Life and career
Early years
Born on 8 April 1913 inBritish intelligence
During"I studied Zaehner's Personal File. He was responsible for MI6Zaehner continued in Iran until 1947 as press attaché in the British Embassy, and as ancounterintelligence Counterintelligence is an activity aimed at protecting an agency's intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering information and conducting activities to prevent espionage, sabotage, assassinations or ...in Persia during the war. It was difficult and dangerous work. The railway lines into Russia, carrying vital military supplies, were key targets for German sabotage. Zaehner was perfectly equipped for the job, speaking the local dialects fluently, and much of his time was spent undercover, operating in the murky and cutthroat world of countersabotage. By the end of the war his task was even more fraught. The Russians themselves were trying to gain control of the railway, and Zaehner had to work behind Russian lines, continuously at risk of betrayal and murder by pro-German or pro-Russian... ."
Oxford professor
Zaehner worked at the university until his death on 24 November 1974 in Oxford. " the age of sixty-one he fell down dead in the street on his way to Sunday evening Mass." The cause of death was a heart attack.University work
Before the war Zaehner had lectured atPeer descriptions
As a professor Zaehner "had a great facility for writing, and an enormous appetite for work… lsoa talent for friendship, a deep affection for a number of particular close friends and an appreciation of human personality, especially for anything bizarre or eccentric". Nonetheless, "he passed a great deal of his time alone, most of it in his study working." An American professor described Zaehner in a different light: "The small, birdlike Zaehner, whose rheumy, color-faded eyes darted about in a clay colored face, misted blue from the smoke ofHis writings
Zoroastrian studies
''Zurvan''
Initially Zaehner's reputation rested on his studies of''Teachings of the Magi''
''The Teachings of the Magi'' (1956) was Zaehner's second of three book on Zoroastrianism. It presented the "main tenets" of the religion in the Sasanid era, during the reign of''Dawn and Twilight''
In his ''The Dawn and Twilight of Zoroastrianism'' (1961), Zaehner adopted a chronological dichotomy. He first explores origins, the founding of the religion by its prophet Zoroaster. He notes that the Gathas, the earliest texts in theArticles, chapters
Zaehner contributed other work regarding Zoroaster and the religion began in ancient Iran. The article "Zoroastrianism" was included in a double-columned book he edited, ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Living Faiths'', first published in 1959. Also were his several articles on the persistence in popular culture of the former national religion, "Zoroastrian survivals in Iranian folklore". Chapters, in whole or part, on Zoroastrianism appeared in a few of his other books: ''At Sundry Times'' (1958), aka ''The Comparison of Religions'' (1962); ''The Convergent Spirit'', aka ''Matter and Spirit'' (1963); and ''Concordant Discord'' (1970).Comparative religion
In addition to the two titles below, other works of Zaehner are comparative or have a significant comparative element. Among these are: ''Concordant Discord'' (1970), and ''Our Savage God'' (1974).Choice of perspective
In the west the academic field of comparative religion at its origins inherited an ' enlightenment' ideal of an objective, value-neutral, yet 'secular' rationalism. Traditional Christian and Jewish writings, however, initially provided much of the source material, as did classical literature, these being later joined by non-western religious texts and field studies, then eventually by ethnological studies of folk religions. The privileged 'enlightenment' orientation, self-defined as purely reasonable, in practice fell short of being neutral, and itself became progressively contested by different camps. As to value-neutral criteria, Zaehner situated himself roughly as follows:"Any man with any convictions at all is liable to be influenced by them even when he tries to adopt an entirely objective approach; but let him recognize this from the outset and guard against it. If he does this, he will at least be less liable to deceive himself and others." "Of the books I have written some are intended to be objective; others, quite frankly, are not." "In all my writings on comparative religion my aim has been increasingly to show that there is a coherent pattern in religious history. For me the centre of coherence can only be Christ." Yet "I have rejected as irrelevant to my theme almost everything that would find a natural place in a theological seminary, that is, Christian theology, modern theology in particular." "For what, then, do I have sympathy, you may well ask. Quite simply, for the 'great religions' both of East and West, expressed... in those texts that each religion holds most sacred and in the impact that these have caused."Accordingly, for his primary orientation Zaehner chose from among the active participants: Christianity in its Catholic manifestation. Yet the academic Zaehner also employed a type of comparative analysis, e.g., often drawing on Zoroastrian or Hindu, or Jewish or Islamic views for contrast, for insight. Often he combined comparison with a default 'modernist' critique, which included psychology or cultural evolution. Zaehner's later works are informed by
''At Sundry Times''
In his 1958 book ''At Sundry Times. An essay in the comparison of religions'', Zaehner came to grips with "the problem of how a Christian should regard the non-Christian religions and how, if at all, he could correlate them into his own" (p. 9 reface. It includes an Introduction (1), followed by chapters on Hinduism (2), on Hinduism and Buddhism (3), on "Prophets outside Israel", i.e., Zoroastrianism and Islam (4), and it concludes with Appendix which compares and contrasts the "Quran and Christ". Perhaps the key chapter is "Consummatum Est" (5), which "shows, or tries to show, how the main trend in ysticalHinduism and Buddhism on the one hand and of he propheticZoroastrianism on the other meet and complete each other in the Christian revelation" (Preface, p. 9, words in brackets added). The book opens with a lucid statement of his own contested hermeneutic: "with comparative religion," he says, "the question is who's to be master, that's all" (p. 9). He starts by saluting E. O. James. Next Zaehner mentions Rudolph Otto (1869-1937) and''Christianity & other Religions''
