Form and Substance in the Religions (The Writings of Frithjof Schuon)

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Summary: Different Forms, One Substance
Review: "The Substance of knowledge is knowledge of the Substance." So writes Frithjof Schuon at the start of the third chapter of his book Form and Substance of the Religions, and in fact Schuon proves himself to possess this "knowledge of the Substance" throughout the pages of this book. Originally published in French in 1975, all the chapters of this book have appeared in English in six of Schuon's previously published English works; what makes this new book special, then, is firstly that it is a precise English reproduction of Schuon's original french work of the same title, and secondly, that all of the articles have been re-translated with painstaking attention to the original French and the author's intentions. But there is yet another "special" aspect to this work which must be highlighted, namely the fact that a number of these articles constitute "pillars", so to speak, of Schuon's metaphysical opus and its application to spiritual manifestations. For instance, chapters like "The Five Divine Presences", "Atma-Maya" and "the Two Paradises" are fundamental for an understanding of the nature of God, the world and man, as well as their relationship and the degrees of reality pertaining to each, while "The Question of Theodicies" delves into the nature, origin and necessity of evil. "The Virginal Doctrine" and "Ther Koranic Message of Sayyidna Isa" will enable one to simultaneously understand and appreciate both the Islamic and the Christian conceptions of Mary and Jesus, and, regardless of one's religious persuasion, lead to a deeper understanding of the divine Mystery which each of them incarnated. "Insights into the Muhammedan Phenomenon", meanwhile, can enable a Westerner to discover the basis for the Islamic emphasis upon the pre-eminence of Muhammed, which initially seems strange given that Muslims recognize Christ as the "Spirit of God" who will return at the end of time.
But Schuon's books are not easy reading. Anyone unfamiliar with his books might want to begin with an introduction to his works as found in James Cutsinger's Advice to the Serious Seeker, or an intorduction to Schuon's basic world-view (quite different from the modern one!) as found in Martin Lings' Ancient Beliefs and Modern Superstitions or E.F. Schumacher's A Guide for the Perplexed. A few of Schuon's easier works such as The Play of Masks, The Transfiguration of Man or Echoes of Perennial Wisdom might also be read by way of introduction.
The following chapter is crucial for an understanding of this book: "...one should recall that a religion is what Buddhists term an upaya (then this footnote: "the upaya is a 'skillful means' by which Heaven seeks to win souls; since souls are in illusion, the 'means' necessarily takes on something of the illusory, hence the diversity of doctrines, methods and religions..."), and that it has for this reason a certain right to defensive reflexes which, while objectively inadequate, are nonetheless logically appropriate for the religious axiom they serve and are justified by their effectiveness pro domo..." (their effectiveness, that is, in saving souls). As in most of Schuon's books, the author discusses at length the divergences between the various "skillful means" by which heaven has lured souls, while clarifying what pertains only to the "form" (or shell) of a religion and what pertains to its "substance" (kernel). In their forms, the religions necessarily diverge; in their substances, they unite by leading their adherents towards the Absolute and Infinite Reality. This is what Schuon termed the "Transcendent Unity of Religions", which was also the title of his first book; the different religions, then, are analagous to so many paths to the summit of a mountain. Each path is necessarily very different at the base, but as they converge upon the summit, the spiritual traveller notices the self-same Source and Goal for each path.
In Form and Substance of the Religions, Frithjof Schuon speaks as one who is already at the summit, peering downwards and illuminating the way for those trying to climb towards their eternal Source in the darkness of the modern world. He clarifies and justifies the differences in religions, the essential and non-essential aspects of religions, and, while fully appreciating and elucidating what pertains to their "form", leads one to a recognition of the common "substance" of the religions -- that which, being essential, constitutes the one common "thread" that runs through each revelation as a string holds together the beads of a rosary. As we meditatively read this book, we are gradually drawn up to the Divine Summit by one who, as he wrote this book, seems to have been already there.