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The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion
In the classic text The Sacred and the Profane, famed historian of religion Mircea Eliade observes that even moderns who proclaim themselves residents of a completely profane world are still unconsciously nourished by the memory of the sacred. Eliade traces manifestations of the sacred from primitive to modern times in terms of space, time, nature, and the cosmos. In doing so he shows how the total human experience of the religious man compares with that of the nonreligious.
This book of great originality and scholarship serves as an excellent introduction to the history of religion, but its perspective also encompasses philosophical anthropology, phenomenology, and psychology. It will appeal to anyone seeking to discover the potential dimensions of human existence.
This book of great originality and scholarship serves as an excellent introduction to the history of religion, but its perspective also encompasses philosophical anthropology, phenomenology, and psychology. It will appeal to anyone seeking to discover the potential dimensions of human existence.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1957
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About the author
Mircea Eliade
535 books2,650 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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June 6, 2014
This Ontological Thirst
More a survey of sacred practices than an insightful deconstruction, Eliade’s work gets repetitive beyond a point as it keeps on multiplying examples, never coming to conclusions that go past a premise that is interesting but is also a truism, by construction.
Eliade’s primary objective is to define the fundamental opposition between sacred and profane. This is done by showcasing the very perception of human mind towards the sacred and by categorizing the human mind/society into the ‘Sacred Man / Archaic Man’ & the 'Profane Man / Modern Man’. The Sacred Man is defined as one who seeks, creates and needs the sacred space (and the meaning invested thus into his own life and surroundings) to exist, while the Profane Man does not. No real explanation is provided as to why the Modern or Profane man is able to transcend this thirst for the Sacred. That is to me the biggest oversight in the book.
Besides, the ontological thirst of the human mind is itself a profound mystery and any meaningful exploration should incorporate that into the question instead of conveniently placing that into the answer to a simpler question.
The other major problem with this approach of distinguishing the sacred and profane is that ‘sacred’ can now be only defined as the ‘opposite of profane’. And since the profane is defined as everyday experience, the sacred has to be defined as something that is invented, or ‘manifested’ by the human mind that seeks to create meaning out of the everyday existence.
This definition means that any ‘manifestation’ of meaning will be imbued with the sacred. And by designating the act of manifestation as the ‘hierophany’, tt is incapable of signifying anything more than its etymological content, i.e., that ‘something sacred shows itself to us.' This makes the whole argument of what is sacred too circular to be of much use in a deeper exploration of the significance of the religious quest into understanding human nature itself.
As Eliade is forced to admit in the end, this makes the book primarily a historical survey and the premises of the survey does not allow it to be anything more. For beyond it “begins the realm of problems proper to the philosopher, the psychologist, and even the theologian.”
December 11, 2012
The atheist is probably right, but homo religiosus has all the fun. Me, I find indulging my agnosticism - by way of a deep interest in the history and philosophy of religion - more interesting that being an angry anti-theist. In that pursuit I am indebted to historians, philosophers, psychologists, and theologians of the 20th century. Useful guides in this territory have included Tillich, Otto, James, Jung, Campbell, and several times now, Eliade.
“The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion” is the most accessible of the several books by Mircea Eliade that I've read. “History of Religious Ideas, Volume 1: From the Stone Age to the Eleusinian Mysteries,” was pretty dense. “Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy” was a bit of a slog. Were you to read only one book by Eliade “The Sacred and the Profane” is the one I'd recommend, at least until I've read more of him.
Unlike the Angries who think religion should be simply and finally dispensed by modern societies, Eliade (and the others) explain that some sort of religion is all but inevitable. The religious impulse is hard-wired into how we perceive the world and interact with each other. We've probably had religion for as long as we've had speech, music, and art; it may spring from same nexus. What humanity has done with - and proposes to do with - that drive is as significant today as it was 2,000 or 20,000 years ago. Religion is not going away, if anything the most dangerous sorts of it are resurgent. Understanding religion and sort of certainty that leads to life-changing (or life-ending) dogma, doctrine, and action is more important than ever.
If the study of religion is your thing you've probably already read The Sacred and the Profane, but if you haven't, you should.
“The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion” is the most accessible of the several books by Mircea Eliade that I've read. “History of Religious Ideas, Volume 1: From the Stone Age to the Eleusinian Mysteries,” was pretty dense. “Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy” was a bit of a slog. Were you to read only one book by Eliade “The Sacred and the Profane” is the one I'd recommend, at least until I've read more of him.
Unlike the Angries who think religion should be simply and finally dispensed by modern societies, Eliade (and the others) explain that some sort of religion is all but inevitable. The religious impulse is hard-wired into how we perceive the world and interact with each other. We've probably had religion for as long as we've had speech, music, and art; it may spring from same nexus. What humanity has done with - and proposes to do with - that drive is as significant today as it was 2,000 or 20,000 years ago. Religion is not going away, if anything the most dangerous sorts of it are resurgent. Understanding religion and sort of certainty that leads to life-changing (or life-ending) dogma, doctrine, and action is more important than ever.
If the study of religion is your thing you've probably already read The Sacred and the Profane, but if you haven't, you should.
May 23, 2015
Eliade was frequently assigned for seminary classes. As a consequence I came to perceive him as redundant, each book repeating many of the points made by others previously read. This book is a bit different in that he consciously works off Otto's Idea of the Holy, a book I'd read in college. What struck me as original at the time was Eliade's treatment of the axis mundi, whereby all is oriented.
Eliade's personal history was unknown to me at the time of reading his books. Since then, thanks to an article in The New York Review of Books, I've learned of his support for the Iron Guard, the Rumanian fascist movement, during his youth in the thirties, and his post-war affiliations with the right-wing leaderships of Portugal and Spain. If I were to read him again I would be sensitive to these political associations and would seek to understand how, if it all, they influenced his treatment of religion.
Eliade's personal history was unknown to me at the time of reading his books. Since then, thanks to an article in The New York Review of Books, I've learned of his support for the Iron Guard, the Rumanian fascist movement, during his youth in the thirties, and his post-war affiliations with the right-wing leaderships of Portugal and Spain. If I were to read him again I would be sensitive to these political associations and would seek to understand how, if it all, they influenced his treatment of religion.
September 1, 2024
Religion is a point of contention for many and may lack a foundation in the precise world of science. Eliade is a savant of religion/philosophy. And the relationship of the most substantive themes does honor Rabbi Soloveitchik. To imitate and live as the Gods is of merit---yet if one is without clear vision such can be the path to depravity/sickness.
In The Sacred and the Profane, similarities to “Halakhic Man” by Rabbi Soloveitchik are uncanny. Contrasting the “homo-religiosus” to “halakhic man” who---endures life based on the mathematical order found in nature. Akin to this or that is a frame, yet science may offer a numinous paradigm that protects, nurtures and cultivates growth in exact accord.
“A purely rational man is an abstraction; he is never found in real life. Every human being is made up at once of his conscious activity and his irrational experiences.”
