Traditional Forms and Cosmic Cycles

by René Guénon, Henry Fohr (Translator), James Richard Wetmore (Editor)

The articles collected in this volume represent some of the most unusual from Guénon's pen. They could be described as fragments of an unknown history, a history reaching back through prehistory to protohistory, for they begin with the Primordial Tradition contemporaneous with the beginnings of present humanity. The text opens with a study on cosmic cycles, taking as point of departure the Hindu doctrine of the Manvantara, though similar doctrines appear in Greco-Roman antiquity, among Jewish Kabbalists, Islamic Sufis and Ismailis, and in the Hopi, Lakota, and Maya nations of the New World. Essential to this doctrine is that earlier ages differed qualitatively from ours, which may explain why our historicism and archaeology have yet to come to grips with 'Hyperborea' and 'Atlantis', despite the many clues embedded throughout mythology, folklore, sacred architecture, etc. That is, our own time's quality cannot simply be projected backwards into past ages. In presenting Hyperborean and Atlantean lore-the cyclical mysteries of the West and the North-as well as material on the Hebrew Kabbalah and Egyptian Hermeticism, Guénon successfully transmits the requisite sense of such 'other' times, which for some may awaken the intuition of higher levels of Being.

Genres: Religion, Philosophy, Metaphysics, Occult, Mythology, Spirituality, History

130 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1970

About the author

René Guénon (1886-1951) was a French author and intellectual who remains an influential figure in the domain of sacred science,traditional studies, symbolism and initiation.

French biography : http://arlesquint.free.fr/rene%20guen...
http://www.index-rene-guenon.org/

Reviews

[Paithan · Rating 1 out of 5]

The title is a lie. This is not a text devoted to explaining cosmic cycles. This is a collection of short texts written by Guenon in which he shoots down the theories and writings of his contemporaries.

He does so in a manner nearly incomprehensible to me. I felt like I was reading something in a language I only half knew.

[Aaron Schuschu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starts off talking about kalpas but then drifts off into Kabbalah and Hermeticism and the whole even traditionalists think traditionalists aren’t traditionalist enough, which is par for the course for traditionalism. At least the jab at Evola was intriguing.

[Emin Erdem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Özellikle bu eserdeki kitap eleştirileri sayesinde Guénon'un bakış açısını daha iyi anlayabiliyorsunuz.

[Sumeyye Pa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Farklı yazılardan oluşan bu derlemesi özellikle kitap eleştirileri ve M. Eliade eleştirisi Guenon'u anlamak ve aslında farklı yorumları anlamak için mühim.