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Histoire des croyances et des idées religieuses #3.1
Istoria credințelor și ideilor religioase 3: De la Mahomed la epoca Reformelor
This volume completes the immensely learned three-volume A History of Religious Ideas. Eliade examines the movement of Jewish thought out of ancient Eurasia, the Christian transformation of the Mediterranean area and Europe, and the rise and diffusion of Islam from approximately the sixth through the seventeenth centuries. Eliade's vast knowledge of past and present scholarship provides a synthesis that is unparalleled. In addition to reviewing recent interpretations of the individual traditions, he explores the interactions of the three religions and shows their continuing mutual influence to be subtle but unmistakable.
As in his previous work, Eliade pays particular attention to heresies, folk beliefs, and cults of secret wisdom, such as alchemy and sorcery, and continues the discussion, begun in earlier volumes, of pre-Christian shamanistic practices in northern Europe and the syncretistic tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. These subcultures, he maintains, are as important as the better-known orthodoxies to a full understanding of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
As in his previous work, Eliade pays particular attention to heresies, folk beliefs, and cults of secret wisdom, such as alchemy and sorcery, and continues the discussion, begun in earlier volumes, of pre-Christian shamanistic practices in northern Europe and the syncretistic tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. These subcultures, he maintains, are as important as the better-known orthodoxies to a full understanding of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
354 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
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About the author
Mircea Eliade
557 books2,691 followersRomanian-born historian of religion, fiction writer, philosopher, professor at the University of Chicago, and one of the pre-eminent interpreters of world religion in the last century. Eliade was an intensely prolific author of fiction and non-fiction alike, publishing over 1,300 pieces over 60 years. He earned international fame with LE MYTHE DE L'ÉTERNAL RETOUR (1949, The Myth of the Eternal Return), an interpretation of religious symbols and imagery. Eliade was much interested in the world of the unconscious. The central theme in his novels was erotic love.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
April 22, 2021
Poslednji tom je, nažalost, ostavio na mene utisak zbrzanog završetka i izneverenih očekivanja vezanih za poslednja poglavlja koja je Mirča tokom prve dve knjige često najavljivao - analizu modernog doba, nakon reformacije, nakon neuspele renesanse, nakon i potpunog raspada sveta koji je još, makar u poznom srednjem veku tek jedva, mogao da shvati ovaj svet holistički, monistički, u duhu drevnih svetih znanja.
Ipak, pre tog preranog kraja, uživao sam u detaljnom pregledu, pre svega, srednjevekovne mistike triju monoteističkih religija zapada - islama, hrišćanstva i judaizma. Kabala, sufi, kao i probijanje mistike u hrišćanstvo, buđenje hermenautike su zaista predstavljenui na vrhunski način, način na koji me je Mirča već sa prethodnim knjigama navikao - da kompleksne i preširoke teme uspeva da sažme na dovoljno razumljiv način. Na zapadu priču zavrašava, a preko tema kakve su velika šizma, sholastika, reformacija, lov na veštice, manje-više sa zorom naučne revolucije - Njutnom i činjenicom da "otac" moderne nauke nije na pameti imao desekralizovan svet današnjice, već upravo nešto sasvim suprotno.
Uz to na početku se bavi religijama severne Azije, raznim oblicima šamanizma, kao i religijama ugro-finskih i balto-slovenskih naroda, no površno, što je i bil oza očekivati. Na posletku je priča o tibetskim religijama - bonu i njegovoj sintezi sa budizmom. Za sam kraj Mirča Elijade sebi dozvoljava tračak nade - rasejanje sa okupiranog Tibeta može da odigra ulogu kakvu je dolazak hermenautike nekoliko vekova ranije imao na Evropu, da otškrine vrata novom pokušaju duhovnog preporoda.
Naravno, i ta nada je bila uzaludna. Koliko je domet tradicionalnih sinteza i svetih znanja na renesansni zapad bio u svom ultimativnom smislu jalov, otkriće sanskrita, veda i upanišada u 19. veku je imalo još manjeg odjeka, da bi "ludilo" za Tibetom 20. veka sasvim zgaslo već na njegovom isteku, bez ikakvih pomaka ni za duh zapada, a ni za sam okupirani Tibet. Nije Mirča ni prvi, ni poslednji koj ije na istok gledao sa očajničkom nadom, verovatno najveći um od renesanse - ako ne i mnogo više - Rene Genon je sa istom tom nadom posmatrao Indiju, Kinu, džepove sufi tradicije i slično... no, istok je, iako i dalje ponegde čuva razumevanja drevnih nauka, prevashodno samo siromašan, prljav, treći svet tom prvom, od duha savim otuđenom zapadu.
