Goodman, Russell B. “East-West Philosophy in Nineteenth-Century America: Emerson and Hinduism.”
Journal of the History of Ideas, vol. 51, no. 4, 1990, pp. 625–45, https://doi.org/10.2307/2709649.
Accessed 13 Apr. 2022.
Goodman, Russell. “Transcendentalism.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Metaphysics Research
Lab, Stanford University, 6 Feb. 2003, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/transcendentalism/#Bib.
Riepe, Dale. “Emerson and Indian Philosophy.” Journal of the History of Ideas, vol. 28, no. 1, 1967, pp.
115–22, https://doi.org/10.2307/2708485. Accessed 13 Apr. 2022.
Shiva, Durga. “Influence of the Bhagavad Gita on R.W. Emerson's Essay ‘The Transcendentalist.’” GLA
University, Mathura , Researchget.net, 2014, pp. 8–14.
“Shvetaketu.” Upanishad.org, Vande Mataram Library Trust (VMLT,
https://upanishads.org.in/stories/shvetaketu.

16. Thank You…