The Inspired Life of Sarah Ellen Waldo

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About the Book "Both fascinating and illuminating, The Inspired Life of Sarah Ellen Waldo is a major contribution to Ramakrishna-Vivekananda literature. A remarkable woman in her own right, this book reveals the critical role Ellen Waldo played in disseminating Vivekananda's teachings in the West. After reading this book, one can well understand why Swami Vivekananda placed such great faith in her."

About the Author "The first necessity for spiritual progress is that we shall recognize its value and really desire it. This desire may possibly be awakened in us by the words of some particular person, but it is for us to cherish and increase it, until it becomes strong enough to rule our lives and make us struggle to realize our highest aspirations. It is an unfailing spiritual law that with the real desire to progress in the direction of higher things, there never fails to come the help we need, whether in the form of a visible teacher, or in the equally effective leading of an inner light. What we desire sufficiently we get."

Preface The dedicated lives of the many people who worked for the Vedanta movement in America, especially the women, need to be acknowledged. One such woman was Sarah Ellen Waldo, known by most as the transcriber of Inspired Talks and editor of other publications. Yet, she was much more.

The material utilized in this book has been collected from various sources. We initially relied on known works on Swami Vivekananda and soon found many unknown writings of Ellen Waldo. In this book we will present her life and her works, including all her known publications or reprinted articles and letters. These include letters to her teacher Swami Vivekananda, other direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna and followers of the Vedanta movement. Many of these letters were previously unpublished. All her letters and articles have been re-typed to provide an easier-to-read version, while retaining her grammar and punctuation so that the reader gets a flavor of her writing style. All of Ellen's underlined words have been placed in italics for easier reading.

Primary and secondary sources were used and referenced by whichever organization provided the materials. Extensive research provided interesting information on her ancestry dating back to the 1600s and her family's English and early American roots. Ellen's genealogy and ancestry is found in Appendix A.

The majority of her articles came from either The Brahmavadin published by the Ramakrishna Math, Madras (it ceased publication decades ago) or The Message of the East published by the Vedanta Centre, Cohassett. Many of The Message of the East articles that were reprinted were edited from the original Brahmavadin articles, some of which were illegible in part. A list of all her published articles are followed by her writings and found in Appendix B.

The letters came from various sources including Sister Gargi's (Marie Louise Burke) Collection from the Vedanta Society of Northern California, the Archives of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, Belur Math, the Archives of Vedanta Society of Southern California and the International Baha'i Association Archives. Hopefully, other letters she wrote or received will be discovered in the future. All of her letters are found in Appendix C.

Her many diaries found at the Massachusetts Historical Society include twenty years of details of her life prior to meeting Swami Vivekananda. Quoted extensively, they provide a vivid picture of Ellen's daily life and her times. Other valuable collections utilized were unpublished photographs from Historic New England, the Waldo family plot at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, the Sturgis Library (Cape Cod), newspaper and archival materials found at the New England Historic and Genealogical Society, the Boston Public Library, the New York Public Library, the New York Historical Society and the court records (will and probate) of Kings County, Brooklyn, New York.

From her eloquent writings we find a sensitive, intelligent woman who found meaning and purpose while dedicating her life to a search for truth.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages