Perennial philosophy
The perennial philosophy (Latin: philosophia perennis),[note 1] also referred to as perennialism and perennial wisdom, is a perspective in philosophy and spirituality that views religious traditions as sharing a single, metaphysical truth or origin from which all esoteric and exoteric knowledge and doctrine has grown.
Not to be confused with the book The Perennial Philosophy.
Perennialism has its roots in the Renaissance interest in neo-Platonism and its idea of the One, from which all existence emerges. Marsilio Ficino (1433–1499) sought to integrate Hermeticism with Greek and Christian thought,[1] discerning a prisca theologia which could be found in all ages.[2] Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463–94) suggested that truth could be found in many, rather than just two, traditions. He proposed a harmony between the thought of Plato and Aristotle, and saw aspects of the prisca theologia in Averroes (Ibn Rushd), the Quran, the Kabbalah and other sources.[3] Agostino Steuco (1497–1548) coined the term philosophia perennis.[4]
A more popular interpretation argues for universalism, the idea that all religions, underneath seeming differences, point to the same Truth. In the early 19th century the Transcendentalists propagated the idea of a metaphysical Truth and universalism, which inspired the Unitarians, who proselytized among Indian elites. Towards the end of the 19th century, the Theosophical Society further popularized universalism, not only in the western world, but also in western colonies. In the 20th century, universalism was further popularized through the Advaita Vedanta and Sufism inspired Traditionalist School, which argued for a metaphysical, single origin of the orthodox religions, and by Aldous Huxley and his book The Perennial Philosophy, which was inspired by Neo-Vedanta.
Definition[edit]
Renaissance[edit]
The idea of a perennial philosophy originated with a number of Renaissance theologians who took inspiration from neo-Platonism and from the theory of Forms. Marsilio Ficino (1433–1499) argued that there is an underlying unity to the world, the soul or love, which has a counterpart in the realm of ideas.[2] According to Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463–1494), a student of Ficino, truth could be found in many, rather than just two, traditions.[3] According to Agostino Steuco (1497–1548) there is "one principle of all things, of which there has always been one and the same knowledge among all peoples."[5]
Aldous Huxley and mystical universalism[edit]
One such universalist was Aldous Huxley,[6] who propagated a universalist interpretation of the world religions, inspired by Vivekananda's neo-Vedanta and his own use of psychedelic drugs. According to Huxley, who popularized the idea of a perennial philosophy with a larger audience,
In Huxley's 1944 essay in Vedanta and the West, he describes "The Minimum Working Hypothesis", the basic outline of the perennial philosophy found in all the mystic branches of the religions of the world:
Perennial attitude has been the main element in different philosophical and mystical movements such as Transcendentalism, Theosophy, and Traditionalism since the nineteenth century, some of which are the founders of these movements, such as Madam Blavatsky, René Guénon, William James, Frithjof Schuon, Gürciyev, Aldous Huxley, Mircea Eliade, Huston Smith, John It has been a perspective that many thinkers, academics and writers, like Hicks, have adopted in their view of various religions.
However, as with every movement and thought, criticism has naturally been made against perennial philosophy or perennialism. As can be expected, these criticisms came from academic circles as well as from traditional religious circles.
Philosophical/academic criticisms are collected on the following points:
Although intense criticism from the religious community came mostly from the Christian world, it was made from the Islamic world and partly from the Hinduism side.[55]
The institutional structures of religions generally did not favor the perennial attitude, they perceived perennialism as a threat due to the religious exclusionary attitude they adopted based on the sacred texts and the statements of their founders, and they claimed that there were contradictions in defending the perennial attitude, especially with reference to tradition.
In general, criticisms of perennialism from religious circles are collected on the following points:
By constantly neglecting, ignoring or reinterpreting the privileged Truth claims found in the religious traditions they are engaged in, when they encounter these claims, they prioritize personal mystical experience over revelation and sacred texts and remain indifferent to the canonical understanding and main sacred texts, sometimes to the point of antipathy.[56]