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| In the Face of the Absolute: A New Translation with Selected Letters |
| This page has details on “In the Face of the Absolute: A New Translation with Selected Letters” |
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Click cover for larger image.
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Author(s):
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Subjects(s):
Christianity
Comparative Religion
Esoterism
Islam
Metaphysics
Sufism
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Price: $19.95
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ISBN: 978-1-936597-41-3
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Book Size: 6" x 9"
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# of Pages: 216
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Language: English
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Description
In this new edition of his masterful work, Perennialist author Frithjof Schuon provides insightful answers to age-old religious and philosophical questions such as predestination and free will, the reason for evil, and the meaning of eternity in heaven and hell. This edition features: 60 pages of completely new material, including a fully revised translation from the French original; previously unpublished selections from Schuon’s letters and other private writings; editor’s notes that explain and annotate various key terms, references, etc.; and a glossary of foreign terms and phrases, plus an index. Of this book, author and scientist Wolfgang Smith wrote: “Once again Frithjof Schuon treats of the nature and necessity of the religions as well as the limits and apparent contradictions of their exoteric aspects. [In the Face of the Absolute], however, is not simply a restatement of the doctrine already given in his earlier books, but a fresh presentation bringing to light new clarities, and on occasion, new insights that take one’s breath away. One might add that the whole is suffused as it were with a sheer contemplative joy that gently transfers itself to the reader, and a serene beauty that pacifies and liberates.”
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Religion scholar Huston Smith called Frithjof Schuon “the most important religious thinker of [the 20th] century.” In the first section of this revised edition of his classic work, Schuon provides striking insights to age-old religious and philosophical controversies such as the problem of evil, predestination and free will, and the meaning of eternity in heaven and hell. In the second section, Schuon masterfully harmonizes the divergent theological claims of the three main branches of Christianity—Orthodoxy, Catholicism, and Protestantism—in the light of universal metaphysical truth. The final section contains several chapters relating to Islamic esoterism and concludes with a remarkable chapter on the spiritual substance of the Prophet.
This new edition contains 60 pages of completely new material, including a fully revised translation from the French original and previously unpublished selections from Schuon’s letters and other private writings. Also included are editor’s notes, a glossary, and an index.
Concerning In the Face of the Absolute, author and scientist Wolfgang Smith wrote: “Once again Frithjof Schuon treats of the nature and necessity of the religions as well as the limits and apparent contradictions of their exoteric aspects. [In the Face of the Absolute], however, is not simply a restatement of the doctrine already given in his earlier books, but a fresh presentation bringing to light new clarities, and on occasion, new insights that take one’s breath away. One might add that the whole is suffused as it were with a sheer contemplative joy that gently transfers itself to the reader, and a serene beauty that pacifies and liberates.”
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Frithjof Schuon (1907-1998) is best known as the foremost spokesman of the “Traditionalist” or “Perennialist” school and as a philosopher in the metaphysical current of Shankara and Plato. He wrote more than two dozen books on metaphysical, spiritual, artistic, and ethnic themes and was a regular contributor to journals on comparative religion in both Europe and America. Schuon’s writings have been consistently featured and reviewed in a wide range of scholarly and philosophical publications around the world, respected by both scholars and spiritual authorities. Besides his prose writings, Schuon was also a prolific poet ( see a listing of Schuon's poetry books) and a gifted painter of images that always portrayed the beauty and power of the divine, and the nobility and virtue of primordial humanity.
World Wisdom features a series titled "The Writings of Frithjof Schuon", which includes many new editions of classic books by Schuon in new translations and with additional materials. Our online Library contains many articles and poems written by Frithjof Schuon, allowing readers to see a representative sample of his remarkable body of work.
Click here for more information
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Harry Oldmeadow was co-ordinator of Philosophy and Religious Studies at La Trobe University in Australia and author of the acclaimed Traditionalism: Religion in the Light of the Perennial Philosophy (2000), an authoritative introduction to the perspective of Perennialism. Prof. Oldmeadow's contributions to World Wisdom books & DVDs include:
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“In the Face of the Absolute: A New Translation with Selected Letters reflects the philosophical, spiritual probe of an author who considers different modern spiritual challenges in life, and presents a newly revised edition of his classic writings, retranslated from the original French and including previously unpublished writings, new notes, a glossary of foreign terms, and an index. This is no light reading, but a serious philosophical examination of different concepts of the theology of Christianity and Islam, probing connections and differences between the two. As such, it will appeal to and is recommended for a scholarly audience who will find these polished and detailed letters and writings to be at once insightful and challenging.”
—California Bookwatch
“This book is, indeed, a serious challenge to the ‘modern spirit,’ whose ‘ideas no longer bite.’ Highly recommended for all who seek an understanding of the ‘traditional spirit.’”
—Choice Magazine
“If there is any body of writings . . . that speak so directly to our contemporary spiritual condition, it is the writings of Frithjof Schuon. . . . In the Face of the Absolute is yet further confirmation that a voice is crying in our wilderness which we ignore at our peril.”
—James Burnell Robinson, University of Northern Iowa, author of Hinduism
“Schuon’s latest opus is once again concerned with the central issues of religion . . . discussing some of the most difficult aspects of the theology of the two religions [of Christianity and Islam] and ending with one of the most important essays of the author on Islamic esoterism dealing with the mystery of the spiritual substance of the Prophet.”
—Seyyed Hossein Nasr, The George Washington University, editor of The Essential Frithjof Schuon
“Schuon has a fascinating ability to look at how things are spiritually relevant to us here and now. . . . The universality of [his] perspective at the level of ideas is matched by a remarkable breadth of applications. Thus it is not surprising that his books are reviewed and appreciated by a wide range of serious readers. . . . In the Face of the Absolute is prime Schuon. His knowledge of Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, is holy.”
—The Reader’s Review
“Once again Frithjof Schuon treats of the nature and necessity of the religions as well as the limits and apparent contradictions of their exoteric aspects. The present work, however, is not simply a restatement of the doctrine already given in his earlier books, but a fresh presentation bringing to light new clarities, and on occasion, new insights that take one’s breath away. One might add that the whole is suffused as it were with a sheer contemplative joy that gently transfers itself to the reader, and a serene beauty that pacifies and liberates. . . . As has sometimes been pointed out, the writings of Frithjof Schuon have no peer. The position they occupy is central, reflecting the centrality of the Intellect itself.”
—Wolfgang Smith, author of Cosmos and Transcendence
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Editor’s Preface
Foreword
I. General Doctrine
The Decisive Intuition
The Ambiguity of Exoterism
The Two Problems
The Notion of Eternity
II. Christianity
The Complexity of Dogmatism
Christian Divergences
The Seat of Wisdom
III. Islam
Islam and Consciousness of the Absolute
Observations on Dialectical Antinomianism
Diversity of Paths
Transcendence and Immanence in the Spiritual Economy of Islam
The Question of Perspectives in Muslim Spirituality
The Mystery of the Prophetic Substance
Appendix
Selections from Letters and Other Previously Unpublished Writings
Editor’s Notes
Glossary of Foreign Terms and Phrases
Index
Biographical Notes
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