India, July 18 -- Indian spiritual figures have been travelling abroad for more than a century. Halls have filled, applause has sounded, and followings have formed across the world. My tour of Britain in May to July 2026 might, at first glance, look like one more link in that same chain. But what mattered in those rooms was not the name of the venue; it was who sat across from me, and the standard against which the argument was placed.

The tour began on 30 May at the Cambridge Union, moderated by Professor Jaideep Prabhu. That same day, a student put her point plainly. "At Cambridge, learning is based on evidence, and every belief is tested against a standard. So how is this philosophy any different from any other belief?" It is the kind...