A. K. Mozumdar facts for kids

Quick facts for kids A. K. Mozumdar
Portrait of A.K. Mozumdar in 1908
Born	July 15, 1881 Kolkata, India
Died	March 9, 1953 San Diego, CA
Occupation	minister and author
Known for	Universal Truth Teachings

Akhay Kumar Mozumdar (born July 15, 1881 – died March 9, 1953) was a spiritual writer and teacher from India. He moved to the United States and became an American citizen. He was part of a movement called New Thought Movement, which focuses on how our thoughts can affect our lives.

However, something unusual happened to his citizenship. In 1923, after a special court case, Mozumdar was one of the first people from India to have his American citizenship taken away. This was a big deal at the time.

Who Was Akhay Kumar Mozumdar?

Early Life in India

Akhay Kumar Mozumdar was born in a small village near Calcutta, India. He was the youngest of ten children, with eight older brothers and one sister. His family was well-known and respected. Mozumdar's mother was very religious. She named him Akhay Kumar, which means "Son of God." She seemed to know he would become a spiritual teacher.

As a young man, Mozumdar left his family home. He traveled all over India. He also visited Bethlehem to learn about Christianity. He spent several years in China and Japan. But he felt his true purpose was to teach in America.

Coming to America

Mozumdar arrived in Seattle, Washington, in 1904. Soon, people became interested in his spiritual message. In 1905, leaders of a group called the Queen City Theosophical Society wrote about him. They said Mozumdar, a "Hindu Brother," spoke to many people. He called his ideas "universal truth."

Mozumdar taught what he called the "Cosmic Creative Principle." This idea suggests that there is a powerful, creative force in the universe. He believed this force is God and that it is present in all life. He taught that by understanding this, people could live more powerfully.

Meeting Vitvan

In 1910, Mozumdar was giving a lecture in Spokane, Washington. Suddenly, he stopped and walked into the audience. He went up to a man and said, "Where have you been? What has kept you? I have been waiting for you."

Mozumdar had come to America because his own teacher, Master Arumda, told him to. He had studied with Arumda since he was eight years old. After 25 years, Arumda told him his job was to help a "Great Plan" in America.

When Mozumdar arrived in the U.S., he immediately started looking for the person he was meant to teach. He later told the man, Ralph M. de Bit, that he found him quickly. But it took two years to bring him out of his "forests." De Bit was a Forest Ranger in the Bitterroot Mountains in Montana. An unseen voice had told him to "Come out of the woods to the city. Come out and begin your work."

Mozumdar and de Bit worked together for almost seven years. Mozumdar gave de Bit the name "Vitvan," which means "one who knows" in Sanskrit. Vitvan studied with Mozumdar until 1918. Then, he started his own career as a speaker and writer.

Vitvan often laughed when he remembered meeting Mozumdar. He said he thought Mozumdar was crazy when he ran towards him. But then, Mozumdar smiled warmly and touched his coat. Vitvan said everything around him blurred, and everyone disappeared.

Mozumdar's Teachings

Mozumdar believed that if humans think and act, then the thinker and actor is God. He taught that if God is all life, then all living things are God. He said that the power to create is part of God's very nature. So, this creative power is God itself.

He believed that life is the Creator. It will never be less than its own creation. People will always be filled with this creative energy. They will move and act based on the Creator's inner push. By thinking with the mind of this One Life, you become aware that you are the Thinker. He taught that you should find yourself behind every action you take. He said, "You are spirit and therefore spiritual." He also believed that a lasting substance is beneath all forms. All forms are made of this never-ending substance. Knowing this, he said, sets a person free.

U.S. Citizenship Challenges

In 1913, Mozumdar became a U.S. citizen. He convinced a judge in Spokane that he was "Caucasian." At that time, only "free white persons" could become citizens.

However, on February 5, 1917, the U.S. Congress passed a law called the Immigration Act of 1917. This law, also known as the Asiatic Barred Zone Act, stopped many people from Asia from moving to the United States.

Ten years after Mozumdar became a citizen, the U.S. Supreme Court made a big decision. This was in the case of United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind. The court ruled that no person of East Indian origin could become a naturalized U.S. citizen. Because of this, Mozumdar's citizenship was taken away. He tried to appeal this decision, but a higher court upheld it.

Later, in 1946, a new law called the Luce–Celler Act of 1946 was passed. This law allowed 100 people from East India to immigrate to the U.S. each year. It also allowed them to apply for citizenship. A. K. Mozumdar reapplied under this new law. He was granted U.S. citizenship again in 1950.

He stayed in the United States until he passed away in San Diego in 1953. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Mozumdar was good friends with several leaders in the International New Thought Alliance. Reverend Ernest Holmes, a well-known spiritual writer and founder of Religious Science, was a close friend. Holmes led Mozumdar's memorial service, which many people attended.

Major Works

• The Triumphant Spirit
• The Conquering Man (also translated into Swedish by Eric O.G. Olson, Den segrande människan)
• The Mystery of the Kingdom
• The Commanding Life
• "Christ on the Road of Today
• Key to the New Messianic World Message
• Christ Speaketh
• Today and Tomorrow
• Open Door to Heaven
• The Life and the Way