Five Lectures on Reincarnation

Abhedananda, Swami, 1866-1939Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 119K words
Chapters: 12

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Five Lectures on Reincarnation by Swami AbhedanandaAuthor: Abhedananda, Swami, 1866-1939,Language: English, Class: BL: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion: Religion: General, Miscellaneous and Atheism, Release Date: Jan 1, 2005

Editor's review

This book is the text of five lectures on reincarnation delivered in English by the Indian thinker Swami Abhedananda, digitized and circulated by Project Gutenberg. Its value lies in presenting the idea of reincarnation within a framework of religious philosophy and spiritual inquiry in lecture form, with relatively plain language and a clear structure that helps readers grasp the layers of the author's argument. The five lectures are each independent yet interrelated, making the book suitable as introductory material on the reincarnation theme in Indian religious philosophy, and also for thematic reading by those interested in comparing Eastern and Western spiritual traditions. Note that the book's standpoint belongs to a particular religious-philosophical tradition, and its mode of argument leans on belief and scriptural interpretation rather than empirical scientific discussion; readers should approach it from the perspective of intellectual history and comparative religion rather than testing it as a scientific conclusion. The electronic edition is not long and lends itself to close reading in sections with note-taking.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in Indian religious philosophy and the idea of reincarnation
Learners who want to understand English lecture texts on Eastern spiritual traditions
University students doing thematic reading in comparative religion or intellectual history
General readers who enjoy short lecture-style texts that can be read in sections

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking empirical scientific evidence or psychological experimental research
Beginners hoping for systematic Buddhist textbook-style training
Readers with no interest in religious-philosophical discussion who only want stories

Reading tips

Read in the order of the five lectures; after each, summarize the author's core argument in your own words before continuing.
While reading, distinguish the author's premises of belief from the argumentation process, and make brief annotations for later review.
Read alongside an introduction to Indian religious philosophy to help situate the traditional background of the book's concepts.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Does this book discuss reincarnation from a scientific perspective?

No. This book is a religious-philosophical lecture series by Swami Abhedananda, arguing from a particular tradition's scriptures and beliefs, and is not a product of empirical scientific research. Readers concerned with scientific discussion of reincarnation should look for literature in psychology or neuroscience; those concerned with how religious philosophy argues for reincarnation will find this a suitable primary text.

Is there a required reading order for the five lectures?

Reading in the original order is recommended. Although each of the five lectures stands on its own, the author typically lays out concepts in one and advances the argument in the next, so sequential reading makes the overall thread easier to follow. If time is limited, you may first consult the table of contents to choose the lecture of most interest and then go back to read the relevant preceding material.

How difficult is the English, and is it suitable for non-native readers?

The English is in lecture style with relatively direct sentence structure; the specialized terms are mostly related to religious philosophy, and the overall difficulty is moderate. Non-native readers can read slowly lecture by lecture with a dictionary, looking up the traditional background of core concepts before returning to the original text, which is usually easier to absorb than reading straight through. The electronic edition also facilitates word lookup and excerpting.

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About the author

Abhedananda, Swami, 1866-1939 Author · Indian · 1866–1939

Swami Abhedananda (1866–1939) was an Indian monk and a member of the Ramakrishna Mission. Sent to the United States, he spent many years there spreading Vedanta philosophy and was one of the important figures who introduced Hindu thought to English-speaking Western readers in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. His works were mostly published as collections of lectures, written in plain language to explain core Hindu ideas to ordinary audiences. The library holds his Five Lectures on Reincarnation, which discusses the transmigration of souls and karma and can serve as an introduction to his presentation of Vedanta and reincarnation for Western readers. Because public information is limited, details of his life and the full range of his works cannot be described in depth; this profile therefore focuses on his missionary activity and lecture-style writing.