Ipak, pre tog preranog kraja, uživao sam u detaljnom pregledu, pre svega, srednjevekovne mistike triju monoteističkih religija zapada - islama, hrišćanstva i judaizma. Kabala, sufi, kao i probijanje mistike u hrišćanstvo, buđenje hermenautike su zaista predstavljenui na vrhunski način, način na koji me je Mirča već sa prethodnim knjigama navikao - da kompleksne i preširoke teme uspeva da sažme na dovoljno razumljiv način. Na zapadu priču zavrašava, a preko tema kakve su velika šizma, sholastika, reformacija, lov na veštice, manje-više sa zorom naučne revolucije - Njutnom i činjenicom da "otac" moderne nauke nije na pameti imao desekralizovan svet današnjice, već upravo nešto sasvim suprotno.
Uz to na početku se bavi religijama severne Azije, raznim oblicima šamanizma, kao i religijama ugro-finskih i balto-slovenskih naroda, no površno, što je i bil oza očekivati. Na posletku je priča o tibetskim religijama - bonu i njegovoj sintezi sa budizmom. Za sam kraj Mirča Elijade sebi dozvoljava tračak nade - rasejanje sa okupiranog Tibeta može da odigra ulogu kakvu je dolazak hermenautike nekoliko vekova ranije imao na Evropu, da otškrine vrata novom pokušaju duhovnog preporoda.
Naravno, i ta nada je bila uzaludna. Koliko je domet tradicionalnih sinteza i svetih znanja na renesansni zapad bio u svom ultimativnom smislu jalov, otkriće sanskrita, veda i upanišada u 19. veku je imalo još manjeg odjeka, da bi "ludilo" za Tibetom 20. veka sasvim zgaslo već na njegovom isteku, bez ikakvih pomaka ni za duh zapada, a ni za sam okupirani Tibet. Nije Mirča ni prvi, ni poslednji koj ije na istok gledao sa očajničkom nadom, verovatno najveći um od renesanse - ako ne i mnogo više - Rene Genon je sa istom tom nadom posmatrao Indiju, Kinu, džepove sufi tradicije i slično... no, istok je, iako i dalje ponegde čuva razumevanja drevnih nauka, prevashodno samo siromašan, prljav, treći svet tom prvom, od duha savim otuđenom zapadu.
January 20, 2022
به نظرم برای آشنایی با تاریخ دین همون جلد اول کفایت می کنه. جلد 2 و 3 خیلی حوصله سر بر بود.
هر چیزی که لازم باشه برای یادگیری تو جلد اول هست.
هر چیزی که لازم باشه برای یادگیری تو جلد اول هست.
December 1, 2020
Bibliografia critică, care formează o jumătate din acest al treilea volum, trebuie citită cu aceeași atenție cu care a fost citit studiul propriu-zis, deoarece oferă multe informații suplimentare.
November 20, 2016
This master piece was an amazing experience which brought me through millenniums of human imaginations and ideals. I instantly knew that I am going to read these books again in few years, to remind me who we are and who we have been.
The last book was about modern religions (up to the reformation era, 17th century), it describes different Catholic "sects", ways of thinking (understanding) as well as Muslim various aspects, oriental religious concepts and others (it is not my intention to name them; but one was very interesting: religious concept of old Provence culture - god and love towards women). I have been enlightened by how religious frameworks were able to assimilate older and different "schools and symbols", how thinkers and theologians were adjusting religious issues to their time and cultures.
I highly recommend these books to everybody who want to understand our world and people. It should be taught at schools, then we might be more tolerant and empathetic.
The last book was about modern religions (up to the reformation era, 17th century), it describes different Catholic "sects", ways of thinking (understanding) as well as Muslim various aspects, oriental religious concepts and others (it is not my intention to name them; but one was very interesting: religious concept of old Provence culture - god and love towards women). I have been enlightened by how religious frameworks were able to assimilate older and different "schools and symbols", how thinkers and theologians were adjusting religious issues to their time and cultures.
I highly recommend these books to everybody who want to understand our world and people. It should be taught at schools, then we might be more tolerant and empathetic.
