Radha Soami

Radha Soami
Shiv Dayal Singh, a.k.a. Soami Ji Maharaj
Total population
c. 3,000,000[1]
Founder
Shiv Dayal Singh (1861)[2][3]
Regions with significant populations
Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India[3]
Beas, Punjab, India[2]
Religions
Sant Mat (non-denominational)
Scriptures
Sar Bachan[4]
Languages
Hindi • Punjabi • English

Radha Soami is a spiritual tradition or faith founded by Shiv Dayal Singh in 1861 on Basant Panchami Day in Agra, India.[1][2][3][5][6]

Shiv Dayal Singh's parents were Vaishnava Hindus,[7] followers of Guru Nanak of Sikhism, and were also followers of a spiritual guru from Hathras named Tulsi Sahib. Shiv Dayal Singh was influenced by the teachings of Tulsi Sahib, who taught Surat Shabd Yog (which is defined by Radha Soami teachers as “union of the soul with the divine, inner sound”); guru bhakti (“devotion to the master”); and high moral living, including a strict lacto-vegetarian diet. Shiv Dayal Singh frequently accompanied Tulsi Saheb, but did not take initiation from him. The movement does not promote celibacy, and most of the masters in its various lineages have been married. The teachings seem to be related to forms of 18th- and 19th-century esoteric mysticism that were circulating at the time in northern India. The founding date of the movement is considered to be 1861 when Shiv Dayal Singh began publicly to give discourses.[8][9]

As per some subtraditions, it derives its name from the word Radha Soami means Lord of the Soul. "Radha Soami" is used to indicate towards Shiv Dayal Singh.[10] The followers of Shiv Dayal Singh used to consider him the Living Master and incarnation of Radhasoami Dayal. After his death, Salig Ram and his other followers started the Radha Soami movement, which later got separated into different branches/denominations, including the Radha Soami Satsang Soami Bagh Agra, Radha Soami Satsang Beas, Radha Soami Satsang Dayalbagh, Radhasoami Satsang Pipal Mandi, and Radha Swami Satsang Dinod.

  1. ^ a b Zoccarelli, Pierluigi (2006). "Radhasoami movements". In Clarke, Peter B. (ed.). Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements. London; New York: Routledge. pp. 507–509. ISBN 9-78-0-415-26707-6.
  2. ^ a b c Kalsi, Sewa Singh (2005). Sikhism. Religions of the World. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers. pp. 12–13. ISBN 0-7910-8098-6.
  3. ^ a b c Jones, Constance A.; Ryan, James D. (2007). "Radhasoami Movement". Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Encyclopedia of World Religions. J. Gordon Melton, Series Editor. New York: Facts On File. pp. 344–345. ISBN 978-0-8160-5458-9. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016.
  4. ^ Singh Ji Maharaj 1934.
  5. ^ Juergensmeyer, Mark (1991). Radhasoami Reality: The Logic of a Modern Faith. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-01092-7. p. 90 note 5, Quote: "The date of Seth Shiv Dayal's first public discourse is Basant Panchami Day, February 15, 1861".
  6. ^ Lorenzen, David N. (1995). Bhakti Religion in North India: Community Identity and Political Action. State University of New York Press. p. 67. ISBN 978-0-7914-2025-6., Quote: "The movement traces its origins to Seth Shiv Dayal Singh, who began his public ministry in Agra in 1861."
  7. ^ "Shiva Dayal Saheb | Indian Philosopher, Spiritual Teacher, Guru | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 9 April 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  8. ^ Juergensmeyer 1991, pp. 15–19, 38–42 with footnotes.
  9. ^ Juergensmeyer, Mark; Lane, David Christopher (24 May 2018). "Radhasoami Tradition". oxfordbibliographies.com. Oxford Bibliographies. doi:10.1093/OBO/9780195399318-0203.
  10. ^ Saarbachan Radhasoami Vartik.