---Mircea Eliade
To be like a God, without regard to our mortality may catalyze a path to demise (for the human). To the divine, such actions may be the cause of laughter at the expense of the lower intellectually endowed soul. Praying “deliver us from evil” yet realize it’s the divine leading us to endangerment, one perhaps should be cautious. “Cave deorum.”
In The Sacred and the Profane, similarities to “Halakhic Man” by Rabbi Soloveitchik are uncanny. Contrasting the “homo-religiosus” to “halakhic man” who---endures life based on the mathematical order found in nature. Akin to this or that is a frame, yet science may offer a numinous paradigm that protects, nurtures and cultivates growth in exact accord.
“A purely rational man is an abstraction; he is never found in real life. Every human being is made up at once of his conscious activity and his irrational experiences.”
---Mircea Eliade
To be like a God, without regard to our mortality may catalyze a path to demise (for the human). To the divine, such actions may be the cause of laughter at the expense of the lower intellectually endowed soul. Praying “deliver us from evil” yet realize it’s the divine leading us to endangerment, one perhaps should be cautious. “Cave deorum.”
August 1, 2009
Every new initiate to any religion eventually finds themselves at a point when they're no longer satisfied by "Because God said so!" as the only answer to every question they ask. This book was recommended to me at a point when I was struggling to advance past the neophyte stage in my faith. It was incredibly frustrating that all the books I could find regarding the subject were written for absolute beginners, and I latched onto this book the way a drowning person would latch onto a lifesaver.
Despite the fact that this book was not written specifically for my religion, it still managed to clarify everything from why I was religious, to how to be religious. Every lesson and point made was relevant to my own questions. I learned far more about myself and my faith from this one book than any ten of the beginner's books I'd read so far.
Despite the fact that this book was not written specifically for my religion, it still managed to clarify everything from why I was religious, to how to be religious. Every lesson and point made was relevant to my own questions. I learned far more about myself and my faith from this one book than any ten of the beginner's books I'd read so far.
April 11, 2019
“O scurtă introducere într-un subiect extrem de bogat”își numea Eliade cartea, ei, cam așa este. Dar, am rămas cu destulă informație după citirea ei. Dacă vreți să știți câte ceva despre cum omul modern doar pretinde că și-a desacralizat lumea, că în el nu mai există un cult al religiilor și că este pe deplin independent de alte forțe, sau despre triburi, obiceiuri străvechi orientale și occidentale, asta e cartea.
August 26, 2024
Un piccolo saggio (135 pagine) ma di estrema suggestione: Il sacro e il profano è un'introduzione alla fenomenologia delle religioni (o ierofania) e al contempo al pensiero di Mircea Eliade, tra i più importanti storici delle religioni del '900. Il saggio è incentrato sul delineare quei valori propri e comuni a tutte le società sacre (le società arcaiche che hanno vissuto o vivono ancora in un mondo totalmente sacralizzato), e sul tracciare un ideale itinerario di sviluppo delle religioni ricercando processi di evoluzione comuni a tutte le esperienze religiose.
Nel primo intento l'opera è riuscitissima, nonostante la brevità e la conseguente mancanza di un alto numero di esempi: in un universo sacralizzato, quale quello delle società arcaiche, il tutto diviene simbolo della creazione e della potenza divina. Compito dell'uomo diventa dunque comprendere il simbolo e la conseguente presenza degli dei (o del dio), e vivere in questa presenza divinizzandosi egli stesso, obbedendo alla volontà divina ed imitando il comportamento dettato dagli dei. La perdita del simbolo (e particolarmente del suo valore religioso) detta il passaggio da una società sacra a una società profana, quale quella corrente. In effetti, mi è sembrato che l'intero pensiero di Eliade sia intriso di una possente nostalgia: sia la nostalgia dell'uomo moderno per la scomparsa del sacro, sia nelle culture arcaiche (e sacre) per la scomparsa degli dei.
Nel secondo intento l'opera è sicuramente meno riuscita, ma sono fiducioso che sia soltanto a causa della mancanza di spazio in un'opera che si presenta soltanto come introduttiva.
Nel primo intento l'opera è riuscitissima, nonostante la brevità e la conseguente mancanza di un alto numero di esempi: in un universo sacralizzato, quale quello delle società arcaiche, il tutto diviene simbolo della creazione e della potenza divina. Compito dell'uomo diventa dunque comprendere il simbolo e la conseguente presenza degli dei (o del dio), e vivere in questa presenza divinizzandosi egli stesso, obbedendo alla volontà divina ed imitando il comportamento dettato dagli dei. La perdita del simbolo (e particolarmente del suo valore religioso) detta il passaggio da una società sacra a una società profana, quale quella corrente. In effetti, mi è sembrato che l'intero pensiero di Eliade sia intriso di una possente nostalgia: sia la nostalgia dell'uomo moderno per la scomparsa del sacro, sia nelle culture arcaiche (e sacre) per la scomparsa degli dei.
Nel secondo intento l'opera è sicuramente meno riuscita, ma sono fiducioso che sia soltanto a causa della mancanza di spazio in un'opera che si presenta soltanto come introduttiva.
January 6, 2017
Un très bon livre d'introduction à l'Histoire des religions qui a aussi fait un gros ménage dans ma tête...
May 26, 2021
Дуже цікаві ідеї - про те, що людина релігійна (homo religious) бачила світ зовсім по іншому, аніж ми, сучасні люди західної цивілізації. Що для неї фактично існував інший світ - сакральний простір, насичений символами, де все мало свій інший, символічний зміст. І цей світ для неї був більш реальний, аніж фактично існуючий матеріальний світ, який був лише хаосом і беззмістовною метушнею. І що для цієї людини її житло - у сенсі і як поселення, і як окрема її хата - відтворювали у собі цілий світ, бо були створені по тому ж образу, і при їх побудові люди так само ритуально відтворювали дії багів, які вперше створювали світ, і це було реально, і це було важливо. І ще тут вводиться концепт ієрофанії - проявлення священного.
Також розглядається дуже багато цікавих тем, таких як циклічний час дохристиянських суспільств - можливість повернення під час свят у той найперший час, коли боги створювали світ і стати їхнім сучасником; проживання міфів, а не оповідання їх; ідея про матір земну і про матір-Землю; значення ініціації.
Загалом, цей текст, хоч і досить невеликий, але надзвичайно цікавий.
Також розглядається дуже багато цікавих тем, таких як циклічний час дохристиянських суспільств - можливість повернення під час свят у той найперший час, коли боги створювали світ і стати їхнім сучасником; проживання міфів, а не оповідання їх; ідея про матір земну і про матір-Землю; значення ініціації.
Загалом, цей текст, хоч і досить невеликий, але надзвичайно цікавий.
February 25, 2024
everything is sacred, symbolic, mythic, cyclical... some of the things in this book feel obvious but the interesting part is realizing why they feel obvious despite our supposed secular divorce from the archaic spiritualism
January 27, 2020
"Omul nu va deveni el însuși decât în clipa în care va fi în întregime demistificat, si nu va fi cu adevărat liber decât după ce–l va fi ucis pe ultimul zeu."