July 14, 2015
Omul nereligios constituie un accident in ordinea spiritului,caci,inca de la nivelurile cele mai arhaice ale culturii,a trai ca fiinta umana este in sine un act religios.
Daca a fi sau a deveni om este,asa cum spune Eliade,a fi "religios",inseamna ca areligiozitatea reprezinta o instrainare de esenta proprie.
Daca a fi sau a deveni om este,asa cum spune Eliade,a fi "religios",inseamna ca areligiozitatea reprezinta o instrainare de esenta proprie.
December 4, 2021
Absolutely blown away by the amount of information in here, well researched, written scholarly but still accessible to the laymen. It was truly a display of religious and cultural erudition, in depth analysis and knowledge of the history of religious ideas. Immensely grateful to the author for it taught me considerable amount of knowledge and background about ideas which I had pretty much close to zero awareness of. Erudite historian, I’m sure his void has been felt all of these years, but he left and built and edifice for the future generations to work from and built upon.
October 10, 2014
The third volume of “A History of Religious Idea – From Muhammed to the Age of Reforms” by Mircea Eliade covers the vast religious area between:
• Religions of Ancient Eurasia including shamanism, paganism, and the “Celestial God”
• Christian Churches in the eighth and ninth century
• Muhammed and the unfolding of Islam
• Western Catholicism from Charlemagne to the start of the Reformation
• Judaism in the Middle Ages
• Zwingli, Calvin and the Catholic Reformation
• Tibetan Religions
Similar to the first two volumes, this vast area of religious ideas is described in a considerable depth in this third volume, although experts will certainly notice significant major omissions at once; e.g. the Reformation in Holland is not covered.
Although I have the impression that Mircea Eliade could not finish this third volume: highly recommended!
• Religions of Ancient Eurasia including shamanism, paganism, and the “Celestial God”
• Christian Churches in the eighth and ninth century
• Muhammed and the unfolding of Islam
• Western Catholicism from Charlemagne to the start of the Reformation
• Judaism in the Middle Ages
• Zwingli, Calvin and the Catholic Reformation
• Tibetan Religions
Similar to the first two volumes, this vast area of religious ideas is described in a considerable depth in this third volume, although experts will certainly notice significant major omissions at once; e.g. the Reformation in Holland is not covered.
Although I have the impression that Mircea Eliade could not finish this third volume: highly recommended!
December 9, 2019
Unfortunately Eliade's dwindling health and use of assistants shows. This final volume lacks the density of the previous two, and the language betrays ghost writers (which is really a testament to how well Eliade himself wrote). Still, there is much here. It's just rushed through. More of a focus on mysticism (Jewish, Christian and Islamic) than the previous volumes.
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October 15, 2013excellent !
July 15, 2018
Too bad it's unfinished.
December 19, 2022
This is the third of what was intended to be a four-volume work, but unfortunately the author died in 1986 with only three volumes completed of what would, nevertheless, constitute his magnum opus of religious history. Beginning with the religions of ancient Eurasia, he covers the development of Judaism, of Christianity up to the Reformation, and the rise of Islam, concluding with a chapter on Tibetan religions.
For the chapters on Islam, Eliade relies heavily on the work of his friend, the philosopher of the imagination Henry Corbin. Eliade and Corbin were close colleagues at the Eranos conferences held every year at Ascona in Switzerland, whose guiding spirit was the analytical psychologist, Carl Jung; all three practised a form of spiritual alchemy, in which the raw data of ancient and contemporary religious experience were transformed in the psyche into something transcendent, into what Eliade called the trans-conscious. Another colleague from Eranos, the scholar of Jewish mysticism Gershom Scholem, is a major source for Eliade’s discussion of the Kabbalah.
Following Corbin, Eliade emphasises the esoteric aspects of Islam. We hear, for example, about a little-known event in the mountain fortress of Alamût, sanctuary of the much-fabled Assassins (hashshâshîn?), in 1164: The Ismaili Imâm, Hassan II, proclaimed the Great Resurrection, in which many aspects of religious law (the exoteric) were abrogated in favour of a personal, pure spiritual Islam (the esoteric). Two decades later, the Persian Master of Illumination, Suhrawardi, was exploring an ‘imaginal’ interworld, where the spiritual truth of religious revelation is uncovered. His stress on the esoteric aspects led to his condemnation for heresy, and he died in 1191. Although Eliade does not mention this, 1191 is also the year when Philip of Flanders, the patron of the poet Chrétien de Troyes, was killed on crusade. Chrétien was the author of the first, unfinished Grail romance; and Eliade compares the function of the “initiatory accounts” written by Suhrawardi with that of the Grail stories.
