Prayer Fashions Man: Frithjof Schuon on the Spiritual Life (Library of Perennial Philosophy)

In this newly revised English translation from the French, including a comprehensive glossary, this volume surveys the enormous range of Schuon's writngs on prayer and spiritual life. Prayer Fashions Man is the second in a new series of titles from World Wisdom featuring the essential writings of Frithjof Schuon. The series begun by The Fullness of God : Frithjof Schuon on Christianity (World Wisdom, 2004) continues, with a collection of Schuon’s chapters on the deep seated human need for prayer — our primary way of communing with the Divine. The book is edited by James Cutsinger, who also edited Paths to the Heart: Sufism and the Christian East (World Wisdom, 2002) and Not of This World: A Treasury of Christian Mysticism (World Wisdom, 2003). Frithjof Schuon was widely acknowledged by many scholars of mysticism and comparative religion as the twentieth century’s foremost metaphysician and exponent of the Perennial Philosophy. More than a scholar, however, he was above all a man of prayer, whose fundamental message was always linked to the importance of our consciousness of God. This anthology selects chapters from Schuon’s published twenty-three books as well as previously unpublished writings; its content ranges across the enormous spectrum of his writings on prayer and spiritual life. Presented in a fully revised English translation from the original French, this is a compelling portrait of one of the great Masters of our time.The volume concludes with a short appendix of previously unpublished material, including samples from Schuon’s correspondence with various seekers. Editor’s notes, a glossary of foreign terms, and a comprehensive index are also included to make this volume a very useful tool for students, as well as a rich mine for seekers after the sacred. Cover ......Page 1 About this book ......Page 2 Series Page ......Page 4 Title Page ......Page 6 Copyright Page ......Page 7 Table of Contents ......Page 10 FOREWORD......Page 14 INTRODUCTION......Page 18 1. Dimensions of Prayer......Page 30 Spiritual Perspectives I......Page 34 2 Fundamental Keys......Page 42 Spiritual Perspectives II......Page 48 3 Prayer and the Integration of the Psychic Elements......Page 58 Spiritual Perspectives III......Page 66 4 Modes of Prayer......Page 86 Spiritual Perspectives IV......Page 106 5 Trials and Happiness......Page 118 Spiritual Perspectives V......Page 124 6 What Sincerity Is and Is Not......Page 136 Spiritual Perspectives VI......Page 142 7 Dimensions of the Human Vocation......Page 148 Spiritual Perspectives VII ......Page 154 8 Microcosm and Symbol......Page 168 Spiritual Perspectives VIII......Page 180 9 Meditation......Page 182 Spiritual Perspectives IX......Page 192 10 The Servant and Union......Page 198 Spiritual Perspectives X......Page 206 APPENDIX - A Sampling of Letters andOther Previously Unpublished Materials......Page 212 SOURCES......Page 266 GLOSSARY OF FOREIGN TERMS AND PHRASES......Page 270 INDEX......Page 282 BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES......Page 296 Foreword / Philip Zaleski -- Introduction / James S. Cutsinger -- 1. Dimensions Of Prayer -- 2. Fundamental Keys -- 3. Prayer And The Integration Of The Psychic Elements -- 4. Modes Of Prayer -- 5. Trials And Happiness -- 6. What Sincerity Is And Is Not -- 7. Dimensions Of The Human Vocation -- 8. Microcosm And Symbol -- 9. Meditation -- 10. Servant And Union. Selected And Edited By James S. Cutsinger ; Foreword By Philip Zaleski ; [translated From The French By Mark Perry In Collaboration With Jean-pierre Lafouge Et Al.]. Includes Index. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 209-240) And Index. Man must meet God with all that he is, for God is the Being of all; this is the meaning of the Biblical injunction to love God "with all our strength".