The Primordial Tradition bases
its doctrines on the core teachings of major
religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism and
Paganism, to name but a few. The idea of the
Primordial Tradition also
evolved out of the concept known as
philosophia perennis, or prenennial
philosophy, which in itself is a
development from the prisca theologia
of the Middle Ages. Both the idea of the
Primordial Tradition and the
philosophia perennis attempt to establish
common factors amongst different traditions,
with the goal of producing a superior gnosis or
level of wisdom than that which would have been
obtained by the study of a single religion. This
is remarkably similar to the mode of study used
in comparative mythology and the study of the
history of religions. In this sense, the term
Primordial Tradition is
utilized to describe a system of spiritual
thought and metaphysical truths that overarches
all the other religions and esoteric traditions
of humanity. The idea of the Primordial
Tradition was well received by both
practitioners and the academic community, and
its development was actively endorsed by the
International Conference of Religions in
Chicago, 1893. Outside of the academic
community, the idea of the Primordial
Tradition received an even better
reception, and was advocated by the
Traditionalist school – notably Rene Guénon,
Julius Evola, and Alain Daniélou. Other
figures/works of note to the Primordial
Tradition are: Mircea Eliade, Ananda
Coomaraswamy, Carl Kerenyi, Georges Dumezil,
Heinrich Zimmer, Gottfried Leibniz, Aldous
Huxley, Frithjof Schuon, Plato, Ananda Coomaraswamy
- also the Vedas, Sagas, Greek and Roman Epics,
mythology, folklore, and the manifestations of
the ideas of traditions in the works of such
authors as Friedrich Nietzsche and Karl Jung. As
such it portrays an underlying universal
principle in the application of religion and
holds that there are common precepts that exist
in the substrata of all religions. These
universal truths are then reshaped by cultural
and historical events to take their own distinct
life and vitality. The term perennial philosophy has also been employed
as a translation of the Hindu concept of Sanatana Dharma
or the Eternal Tradition.
Primordial Traditions began almost exactly three
years ago, in 2005, originally titled as Savitar.
This name was derived from the Vedic God named Savitar,
a solar deity that also represented the powers of Higher
Intelligence in mankind, creativity, and magical power. Though the
publication has
been reborn under a new title, we still aim to embody the aspects
of Savitar in all our publications. In
December 2006, both were renamed
in order to establish a wider audience, and
the new name is taken from the Latin
idea of philosophia perennis.
The Eternal or Primordial Tradition encompasses
a wide variety of topics, locations and religions, and it is for
this reason that our magazine is equally diverse in content. The
application of the
word Primordial does not imply that we are
dedicated to the revival of archaic or historical religions. The word
primordial is instead employed to illustrate that the fundamental
ideas expressed by certain traditions are so deeply entrenched in
the human psyche that their origins are unknown. This can be aptly illustrated by even a basic understanding
of the science of comparative mythology or the history of religions.
Because these ideas are expressed as symbols, they are far from
dead - the Primordial Traditions are the only religions
which can really be said to be alive.
Issues are published in March,
June, August and
November each year.
Please note: Free PDF
versions of Primordial Traditions will no
longer be printable. Should you wish to obtain a printed copy,
issues can be purchased individually or on a
subscription basis. Please view our subscriptions
page for further details.
We are always seeking articles. To submit an
article for publication, please visit our contact
page.
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