Yogi Ramacharaka - The Science of Breath: The Essential Works of Yogi Ramacharaka

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Yogi Ramacharaka probably never existed.

So how can you be holding a volume that contains several of Yogi Ramacharakas most important and popular books? Well

The official story comes from the original publisher of the book, Yogi Publication Society. They claim that Yogi Ramacharaka was born in India in 1799, traveled throughout the East on foot, and learned everything he could through reading and experience. In his sixties, after traveling the world, he took a student to impart the wisdom he had acquired over the years. This student, Baba Bharata, traveled with Ramacharaka, and became adept in his philosophy. Later, as Ramacharaka was in his ninties, he sent Bharata into the world to share Ramacharakas philosophy. Baba Bharata traveled to the United States to attend the World Columbian Exposition in 1893, and later met William Walker Atkinson, an American metaphysical teacher. Atkinson helped Bharata bring Ramacharakas books into publication.

The problem is, that story is almost surely not true. There is no evidence that Yogi Ramcharaka or Baba Bharata actually existed.

Instead, what most scholars believe is that Atkinson wrote these books under the pseudonym of Yogi Ramacharaka, in the same way that he used many other pseudonyms over the years. Aktinson was prolific, and his approaches to the spiritual and healthy-living paths were varied. He had an unusual grasp of esoteric teachings, and a profound gift in translating those teachings into books and articles that broad audiences can understand and apply to themselves.

So now comes the questionwho was William Walker Atkinson? To answer that question, Im going to include an adapted part of a foreword I wrote for an earlier volume in this series, the Library of Spiritual Wisdom. That volume, TheSecrets of Mind Power, is a collection of transformational books that Atkinson wrote and published under his own name.

Here is that excerpt:

William Walker Atkinson might be the most famous and influential inspirational writer you have never heard of.

I say that because Atkinson at one time was extremely popular, but somehow while his ideas have continued to flourish, his name has been largely forgotten. Many of his books are difficult to find, relegated to print-on-demand status. It is my hope that these volumes bring some of Atkinsons most potent and timeless books to many new readers. He deserves a wide readership.

HIS LIFE

Atkinson was a lawyer, author, publisher, editor, and speaker. Born in Baltimore in 1862, Atkinson married Margaret Foster Black, had two children, became a lawyer, and moved to Chicago. That last sentence sums up years of his life in just a few words, but there is much about Atkinson that we do not know.

What we do know, mostly through his articles and writings, is that at one point his life took a difficult turn. He suffered a physical and emotion breakdown, as well as financial ruin. It was then that he found books on mental healing. Chicago at that time was a hot spot for the fast-growing New Thought philosophy, the philosophy based on transcendentalism as well as mesmerism and mental science. He studied with two of New Thoughts most formidable and influential leaders, Helen Wilmans and Emma Curtis Hopkins.

MAGAZINES AND BOOKS

His mind, body, and finances were all healed using the ideas from New Thought. He began writing articles about his experiences and about the metaphysical ideas that he now embraced. And shortly after that, he began writing books. He also began working with several New Thought magazines, including New Thought magazine, Advanced Thought, and eventually Nautilus magazine, which was founded and headed by early New Thought publisher Elizabeth Towne. Eventually he began to publish books through his own publishing companies, the Yogi Publication Society and Advance Thought Publishing Company.

Heres where his story gets interesting, at least to me. Atkinson was incredibly prolific, and he wrote many books about his main interests, which included mental science, New Thought, psychic studies, numerology, the occult, natural health and wellness, and also Eastern philosophy, especially Hinduism, which he had become fascinated by. During his lifetime, he wrote well over a hundred books, which is a remarkable achievement.

However instead of just publishing them all under his own name, he evidently created a series of pseudonyms, each with a different emphasis. For example, the books under his own name dealt with mental sciences, the occult, divination, and spiritual success. His most famous pseudonym is The Three Initiates which allowed him to publish a book called The Kybalion, which claimed to be Hermetic principles. His books with Eastern and Hindu influences were written under the name Swami Ramachakara. He also published under the names Swami Bhakta Vishita and Swami Panchadasi, and these were largely about clairvoyance, psychic thought, and life after death. His pseudonym Theron Q. Dumont focused on mental power, self-improvement, self-confidence, memory, and concentration. The health and wellness titles were published under the name of Theodore Sheldon, and the esoteric studies, such as Rosicrucianism, were published with the name Magus Incognito. There were other pseudonyms as well.

Notice that I said he evidently published books with pseudonyms. He never revealed one way or another if he authored those, and in fact even created elaborate stories about who some of these authors were. However, there doesnt seem to be evidence of these other authors actually existing. Not to mention, those books all had the same feel as the books published under his own name. It is widely accepted that he was the author of the books under these pseudonyms.

THIS VOLUME

While his pseudonyms are fascinating, the books he wrote under his own name are equally fascinating. But two of the books he wrote under pseudonyms have probably had the longest life and continue to be read actively even to this day. The first is the aforementioned book, The Kybalion, attributed to The Three Initiates. You can find this book in a beautiful edition from Essentials Wisdom Library, and youll be glad you read it.

The other book that has proven to be enduringly popular is called Science of Breath, attributed to Yogi Ramacharaka, and included in the volume you are holding now, along with several other books. The books in this volume are:

Science of Breath, originally published in 1903

The Science of Psychic Healing, originally published in 1906

Raja Yoga, or Mental Development (A Series of Lessons in Raja Yoga), originally published in 1906

In the span of three or four years, Atkinson wrote these particular Ramacharaka books (as well as several other books under his name and other pseudonyms). His output is amazing, but what is even more astounding is the quality of material included in each of these books. He wrote more Ramacharaka booksabout eight othersand those are excellent as well. But for this volume, we chose three books that seem to be published close together, and contain information that build upon each other. I suggest reading them in order to get the most out of them.