A D Bhattacharya is a Sri Ramakrishna devotee and IITian. Arun Deva Bhattacharya (born 1942 at Allahabad) had a knack for spiritualism and music from an early age which made him run to profoundly wise people frequently. As such spirituality co-existed in this technocrat's life.

Entry to spiritualism and divinity was easier for him since he had free movement in English, Hindi and Bengali along with working knowledge of Sanskrit. Out of his presentations Bengali translations of Ramacaritamanasa and Bhagavata Purana, and Bhagavater Manimukuta and Bhagavata Ratnavali (in Bengali) are worth mentioning.

Books from this author - The Immortal Tales

A. R. Sharif, a keen historian and an inveterate traveller, was pained by the younger generation’s ignorance of Indian history and heritage. He made it his mission to travel to every nook of the country, at his own cost and forbearing the discomfort of crowded trains and public transport, to gather interesting facts that would introduce Gen Next to the glory of India. His research resulted in the ‘Indiana’ series. The quirky facts, the juicy historical titbits, the well-informed writing made ‘Indiana’ an instant hit when syndicated in leading Indian publications.

Books from this author - Indiana: The Book Of Indian Wonders

A Ramamurty, Andhra University’s Ph.D (1965), is a reputed scholar of traditional Indian philosophy, with specialization in Vedanta. And has lectured, as the British Council’s visiting fellow, at different universities in the United Kingdom. Also, he has had the distinction of being on the Subject Panel (on Philosophy) of the University Grants Commission (UGC), New Delhi, and a member of the Indian Council of Philosophical Research.

Currently, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Hyderabad, Dr. Ramamurty is credited with the authorship of ‘Advaita Mysticism of Shankara’ and ‘The Central Philosophy of the Rigveda’.

Books from this author - Vedanta And Its Philosophical Development, Philosophy Of Brahman, Advaita A Conceptual Analysis, The Philosophical Foundations Of Hinduism

Agochar Kaur was born in Valencia (Spain). She received her Degree in Law in 1995 and decided to deepen her knowledge on international topics at Bologna University (Italy), The Hague Academy of International Law (Holland) and London University (U.K). She specialized in Human Rights and returned to Spain in 2000 to work in the humanitarian field. Then she met Kundalini Yoga becoming an instructor in 2004 and teaching yoga at different centres since then. She is mother of a 8 years child and combines her job as a lawyer at a Spanish NGO working for social integration of Homeless and Immigrants with her passion for music, yoga and family. Composer and singer, she plays the guitar and her celtic-vintage harpe. "Somos Uno" is her third album of kundalini yoga mantras combining harmoniously classical and modern instruments. She is very well-known in Spain and has participated in several festivals and yoga workshops in Valencia, Castellón, Alicante,Tarragona, Madrid, Vigo & Barcelona.

Alan Jacobs has made a lifelong study of mysticism and is a regularly published author and poet. He is the editor of Poetry for the Spirit and the author of The Essential Gnostic Gospels, as well as several titles in Watkins` `Sacred Texts` series: Tales from Rumi, The Gnostic Gospels and The Upanishads.

Alia Almoayed is a Nutritional therapist qualified at the reputed UK College of Nutrition and Health in London. She runs busy nutrition consultancy in Kingdom of Bahrain, offering nutrition advice to the Middle East community. Author of the Dream Body Eating Plan and co-author of 101 ways of Improve Your Health, she also writes health articles for various publications, conducts lectures and seminars about health and nutrition, and heads a number of weight loss projects. Alia is an active mother of two young children, from whom she derives a big part of her inspiration and motivation to keep kids healthy. She applies most of her nutrition knowledge to her children and also learns a lot from them!

Currently, Alia lives in Bahrain, her country to origin, and spends most of her free time on extracurricular activities for her family and herself, An ex-marathon runner, she now focuses her fitness regimen on what loves most: yoga.

Books from this author - I want healthy Kids

Alpana Chakraborty holds M. Phil and Ph.D of the North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU), Shillong. And is currently Lecturer in Philosophy at the NEHU-affiliated St. Anthony College.

A scholar with varied areas of interest and also member of several academic bodies, Dr. Chakraborty writes in both Bengali and English on different themes that range from mind-body dualism to existentialism.

Books from this author - Mind-Body Dualism

Amar Hasan is from Syria. The book Advaitic Ratnas is a transcription from the original dvds of Radha Ma’s satsangs and funsangs. He also translated some of the teachings of Ramana Maharishi into Arabic.

Books from this author - Advaitic Ratnas: Conversations With Radha Ma An Indian Advaita Guru

Throughout a busy professional career that got underway in 1991, Dr Amit Kumar Sharma has functioned as sociologist, Indologist, writer, columnist and, increasingly, as philosopher of indic civilization. His versatility in all of these areas has resulted in well over 200 articles in English and Hindi. He has also written 6 books dealing with Sociology, Indian Society, Culture and Gandhian ideology. He is a multilingual person who frequently writes both in Hindi and English languages. As an academician his main areas of concern are Cinema and Culture in India, Sociology of Religion, Sociology of Civilizations, Sociological Theories and Indology.

He has obtained his M.Phil and PhD degrees from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He did his masters in Sociology from Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. He has been teaching Sociology at the Centre for the Study of Social Systems, JNU, New Delhi since 1999.

In addition to his professorial and professional activities, Amit Kumar Sharma has been active in public sphere about politics in India, Gandhian philosophy, Hindi cinema and emerging global order. Presently, he is the brand ambassador of brandbihar.com, a website that promotes the culture of Indian ethos in 189 countries.

Books from this author - Religion And Culture In Indian Civilization Essays

Ananda Wood, as his name suggests, is one of those people with a rather mixed background. He was born and brought up in India, studied mathematics at King's College, Cambridge, and went on to a Doctorate in Anthropology at the University of Chicago. After his university education, he returned to India, where he has settled down to concentrate on a long-standing interest, in the modern interpretation of Advaita philosophy. He is currently a moderator on the Advaitin e-group at yahoo.com. Most of his books and articles may be accessed at www.advaitin.net/Ananda/

Books from this author - From The Upanishads (New Edition), Interpreting The Upanishads (New Edition), Ways To Truth

Anandaghana was born into a very traditional family in Nadakuduru village of Krishna district, as Aripirala Viswam a name befitting his stature. His father, Sri Laxmi Narayana Sastri and his forefathers actually belonged to Vedic scholars family from Banaras.

The vedic lineage can be traced back to nearly 33 generations. Various Peethadhipatis and personages used to consult Sri Laxmi Narayana Sastri, apart from him being the Aasthana Vidwan to Mysore Royalty and Shringeri Peetham.

Though the child Viswam was born like any normal child, the fact that he brought forward, a bundle of spiritualism from his previous birth, was evident from the fact, that the Param Guru Sri Sri Mahavatar Babaji designated a Yogi, for the child guidance.

The boy grew-up as a true son of the soil, but displayed amazing talents in poetry, memory, arts and oratory. He went on to recieve the distinguished award from world Poetic Society in New York. He addressed the United Nation’s Mystic Group and enthralled the audience, at his young age. He was noted as one of the 2000 most intelligent people of the planet. He was decorated with nine Doctorates from nine different countries, apart from his own doctorate earned at Hyderabad. He was awarded the Sahitya Academy Award and went on to become a well known person in 137 countries, apart from his own state. Apart from convening the first World Telugu Conference, he embellished several posts in several Institutions as Member, or Director, or Chairman, At the height of his wealth and fame, he vanished from public life totally, in deference to the command of his Guru, accepted self imposed exile and obscurity.

He started PARAMPARAA VISWAMBHARA, a Trust dedicated for the spiritual upliftment of fellow-beings. Through his writings and commentaries, he is endeavouring to extricate SRIVIDYA, the king of Vidyas from the morass it had been a personal agony and every product an ecstasy.

Books from this author - Sri Sutram, Gospel Of Silence, Avadhuta Gita, Kriya Yoga The Essence Of Satha Vidyas, Babaji Stories

Until his sudden death on June 2, 1987, Fr. Tony de Mello was the director of the Sadhana Institute of Pastoral Counseling near Poona, India. Author of five best selling books, renowned worldwide for his workshops, retreats, and prayer courses, he aimed simply to teach people HOW TO PRAY, how to WAKE UP AND LIVE. Most people, he maintained, are asleep. They need to wake up, open up their eyes, see what is real, both inside and outside of themselves. The greatest human gift is to be aware, to be in touch with oneself, one's body, mind, feelings, thoughts, sensations. Here are some of his typical challenges: "Come home yourself! Come back to your senses! Do you hear that bird sing? How can you hear the song and not hear the singer? How can you see the wave and not see the ocean? How can you see the dance and not see the dancer?" The thousands of people who attended Fr. de Mello's workshops, and the thousands more who did not attend but who wished they could have, will surely consider it a great blessing that full-length conferences of this superbly gifted and eloquent speaker have been preserved. It is just the way he was, uninhibited by a TV studio or time limits. It is a priceless final gift he has left his friends. Fr. J. Francis Stroud, S.J. Executive Director, deMello Spirituality Center, Fordham University, Bronx, NY and Jonathan Galente, employed 25 years at Fordham University and trustee of the deMello Spirituality Center; together they present spiritual themes and exercises that can enrich and transform your life.

Books from this author - Unencumbered By Baggage, The Song Of The Bird, The Prayer Of The Frog Vol II, One Minute Wisdom, The Prayer Of The Frog Vol I

Dr. Antonio Rigopoulos is a reputed historian of religions and philosophies. Having had a two-year stint as Assistant Professor of Indology at the California University, Santa Barbara, he is now engaged in research work at the University “Ca’ Foscari” of Venice.

Currently Secretary General of the Venetian Academy of Indian Studies (V AIS}, Dr . Rigopoulos is the well-known author of several books and articles on Sai Baba of Shirdi and Lord Dattatreya. His preferred field of research in India is Maharashtra and northern Karnataka.

Books from this author - Guru: The Spiritual Master In Eastern And Western

Aparna Banerjee is Associate Professor in Philosophy, University of Calcutta. She is the author of Explanation and Understanding in the Social Sciences (2002). She has also co-edited the book Ethics: Classical and Contemporary Issues (2010). Another anthology, entitled Morality and Religion: Some Reflections has been co-edited by her which is presently in the press. She has also authored various articles which have been published in various reputed anthologies and journals. Many of these articles are on Sri Aurobindo's philosophy. Her areas of interest are primarily Phenomenology, Social and Political Philosophy, Ethics and Contemporary Indian Philosophy.

Books from this author - Integral Philosophy Of Sri Aurobindo

Arthur Osborne was born in London on September 25, 1906. His father was a school headmaster, while his mother was a simple gentlewoman, as loveable as she was impractical. From her, Arthur must have inherited his bent for poetry, for she spent much of her time writing poems amidst her flowers.

When still a schoolboy, Arthur wanted to become a farmer and spent a lot of his free time in their garden, helping his father. However, his father had other plans for him, particularly after he won an exhibition in English literature that was open to schoolboys throughout England. So he took his degree in history at Oxford, where he could have stayed on as a don, and later, professor. However, he rejected this career because he was seeking a meaning and purpose to life, and he realized that research into particular periods in history would not provide the answer he was seeking. As he expressed later, he rejected both consciously and intuitively a life lived without meaning. Perhaps in one who does not even know that there is anything to seek for, rejection serves as a beginning of the search.

Arthur became a leading writer on spirituality and mysticism, and an influential disciple and biographer of Ramana Maharshi. When one of Osborne's books, Ramana Maharshi and The Path of Self Knowledge, was first published in 1954, it contained a foreword from Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, at that time vice president of India. From 1964, Osborne served as the founding editor of Mountain Path, a journal published by Ramanasramam, the ashram founded by Ramana Maharshi. Thirty years after Osborne's death in 1970, his autobiography was discovered among his papers and published by Ramanasramam.

Books from this author - Ramana Maharshi and The Path of Self - Knowledge, My Life and Quest

Arvind Sharma was born in Varanasi, India. He earned a B.A. in History, Economics, and Sanskrit from Allahabad University in 1958 and continued his interests in economics at Syracuse University, earning an M.A. in 1970. Pursuing a life-long interest in comparative religion, Dr. Sharma gained an M.T.S. in 1974 and then a Ph.D. in Sanskrit and Indian Studies from Harvard University in 1978. He was the first Infinity Foundation Visiting Professor of Indic Studies at Harvard University and succeeded Wilfred Cantwell Smith to the Birks Chair of Comparative Religion at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He has published over fifty books and five hundred articles in the fields of comparative religion, Hinduism, Indian philosophy and ethics, and the role of women in religion. Often cited as an authority on Hinduism, amongst his most noteworthy publications are The Hindu Gita: Ancient and Classical Interpretations of the Bhagavadgita (1986), The Experiential Dimension of Advaita Vedanta (1993), Our Religions: The Seven World Religions Introduced by Preeminent Scholars from Each Tradition (1994), and The Study of Hinduism (2003).

Books from this author - The Quest For Serenity In World Religions, Islam For Hindus, Christianity For Hindus, Windows To World Religions

Ashok V Desai graduated from Sydenham College, Bombay University, with a BCom, proceeded to Kings College Cambridge for a BA in Economics where Nicholas Kaldor was his supervisor; his student contemporaries included Jagdish Bhagwati and Manmohan Singh. He received the PhD in Economics of Cambridge University in 1963 for a thesis on German economic growth before World War I, titled "Real Wages in Germany 1871–1913", done under supervision of Phyllis Deane. He has been a noted economic journalist and private business consultant in India, and was also Chief Consultant in the Indian Ministry of Finance in 1991–1993 under Manmohan Singh's ministership.

Books from this author - The Price Of Onions

Avadhesh Kumar Singh (1960- ) is Professor and Head, Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies, Saurashtra University, Rajkot. His areas of publications include Indian and western literary theories, comparative literature, Indian literature and translation studies. He is the Coordinator of UGC SAP/DRS Programme on "Indian Renaissance with special reference to English, Gujarati and Hindi." He is the Editor of Critical Practice, a journal of critical and literary studies since 1994.

Books from this author - Ramayana Through The Ages Rama - Gatha In Different

Ayesha Chopra was born and brought up in India. As an employee of multinational and international organizations she spent a major part of her life living and working in various parts of the world including Asia, Africa, Europe and the United States of America.

After leaving the corporate world Ayesha set up an independent practice as a trainer and workshop leader, designing and delivering training programs in personal growth and interpersonal relationships to corporate and non-corporate personnel. She is a keen observer of human behavior and deeply interested in exploring the natural and spiritual laws of human existence.

Currently based in New York, Ayesha indulges in freelance writing and offers one-on-one counseling to people seeking help with personal and interpersonal challenges. Her own strength and inner guidance comes from her practice of Vipassana meditation.

Ayesha has two loving children, a daughter and a son, and she dotes on her four grandchildren – her endless source of delight and joy. This book is her legacy to them and all the children who are the future of this world.

Books from this author - The Magic of Love