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September 28, 2022Knjiga Sveto i profano je neka vrsta uvodnog vodiča kroz svet religije na opštem nivou. Elijade povezuje značenje sakralnog u prostoru, vremenu i prirodi kroz različite kulture i civilizacije. Poklapanja između različitih verovanja, religija, kultova na udaljenim meridijanima dovodi u vezu sa kosmogonijskim mitom i kroz njega vrši objašnjenja mnogih fenomena vezanih za ovu tematiku.
Elijade kroz pojmove sakralizacije, imago mundi, axis mundi povlači analogije i stvara asocijacije između verskih praksi širom planete. Preko njih objašnjava simboliku hramova, svetih planina, drveća ili drugih delova prirode koje dobijaju sakralni karakter zbog kosmičkog poretka reflektovanog u njima. Ono što sve njih veže je mit o stvaranju. Kosmogonijski narativ se odražava svuda: pri posvećivanju, lečenju, pravljenju naselja, useljavanju u kuću... Hram je primer imago mundi i sadrži poseban značaj za religioznog čoveka. On reflektuje sliku sveta na relativno malom prostoru. Axis mundi je vezan za centar sveta, spajajući nebo i zemlju, oličen često u stubu ili planini... Elijade koristi ono što se najviše pojavljuje u religioznoj simbolici i pokušava da objasni značaj drveća, obreda inicijacije, praznika, prirodnih elemenata vode, zemlje itd.
Ova knjiga je neka vrsta kratkog uvida i uvoda, u preširoku tematiku, što i priznaje sam autor na više mesta. Ono što upada u oči je repetitivna simbolika, ta ponavljanja kao zajednički imenilac za sve interpretacije.
Elijade kroz pojmove sakralizacije, imago mundi, axis mundi povlači analogije i stvara asocijacije između verskih praksi širom planete. Preko njih objašnjava simboliku hramova, svetih planina, drveća ili drugih delova prirode koje dobijaju sakralni karakter zbog kosmičkog poretka reflektovanog u njima. Ono što sve njih veže je mit o stvaranju. Kosmogonijski narativ se odražava svuda: pri posvećivanju, lečenju, pravljenju naselja, useljavanju u kuću... Hram je primer imago mundi i sadrži poseban značaj za religioznog čoveka. On reflektuje sliku sveta na relativno malom prostoru. Axis mundi je vezan za centar sveta, spajajući nebo i zemlju, oličen često u stubu ili planini... Elijade koristi ono što se najviše pojavljuje u religioznoj simbolici i pokušava da objasni značaj drveća, obreda inicijacije, praznika, prirodnih elemenata vode, zemlje itd.
Ova knjiga je neka vrsta kratkog uvida i uvoda, u preširoku tematiku, što i priznaje sam autor na više mesta. Ono što upada u oči je repetitivna simbolika, ta ponavljanja kao zajednički imenilac za sve interpretacije.
February 9, 2013
A great work on comparative religion. Eliade is a master - knowledgable of all traditions, and able to collate and analyze them, yet not in a dry, rational way. The chief thesis here is that traditional man understood the entire cosmos, as well as time, as sacred. Modern man, due to materialism and naturalism, has rejected this aspect and thus lost his soul. Esotericists and liturgists will have to read this.
February 6, 2017
Một cuốn sách dung dị nhưng không dễ đọc. Tôi đã phải bỏ dở trong lần thử đầu tiên để rồi ở lần thứ hai thấy mọi sự dễ dàng, trôi chảy. Rõ ràng đây là một tài liệu được viết với mục đích ban đầu là để giảng dạy như lời giới thiệu. Nếu chỉ dùng một câu để mô tả nội dung thì đây là cuốn sách về đời sống tôn giáo của loài người (dòng tựa phụ ngay bìa 1: Bản chất của tôn giáo có phần quá khoa trương!). Sách hay, dịch tốt và đáng đọc.
August 29, 2022
Είχε αρκετά ενδιαφέρον, απλά επειδή γράφτηκε τη δεκαετία τ1950 Αρκετά απ’ όλα αυτά είναι πια παρωχημένο. Και σε κάποια πράγματα είναι ανενημέρωτος.
March 10, 2025
Trochę nie wiem jak to ocenić, bo raczkuję w temacie. Ale na ten moment wydaje mi się, że to dobra książka na start, zasypuje czytelnika przykładami przedstawianych konceptów, co ułatwia zrozumienie. Język troszkę toporny, ale bez przesady
June 26, 2015
المقــــدس والمدنــــــس
مرســـــــيا إليـــــــاد
من منا لم يفكر يوما في ماجعل المقدس مقدسا وماجعل المدنس مدنسا! هنا هذا المؤرخ الغريب يبحث جيدا في حدود المقدس والمدنس(الدنيوي)
مرسيا إلياد
مؤرخ روماني للأديان، يبحث جيدا في نشأة الأديان ونشأة الفكر المتدين والأساطير وسلوك الانسان اللامتدين أيضا يعتقد أن الهدف الكلي لمؤرخ الديان هو أن يفهم وأن يوضح للغير سلوك الانسان المتدين وعالمه العقلي
هنا في هذا الكتاب يقدم لك إلياد تصورا عن نشأة المقدس وماجعل من المقدس مقدسا وأثر الطبيعة على التدين ونشأة بعض الأساطير وأثر الوجود البشري على فكرة القداسة
لدى إلياد العديد من الأفكار والكثير الكثير من البحوث والمعلومات لذا فهو يمطرك بأفكاره في محاولة منه لفهم كيف يفكر الإنسان المتدين مع انه يعي جيدا أنه لايمكن بأي طريقة اختراق العالم العقلي للإنسان المتدين لكنه يحاول ذلك معتمدا مبدأ أنه لا توجد وسيلة لفهم عالم عقلي غريب سوى بالاقامة ضمنه
يقول لك إلياد هاهنا أن ما يبعث الإنسان على ابتكار المقدس هو إن الانسان يرغب في ايجاد الحضور الايجابي للضالة ويرغب كذلك في العيش في العالم
الطاهر والقوي كما خرج من تحت يدي الخالق، فما فكرة المقدس لدى الإنسان إلا محاولة للاتصال بالآلهة التي جعلت الكون مركزا لنا
الالهة تظهر نفسها للبشر عبر الحياة الكونية.. حياة الكون نفسها دليل القداسة لنها خلقت من قبل الآلهة
الحياة عند الانسان البدائي مقدسة فلكل حركات الانسان مدلول ديني
مع أن إلياد يدرك جيدا أن هذه الكتاب مدخل عاجل لموضوع واسع إلا أنك ستخرج
بكمية من المباديء والمعلومات عن المقدس ستساعدك على فهم أوسع لطبيعة الإنسان منذ القدم
:هنا ستعرف أن
إن غياب الديانات لا يقتضي ابدا غياب التدين *
الانسان المتدين وجوده منفتح على العالم يقابل الطبيعة *
المقدس في النهاية هو نوع من الارتباط بالكون بالمكان وبالطبيعة أو بالزمان والرغبة في إعادة تحيينه *
المرور إلى الروحانية يترجم بالنسبة للمجتمعات القديمة برمزية الموت * وبولادة جديدة
إن سر التجديد الدوري للكون هو الذي أسس الأهمية الدينية للربيع *
في النهاية أنت كإنسان يعي جيدا معنى المقدس لكنه لا يستطيع تحديد حدوده جيدا متى يبدأ وأين ينتهي ما عليك سوى أن تدرك المقدس في حياة شخص يعني أنه يرى الأشياء بطريقة مختلفة تماما عما تراه أنت فأرجوك احترمه وتقبل مقدسه ولا تنتهكه مهما كان دنيويا أو مدنسا بالنسبة لك وتذكر دائما أن الدين يورد التكامل
في النهاية إن الفصل الأخير للكتاب ورؤية الكاتب للإنسان الحديث اللامتدين كان عقلانيا ورائعا
أود أن أورد رابط هذا المقال لمقاربة أوسع لمفهوم المقدس والمدنس
https://plus.google.com/1092028793312...
2015، 24 يونيو
April 18, 2019
If my history is right, i believe it was Durkheim who first established the sacred/profane dichotomy. Eliade puts it to good use. And though it is unclear to me at present which of the 4 primary interpretations of Husserl Eliade adopts, his analysis of a religious intentionally seems to me altogether accurate. Eliade's story of the phenomenologically universal makeup of people's sacred/profane categories, and their manifestations in sentimentality does not make an appearance here--so far as i can remember anyway (it's been a year since i touched the book). But what does arise here is an accurate portrayal of those sentiments, and perhaps by implication, the intentional (and come to think of it, idiolectic) makeup causing them. The illud tempus or en illo tempor, axis mundi, Sacred and Profane time/space tetra-distinction have to this day influenced my thoughts about Christianity and other religions--not to mention atheism and agnosticism. They have caused in me the search for what might otherwise also be termed universal instantiations of human sentimentality--finding their source, likewise, in the phenomenological sphere. Hope, the desire to know truth, and the very inclination to talk about what one takes to be true (to name a few) are all, in my view, similar phenomenon to the type Eliade has in mind. If i am right about them as universal, and i think i am, i have Eliade to thank for it. Great book. If there were such a thing as 6 stars, i'd give it to him.
January 12, 2014
Gondolatébresztő és inspiráló olvasmány, mint általában az összes Eliade tanulmány. Megéri elolvasni. A történettudományban eltöltött kis idő után azonban egyfajta egészséges szkepszis alakul ki az emberben az összehasonlító vallási stúdiumokkal szemben. Ez akár a behaviorizmus versus kulturális meghatározottság szembeállításának végletéig is vezethetne bennünket, noha erre semmi szükség nincsen: mindössze annak fel- és elismeréséről van szó, hogy az egyes kulturális képződmények látszólagos hasonlósága csak nagyon szigorú történeti kritériumok teljesülése mellett fogadható el ontológiai egyenértékűségnek. Persze ez legyen az olvasó feladata és problémája, legyen az ő felelőssége, hogy miként és mire veszi igénybe az összehasonlító vallástörténet eredményeit. Eliade írása - hangsúlyozottan csupán bevezetésnek szánva egy összetett és bonyolult kérdéskörbe - ezenkívül nyíltan elfogult a homo religiosus, azaz a vallásos ember világlátása javára a profán emberével szemben. Ez kissé zavaró, éppúgy, mint a kifejtés rendkívül redundáns stílusa. Az állandóan visszatérő, dogmatikusan agyonszajkózott tételmondatok Eliade mondandóját erősen "szájbarágóssá" teszik, ami egyfelől hasznos, hiszen szinte belevésődik az olvasó agyába, másfelől egyesek számára kifejezetten bosszantó is lehet. Remélem, senkit nem tévesztettem meg a kritikus megjegyzésekkel: ez egy remek könyv és nagy olvasmányélmény.
February 18, 2012
I'm learning lots of new words! This very scholarly work is a look into the archetypal symbols that differentiate the sacred and the profane- from mythology to architecture, even the way we experience time. But since, as Eliade purports, archetypes cannot be changed, only added upon, it's very helpful to this writer to have a more conscious understanding of what symbols I invoke.
Lots of interesting thoughts after reading this- is there one way to approach God of are the symbols all pointing in the same direction? Or has one truth been looked at from many angles, or has one truth been broken in to many pieces, most religions have pieces of the truth?
My take- the phenomena of cross-cultural similarities in religious symbolism result from a combination of different vantage points/cultural interpretations of God and his personality, and the tendency of Man to want to do things his own way, misunderstanding, losing the full meaning, reinventing, revising. Also, to many, religion is a way to wield power (Constantine, anybody? I won't risk angry comments by citing any more recent examples!) Good book to get me thinking all that!
Lots of interesting thoughts after reading this- is there one way to approach God of are the symbols all pointing in the same direction? Or has one truth been looked at from many angles, or has one truth been broken in to many pieces, most religions have pieces of the truth?
My take- the phenomena of cross-cultural similarities in religious symbolism result from a combination of different vantage points/cultural interpretations of God and his personality, and the tendency of Man to want to do things his own way, misunderstanding, losing the full meaning, reinventing, revising. Also, to many, religion is a way to wield power (Constantine, anybody? I won't risk angry comments by citing any more recent examples!) Good book to get me thinking all that!
November 24, 2008
Sort of boring--
I don't know, I was fascinated by the distinction between the sacred and the profane. Although lucidly written, the book didn't engage me throughout. He has interesting things to say and makes interesting comments about the religious man and the modern man, but most of his arguments were buried under anthropological examples. Granted, it is an anthropological study on the phenomenology of the religious man. It might be that the time was not right for me to read it. My interest level stayed rather (surprisingly) low, and I had to skip many passages to get through the pages without falling asleep. And I did fall asleep numerous times and ended up putting the book down.
Overall, there were some interesting ideas, but it was rather dull = 2 (it was ok)
I don't know, I was fascinated by the distinction between the sacred and the profane. Although lucidly written, the book didn't engage me throughout. He has interesting things to say and makes interesting comments about the religious man and the modern man, but most of his arguments were buried under anthropological examples. Granted, it is an anthropological study on the phenomenology of the religious man. It might be that the time was not right for me to read it. My interest level stayed rather (surprisingly) low, and I had to skip many passages to get through the pages without falling asleep. And I did fall asleep numerous times and ended up putting the book down.
Overall, there were some interesting ideas, but it was rather dull = 2 (it was ok)
March 15, 2021
My goodness, is Mr. Trask a phenomenal translator! For such a verbose, repetitive, and dense book, Mr. Trask deciphered the complicated philosophies in a smooth and coherent way. That being said, there were some great ideas within; the author’s analyses of myth and sacred symbolism balanced anthropology with religion and merged psychology in as well. Be forewarned, however, this was not an easy read and I found myself making all kinds of interesting faces while trying to follow the author’s train of thought. Overall, I broadened my vocabulary here but wandered aimlessly otherwise.
