Written in the spirit of religious tolerance, this non-denominational collection presents the great religions and spiritual treasures of the world through the lives of the great spiritual figures.
The biographies in the collection contain a wealth of essential information related to general knowledge. Each biography is concluded with inspiring quotations from the teacher or saint in question. The collection is complemented by more than two hundred and fifty unique images that are often little known to the general public.
For years, I have collected documents and images on the outstanding figures of various religions and spiritual paths. Towards the end of the 20th century, countless volumes were published on the lives and works of great spiritual figures all over the world, yet there was no book on my shelf that featured all the great masters and saints of the various religions. I searched for this book in the spiritual bookshops of India and Germany and the various Catholic and Orthodox devotional stores across the globe, yet to no avail. The books and encyclopedias on the religions of the world (including the works of Helmuth von Glasenapp or Lajos Szimonidesz) were not focused on the lives on the great figures of spiritual life. All the great religions have their own collections and encyclopedias featuring their own saints yet there was no single, joint volume of the great figures of all the various religions. This marked the beginning of my work as I set our to collect images of the various saints and masters and compile them in a single volume entitled Spiritual Gallery. This work later extended to collecting various quotes and biographical details of these great figures. This process led to the creation of the encyclopedia later named the Torchbearers of Humanity, which was supported by a growing number of assistants. It soon became clear that the task far exceeded my personal passion for collecting such derails.
The work on the three volumes of the Torchbearers of Humanity began in the year 2000. Twenty-two years after this task begun, and after compiling a toral of 222 biographies, I have become a different man through this work. However, beyond my own personal realizations, the questions remains can this work truly contribute to people developing a better understanding of one another? Will they stop to consider the messages presented through these radiant lives and will they incorporate these teaching into their own lives in order to make themselves and the world a brighter and more ethical place!
Personally, the great torchbearers of humanity can be likened to rich, well-off souls who pay the tab for others. Their prayers, suffering, fasting and penance offered for others all serve the purpose of easing the pain and suffering in the world through their lives offered to God and humanity. These great figures of spiritual life helped ease the suffering of mankind while the wisdom imparted to humanity can help us live more fulfilled, happier lives.
I believe that by familiarizing the lives and the messages of the great spiritual figures contained in the 3 volumes of the encyclopedia, we can find answers to many pressing issues as well as recognize the truly important, timeless values in life. We can confirm our faith in God whose primary nature is Love and in the belief that man is not abandoned by God and all of Creation is devoted to and focused on our development.
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Hindu (1765)
Philosophers (2327)
Aesthetics (317)
Comparative (66)
Dictionary (12)
Ethics (44)
Language (350)
Logic (80)
Mimamsa (58)
Nyaya (134)
Psychology (497)
Samkhya (60)
Shaivism (66)
Shankaracharya (233)
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