With historical-critical analysis and dialogical even-handedness, the essays of this book re-assess the life and legacy of Swami Vivekananda, forged at a time of colonial suppression, from the vantage point of socially-engaged religion at a time of global dislocations and international inequities. Due to the complexity of Vivekananda as a historical figure on the cusp of late modernity with its vast transformations, few works offer a contemporary, multi-vocal, nuanced, academic examination of his liberative vision and legacy in the way that this volume does. It brings together North American, European, British, and Indian scholars associated with a broad array of humanistic disciplines towards critical-constructive, contextually-sensitive reflections on one of the most important thinkers and theologians of the modern era.

Contributions by: Rita D. Sherma, T. S. Rukmani, Ayon Maharaj, Michael Stoeber, Andrew J. Nicholson, Debashish Banerji, Gwilym Beckerlegge, Kusumita Pedersen, Shrinivas Tilak, Pravrajika Vrajaprana, Jeffery D. Long, James Madaio, Kapil Kapoor, Sharada Sugirtharajah, Arvind Sharma