Sir John George Woodroffe (15 December 1865 – 16 January 1936), also known by his pseudonym Arthur Avalon, was a British judge, art connoisseurhttps://library.search.gonzaga.edu › discovery › fulldisplay and Orientalist whose extensive and complex published works on the Tantras, and other Hindu traditions, stimulated a wide-ranging interest in Hindu philosophy and yoga in the West.
Early life Woodroffe was the eldest son of James Tisdall Woodroffe and his wife Florence, daughter of James Hume. James Woodroffe was Advocate-General of Bengal and Legal Member of the Government of India, a Justice of the Peace, and a Knight of St. Gregory. Young John was educated at Woburn Park School and the University College, Oxford, where he took second classes in jurisprudence and the Bachelor of Civil Law examinations.
Career He was called to the Bar by the Inner Temple in 1889, and in the following year was enrolled as an advocate of the Calcutta High Court. He was soon made a Fellow of the Calcutta University and appointed Tagore Law Professor. He collaborated with Ameer Ali in a widely used textbook, Civil Procedure in British India. He was appointed Standing Counsel to the Government of India in 1902, and in 1904 was raised to the High Court Bench. He served there for eighteen years, becoming Chief Justice in 1915. After retiring to England he served as Reader in Indian Law to the University of Oxford.
Sanskrit studies John Woodroffe's interest in tantra was sparked due to a court case in which he felt he suddenly could not focus on the facts of the case. After mentioning this to his assistant, he was informed that a "tantrik sadhu" had been hired to perform a mantra outside the courthouse to "cloud his mind" in favor of the defendant. A constable was dispatched who chased the sadhu away. John Woodroffe said that his mind instantly cleared when the sadhu was stopped.
This event ignited a lifelong interest in tantric and yoga studies.
Alongside his judicial duties he privately studied Sanskrit and Hindu philosophy and was especially interested in Hindu Tantra. According to author Kathleen Taylor's 2001 book, Sir John Woodroffe, Tantra and Bengal, he relied very heavily for his work on a group of mentors, especially his close friend A.B. Ghose. Woodroffe translated some 20 original Sanskrit texts and, under his pseudonym Arthur Avalon, published and lectured prolifically on Indian philosophy and a wide range of Yoga and Tantra topics. T.M.P. Mahadevan wrote:
"By editing the original Sanskrit texts, as also by publishing essays on the different aspects of Shaktism, he showed that the religion and worship had a profound philosophy behind it, and that there was nothing irrational or obscurantist about the technique of worship it recommends."T.M.P. Mahadevan, foreword to; Arthur Avalon, Garland of Letters, Ganesh and Company Madras, 6th ed. 1974 p iii.
His Sanskrit tutor and guru who he retained in order to study tantra, first insisted that he sleep on the floor, or he would be unable to pronounce the Sanskrit properly, due to over-relaxing of the neck. He promptly had his bed removed, and replaced it with a thin mat. His guru believed him to be the reincarnation of two somewhat famous persons from Indian history, though there is no historical record or otherwise to show who the guru identified. His Sanskrit studies led him to become even more precise in his Sanskrit than most native speakers, leaving him in a position to translate the most difficult Sanskrit texts.
Woodroffe was initiated into a yoga lineage similar to that of guru and yogi Lahiri Mahasaya — now widely known as kriya yoga.
Mahānirvāṇatantraṃ Woodroffe translated the Mahānirvāṇatantraṃ from the original Sanskrit into English under his pen name, Arthur Avalon: a play on the magical realm of Avalon and the young later-to-be, King Arthur, within the story-cycle of tales known generally as King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table; specifically according to Taylor (2001: p. 148), Woodroffe chose the name from the noted incomplete magnum opus, the painting Arthur's Sleep in Avalon by Burne-Jones.Taylor, Kathleen (2001). Sir John Woodroffe, Tantra and Bengal: An Indian soul in a European body?. SOAS London studies on south Asia. Illustrated edition. Routledge. , 9780700713455. Source: (accessed: Monday 3 May 2010), p.148 Moreover, Taylor (2001: p. 148) conveys the salience of this magical literary identity and contextualises by making reference to western esotericism, Holy Grail, quest, occult secrets, initiations and the Theosophists: "This is quite important to know, for here we have a writer on an Indian esoteric system taking a name imbued with western esotericism. The name at any rate seems to hint at initiations and the possession of occult secrets. The Arthurian legends are bound up with the story of the Holy Grail and its quest. This was a symbol of esoteric wisdom, especially to Theosophists who appropriated the legend. Anyone who named himself after King Arthur or the mystic isle of Avalon would be thought to be identifying himself with occultism, in Theosophists' eyes."
Awards Woodroffe was made a Knight Bachelor in the 1915 Birthday Honours awarded by King George V. The knighthood was conferred on him on June 18, 1915 in recognition of his judicial services as a Puisne Judge of the High Court of Judicature at Fort William in Bengal.
Personal life Woodroffe was married to the concert pianist Ellen Elizabeth Grimson of the Grimson musical family from 1902. Lady Ellen was sister to Samuel Grimson, musician and inventor, once married to Malvina Hoffman and Bettina Warburg.
After a distinguished legal career as a judge and Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, and a period serving as a Reader in Indian Law at Oxford, he spent his final retirement years in France.
He had briefly lived in Andelys, Normandy in France. He lived on a small island in the Seine River and had brought wood shipped from England to built the home. The house suffered from flooding and there were letters to Sir John's lawyers about moving his valuable and his 'Delage' sports car to safer storage. He eventually relocated to the South of France.
Death He died on 18 January 1936, aged 70. Woodroffe passed away at his residence, the Villa Aurelia in Beausoleil, Alpes-Maritimes, France where he had retired. Beausoleil is located in the southeastern region of France near the border of Monaco.
Bibliography His writings (published under his own name, as well as Arthur Avalon) include:
Introduction to the Tantra Śāstra, (1913). Tantra of the Great Liberation (Mahānirvāna Tantra), (1913). Hymns to the Goddess (1913). Shakti and Shâkta, (1918). The Serpent Power, (1919).
The World as Power, (1922). The Garland of Letters. (1922). Principles of Tantra (2 vols) . Kularnava Tantra (Introduction by John Woodroffe). (1965). Kamakalavilasa by Puṇyānanda. Bharati Shakti: Essays and Addresses on Indian Culture. India: Culture and Society. Is India Civilized? Essays on Indian Culture.
Arms There is another family crest with further detail and motto verified on the archives at the National Library of Ireland. https://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000529194
Kali Mantra Yantra
References
Further reading Martin, Naomi (2026). Sir John Woodroffe, Jurist, Tantric, and Arthur Avalon. Kara Publishing. Vedic Biography Martin, Naomi (2026). Sir John Woodroffe, Jurist, Tantric, and Arthur Avalon.(Bengali translated edition) Kara Publishing Bengali language Vedic Biography Shakti and Shakta, by John Woodroffe, Published by Forgotten Books, 1910. . Hymn to Kali:Karpuradi Stotra, by Sir John Woodroffe. Published by Forgotten Books. 1922. . Hymns to the Goddess, Translated by John George Woodroffe, Ellen Elizabeth (Grimson) Woodroffe, Published by Forgotten Books, 1952 (org 1913). . Mahanirvana Tantra, By Arthur Avalon, 1913,. Sir John Woodroffe, Tantra And Bengal- An Indian Soul In A European Body?, by Kathleen Taylor. Routledge, 2001, .
External links
Sir John Woodroffe's representations of Hindu Tantra University of Colorado Woodroffe Works of sir John Woodroffe Sacred texts