Study of the ontological hierarchy of the states of being as taught in the traditional metaphyscial doctrines of East and West.

Deals with the normal relationship between the spiritual and the temporal powers implied in a healthy traditional civilization, that is, the supremacy of knowledge over action, of the sacerdotal over the royal caste. Touching first on India and the medieval West, Guenon then illustrates his point by citing quarrels over investiture and disputes of certain French kingswith the papacy as evidence of a deviation in Christianity.

Rene Guenon (1886-1951) is undoubtedly one of the luminaries of the twentieth century, whose critique of the modern world has stood fast against the shifting sands of recent philosophies. His oeuvre of 26 volumes is providential for the modern seeker: pointing ceaselessly to the perennial wisdom found in past cultures ranging from the Shamanistic to the Indian and Chinese, the Hellenic and Judaic, the Christian and Islamic, and including also Alchemy, Hermeticism, and other esoteric currents, at the same time it directs the reader to the deepest level of religious praxis, emphasizing the need for affiliation with a revealed tradition even while acknowledging the final identity of all spiritual paths as they approach the summit of spiritual realization. This small volume brings together a number of Guenon's early articles relating to Sufism (tasawwuf), or Islamic esoterism. The later article 'Islamic Esoterism' has also been included, since it so well articulates the particularities of initiation in Islam by defining the fundamental elements of tasawwuf: shari'ah, tariqah, haqiqah. The first constitutes the necessary fundamental exoteric basis; the second, the Way and its means; the third, the goal or final result. In the other chapters, Guenon expresses with his usual synthetic clarity what tawhid and faqr are, and gives examples of traditional sciences, relating angelology to the Arabic alphabet, and chirology to the science of letters ('ilm al-huruf). A number of book and article reviews give interesting insights into traditional orthodoxy. The Collected Works of Rene Guenon brings together the writings of one of the greatest prophets of our time, whose voice is even more important today than when he was alive. Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions, etc.

The present volume discusses Christian initiation and various esoteric organizations, with special reference to Dante, as well as a study of St Bernard.

The present volume is a companion volume to Guenon Perspectives on Initiation, in which Guenon carefully defined the nature of initiation and of the organizations qualified to transmit it. In Initiation and Spiritual Realization he adds many details on related subjects, including various inner and outer obstacles the aspirant may face, the need for attachment to a traditional exoterism, the role of the spiritual master, and a closer examination of the degrees of spiritual realization.