February 3, 2023
Sacrul și profanul, omul religios și cel areligios, Cerul și Pământul, toate aceste elemente puse în antiteză ne oferă o imagine a lumii în care trăim. O carte ce ne prezintă imaginea ființei umane, dorința lui de a crede în ceva superior și tendința lui de cunoaște și de a dobândi cât mai multe trăiri spirituale. Cele două principii ne ajută să înțelegem mai bine locul în care ne regăsim și dorim să trăim. Scrisă într-o manieră obiectivă, Eliade surprinde nostalgia omului și interesul pe care acesta îl prezintă pentru tradiție, mit, credință. Până și omul areligios crede în ceva anume.
February 18, 2016
Cartea oferă o viziune detaliată a rupturii dintre sacru și profan. Explică modul în care homo religiosus încearcă să se reîntoarcă la timpul primordial prin realizarea unor sărbători, menținerea unor tradiții etc, cu exemplele de rigoare și cum retrăiește anual episodul creării lumii de către zei în illo tempore sau ab origine. Este o carte excepțională, facil de parcurs.
Read
April 8, 2023Outstanding work of scholarship!
May 1, 2013
Eliade (1907-1986), a Romanian novelist and historian/philosopher of religion, is one of the world's most celebrated experts on religion and a must read for anyone interested in the topic. Nic describes him as an academic much like his predecessors in that he believes Christianity to be the highest from or religious thought, but who arrived at this conclusion through secular and widespread study rather than a simple Bible-bashing and brainwashing train of thought. He was in a unique position, being directly in the middle of a transition in how academia viewed religion - perhaps even the catalyst for the transition.
"The Sacred and the Profane", originally written in French (as Eliade was completely fluent in 5 languages) in the 1950's is one of his most basic and introductory works for those interested in the study of religion. The book is split into four sections (with a lovely section at the very end providing a chronological survey to the history of religions as a branch of study, much appreciated by historians like myself):
1. Sacred Space and Making the World Sacred:
Eliade begins by defining sacred as the opposite of the profane, generally described using terms which are also used to describe the natural. The reality of the sacred, however, is a world completely different from the world of the "natural", meaning of this world; the sacred manifests itself in unnatural, extraordinary forms - hierophanies. The sacred is considered to be the true reality to religious man and it is this reality, this true existence, which religious man strives to attain. Through hirophanies, the sacred reveals itself through a break in profane space and creates an absolute, fixed point. This point - generally symbolized by a pillar or other object which reaches towards the sky - becomes the central point of communication with the divine. Around this point of sacred access, religious man builds his world using the cosmogony (the initial creation of the world) as a model in order to commemorate and reenact the original, divine transformation from chaos to cosmos. Therefore, through the act of establishment (a village around a sacred center or a sacred alter in the home), religious man chooses to keep order within the cosmos by choosing a sacred location which allows him to be constantly connected to the divine. In simpler terms, "in all traditional cultures, the habitation possesses a sacred aspect by the simple fact that it reflects the world" which was brought out of chaos by the divine. Interestingly, Eliade argues that multiple breaks in space (i.e., multiple habitations of religious people) do not matter because it is a matter of existential space, not geometric, which is most important and that communications with the transcendent can occur wherever a hirophany has made a space sacred.
2. Sacred Time and Myths
For religious man, there are two types of time. One is profane and includes the "ordinary temporal duration" in which regular human acts without religious meaning occur. The other is sacred time, the primordial mythical time which may be made present through ritual. Most simply, "religious participation in a festival implies emerging from ordinary temporal duration and reintegration of the mythical time reactualized by the festival itself." This is able to happen because time as it was during the creation was necessarily sanctified by the presence of the divine. Therefore, by reenacting the creation or any other significant mythical occurrence, modern man can return to the contemporary time of the sacred. New Year celebrations, for example, commemorate the annual renewal of the cosmos during which participants return to the original, sacred time in which the cosmos was created. With each passing into sacred time, religious man becomes renewed and is able to begin life over again in rebirth. Through such renewal, religious man is able to recover and be reminded of the sacred dimension of his existence and fulfill his wish to live close to the ultimate reality, that is, the sacred. "The true sin is forgetting... It falls to the primordial myth to preserve true history, the history of the human condition; it is in the myth that the principles and paradigms for all conduct must be sought and recovered."
3. The Sacredness of Nature and Cosmic Religion
Nature is never only 'natural', but its own living, real, and sacred organism - the divines incorporated the sacred into the natural structure of the world. Therefore, nature is always venerated because it is sacred, not because it is nature. Universal symbolism of the natural - the infinite of the sky, the purifying power of water, the reverence for Mother Earth - is the "common property of mankind" simply because it is impossible to separate the natural and the sacred in any human society. Eliade goes into extreme detail describing the different ways each natural phenomenon has been symbolized by various cultures, but the gist of it is common sense for any educated person, at least - the cycles of life are revered for their cosmic renewal, Mother Earth is venerated as the life giver, the sky is venerated as the infinite and unreachable divine, and the moon and sun are rival powers representing the cosmos and chaos. Essentially, everything and anything natural is sacred because of its life giving properties and its inexplicable nature. It is sacred because it exists, which brings us to...
4. Human Existence and Sanctified Life
Religious man knows that the world exists because it was divinely created and its existence in and of itself means something - mankind, therefore, is sacred as is the entire cosmos. Mankind lives within the world as the world lives within him, and mankind lives in the profane as he lives in the sacred - all planes intersect and fold into each other to create one, sacred existence. The sacred elements and cycles that can be found in nature are copied by man, such as sexuality, generation-death-regeneration, eating, nesting, etc. Religious man commemorates these acts through various rituals, the most universal of which are the rites of passage. These rites mimic the ordeals of the mythical heroes and guide the souls of dead and living alike. For example, the initiation ordeals of men into proper manhood, of women into proper womanhood, which often include the symbolic death of the profane individual, the child, who is to be reborn into sacred wisdom. "By introducing him to the sacred, it obliges him to assume the responsibility that goes with being a man." Such wisdom pulls communities together while reminding man of their divine origins, and, with each symbolic death and resurrection, brings religious man closer to the divine.
So, what do I think?
Eliade points out that non-religious man (man whose life has been consciously desacrilized by the modern world) virtually cannot exist in a pure form because man cannot escape his religious ancestral roots by which he came to be. Most of us still ritually celebrate unions and new years', we still separate ourselves into distinct societies which make us impassioned, whether they be recreationaly, politically, or religiously motivated. There are so many innate traits which make up the human condition as a collective species that it really does make it impossible to imagine a purely non-religious life.