Eliade comments: “The creative imagination, which makes possible the discovery of the interworld, is one with the ecstatic visions of the shamans and the inspiration of the ancient poets.” But if the adventures of the heroes of epic literature are of “ecstatic” origin, borrowed from the accounts of shamanic journeys, Eliade also sees Celtic, Gnostic, and Oriental elements as being “rediscovered or re-actualised” in the twelfth century cult of courtly love and in the Arthurian romances of the Matter of Britain. He considers that “the romances of the Round Table establish a new mythology, in the sense that they reveal, to their audience, a ‘sacred history’ … It is always a matter of a long and eventful ‘quest’ for marvellous objects which implies, among other things, the hero’s penetration into another world ... This entire literature, filled as it is with initiatory motifs and scenarios, is precious for our study, were it only in consideration of its public success. The fact that these romantic stories, filled with initiatory clichés, were heard with delight seems proof to us that such adventures met a profound need of medieval people.”
I would add (as one who reads the stories with delight) that the continued use of Arthurian themes in popular literature testifies to the profound need of modern people for an imaginative interworld, however much its “spiritual message” may be camouflaged as entertainment: As Eliade puts it, “the mythology of the Grail is a part of the religious history of the West”; and in his final chapter, on Tibetan religions, he points out how much that western history has been transformed by the encounter (particularly noticeable among the students he taught in the Sixties) with eastern spirituality.
Such indications of where he was heading make it particularly unfortunate that he did not live to write the chapters on “archaic and traditional” American religions and on “the religious creativity of modern societies” intended for the fourth volume. As it is, we are left with a treasure trove of thought-provoking insights into the history of our quest for meaning. If his work was unfinished, like the original Grail romance, it may be because it was inherently unfinishable: As Tolkien might have put it, spiritual adventures never have an end; someone else always has to carry on the story.
There is more on Eliade and religious symbolism in my Goodreads blog: Myth Dancing (Incorporating the Twenty Third Letter). A series of posts on Eliade begins here: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog...
For the chapters on Islam, Eliade relies heavily on the work of his friend, the philosopher of the imagination Henry Corbin. Eliade and Corbin were close colleagues at the Eranos conferences held every year at Ascona in Switzerland, whose guiding spirit was the analytical psychologist, Carl Jung; all three practised a form of spiritual alchemy, in which the raw data of ancient and contemporary religious experience were transformed in the psyche into something transcendent, into what Eliade called the trans-conscious. Another colleague from Eranos, the scholar of Jewish mysticism Gershom Scholem, is a major source for Eliade’s discussion of the Kabbalah.
Following Corbin, Eliade emphasises the esoteric aspects of Islam. We hear, for example, about a little-known event in the mountain fortress of Alamût, sanctuary of the much-fabled Assassins (hashshâshîn?), in 1164: The Ismaili Imâm, Hassan II, proclaimed the Great Resurrection, in which many aspects of religious law (the exoteric) were abrogated in favour of a personal, pure spiritual Islam (the esoteric). Two decades later, the Persian Master of Illumination, Suhrawardi, was exploring an ‘imaginal’ interworld, where the spiritual truth of religious revelation is uncovered. His stress on the esoteric aspects led to his condemnation for heresy, and he died in 1191. Although Eliade does not mention this, 1191 is also the year when Philip of Flanders, the patron of the poet Chrétien de Troyes, was killed on crusade. Chrétien was the author of the first, unfinished Grail romance; and Eliade compares the function of the “initiatory accounts” written by Suhrawardi with that of the Grail stories.
Eliade comments: “The creative imagination, which makes possible the discovery of the interworld, is one with the ecstatic visions of the shamans and the inspiration of the ancient poets.” But if the adventures of the heroes of epic literature are of “ecstatic” origin, borrowed from the accounts of shamanic journeys, Eliade also sees Celtic, Gnostic, and Oriental elements as being “rediscovered or re-actualised” in the twelfth century cult of courtly love and in the Arthurian romances of the Matter of Britain. He considers that “the romances of the Round Table establish a new mythology, in the sense that they reveal, to their audience, a ‘sacred history’ … It is always a matter of a long and eventful ‘quest’ for marvellous objects which implies, among other things, the hero’s penetration into another world ... This entire literature, filled as it is with initiatory motifs and scenarios, is precious for our study, were it only in consideration of its public success. The fact that these romantic stories, filled with initiatory clichés, were heard with delight seems proof to us that such adventures met a profound need of medieval people.”
