User:Stephen Castro

Stephen Castro is my real name. Briefly, I have a background in books and publishing, but now work in the public sector. As a young man, like many of my generation, I became interested in Eastern mysticism, and in particular Ramana Maharshi, Meher Baba, Ramakrishna of Dakshineswar, and Swami Vivekananda, to name a few influential figures. But I was never a devotee. On reflection, I should perhaps have followed the example of Vivekananda who, before his death at the early age 39, was reading the Encyclopaedia Britannica – then newly published in twenty-five volumes – and who had a strong sense of social responsibility for the underprivileged in India. Vivekananda demonstrated that Eastern mysticism should never be a flight from reason or commitment to social reform. As I grew older my interests subsequently widened to encompass the history and sociology of religions, and also new religious movements. I am the author of Hypocrisy and Dissent within the Findhorn Foundation (1996).