Gita Satsang: Aldous Huxley and Bhagavad Gita

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Aldous Huxley and Bhagavad Gita

 

Great philosophers such as Aldous Huxley agree that the philosophy of life and

soul postulated in Bhagavad Gita is superb and unique. Aldous Huxley in the

introduction to the New American Library edition of the Bhagavad Gita

interprets the Gita as not only the distillation of Hinduism but also the

distillation of religion in general. Huxley claims that the theology of the

Gita is relevant to all religious people not just to the Hindu because he says

it presents the four basic elements of a spiritual world view. .

 

Aldous Huxley presents four fundamental doctrines as what he calls the

Perennial Philosophy:

 

"First: the phenomenal world of matter and of individualized consciousness -

the world of things and animals and men and even gods - is the manifestation

of a Divine Ground within which all partial realities have their being, and

apart from which they would be nonexistent.

 

Second: human beings are capable not merely of knowing about the Divine Ground

by inference; they can also realize its existence by a direct intuition,

superior to discursive reasoning. This immediate knowledge unites the knower

with that which is known.

 

Third: man possesses a double nature, a phenomenal ego and an eternal Self,

which is the inner man, the spirit, the spark of divinity within the soul. It

is possible for a man, if he so desires, to identify himself with the spirit

and therefore with the divine Ground, which is of the same or like nature with

the spirit.

 

Fourth: man's life on earth has only one end and purpose: to identify himself

with his eternal Self and so to come to untie knowledge of the Divine

Ground."

 

Huxley's reference of Divine Ground is Lord Krishna in the Gita and the

Brahman in theVedanta. Huxley discusses these four aspects of religion giving

examples from a variety of religious traditions in the book, "The Perennial

Philosophy." According to Huxley that modern population have turned away from

religion due to industrialization and technology revolution.

 

In conclusion, it is not surprising that great minds such as Huxley can be

found from all parts of the world. The human search for the knowledge of the

Brahman (Divine Ground) has no time, geographical and language bounds. Any

attempt to separate the Brahman by time, geography, language, and other

barriers only confirms that we are ignorant. The world of plurality is our

creation out of ignorance and we certainly untie the knowledge of the SELF

through the study and practice of Gita.

 

Reference: "The Perennial Philosophy" by Aldous Huxley, Paperback, 336 pages.

Published by HarperCollins, July 1990, ISBN: 0060901918. ‘Perennial

Philosophy' is available at major bookstores and also in the Internet at

Amazon.com. Synopsis from Amaxon.com: The brilliant wit and absorbing

intellect of Aldous Huxley gives this religious classic an elevated spirit

equal to its subject matter. Huxley identifies the spiritual beliefs of

various religious traditions and recasts them in terms which are personally

meaningful. Chapters include Self-knowledge, Faith, The Miraculous, Spiritual

Exercises, etc. This is both an anthology and an interpretation of the

supreme mystics, East and West.