Sufism Meets the New Age Discourse: Part 1

This article, the first of a two-part discussion, focuses on the influence of the New Age on contemporary Sufism. It will consider the main definitions of the New Age and how they have been applied in relation to contemporary Sufism. After having shown the limits of these definitions and applications, it will propose an alternative reading, considering the New Age not as a movement or a cultural phenomenon, but as a discourse. This will allow us to better connect doctrines with practices and organizational structures, and to grasp the continuities and discontinuities between esoteric and New Age discourses.

Practical Spiritualities in a Media Age, edited by Curtis D. Coats and Monica M. Emerich.

Practical Spiritualities in a Media Age, edited by Curtis D. Coats and Monica M. Emerich. 2016. Bloomsbury, 275 pp. Hb. £95.00/$130.00, ISBN: 9781474223164.

Guru Persona

This article analyses the construction of the images of two contemporary Indian gurus—Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (SSRS) and Jaggi Vasudev (JV)—and their charismatic authority through a close study of their biographies. The genre, labelled “guruography” by Stephen Jacobs (2016, 61), serves as a useful tool to study the various elements that consolidate the guru’s public profile, enhancing his unique personal or charismatic authority. The Art of Living Foundation (AOLF) led by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and the Isha Foundation (IF) headed by Jaggi Vasudev, are both guru-led faith based organizations that have managed to consolidate a significant following worldwide. The gurus serve as thriving examples of living founder-leaders of transnational groups with a specific focus on yoga, meditation, and pranayama (specialized breathing rhythms commonly practiced in yoga). This work analyses guru biographies in order to ascertain their role in influencing a favourable reading of guru charisma, and also to demonstrate the role played by these narratives in generating a shared understanding of the guru. It also discusses the various factors that have a bearing on the overall charismatic appeal of the leaders of faith based groups.

Recycled Lives: A History of Reincarnation in Blavatsky’s Theosophy, by Julie Chajes.

Recycled Lives: A History of Reincarnation in Blavatsky’s Theosophy, by Julie Chajes. 2019, Oxford University Press. Hb. £64.00/$99.00. ISBN-13: 9780190909130.

Narrative and Belief: The Religious Affordance of Supernatural Fiction, edited by Markus Altena Davidsen.

Narrative and Belief: The Religious Affordance of Supernatural Fiction, edited by Markus Altena Davidsen. 2018, Routledge. Hb. £125.00/$155.00, ISBN 13: 9781138559660.

New Religions and Youth Movements

The present article delineates a distinction between New Religious Movements (NRMs) and a specific category of youth movement—which we will designate as Youth Identity Movements (YIM)—that is frequently, but not invariably, an NRM. We will argue that this distinction has been missed in large part because of the overlap between the participants in these two movements. We will further point out that, back in the Seventies when new religions emerged as significant social phenomena, it would have been difficult to have distinguished religiously-oriented Youth Identity Movements from other New Religious Movements. It is only now, with the benefit of hindsight and the ageing of NRM memberships, that such movements can be brought into focus.

Tribute to Liselotte Frisk (1959–2020)

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Revelatory Events: Three Case Studies of the Emergence of New Spiritual Paths, by Ann Taves.

Revelatory Events: Three Case Studies of the Emergence of New Spiritual Paths, by Ann Taves. 2017. Princeton University Press. Hb. £62.00/$ 75.00, ISBN 13: 9780691131016. Pb. £25.00/$29.95, ISBN-13: 9780691152899

American Cosmic: UFOs, Religion, Technology, by D.W. Pasulka.

American Cosmic: UFOs, Religion, Technology, by D.W. Pasulka. 2019, Oxford University Press. Hb. $24.95. ISBN-13: 9780190692889.