The perennial philosophy

What do these paradigms have in common?

Animism Hinduism Buddhism Taoism Confucianism Judaism Christianity Islam Deism Religious mysticism (Zen, Vedanta, Kabbalah, Gnosticism, Sufism, etc.) Philosophical Idealism Neo-Platonism Philosophical Pantheism Transcendentalism Romanticism New Age spirituality Deep Ecology Gaia Hypothesis Integralism

Religion

Metaphysics

Spirituality

The perennial philosophy

Perennial: present in all seasons; enduring.

There exists an Absolute Reality (divinity / sacred Truth) which is timeless and universal.
As this Reality reverberates through history and across cultures, it manifests itself in varied ways.

The different traditions are but different languages expressing that one Truth.
See Aldous Huxley, The Perennial Philosophy (1944) and Huston Smith, The Forgotten Truth (1967) for extensive examinations.This summary is adapted from Ken Wilber, Grace and Grit (1993). See also Wilbers Eye to Eye:The Quest for a New Paradigm (1983).

Key claims
1. 2. 3. 4.

5.
6.

7.

Spirit is real. Spirit can be accessed. We often dont fully appreciate the reality of spirit. There is a way out of this state of illusion. If we follow this path, the result is enlightenment. This enlightenment brings liberation. This liberation encourages the desire to engage in acts of mercy and compassion.
Helen Frankenthaler, Spirit 1

#1: Spirit is real.

There is an Absolute Reality that is not fundamentally material. This claim is Not delusion or wishful thinking.

Not the mere product of evolutionary adaptation (i.e., a God gene that encourages humans to be spiritual because it promotes survival).
Not subject to empirical or rational investigation via ordinary sensory perception or logic but there are other ways to know it. Also, language falls short in expressing this reality.

3 eyes of the soul

Bonaventures theory of perception
Transcendental (Causal)
Knowledge of absolute, essential realities

Each eye has its own ways of knowing:

Mental (Subtle)
Knowledge of ideas, concepts, & the mind itself

Transcendental: contemplation, intuition Mental: reason, emotion, language Empirical: sensory perception
Category Error:
When one eye attempts to usurp the proper role of another (Wilber, 1983).

Empirical (Gross)
Knowledge of the physical world of objects & space,

#2: Spirit is accessible

Within us (conscience, moral sense,

intuition)

Outside of us (above us, beyond us,

beneath us, all around us)

This Reality has many names:

God / G-d / Yahweh / Abba (Judaism

Brahmin (Hinduism) The Ground of Being (Christian

The Divine / the One / Ultimate Reality / the Numinous / the Sacred Nature in the nonmaterial sense
(the Gaia hypothesis / Deep Ecology) The Force (Star Wars) nontheism Tillich, Spong)

/ Christianity) Allah (Islam)

#3: We often dont fully grasp this Reality...

because life seems governed by
Randomness / chance / absurdity Brute forces of nature Suffering Change Pain / decay / death Separation / sin Duality Brokenness Evil

Joseph Minton, Broken Man

#4: However, there is a way out.

There are paths that consist of both internal and external practices (e.g., things to do, not just believe).
The Way note these similarities: The earliest followers of Jesus referred to his teachings as the Way. Buddhism teaches the middle way (moderation between the extremes of selfindulgence and self-mortification). The word Taoism means the way or the path.

#5: The result?

Liberation Heaven Enlightenment

Salvation

Wisdom

Nirvana Happiness

Rebirth

#6: which itself is a direct experience of the unity of Spirit

The Buddhist analogy of a wave and the ocean you will know that I am in [God], and you in me, and I in you (Jesus quoted in John 14:20). The Oversoul in American transcendentalism (Emerson)

Namaste: The divine in me greets the divine in you.

#7: Mercy and compassion

This recognition of Spirit brings a desire to act with mercy and compassion towards others.
In most traditions, walking the path includes performing such acts for the benefit of others.

What does God require of you? To do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly (Micah 6)

Differences

Beliefs and dogma

The exact nature of God / Spirit
Distant? Personal? Evolving? Changeless? Mysterious?
Religion

Requirements for salvation/liberation

Belief alone? Proper actions? Both?
Metaphysics Spirituality

Attitudes towards outsiders

Infidels? Damned? In need of conversion or extermination?

Specifics of the path

Meditation? Yoga? Prayer? Confession? Going to church? Jihad?

Authority: which texts and which people? Rites, rituals, ceremonies, worship

One implication: These differences are culturally and historically determined not decisive.

The multiple paths hypothesis

Anti-Exclusivist: Mine is not the only true way. Because: what really determines your path?

Accident of birth? Emotion? Intuition? Revelation?

Personal choice?
Do you pick the path, or does the path pick you? Are you truly free to believe whatever you want?

Are there many legitimate paths, just as mountains can be climbed via various routes?

The value of a specific path

There are many reliable paths. The important thing is to pick one. - Huston Smith Why?
Paths indicate direction to a clear destination. Paths have history: others have travelled them before and know the way.

Paths offer community and encouragement.