Huxley gets to the root of The Thing by examining religious texts from around the world. He finds out what they have in common to get to the parts that are not human projection, idolatry, and bullshit. It's all around us and we are part of It.

Vakkert, veldig mye dialog, samt rus og en prins som selger ut landet sitt for gull og kule biler

Written in 1945, the book is an anthology of the Perennial Philosophy and contains vast examples as extracts from scriptures and/or other type of writings from various religious: Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, etc.

The central idea of the perennial philosophy is that there exists Divine Truth, Divine Reality which is one and universal, and that different religions are different ways to express that one Truth. However as Huxley writes this one Divine Reality cannot be directly and immediately apprehended except by those whom we generally give the name of 'saint' or 'prophet', 'sage' or 'enlightened one' and the only way is to study, reflect and comprehend their experience, works and writings.

"If one is not oneself a sage or saint, the best thing one can do, in the field of metaphysics, is to study the works of those who were, and who, because they had modified their merely human mode of being, were capable of a more than merely human kind and amount of knowledge" - writes Huxley in the introduction.

This book is not perfect. It takes a lot for granted and it glosses over any points that contradict the central thesis. And yet, The Perennial Philosophy is possibly the most important, transformative book I have ever read. It changed the way I think about spirituality. Not to mention, it reads like pure poetry. I can't bring myself to give it any fewer than 5 stars.

By piecing together writings from leading mystics of different religions, Huxley aims to paint a picture of the "Highest Common Factor" in all monotheistic systems of belief and argue that all contemplatives are essentially followers of the same "Perennial Philosophy." Huxley details the thoughts and actions of these mystics by topic, with chapter headings like "Truth," "Time and Eternity," "Grace and Free Will," and "Spiritual Exercises." However, he acknowledges that replicating their way of life is likely impossible for most. Instead, the goal is simply to follow their path as far as we are able and learn as much as we can:

"If one is not oneself a sage or saint the best thing one can do, in the field of metaphysics, is to study the works of those who were and who, because they had modified their merely human mode of being were capable of a more than merely human kind and amount of knowledge."

Sources quoted at length range from St. John of the Cross to The Cloud of Unknowing to Plotinus to The Bhagavad Gita to the Vedas to the Chandogya Upanishad to Lao Tzu to Rumi to Meister Eckhart and on and on. The book functions almost as an anthology of world mysticism, with Huxley interjecting just enough prose to tie together a book constructed largely of (beautiful, well-worth-reading) excerpts.

The phrase “perennial philosophy” was coined by the 17th-Century mathematician and philosopher Gottfried Leibniz, and refers to the fairly consistent set of mystical beliefs which lie at the heart of all the major religions both East and West. Summarised, it states that: behind or beyond the everyday world lies the divine Ground, Reality, or God; this is both immanent and transcendent; it is possible, if we live the right way, for any of us to become this Reality ourselves, and this should be our chief purpose in life.
    Huxley’s detailed account is illustrated throughout with pieces from works such as the Upanishads and Tao Te Ching in the East, to Christian and Muslim mystics in the West. It’s not a discussion, it’s a straight description with not a dissenting word on any of its 300 pages. Also, there’s no attempt to help the general reader: books like this should have a glossary, defining precisely how the author is using terms like “self”, “Self”, “detachment”, “real” and so on. But, as is traditional, Huxley just steams straight in. Some of the quotations, too, are in Latin and French, which he doesn’t always bother translating. One thing which did surprise me was the way he refers to such things as mind-reading, telepathy, faith healing and levitation as proven facts, and draws conclusions from them about the universe—at one point he quotes from the Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research for example, which is not a crime, but does strike me as uncritical and credulous.
    As many of the other reviews here attest, this is a fascinating and inspiring book if you’re a believer; but it’s no less fascinating if you’re not. In this “perennial philosophy” the ultimate sin seems to be showing the least shred of curiosity and imagination, thinking for yourself, having a mind of one’s own. So that’s me going straight to Hell then.