Yet for modern man, such as myself, it is easy to see how the religious aspects of everyday life can be washed away and forgotten. I have chosen to settle in my town because of the sacred qualities that it possesses - my town shares the same values that I do and, therefore, has brought me closer to self-awareness and happiness simply by proximity. I do stand in awe of the natural in all of its forms, many times including landscapes and objects which are man made.
If anything, this book provided me with a new lens through which to view the world and the choices that I have made within it, a lens which I thoroughly appreciate. I enjoy being reminded that the human experience is a common experience, both amongst myself and my peers as well as amongst myself and my ancestors. This connection is ultimately why I've chosen to take my future husband's last name as well, for the sake of a tradition which I feel emotionally and providentially tied to. Nothing has made me more irate recently than watching what the norm has become for modern Americans, in particular. I hate television, therefore I seem to have nothing to talk about with people. I refuse to put crap into my body, therefore social situations can be awkward for me if I choose to abstain. Mostly, I am just sick and tired of seeing people waste their lives away while sitting on their asses watching tv and eating fries because, honestly, I'm really surprised that natural selection has let people like that get this far - killing oneself through apathy is the most disgusting quality which possesses modern man and I refuse to align myself with it in any way, shape or form. I appreciate life much more fully when I am living beyond the material, beyond the convenience, and beyond the pointless, apathetic existence which so many have chosen.
My goal in life is simply to live happily while striving to make everyone I touch a little better off for it, and this book will ultimately fill a hole which my worldview lens has been missing for some time - living as religious man, but without the organized religion.
Some Questions I've Been Left With
How will we choose to make our wedding a sacred space for our guests?
Would Mecca be considered the center of the world, the axis mundi, for Muslims?
Eliade briefly argues that Christ was in both profane and sacred time during his life and, separately, that each church sermon counts as a festival-like regression into sacred time. He claims that time began anew for Christians with the birth of Christ and that the incarnation of God as Jesus made historical/profane time sacred, the whole of history a theophany. Then, Eliade decides that he doesn't have time to cover the "new valorizations of time and history" which Christianity brings and that such investigations belong to the history of philosophy. But I truly don't understand how Christianity fits into his model of sacred time at all, let alone into any of his other models, really...
Eliade argues that a sanctified sexual life is essentially a good thing and explains how many peoples have valorized and ritualized sexuality. Yet he doesn't touch on how this fits into early Christian thought that sex for enjoyment is a sin and that sex is something reserved for procreation alone - if sex is a sin, then are Christians capable of sex being a sacred, transhuman experience? Should they be able to?
In describing death and initiation rituals, Eliade states that "the man of primitive societies has sought to conquer death by transforming it into a rite of passage." But if we understand death to be part of the highest mythic order, which Eliade seems to argue in previous passages, then how can we apply the motive of "conquering" death to describe its ritual? To conquer death seems to me to be a profane concept, not something to be ritualized as part of the sacred cycle of life.
Finally, Eliade claims that from the Christian perspective, non-religion can be viewed as a second "fall" of man, but that "in his deepest being, he still retains a memory of it, as, after the first 'fall,' his ancestor retained intelligence enough to enable him to rediscover the traces of God." But did man truly rediscover the traces of God after the initial fall? If Christ was sent to save mankind millennia after the initial fall from grace, then Christ must have been sent because man needed to be saved. Eliade also states that after the second fall of man - the nonreligious - that humanity has fallen even further into the depths, into the realm of forgetting. But if Christ had successfully saved us, then wouldn't completely forgetting about God be impossible?
"The Sacred and the Profane", originally written in French (as Eliade was completely fluent in 5 languages) in the 1950's is one of his most basic and introductory works for those interested in the study of religion. The book is split into four sections (with a lovely section at the very end providing a chronological survey to the history of religions as a branch of study, much appreciated by historians like myself):
1. Sacred Space and Making the World Sacred:
Eliade begins by defining sacred as the opposite of the profane, generally described using terms which are also used to describe the natural. The reality of the sacred, however, is a world completely different from the world of the "natural", meaning of this world; the sacred manifests itself in unnatural, extraordinary forms - hierophanies. The sacred is considered to be the true reality to religious man and it is this reality, this true existence, which religious man strives to attain. Through hirophanies, the sacred reveals itself through a break in profane space and creates an absolute, fixed point. This point - generally symbolized by a pillar or other object which reaches towards the sky - becomes the central point of communication with the divine. Around this point of sacred access, religious man builds his world using the cosmogony (the initial creation of the world) as a model in order to commemorate and reenact the original, divine transformation from chaos to cosmos. Therefore, through the act of establishment (a village around a sacred center or a sacred alter in the home), religious man chooses to keep order within the cosmos by choosing a sacred location which allows him to be constantly connected to the divine. In simpler terms, "in all traditional cultures, the habitation possesses a sacred aspect by the simple fact that it reflects the world" which was brought out of chaos by the divine. Interestingly, Eliade argues that multiple breaks in space (i.e., multiple habitations of religious people) do not matter because it is a matter of existential space, not geometric, which is most important and that communications with the transcendent can occur wherever a hirophany has made a space sacred.
2. Sacred Time and Myths
For religious man, there are two types of time. One is profane and includes the "ordinary temporal duration" in which regular human acts without religious meaning occur. The other is sacred time, the primordial mythical time which may be made present through ritual. Most simply, "religious participation in a festival implies emerging from ordinary temporal duration and reintegration of the mythical time reactualized by the festival itself." This is able to happen because time as it was during the creation was necessarily sanctified by the presence of the divine. Therefore, by reenacting the creation or any other significant mythical occurrence, modern man can return to the contemporary time of the sacred. New Year celebrations, for example, commemorate the annual renewal of the cosmos during which participants return to the original, sacred time in which the cosmos was created. With each passing into sacred time, religious man becomes renewed and is able to begin life over again in rebirth. Through such renewal, religious man is able to recover and be reminded of the sacred dimension of his existence and fulfill his wish to live close to the ultimate reality, that is, the sacred. "The true sin is forgetting... It falls to the primordial myth to preserve true history, the history of the human condition; it is in the myth that the principles and paradigms for all conduct must be sought and recovered."
3. The Sacredness of Nature and Cosmic Religion
Nature is never only 'natural', but its own living, real, and sacred organism - the divines incorporated the sacred into the natural structure of the world. Therefore, nature is always venerated because it is sacred, not because it is nature. Universal symbolism of the natural - the infinite of the sky, the purifying power of water, the reverence for Mother Earth - is the "common property of mankind" simply because it is impossible to separate the natural and the sacred in any human society. Eliade goes into extreme detail describing the different ways each natural phenomenon has been symbolized by various cultures, but the gist of it is common sense for any educated person, at least - the cycles of life are revered for their cosmic renewal, Mother Earth is venerated as the life giver, the sky is venerated as the infinite and unreachable divine, and the moon and sun are rival powers representing the cosmos and chaos. Essentially, everything and anything natural is sacred because of its life giving properties and its inexplicable nature. It is sacred because it exists, which brings us to...
