in 1893 to attend, along with many representa-
tives of the religions of Asia, the WORLD PARLIA-
MENT OF RELIGIONS in Chicago. The congress was
the first international gathering of representa-
tives of the major Eastern and Western faiths.
Speakers gave formal recognition to non-Chris-
tian faiths and made clear that Western thought
had always drawn heavily on the East, and that
Hinduism was a source of tolerance, introspec-
tion, self-discipline, and the opportunity for a
full religious life, not mere idol worshipping or
polytheism. This 17-day conference, which drew
crowds far larger than any forecast, permitted
non-Christians to speak about their own faiths
and created an appreciation of the offerings of
Eastern traditions. The experience affirmed that
an interest in comparative religions was not
simply the province of a few specialized or elite
groups.
Swami VIVEKANANDA, another representative
of Hinduism and a young disciple of the late Sri
RAMAKRISHNA, was one of the parliament’s most
impressive speakers. He was hailed by the Ameri-
can press as the most persuasive speaker of the
parliament. In several eloquent presentations,
Vivekananda rejected formalism and delivered
a universal gospel of unity in diversity by quot-
ing from the sacred books of India. He chose to
cite, “Whoever comes to Me, through whatsoever
form, I reach him,” and “All men are struggling
through paths which in the end lead to Me.” He
spoke of the gods of all faiths, not only the God of
a respective religion (Rolland, 1931).
His popularity established, Vivekananda fol-
lowed the parliament session with a two-year
tour of the United States. In 1895, he founded
the first Hindu organization in the United States,
the VEDANTA SOCIETY, and, upon his return to
India, he organized the scattered disciplines of
Sri Ramakrishna into the RAMAKRISHNA MAT H AND
MISSION. Two disciples, Swami ABHEDANANDA and
Swami Turiyananda, traveled from Calcutta (Kol-
kata) to head the Vedanta centers in New York and
San Francisco, respectively.
Establishment of the Vedanta centers coin-
cided with the first small wave of immigrants from
India to America, in the 1890s—a phenomenon
that evoked riots and vitriolic reaction against
a “Hindu invasion.” But reason also existed and
prompted a growing interest in Hinduism among
non-Indians, the establishment of various societ-
ies, and the arrival of Indian teachers, partly to
serve the immigrants. Among them, in 1902, was
a young monk, Swami RAMA TIRTHA, who lectured
for two years throughout the United States on the
reasonableness of Hinduism—and the evils of the
Indian CASTE system. In 1904, a Bengali Vaish-
navite, Baba Premanand BHARATI, began a five-year
tour, during which he formed the Krishna Samaj;
in 1909, Swami PARAMANANDA, another member of
the Ramakrishna Math in India, arrived, eventu-
ally to form another group of Vedantins.
From the time of the parliament onward, the
United States saw the establishment of Hindu
organizations and an expanding interest in the
teachings of the religion. In large cities such as
New York and Chicago, the press chronicled the
exploits of visiting teachers from India. Emulat-
ing these emissaries, some Americans adopted
the role of Hindu teacher and helped disseminate
Hindu ideas through publications and formation
of groups. In 1903, William Walker Atkinson, a
New Thought teacher, assumed the title Yogi RAM-
ACHARAKA and published widely on various YOGAs
and Hindu philosophy. His many books remain in
print a century later. Around 1909, PIERRE ARNOLD
BERNARD, calling himself “Oom the Omnipotent,”
founded the Tantrick Order of America and dem-
onstrated flamboyant stagecraft while dressed in
Eastern garb. In spite of the demise of his move-
ment after a few decades, his nephew, Theos Ber-
nard (1908–47), wrote several texts on YOGA that
remain reliable resources.
After two decades of growing interest in Hin-
duism from 1895 to 1915, the growth of Hindu
groups waned during and after World War I. A
string of American occultists created in the public
mind the image of SWAMIS as fortune tellers andUnited States 467 J