[read 1/2] OK, this is too woo woo for me. This book is essentially one person's (Aldous Huxley's) manifesto of his opinions and personal beliefs, rather than a cogently argued essay with a logical flow of reasoning from axiom to conclusion. It's personal preferences declared with the confidence and indubitability of universal truth. Aldous' main theme is that there is a perennial formula that characterizes religions-- although, as he repeats over and over, Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Taoism are the closest approximation to the 'real truth', whereas Christianity falls off the mark. This 'real truth' is the reality of the Godhead or transcendence of a Divine Mind and humanity's main purpose is to pierce the veil and come as close as possible to unblinded contemplation of it. Basically Aldous is an early proponent of mystical New Age stuff, as cliche as they come, a Western writer enamored with mysticism and also stuffing his book with quotes from mystics and famous religious saints of the ages. Here's some of the woo woo stuff I disagree with:
1. States with supreme confidence that psychokinesis and extra-sensory perception are 'obviously' established, and more proof comes by the year, and if some scientists are holdouts over this, they are close-minded
2. states as supreme fact that humans are tri-partite, composed of mind, spirit and psyche
3. if Christians have launched bloody crusades and international wars, it's largely due to the fact that they hold only to one avatar or divine incarnation, whereas Hinduism and Buddhism holds to multiple
4. the Universal Mind is assumed to be logically true
5. mortification of the flesh or austerity leads to the acquisition of extrasensory powers or psychokinesis
6. there are 2 understandings of religions-- the ordinary understanding that the masses possess, and the 'esoteric' that the elite or erudite knows. His understanding being the erudite one of course
I just don't like it when assumptions are presented as truths without attempts to allow doubt or show proof.

I had some high hopes but this book did not really speak to me. I have enjoyed almost all of Huxley's fiction that I've read, but his non-fiction has largely left me unmoved.

This book is chock full of quotations from religious texts that Huxley finds meaningful. The thrust of the book seems to be extoling the virtues of direct religious experiences in the vein of the prophets. This is right as Huxley seems to be entering his psychedelic period.

I can see from skimming the reviews that it does strike a nerve with many readers. They are in a different place than me. A lot of emotion, some nice prose, but in the end a lot of smoke and precious little fire.

Huxley was one of the last of a breed of intellectual that was neither ashamed of his occidental culture, nor allowed it to irrevocably taint his understanding of the other. It is a position that seems relegated to the first half of the 19th century.

The Perennial Philosophy is a seemingly universalist foray into the commonalities between the more esoteric religious scriptures that include; Sufism, Buddhism , Taoism, and a very heavy dose of Catholicism and Hinduism. You almost get the impression that he is a "catholic mystic" who fell in love with Hindu scriptures and decided to learn about the rest of the east.

The book is easily 50% quotes of other works; which proves interesting for the reader if not a tad repetitive as he seems to reference the same sources incessantly.

Outside of his sources, Huxley narrates in three basic modes. The first, is a contextual explanation of historical relevance; the second is entertaining and insightful cultural critique; the third is an (at times quite annoying) assertion of perennial philosophy as universal truth written with the fervor of a fresh convert.

This is where the book loses its luster. While I love his writing style, his pithy insights, his obvious obsession with the subject matter, and general digressions that take the reader along for the ride; it occasionally takes a quick turn into sermonizing.

Ultimately, anyone who is interested in finding good source material regarding religious philosophy; anyone who is interested in the genesis of the slow emerging Western recognition of Eastern metaphysics; or anyone who just wishes to read a mix of well articulated, early 20th century, mix of philosophy / Social Science would be advised to add this to your reading list. Anyone wishing to re-enforce confirmation bias towards universalism; this is your new bible. Everyone else, just pass it by.

Alternately dense and perfectly clear, truly time-intensive, and spiritually nourishing. I carried this around for a couple of years and am grateful I spent the past few months absorbing it.

Who knew Aldous Huxley was not only so interested in metaphysics but also wrote & understood it so lucidly? This is a great read for anyone that is interested in learning about philosophies of the world. Huxley does a great job in elaborating on the recurring spiritual themes of religions and nearly induces self enlightenment for the reader.

Lest anyone doubt that one of the greatest philosophers of the modern age is Aldous Huxley I give you The Perennial Philosophy. Huxley boils all religious tradition into its basic universal truths. It is through this discovery that he finds what he is good in the best teachings and what is manipulative in its tenets.

I am constantly amazed by the breadth of thought that Aldous Huxley explored during his lifetime and how relevant that five years today. I will probably be thinking about this volume for many years to come.

Alas, I shan't finish this. At another moment in my reading life, I'm sure I would find it spellbinding, but as I just wrote in my other review, I cannot take another ounce of nonfiction.

I made it about halfway through and someday I will read the rest.

I won't lie, through much of this book I found myself uncertain of what he was getting at or barely cottoning on with the merest possible understanding of his general point. Still, I think it's a worthy book and good to have by one's bedside to just read a few pages at a time. Also, one that I should probably own so I can underline things and come back to it once in a while.

It's mainly about mystics and oneness with God and that kind of thing, so right up my alley. I am just really, really in need of a good novel right now. So it will have to be enough.