World Wisdom Books har de senaste åren givit ut en rad samlingsverk – så kallade Essentials – med framstående företrädare för philosophia perennis i modern tid, såsom Ananda K. Coomaraswamy, Frithjof Schuon, Titus Burckhardt, Lord Northbourne och Seyyed Hossein Nasr. Turen har nu kommit till den som lade grunden för hela denna traditionella skola för jämförande religionsstudier – den franske metafysikern och matematikern René Guénon (1886–1951).
Den nyligen utkomna The Essential René Guénon: Metaphysics, Tradition and the Crisis of Modernity öppnar upp med ett urval kapitel ur de civilisationskritiska verken La Crise du Monde Moderne från 1927 och La Règne de la Quantité et les Signes des Temps från 1945. I detta avseende gör det den identisk med Kurt Almqvists svenska Guénon-antologi I tjänst hos det Enda från 1977, vilken tidigare excerperats i Cafét här och här. Den fullständiga och metafysiskt grundade uppgörelse med den moderna världsåskådningen som här kommer till uttryck har av Julius Evola inte helt oberättigat karaktäriserats som ”den mest seriösa och radikala kritik som någonsin formulerats”.
Redaktör för den aktuella samlingsvolymen är John Herlihy, författare till flera böcker om traditionell intellektualitet och andlighet i den moderna världen, varav den senaste från i mars i år – Wisdom’s Journey: Living the Spirit of Islam in the Modern World – även denna utgiven på World Wisdom Books. Herlihy bör ha haft ett minst sagt styvt jobb att sålla bland Guénons sammanlagt långt över 500 kärnfulla kapitel i 24 volymer, men ser ut att ha lyckats ro hem projektet synnerligen väl.
Många har ställt sig frågan i vilken ordning man egentligen bör ta sig an Guénons ömsesidigt belysande skrifter – vilka alla för övrigt sedan några år tillbaka, tack vare förlaget Sophia Perennis, nu finns översatta till engelska (se förteckning hos Fons Vitae). Det essentiella urvalet i denna antologi kan även indirekt ses som ett av flera möjliga svar på detta. En tacksam och på många sätt givande ingång brukar annars vara de av Guénons böcker som är speciellt inriktade på kosmologi, det vill säga Traditional Forms and Cosmic Cycles, The King of the World, The Reign of Quantity and the Signs of the Times samt Symbols of Sacred Science. The Reign of Quantity and the Signs of the Times utgör dessutom tillsammans med East and West och The Crisis of the Modern World i sammanhållen form alltså Guénons explicit civilisationskritiska bidrag. Uppdatering 091216: För övrigt har nu en komplett svensk översättning av det franska originalet fullbordats Lars Adelskogh under titeln Kvantitetens herravälde och tidens tecken.
Nämnas kan också att The Essential R. G. dessutom är försedd med en introduktion baserad på en föreläsning hållen vid Prince of Wales Institute i London hösten 1994 av Martin Lings, som under flera år agerade personlig sekreterare åt Guénon i Kairo, samt med ett biografiskt appendix taget ur Harry Oldmeadows Journey’s East: 20th Century Western Encounters with Eastern Religious Traditions. Bokens omslagsbild pryds av ett kaklat oktagonalt mosaikmönster från Alhambra i Granada i Spanien.
Utdrag ur förordet
»People today are searching for something, though they may not know what exactly. What they instinctively feel lacking within themselves is precisely what Guénon has endeavored to proclaim and preserve in the hearts of modern-day generations who need not be irrevocably excluded from the knowledge that, since time immemorial, has effectively resolved the mystery of life and provided a sense of wonder. Imagine a sacred wand that has the power to transform existential truths into celestial realities; picture a universal symbol that when gazed upon could raise human consciousness to a higher order of perception, or a word that when remembered could transform nature’s images into archetypal verities of a transcendent order, truths that trace their source and ultimate origin to a Primordial Tradition that leads us back to the edge of time. What Guénon has accomplished is nothing less than the restatement of the traditional doctrines, rites of worship, and universal symbols and planted them as the seeds they were meant to be within the ground of the human soul.«
* * *
»Four adjectives come to mind that help characterize Guénon’s unique style: exactness, intelligibility, harmony, and purity. His writing displays a mathematical precision on all planes, a clarity of language that bespeaks a spiritual intelligence, a harmony of composition that is remarkably consistent throughout his ouvre, and a crystalline purity of style. Glimpses of Guénon the man occasionally shine through his sober, intellectual style, but essentially he remains in the shadows, allowing instead his spirit to shine through the art of his language and the depth of his perceptions.
In order to give some definition and shape to the vast array of subjects Guénon wrote about, ranging from pure metaphysics to the symbolism of the Holy Grail, we have chosen to group selected excerpts of his writings under four headings: the Modern World, the Metaphysical World, the Hindu World, and the Traditional World. Each part has its own clear identity and relevance for today’s readership, and taken together they provide a point of departure for readers who have enduring questions about the source and true nature of metaphysical knowledge, the role of the world religions in preserving the traditional doctrines, and the means and methods of spiritual realization.«
Innehållsförteckning
Preface by John Herlihy
Introduction by Martin Lings
PART 1: THE MODERN WORLD
1. The Dark Age [The Crisis of the Modern World]
2. Sacred and Profane Science [The Crisis of the Modern World]
3. A Material Civilization [The Crisis of the Modern World]
4. Introduction to The Reign of Quantity and the Signs of the Times [The Reign of Quantity and the Signs of the Times]
5. Quality and Quantity [The Reign of Quantity and the Signs of the Times]
6. The Postulates of Rationalism [The Reign of Quantity and the Signs of the Times]
7. The End of a World [The Reign of Quantity and the Signs of the Times]
8. Civilization and Progress [East and West]
PART 2: THE METAPHYSICAL WORLD
9. Eastern Metaphysics [Studies in Hinduism]
10. What is Meant by Tradition? [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
11. Essential Characteristics of Metaphysics [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
12. Metaphysical Realization [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
13. Sanātana Dharma [Studies in Hinduism]
14. Some Remarks on the Doctrine of Cosmic Cycles [Traditional Forms and Cosmic Cycles]
15. Foundation of the Theory of the Multiple States [The Multiple States of the Being]
16. The Realization of the Being through Knowledge [The Multiple States of the Being]
PART 3: THE HINDU WORLD
17. On the Exact Meaning of the Word ”Hindu” [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
18. Perpetuity of the Veda [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
19. The Law of Manu [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
20. Principles Governing the Institution of Caste [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
21. Yoga [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
22. General Remarks on the Vedānta [Man and His Becoming According to the Vedānta]
23. The Vital Center of the Human Being: Seat of Brahma [Man and His Becoming According to the Vedānta]
24. The Degrees of Individual Manifestation [Man and His Becoming According to the Vedānta]
25. Buddhi or the Higher Intellect [Man and His Becoming According to the Vedānta]
26. Final Deliverance [Man and His Becoming According to the Vedānta]
PART 4: THE TRADITIONAL WORLD
27. Kabbalah [Traditional Forms and Cosmic Cycles]
28. The Symbolism of the Grail [The King of the World]
29. Islamic Esoterism [Insights into Islamic Esoterism and Taoism]
30. Taoism and Confucianism [Insights into Islamic Esoterism and Taoism]
31. Rite and Symbol [Perspectives on Initiation]
32. The Symbolism of Weaving [The Symbolism of the Cross]
33. The Sword of Islam [Symbols of Sacred Science]
34. The Heart and the Cave [Symbols of Sacred Science]
35. Initiatic Affiliation [Initiation and Spiritual Realization]
36. True and False Spiritual Teachers [Initiation and Spiritual Realization]
Conclusion to Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines [Introduction to the Study of the Hindu Doctrines]
Appendix 1: Biography of René Guénon
Appendix 2: The Works of René Guénon
List of Sources
Biographical Notes
Index
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