Rosen, Steven 1955–

(Satyaraja Dasa)

PERSONAL:

Born 1955. Religion: Hindu.

ADDRESSES:

Home—NY.

CAREER:

Writer. Journal of Vaishnava Studies, editor in chief.

WRITINGS:

NONFICTION

Food for the Spirit: Vegetarianism and the World Religions, Bala Books (New York, NY), 1987.

India's Spiritual Renaissance: The Life and Times of Lord Chaitanya, Folk Books (Brooklyn, NY), 1988.

Archeology and the Vaishnava Tradition: The Pre-Christian Roots of Krishna Worship, Firma KLM (Calcutta, India), 1989.

(Editor) Vaisnavism: Contemporary Scholars Discuss the Gaudiya Tradition, Folk Books (New York, NY), 1992.

Passage from India: The Life and Times of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada: A Summary Study of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami's Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers (New Delhi, India), 1992.

(Editor) Vaisnavī: Women and the Worship of Krishna, Motilal Banarsidass Publishers (Delhi, India), 1996.

Diet for Transcendence: Vegetarianism and the World Religions, Torchlight (Badger, CA), 1997.

The Reincarnation Controversy: Uncovering the Truth in the World Religions, Torchlight (Badger, CA), 1997.

Gita on the Green: The Mystical Tradition behind Bagger Vance, Continuum (New York, NY), 2000.

(Editor) Holy War: Violence and the Bhagavad Gita, Deepak Heritage Books (Hampton, VA), 2002.

The Hidden Glory of India, Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (Los Angeles, CA), 2002.

From Nothingness to Personhood: A Collection of Essays on Buddhism from a Vaishnava-Hindu Perspective, Rasbihari Lal (Vrindavan, India), 2003.

Holy Cow: The Hare Krishna Contribution to Vegetarianism and Animal Rights, Lantern Books (New York, NY), 2004.

Essential Hinduism, Praeger (Westport, CT), 2006.

Krishna's Song: A New Look at the Bhagavad Gita, Praeger (Westport, CT), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Steven Rosen, who took the name Satyaraja Dasa as a Hindu disciple, has written extensively on Hinduism and is editor of an academic journal on the religion's most widespread form, Vaishnavism. He is a disciple of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, a spiritual leader who was also the subject of one of Rosen's books. Rosen's writings include both works on Hinduism in general and others on specific aspects of the faith.

One of the more general books is Essential Hinduism, which covers the religion's history, beliefs, and rituals. Library Journal contributor C. Brian Smith called Rosen "the ideal author" to explain Hinduism and particularly Vaishnavism. Rosen's text, Smith added, "is of a high caliber," making the work of interest to scholars yet accessible to lay readers.

A look at a particular aspect of the Hindu religion—and others—is The Reincarnation Controversy: Uncovering the Truth in the World Religions. Rosen discusses the positions of Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam in addition to Hinduism. He provides a "succinct survey" of what these faiths say about reincarnation, related Patricia Monaghan in Booklist. She found his exploration of Hindu and Buddhist beliefs particularly good but praised the rest of the work as well, deeming it "an excellent review" despite its "unnecessarily sensational title."