The Return of the Perennial Philosophy: The Supreme Vision of Western Esotericism

Books on this topic are sorely needed, not because one can add anything new to the perennial philosophy, but because so few modern minds seem to be able to gain purchase on the subject matter. It is simply almost impossible to discuss this subject with conventional scholars because they lack any conception of a world view higher than their own. They are still back in Plato's cave. The first part of this book is a good survey of the various schools or approaches to the perennial philosophy through the ages. It offers a wider perspective than you will see through any one school (for instance, you are never going to find a positive reference to Theosophy in the works of Guenon.) The second part is the most detailed discussion on the topic of initiation that I have ever come across. While I do not think that anyone can truly comprehend what is really meant by the various levels without actual experience, it is mind-expanding to know that there may be ten or more distinct plateaus. However, all of this depends on that all-important first initiation when you actually come to KNOW through experience that there is more to the world than dead matter... The third part speculates on the changing of worldviews. The prevailing "modern" world view of the Cartesian-Newtonian materialists has proven unsatisfactory in almost every department of living that it has been forced upon. Then again, the resulting deconstructionist miasma of postmodernism has resulted in a swamp of skepticism and relativism. There is a growing realization among some perceptive and powerful thinkers that we need a return to real philosophy- the art of living once called wisdom. I especially enjoyed the author's illustration that one could imagine a fishing conference with a hundred fishing theorists and a handful of actual fishermen. If there was a majority vote that there was no perennial fishing wisdom, those fishermen who actual DO fishing (and not just theorize about it) would just sit back and smile. Too many assume that just because they themselves have not experienced a thing, then that thing cannot exist. In a sense perhaps the author is too worried about Western Esotericism being accepted at the "High Table of Academe." Truth be told, it belongs at the next table up- and not at the children's table...

I found this book a very rewarding read. The author is extremely widely read and has the ability to systematize and synthesise a vast number of ideas from different wisdom traditions, bringing out the parallels between western esotericism and eastern spiritual traditions. Having been a little ambivalent about theosophy in the past, I found the discussion of the ideas of authors such as Blavatsky and Annie Besant very interesting, since it illustrated that these authors did have a very genuine and enlightened perspective on spiritual matters. Most of all though, the book shows how enduring and pervasive the perennial philosophy is, running through eastern and western traditions from ancient to contemporary times.

In style and content, somewhere between Huston Smith's "Forgotten Truth" and Helena Blavatsky's "The Secret Doctrine", this is one of the most important works on the esoteric wisdom to emerge in recent years. As Smith himself says on the cover, John Holman's portrait of the esoteric cosmos is close to being magisterial, but what I found most useful was the juxtaposition of esoteric and transpersonal psychology. I would recommend this book to fans of Ken Wilber as well as perennialist authors such as Smith and Blavatsky - it has the potential to become a new classic.