ATKINSON, William Walker, as Swami Bhakta Vishta.

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A Course of Lessons in Practical Yoga. First edition. Atkinson was an adherent of the New Thought Movement, which sought to integrate ancient wisdom and practices into a spiritual doctrine for modern life. This copy was owned and annotated by two spiritualists: the Californian teacher, Jessie Millard English, and the New York journalist, Margaret Blake Hall.Atkinson (1862-1932) used several pseudonyms, including Theron Q. Dumont, Yogi Ramacharaka, and Magus Incognito. This guide is divided into 12 "lessons", complete with quizzes at the end of each part, and was published under the imprint of Advanced Thought, the journal that Atkinson edited from 1916 to 1922. Alongside yoga, the journal focused on practical psychology, constructive occultism, and metaphysical healing. A fellow proponent of New Thought, English (1860-1935) "was one of several advocates who used the cultural resonance of rejuvenation to popularize their own ideas. Her system relied on positive affirmation; the aphorisms included exhortations to 'think my body into Health'" (Stark, p. 53). This copy has her ownership signatures throughout. It also has the ownership stamp on the front wrapper of "Marge" Hall (1901-1993), the editor of the periodical New York Spiritualist Leader. The parts were also issued as separate pamphlets.

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