Signposts at * LivingIslam - IslamicTradition *


Directions from Signposts or metaphysical elucidations
based on various expositions of René Guénon:

One of his main concerns was to produce an unsentimental analysis of Western ideological and religious development since the Renaissance, focusing on the degradation - as he saw it - of metaphysics, and therefore of true intellectuality, and of philosophy and religion with those fatal consequences to the mentality of the general populace.

He explained the reason why Western civilization was built on false foundations, like a house built on sand: its individualism and its positivism, with its denial of tradition as defined here and in consequence its disappearance of metaphysical knowledge. He indicated the way to spiritual reform and redress by gaining access - through initiation - to the sacred and eternal treasure of timeless wisdom hidden in the world-religions, especially we would point out the last and most comprehensive of them. He identified the necessity of following an orthodox exoteric tradition and explained for example the role and inherent efficacy of rites to gain access to beneficial spiritual influences, by modern man long forgotten.

In his words:

In any case, what Westeners call civilization, the others would call barbarity, because it is precisely lacking in the essential, that is to say a principle of a higher order.

Metaphysics can be really only be, we repeat it again, what is absolutely stable, permanent, independant of all contingencies, and in particular of all historical contingencies; that which is metaphysics is what does not change, and it also the universality of metaphysics which realizes its essentiel unity, exclusive of the multiplicity of philosophical systems such as those of religious dogmas and in consequence its profound immutability. RG, EDH126

So first of all we'll present a definition of Tradition and traditional.

Then quotes on the fact that metaphysics cannot be limited = On The Supreme Principle
On Non-Being which is infintely 'more' than Being,
related to which are the issues of Non-Duality in contrast to Dualism,

further on Creation, on Individuality, and the Metaphysical Zero

Also on religion, on "freedom of thought - tolerance", on the error of limiting intelligence to reason,
on the modern trend of the sentimental, also mysticism in the light of metaphysics, on Intuition, on initiation
on rites,
and on antitradition,
and on True and False Spiritual Teachers, Role of The Spiritual Master,


Forthcoming: On Unity, Manifestation,


Also quotes on:

Prophet Muhammad ( ) On Knowledge,
Islam's superiority to modernity and the end of time (not ready)
What is Tradition and what is traditional about Islam?
Tasawwuf (Sufism) is an essential part of Islam.
On Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ( ) and his personal traits

(These questions are broadly dealt with at http://www.livingislam.org/ )











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Page from Saturday, April 15, 2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . latest update Wednesday, 9 July 2008