4. Human Existence and Sanctified Life
Religious man knows that the world exists because it was divinely created and its existence in and of itself means something - mankind, therefore, is sacred as is the entire cosmos. Mankind lives within the world as the world lives within him, and mankind lives in the profane as he lives in the sacred - all planes intersect and fold into each other to create one, sacred existence. The sacred elements and cycles that can be found in nature are copied by man, such as sexuality, generation-death-regeneration, eating, nesting, etc. Religious man commemorates these acts through various rituals, the most universal of which are the rites of passage. These rites mimic the ordeals of the mythical heroes and guide the souls of dead and living alike. For example, the initiation ordeals of men into proper manhood, of women into proper womanhood, which often include the symbolic death of the profane individual, the child, who is to be reborn into sacred wisdom. "By introducing him to the sacred, it obliges him to assume the responsibility that goes with being a man." Such wisdom pulls communities together while reminding man of their divine origins, and, with each symbolic death and resurrection, brings religious man closer to the divine.
So, what do I think?
Eliade points out that non-religious man (man whose life has been consciously desacrilized by the modern world) virtually cannot exist in a pure form because man cannot escape his religious ancestral roots by which he came to be. Most of us still ritually celebrate unions and new years', we still separate ourselves into distinct societies which make us impassioned, whether they be recreationaly, politically, or religiously motivated. There are so many innate traits which make up the human condition as a collective species that it really does make it impossible to imagine a purely non-religious life.
Yet for modern man, such as myself, it is easy to see how the religious aspects of everyday life can be washed away and forgotten. I have chosen to settle in my town because of the sacred qualities that it possesses - my town shares the same values that I do and, therefore, has brought me closer to self-awareness and happiness simply by proximity. I do stand in awe of the natural in all of its forms, many times including landscapes and objects which are man made.
If anything, this book provided me with a new lens through which to view the world and the choices that I have made within it, a lens which I thoroughly appreciate. I enjoy being reminded that the human experience is a common experience, both amongst myself and my peers as well as amongst myself and my ancestors. This connection is ultimately why I've chosen to take my future husband's last name as well, for the sake of a tradition which I feel emotionally and providentially tied to. Nothing has made me more irate recently than watching what the norm has become for modern Americans, in particular. I hate television, therefore I seem to have nothing to talk about with people. I refuse to put crap into my body, therefore social situations can be awkward for me if I choose to abstain. Mostly, I am just sick and tired of seeing people waste their lives away while sitting on their asses watching tv and eating fries because, honestly, I'm really surprised that natural selection has let people like that get this far - killing oneself through apathy is the most disgusting quality which possesses modern man and I refuse to align myself with it in any way, shape or form. I appreciate life much more fully when I am living beyond the material, beyond the convenience, and beyond the pointless, apathetic existence which so many have chosen.
My goal in life is simply to live happily while striving to make everyone I touch a little better off for it, and this book will ultimately fill a hole which my worldview lens has been missing for some time - living as religious man, but without the organized religion.
Some Questions I've Been Left With
How will we choose to make our wedding a sacred space for our guests?
Would Mecca be considered the center of the world, the axis mundi, for Muslims?
Eliade briefly argues that Christ was in both profane and sacred time during his life and, separately, that each church sermon counts as a festival-like regression into sacred time. He claims that time began anew for Christians with the birth of Christ and that the incarnation of God as Jesus made historical/profane time sacred, the whole of history a theophany. Then, Eliade decides that he doesn't have time to cover the "new valorizations of time and history" which Christianity brings and that such investigations belong to the history of philosophy. But I truly don't understand how Christianity fits into his model of sacred time at all, let alone into any of his other models, really...
Eliade argues that a sanctified sexual life is essentially a good thing and explains how many peoples have valorized and ritualized sexuality. Yet he doesn't touch on how this fits into early Christian thought that sex for enjoyment is a sin and that sex is something reserved for procreation alone - if sex is a sin, then are Christians capable of sex being a sacred, transhuman experience? Should they be able to?
In describing death and initiation rituals, Eliade states that "the man of primitive societies has sought to conquer death by transforming it into a rite of passage." But if we understand death to be part of the highest mythic order, which Eliade seems to argue in previous passages, then how can we apply the motive of "conquering" death to describe its ritual? To conquer death seems to me to be a profane concept, not something to be ritualized as part of the sacred cycle of life.
Finally, Eliade claims that from the Christian perspective, non-religion can be viewed as a second "fall" of man, but that "in his deepest being, he still retains a memory of it, as, after the first 'fall,' his ancestor retained intelligence enough to enable him to rediscover the traces of God." But did man truly rediscover the traces of God after the initial fall? If Christ was sent to save mankind millennia after the initial fall from grace, then Christ must have been sent because man needed to be saved. Eliade also states that after the second fall of man - the nonreligious - that humanity has fallen even further into the depths, into the realm of forgetting. But if Christ had successfully saved us, then wouldn't completely forgetting about God be impossible?
Read
February 20, 2025Some of my favorite quotes:
“ it must be added at once that’s such a profane existence is never found in the pure state. To whatever degree he (man) may have desacralized the world, the man who has made his choice in favor of a profane life, never succeeded and completely doing away with religious behavior.”
“It is for this same reason that cosmogonic time serves as the model for all sacred times; for if sacred time is that in which the gods manifested themselves and created, obviously the most complete divine manifestation and the most gigantic creation is the creation of the world. Consequently, religious man reactualizes the cosmogony not only each time he creates something, but also when he wants to ensure a fortunate reign a new sovereign, or to save threatened crops, or in the case of a war, a sea voyage, and so on.”
“For the religious man, nature always expresses something that transcends it.”
“In discovering the sacredness of life, man let himself be increasingly carried away by his own discovery; he gave himself up to vital hierophanies and turned from the sacrality that transcended his immediate and daily needs.”
“It could be said that the very structure of the cosmos keeps memory of the celestial supreme being alive. It is as if the gods had created the world in such a way that it could not but reflect their existence; for no world is possible without verticality, and that dimension alone is enough to evoke transcendence. Driven from religious life in the strict sense, the celestial sacred remains active through symbolism. A religious symbol conveys its message even if it is no longer consciously understood in every part. For a symbol speaks to the whole human being and not only to the intelligence”
“One point is essential here: both the sacrality of the waters and the structure of aquatic cosmogonies and apocalypses can be completely revealed only through aquatic symbolism, which is the only system capable of integrating all of the articular revelations of innumerable hierophanies.”
“ it must be added at once that’s such a profane existence is never found in the pure state. To whatever degree he (man) may have desacralized the world, the man who has made his choice in favor of a profane life, never succeeded and completely doing away with religious behavior.”
“It is for this same reason that cosmogonic time serves as the model for all sacred times; for if sacred time is that in which the gods manifested themselves and created, obviously the most complete divine manifestation and the most gigantic creation is the creation of the world. Consequently, religious man reactualizes the cosmogony not only each time he creates something, but also when he wants to ensure a fortunate reign a new sovereign, or to save threatened crops, or in the case of a war, a sea voyage, and so on.”
“For the religious man, nature always expresses something that transcends it.”
“In discovering the sacredness of life, man let himself be increasingly carried away by his own discovery; he gave himself up to vital hierophanies and turned from the sacrality that transcended his immediate and daily needs.”
“It could be said that the very structure of the cosmos keeps memory of the celestial supreme being alive. It is as if the gods had created the world in such a way that it could not but reflect their existence; for no world is possible without verticality, and that dimension alone is enough to evoke transcendence. Driven from religious life in the strict sense, the celestial sacred remains active through symbolism. A religious symbol conveys its message even if it is no longer consciously understood in every part. For a symbol speaks to the whole human being and not only to the intelligence”
“One point is essential here: both the sacrality of the waters and the structure of aquatic cosmogonies and apocalypses can be completely revealed only through aquatic symbolism, which is the only system capable of integrating all of the articular revelations of innumerable hierophanies.”
May 22, 2025
concluzia: nu exista asa-zisul ,,profan". cel putin nu in stare pura. e mereu, dar mereu o reminiscenta a sacrului. iar sacrul e un lucru absolut genial. sincer zic. exceptional. si ma bucura gandul ca nu suntem, de fapt, atat de departe de el. desi suntem, in final, atat, dar atat de mici.
,,de pilda, nudismul sau miscarile pentru eliberarea sexuala absoluta se bazeaza pe ideologii in care se pot deslusi urmele ,,nostalgiei paradisului", dorinta de intoarcere la starea edenica de dinaintea caderii, cand nu exista nici pacat si nici ruptura intre placerile carnii si ale constiintei."
,,de pilda, nudismul sau miscarile pentru eliberarea sexuala absoluta se bazeaza pe ideologii in care se pot deslusi urmele ,,nostalgiei paradisului", dorinta de intoarcere la starea edenica de dinaintea caderii, cand nu exista nici pacat si nici ruptura intre placerile carnii si ale constiintei."
October 7, 2022
Újraolvasás vége. Életem első Eliade-kötete volt annak idején. Amilyen kis rövid, zsebkönyv méretű írásocska, pont olyan óriási műveltséganyaggal van megírva. Kétszáz oldalas esszé arról, hogy hogyan gondolkodik a világról a vallásos és a nem vallásos ember. Akármelyik kategóriába tartozol, biztosíthatlak: fog neked is újat mondani. Vagy éppen olyasmit, amit mindig is tudtál, de soha nem gondoltál bele, és éppen ezért soha meg sem fogalmaztad saját magad számára sem.
Részletes írásom a blogon:
https://gyujtogeto-alkoto.blog.hu/202...
Részletes írásom a blogon:
https://gyujtogeto-alkoto.blog.hu/202...
June 10, 2019
Knjiga je kratka, a izdanju koje sam čitao dodat je zamašan predgovor našeg autora na nekih 60ak strana koji dobro predstavlja elijadino delo u globalu, pre svega kritiku naučne zajednice što je vrlo korisno, jer Elijade i nije naučnik,. koliko oživljena figura mudraca koja se iz ponora prošlosti pojavila u zapadnom svetu tokom dvadesetog veka (koju je najavio Niče, a realizovali su pre svega Jung, Hamvaš, Genon).
Po njegovim rečima "Sveto i profano" je pokušaj da sopstvene ideje maksimalno približi širim masama, da u osnovnim crtama predstavi ono što su osnove njegove misli - a to je pre svega potreba da pobegne iz pravolinijskog shvatanja vremena, odnosno istorije i povratka na ciklično, pre-hrišćansko, koje samo po sebi vodi u shvatanje egzistencije kao relativne (uz određene duhovne prakse koje to shvatanje mogu da pojačaju). Kao i većina silnih mudraca koje pomenuh gore i Elijade je dobrano zadojen indijskom advaita vedantom, mada on makar u ovoj knjižici ne stavlja diraktno akcenat na to, koliko pokušava da izokola predstavi potrebno "resetovanje" pogleda na svet modernog čoveka kako bi tek onda mogao prodreti u vedantske spoznaje.
Osnovna kritika jeste njegovo idealizovanje arhaičnog čoveka (arhaični ne u smislu primitivni, koliko izvorni čovek), što je česta pogreška tradicionalista dvadesetog veka (npr. Hamvaš), koje čak i da je sasvim iskreno, ne treba odveć preozbiljno i bukvalno shvatiti, koliko kao preuveličavanje zbog osnovne poruke (kao što ne treba bukvalno čitati mitove o Svetom Savi, Hristu ili Budi), a to je uočena preka potreba za posvećenim životom homo sapiensa, ili kako bi ga upravo Elijade nazvao - homo religiosusa, o povratku svetosti u naš profani svet (u srpskom jeziku je tek tako očigledna istovetnost svetog i sveta i svega, kao što bode oči i para uši teološka podela na svetovni i duhovni... doduše niti engleska srodnost reči holy i whole nije zanemarljiv pokazatelj prastanja koje nam Elijade ocrtava), povrtaka vrhunske uzvišenosti za početak u domove naše, u praznike, u naše delatnosti, a zatim i u ceo kosmos.
Po njegovim rečima "Sveto i profano" je pokušaj da sopstvene ideje maksimalno približi širim masama, da u osnovnim crtama predstavi ono što su osnove njegove misli - a to je pre svega potreba da pobegne iz pravolinijskog shvatanja vremena, odnosno istorije i povratka na ciklično, pre-hrišćansko, koje samo po sebi vodi u shvatanje egzistencije kao relativne (uz određene duhovne prakse koje to shvatanje mogu da pojačaju). Kao i većina silnih mudraca koje pomenuh gore i Elijade je dobrano zadojen indijskom advaita vedantom, mada on makar u ovoj knjižici ne stavlja diraktno akcenat na to, koliko pokušava da izokola predstavi potrebno "resetovanje" pogleda na svet modernog čoveka kako bi tek onda mogao prodreti u vedantske spoznaje.
Osnovna kritika jeste njegovo idealizovanje arhaičnog čoveka (arhaični ne u smislu primitivni, koliko izvorni čovek), što je česta pogreška tradicionalista dvadesetog veka (npr. Hamvaš), koje čak i da je sasvim iskreno, ne treba odveć preozbiljno i bukvalno shvatiti, koliko kao preuveličavanje zbog osnovne poruke (kao što ne treba bukvalno čitati mitove o Svetom Savi, Hristu ili Budi), a to je uočena preka potreba za posvećenim životom homo sapiensa, ili kako bi ga upravo Elijade nazvao - homo religiosusa, o povratku svetosti u naš profani svet (u srpskom jeziku je tek tako očigledna istovetnost svetog i sveta i svega, kao što bode oči i para uši teološka podela na svetovni i duhovni... doduše niti engleska srodnost reči holy i whole nije zanemarljiv pokazatelj prastanja koje nam Elijade ocrtava), povrtaka vrhunske uzvišenosti za početak u domove naše, u praznike, u naše delatnosti, a zatim i u ceo kosmos.
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