I would add (as one who reads the stories with delight) that the continued use of Arthurian themes in popular literature testifies to the profound need of modern people for an imaginative interworld, however much its “spiritual message” may be camouflaged as entertainment: As Eliade puts it, “the mythology of the Grail is a part of the religious history of the West”; and in his final chapter, on Tibetan religions, he points out how much that western history has been transformed by the encounter (particularly noticeable among the students he taught in the Sixties) with eastern spirituality.
Such indications of where he was heading make it particularly unfortunate that he did not live to write the chapters on “archaic and traditional” American religions and on “the religious creativity of modern societies” intended for the fourth volume. As it is, we are left with a treasure trove of thought-provoking insights into the history of our quest for meaning. If his work was unfinished, like the original Grail romance, it may be because it was inherently unfinishable: As Tolkien might have put it, spiritual adventures never have an end; someone else always has to carry on the story.
There is more on Eliade and religious symbolism in my Goodreads blog: Myth Dancing (Incorporating the Twenty Third Letter). A series of posts on Eliade begins here: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog...
February 9, 2023
Wow, just wow. I don't know what it was about the end to this trilogy of Eliade's magnum opus 'A History of Religious Ideas', but it was an incredibly, amazing, mindblowing read. I went on a spiritual philosophical historical metaphysical shamanic journey throughout all (or more accurately, some) of the religious thought of the world, which Eliade traverses through in this book. My absolute favourite sections were Christianity, surprisingly due to my general lack of interest in it previously; Judaism; Islam; and Tibetan Religion.
With respect to the Christianity as explored in this book, I have never found the religion so fascinating before in my life, being raised a nominal Buddhist and simultaneously going to Catholic School, I thought of the Jesus story as just that, the story about Jesus. Nothing that blew my mind, with archetypal, conversion-level significance on a personal level. But going through Calvin, Augustine, the Hermeticists, Martin Luther, Loyola, and various other mystics and theologians - my mind has been changed. Christianity has such a depth of spirituality that has been overshadowed by the more commercial forms today like megachurches. The latter phenomenon of which is mystical-lite, but definitely not philosophical or theologically in-depth. I've really looked at Christianity with fresh eyes, and have much more respect for it as a system of thought. I obviously found the stories of the persecutions of pagans and witches quite usual, and was not a fan of that aspect of the Inquisition, but nevertheless - the good, the bad, and the ugly were in this. And I thoroughly enjoyed all of it.
Islam's section was fantastic, so was Buddhism, so was Judaism. I love it all. Probably my favourite read ever in the last two years.
With respect to the Christianity as explored in this book, I have never found the religion so fascinating before in my life, being raised a nominal Buddhist and simultaneously going to Catholic School, I thought of the Jesus story as just that, the story about Jesus. Nothing that blew my mind, with archetypal, conversion-level significance on a personal level. But going through Calvin, Augustine, the Hermeticists, Martin Luther, Loyola, and various other mystics and theologians - my mind has been changed. Christianity has such a depth of spirituality that has been overshadowed by the more commercial forms today like megachurches. The latter phenomenon of which is mystical-lite, but definitely not philosophical or theologically in-depth. I've really looked at Christianity with fresh eyes, and have much more respect for it as a system of thought. I obviously found the stories of the persecutions of pagans and witches quite usual, and was not a fan of that aspect of the Inquisition, but nevertheless - the good, the bad, and the ugly were in this. And I thoroughly enjoyed all of it.
Islam's section was fantastic, so was Buddhism, so was Judaism. I love it all. Probably my favourite read ever in the last two years.
March 26, 2025
The trilogy is truly grandiose, full of unbanal facts and points about religion. Main discontent to my mind is a complicity of language. One should be really talented writer to explain complicated thoughts with a simple words. And this is not the case. Also, some religions are described in too many details, for example biography of Muhammad persists in the first and the third book, with a bit different point of view. On the other hand, some religions are described in a compressed manner, in one or two articles, and some are just ommited, like a religion of ancient Americans.
December 17, 2019
Although I really enjoyed the first two volumes, this last instalment was a bit harder to read. The overall tone is a bit monotonous, and the numerous footnotes make it hard to stay focused.
