Blurb:

The first chapter is mainly be theoretical in scope, but with references to AoL throughout that place the organization within broader analytical categories that have been developed within religious studies. It surveys contrasting definitions of religion and new religious movements, as well as current discussions of secularism/secularization and of the ‘New Age’ category – both in India and in the West. It further examines the broader influence of Hinduism on Western NRMs and the Western New Age. It is interesting to note that in the Indian context, Hindu or neo-Hindu ‘guru movements’ are not technically what would be called new religious movements in Western countries.