HAUER, Jakob Wilhelm. Kitzingen, Kr. Leonberg, Württemberg 4.4.1881 — Tübingen 18.2.1962. German Indologist. Professor in Tübingen. Son of a master plasterer, Jakob Hauer, and Gottliebin Maier, in a Pietist family. After elementary school learned his father’s craft, but went in 1900 to the mission school of Basel. In 1907 to India as teacher in a mission school, became soon interested in Indian religions. In 1911 started Indological studies at Tübingen and Oxford. Interned 1914, but was released in 1915 in exchange of prisoners. Back in Germany, in 1915-19 worked for church, also continued with Sanskrit and comparative religion at Tübingen. Promotion 1917, PD 1919 Tübingen, für Religions­geschichte. In 1925 he succeeded Geldner at Marburg as Professor of Indology, in 1927 moved to Tübingen as Garbe’s successor. In the early 1930s he accepted the racist doctrines of the Nazis and began close cooperation with them. Therefore he lost his chair in 1945 (he was succeeded by von Glasenapp) and was in 1945-47 in prison, released as “Mitläufer”. He never abandoned his ideas, and founded in 1947 Arbeitsgemeinschaft für freie Religionsforschung und Philosophie and in 1955 Freie Akademie, both with little success. Married Helene Köpf (1883–1965) and after divorce Anna Brügemann (1903–??), no children.

During his early years Hauer conducted rather good research work in philology and comparative religion, although he soon also created his own creed, somewhat related to Theosophy, emphasizing the right in every religion and explaining them all auguring the future final truth. As early as in 1920 he founded a religious association of youth and headed it until 1934. In 1927 he also became head of R. Otto’s Religiöser Menschheitsbund. In 1933 he was among the founders of the un-Christian alliance called Arbeitsgemeinschaft der deutschen Glaubensbewegung, although he was soon shadowed by radicals. In the 1930s and 1940s he was very popular, then very alone with his racial theories. Joined SS and SD in 1934, NSDAP 1937. However, he was too individual with his new religion, and against his hopes Nazis did not accept them.

Publications: Diss. Die Anfänge der Yogapraxis im alten Indien. Eine Untersuchung über die Wurzeln d. indischen Mystik nach Ṛgveda und Atharvaveda. 8+210 p. St. 1921.

– Wesen und Werden der Anthroposophie. 158 p. St. 1922, 2nd ed. 1923.

– Der Vrātya. Untersuchungen über die nichtbrahmanische Religion Altindiens. 1. Die Vrātya als nichtbrahmanische Kultgenossenschaften arischer Herkunft. 8+356 p. St. 1927; Der Yoga als Heilweg. 1. 17+159 p. St. 1932.

– Das Laṅkāvatāra-Sūtra und das Sāṁkhya. 3+17 p. St. 1927; Die Dhāraṇī im nördlichen Buddhismus ind ihre Parallelen in der sogenannten Mithrasliturgie. 25 p. St. 1927; Ein monotheistischer Traktat Altindiens. 4+29 p. Gotha 1931 (ŚvetUp transl.).

– “Das neugefundene arabische Manuskript von al-Bīrūnīs Übersetzung des Patañjali”, OLZ 33, 1930, 273-282; “Zum gegenwärtigen Stand der Indogermanenfrage”, Archiv f. Rel.wiss. 36, 1939, 1-63 (with racial viewpoint); other articles.

– Indiens Kampf um das Reich. 45 p. St. 1932.

– Eine indo-arische Metaphysik des Kampfes und der Tat. Die Bhagavadgītā in neues Licht mit Übersetzungen. 7+76 p. St, 1934 (slightly rev. version of it appeared as ch. 5 of 1937 and again as ch. 3 in 1958).

– Glaubensgeschichte der Indogermanen. 1. Das religiöse Artbild der Indogermanen und die Grundtypen der Indo-arischen Religion. 16+357 p. St. 1937.

– Der Yoga. Ein indischer Weg zum Selbst. Kritisch-positive Darstellung nach den indischen Quellen mit einer Übersetzung der massgeblichen Texte. 487 p. St. 1958.

– Editor: Unser Weg. 1920–27; Die kommende Gemeinde. 1928–33.

– Die Religionen, ihr Werden, ihr Sinn, ihre Wahrheit. Erstes Buch: Das religiöse Erlebnis auf den unteren Stufen. 12+566 p. St. 1923; Von den Anfängen der Religion und ihren unteren Stufen. Pforte 1950; Toleranz und Intoleranz in den nichtchristlichen Religionen. 104 p. St. 1961.

– Deutsche Gottschau. Grundzüge eines deutschen Glaubens. 288 p. St. 1934, 2nd ed. 1935; Religion und Rasse. 49 p. Tübingen 1941; Mythus und Kult bei den Naturvölkern. Pforte 1954; and other works.

Sources: Gr. Alles, “The Science of Religion in a Fascist State: Rudolf Otto and J.W.H. during the Third Reich”, Religion 32, 2002, 177-204; *G. Benavides, “J.W.H., or Karmayoga as Weapon’, in The Academic Study of Religion During the Cold War”, I. Dolezalová, L.H. Martin & D. Papousek (eds.), East and West. N.Y. 2001, 225-238; *M. Dierks, J.W.H. 1881-1962. Leben. Werk. Wirkung. Heidelberg 1986; H. v. Glasenapp, Lebensreise. 230f.; *U. Hufnagel & H. Junginger in Brückner et al., Indienforschung im Zeitenwandel. 2003; H.J. Rieckenberg, N.D.B. 8, 1969, 83f.; Stache-Rosen 1990, 197f.; briefly D.B.E. 4, 1996, 438; *Wikipedia with photo (much more in *German version, also with further references); photo in Rau 106, another in Sardesai.