In hindsight, this book may be better appreciated if read non-linerarly, or just used as a overall reference on specific religions before reading other books that dive deeper on said religion.
In hindsight, this book may be better appreciated if read non-linerarly, or just used as a overall reference on specific religions before reading other books that dive deeper on said religion.
March 16, 2025
Bien podrías simplemente tomar un libro sobre la historia del islam y el cristianismo. Si bien me parece una buena exposición, el que la mayoría de capítulos aborden estas dos tradiciones quita la universalidad por la que se caracterizaban los dos libros anteriores, que creo que sería lo importante en una trilogía de «historia de las ideas religiosas».
March 19, 2020
O terceiro volume das historia da religiões comenta um pouco sobre os mitos arcaicos que voltam sempre a aparecer, da evolução doutrinal da igreja e das reformas como a origem do islã e sua corrente teológica e filosófica que vejo ser pouco comentada.
November 28, 2020
Как и в предыдущих томах, когда автор вдается в подробности, не все понятно. Но главное, что остается от этой книги - представление о богатстве и многообразии мировых религий. Автор не ставит одну из них выше других, недаром и книга заканчивается не главой о христианстве, а тибетскими религиями
February 17, 2021
It is more of a history and biography book.
Interesting on the fact that follows a pattern of religious evolution, very detailed in description of shamanism and Christianity.
Interesting on the fact that follows a pattern of religious evolution, very detailed in description of shamanism and Christianity.
June 9, 2021
Always interesting to read about the ways humans have addressed the fundamental problems of existence. These 3 volumes cover them all.
April 2, 2023
Przestarzałe, kryptoteologiczne gówno.
June 4, 2023
Dinlerin tarihine bir bakis, dinlerin insanlarin varolus sancilarini yatistirmak ve dunyayi aciklamak icin kullandiklari bir arac oldugu cikarimini yaptim.
May 4, 2024
Hervorrangende Einführung und Fortsetzung der vorherigen Teile.
August 12, 2024
Fascinating book but a shame that he died before he could finish the series.
February 17, 2024
4 months for the 4 volumes of the history of religions for me. Could have been profession changing, had I read them 15 years ago. I never realized how interesting this subject could really be. The next few words will be about the 4 volumes more or less in general, as my head is still reeling from the amount of information that was synthesized here.
Eliade died by the time of Vol 4, which can be clearly felt as that is more a compendium of different researchers and authors in this field and lacks the unity and cross-referencing that the previous volumes have. This doesn't mean that it lacks valuable ideas or insights, it's just different...
The most interesting one for me was Vol 1 dealing with archaic and ancient belief forms and religions, which was quite the eye-opener. That one kind of lays the foundation for the further volumes as the underlying theme, as I perceived it, is that certain experiences as well as certain influences among peoples in long forgotten times have lead to the development of various proto-religious beliefs, which then again developed due to various other influences leading to the appearance of religions in Antiquity.
I would even go as far as to say, that these are not only scholarly excellent works, though I don't know how much our understanding of religions changed in the past 40-50 years since Eliade, but these should be mandatory readings for teachers/preachers of the faith as well. I specifically think about Christians, but that's because of my own background. There's a lot to learn from these volumes, but it also takes quite some time to go deep into them.
Eliade died by the time of Vol 4, which can be clearly felt as that is more a compendium of different researchers and authors in this field and lacks the unity and cross-referencing that the previous volumes have. This doesn't mean that it lacks valuable ideas or insights, it's just different...
The most interesting one for me was Vol 1 dealing with archaic and ancient belief forms and religions, which was quite the eye-opener. That one kind of lays the foundation for the further volumes as the underlying theme, as I perceived it, is that certain experiences as well as certain influences among peoples in long forgotten times have lead to the development of various proto-religious beliefs, which then again developed due to various other influences leading to the appearance of religions in Antiquity.
I would even go as far as to say, that these are not only scholarly excellent works, though I don't know how much our understanding of religions changed in the past 40-50 years since Eliade, but these should be mandatory readings for teachers/preachers of the faith as well. I specifically think about Christians, but that's because of my own background. There's a lot to learn from these volumes, but it also takes quite some time to go deep into them.
January 19, 2022
La obra de Mircea Eliade es fundamental para todos aquellos interesados en los distintos cultos y creencias que han dado forma a la cosmovisión de los diferentes pueblos de la tierra.
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April 21, 2013Très intéressant mais pas aussi "complet" que les deux premiers tomes.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews