Phiroz Mehta: A Social History of an Indian Philosopher in South London

Project title:

Phiroz Mehta: A Social History of an Indian Philosopher in South London, 1970s-1980s, and his Impact on the Development of Yoga and Meditation in Britain

“The impact [of Phiroz Mehta] remains some documented outside of his close circle and has not been analysed in an academic context.”

Researcher:

Output:

Find out about the research presentation at Southlands College, in June 2022.

Read Karen’s research article in Religions journal, published 2023.

Project proposal:

This project seeks to capture and assess the philosophy and impact of Phiroz Mehta (1902-1994), an Indian spiritual teacher in 1970s-1990s Britain, whose impact remains undocumented outside of his close circle and has not been analysed in an academic context. I will conduct oral interviews with surviving members of the Phiroz Mehta Trust and community, who were his students until his death, in order to capture the social history of the community before it disappears.

I will also investigate the substantial personal library of Phiroz Mehta, currently housed and preserved in a private home in Hammersmith, London, to examine his collection and evaluate how he used Indian philosophical and Sanskrit sources in his work – paying particular attention to his dense scholarly marginalia. This strand will also entail analysis of his publications and talks in order to assess their content, context and reach. I have contacted this community in 2020 and have had a very positive response to this research proposal in principle.

The outputs will be an online social history archive (comprising interview recordings and transcripts and unpublished photos and videos), a peer-reviewed academic article, an online learning resource for religious studies academics, and a public lecture at Southlands College, University of Roehampton.

Photo from beingtrulyhuman.org.

Themes: