The ancient Romans and Greeks, for example, kept a hearth fire burning for their ancestors and they expected future generations to do the same for them. They are a dim image, as though through a glass darkly, of postmortem states. Continue reading
Rites have a real power, derived from their connection to supernal forces. They have to be done with precision, although the techniques are hidden and reserved to the few. Continue reading
Origen, Dionysius the Areopagite, Jacob Boehme, Louis Claude de Saint-Martin, Vladimir Solovyov and Nicolas Berdyaev, for example, show in their works a progress which is very advanced in substantially bringing together intelligence and the intuition of faith. ~ Valentin Tomberg Continue reading
In a personal communication, my friend Seyyed Hossein Nasr told me: “You are completely right in emphasizing the unique rapport between Shi‘ism and Sufism on the one hand and certain elements of Spanish Catholicism and Russian Orthodoxy on the other.” Continue reading
Rhetoric is the arousing of prejudice, pity, anger, and similar emotions [which] has nothing to do with the essential facts, but is merely a personal appeal to the man who is judging the case. Continue reading
A white dove entered Fatima’s garment at the house of Umm Salamah before her meeting with the prophet Muhammad. Continue reading
The complete man actualizes all his possibilities, not just the angelic ones. The spirituality of the monks has dominated religious discourse, although it is not necessarily appropriate for the man living in the world. It is to these latter men that the future belongs. Continue reading
Hussayn’s head, according to popular tradition, was sent to Damascus with a large company of bodyguards to make sure it got to Yazid. On the way, the caravan stopped for a night below a hermitage where a Christian monk lived, spending his life in solitary worship. Continue reading
And We (Allah) ransomed him (Ismail) with a great sacrifice. Continue reading
The ignorant are humble since they know that they do not know. The intelligent are humble because they understand how difficult it is to know something. But the half-smart are so absolutely certain about everything. ~ cjs Executive Summary In the Reign of Quantity, Rene Guenon describes two opponents of … Continue reading