Hinduism in the United States can be studied in two ways: the history of ideas and practices that are derived from Hindu traditions but may not explicitly use the term “Hindu,” and the history of Hindus in this country. One can further divide these histories, which have fuzzy boundaries, into two large periods, with 1965 the watershed year when the immigration laws were changed, making it easy for technically qualified workers to enter the country. Ideas and practices originating in Hinduism came at a time when Hindus were not allowed into the country. The period up to 1965 can be characterized as one when the history of Hindu ideas dominates. While this certainly does not stop after 1965 (the boom in yoga, meditation, and gurus starts in the 1960s), the post-1965 period is also one when we can tell the story of large numbers of Hindus entering America, building temples, and transmitting traditions through domestic rituals and expressive arts.

In the nineteenth century, starting approximately with the time of the New England Transcendentalists and all the way into the first half of the twentieth century, we see American engagement with ideas, philosophies, and practices connected with the many Hindu traditions in the Indian subcontinent. While philosophies, texts, and practices such as Vedanta, Bhagavad Gita, forms of meditation, and yoga are embedded in the diverse cultural and ritual practices in India, during this period in America they are pried loose from the Hindu traditions, presented and interpreted as part of a timeless and universal vision of human spiritual evolution. This acceptance of what is to become known as spiritual praxis forms the foundation for the overwhelming popularity of yoga and other traditions in the late twentieth century.