Walt Whitman, a prominent literary figure in American poetry, is widely acknowledged for his intense influence on English literature. His innovative approach in style of writing, advocacy of democracy and individualism and realistic views make his poetry an epitome of American transcendentalism. The spiritual voyage, Whitman showcased in his poetry is similar to the mysticism of Hinduism particularly his ideas regarding self, soul and liberation. The transcendental movement of America celebrated the conscious union of self and the soul, which is reflected in the poetry of Walt Whitman in the form of democracy, individuality and self-reflectivity. These themes in Whitman’s poetry resonate with the Eastern spiritual traditions, particularly those of yogic tradition and Vedanta. This paper aims to examine yogic influences of the Gita which shaped Whitman’s views on self, soul, and spiritual liberation and analyses how these concepts are demonstrated in his literary imagination. Further the paper will analyse Whitman’s works in the light of yogic principles of the Gita, which showcase his spiritual quest for liberation. Several Western literary personalities like Emerson, Eliot, Thoreau got interacted with Eastern philosophy and have infused the concepts in their works as well. Whitman is also one of them who portrayed the cosmic influence in his poetry. Several instances from his poems will be elaborated here to examine his transcendental ideas of self, soul and liberation in moulding his literary career to the path of a revolution and free thinking.
Sharma et al. (Sat,) studied this question.