The 1964 book, following its introduction, has four parts: India, China and Japan, Islam, and The Catholic Church. Throughout Zaehner offers connections between the self-understanding of 'other religions' and that of the Judeo-Christian, e.g., theMystical experience
Mysticism as an academic field of study is relatively recent, emerging from earlier works with a religious and literary accent. From reading the writings of mystics, various traditional distinctions have been further elaborated, such as its psychological nature and its social-cultural context. Discussions have also articulated its phenomenology as a personal experience versus how it has been interpreted by the mystic or by others. Zaehner made his contributions, e.g., to its comparative analysis and its typology.''Sacred and Profane''
After Zaehner's initial works on Zoroastrianism, ''Mysticism. Sacred and Profane'' (1957) was his first published on another subject. It followed his assumption of the Spalding chair at''Hindu and Muslim''
His innovative 1960 book compares the mystical literature and practice ofComparative mysticism
In his work on comparative religion, Zaehner directly addressedGender: Soul & Spirit
Zaehner's study of mystical writings also incorporated its psychological dimensions, yet as a supplement, not as definitive. About the experience of unusual states of consciousness, many mystics have written using as a descriptive metaphor language associated with marriage symbolism or sexuality."Both in mystical rapture and in sexual union reason and intelligence are momentarily set at naught. The soul 'flows' and 'hurls itself out of itself'. ...all consciousness of the ego has disappeared. As the Buddhist would say, there is no longer any 'I' or 'mine', the ego has been swallowed up into a greater whole."Yet, when approaching this delicate subject, especially at the chaotic threshold to a
Typology of mysticism
In 1958, Zaehner presented a general analysis of the range of mystical experience in the form of a typology.Nature mysticism
Nature mysticism is a term used to catalogue generally those spontaneous experiences of an ''oceanic feeling'' in which a person identifies with nature, or is similarly thrown back in awe of the unforgettable, vast sweep of the cosmos. Such may be described philosophically as a form ofDualism, e.g., Samkhya
Samkhya philosophy is an ancient dualist doctrine of India. In appraising the experienced world, Samkhya understood it as composed largely of prakrti (nature, mostly unconscious exterior matter, but also inner elements of human life not immortal), andMonism, e.g., Vedanta
In non-dualistTheism, e.g., Christian
Theistic mysticism is common to Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Hinduism also includes its own traditions of theistic worship with a mystical dimension.Hindu studies
His translations and the ''Hinduism'' book "made Zaehner one of the most important modern exponents of Hindu theological and philosophical doctrines... . The works on mysticism are more controversial though they established important distinctions in refusing to regard all mysticisms as the same," wrote Prof.''Hinduism''
While an undergraduate at Christ Church in Oxford, Zaehner studied several Persian languages. He also taught himself a related language,Yudhishthira
Zaehner continued his discussion ofTranslations
In his ''Hindu Scriptures'' (1966) Zaehner translates ancient sacred texts, his selections of the Rig-Veda, the Atharva-Veda, theSri Aurobindo
In his 1971 book ''Evolution in Religion'', Zaehner discusses" change in consciousness radical and complete" of no less a jump in "spiritual evolution" than "what took place when a mentalised being first appeared in a vital and material animal world." Regarding his new ''Integral Yoga'': "The thing to be gained is the bringing in of a Power of Consciousness... not yet organized or active directly in earth-nature, ...but yet to be organized and made directly active."Aurobindo foresaw that a Power of Consciousness will eventually work a collective transformation in each human being, inviting us as a specie then to actually be able to form and sustain societies of
Gifford lecture at St Andrews
Zaehner gave theSocial ideology and ethics
A militant state cult
Zaehner used a comparative-religion approach in his several discussions of"AStalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...saw, quite rightly, that since the laws of Nature manifested themselves in the tactical vicissitudes of day-to-day politics with no sort of clarity, even the most orthodox Marxists were bound to go astray. It was, therefore, necessary that some one man whose authority was absolute, should be found to pronounce ''ex cathedra Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, in virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the Pope when he speaks '' ex cathedra'' is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine "initially given to the apos ...'' what the correct reading of historical necessity was. Such a man he found in himself."
Dialectical materialism
Marxist ideology has been compared to religious theology, perhaps its original source. Zaehner explored its explicitly ''materialist'' perspective, an ancient philosophical view further developed post-Hegel, then adopted byCultural evolution
The interaction ofThe discovery of evolution hit the Christian churches hard... . e ''Genesis'' story has to be interpreted against the background of our evolutionary origin. Once we do this, then the Fall begins to look more like an ascent than a degradation. For self-consciousness which transforms man into a ''rational'' animal is a qualitative leap in the evolutionary process... life becomes conscious of itself.In the multiple discussions referenced above, Zaehner is referring to the long-term
'New Age' drug culture
In his last three books, ''Drugs, Mysticism and Makebelieve'' (1972), ''Our Savage God'' (1974), and ''City within the Heart'' (1981) osthumous Zaehner turned to address issues in contemporary society, drawing on his studies of comparative religion. He further explored the similarities and the differences between drug-induced experiences and traditional mysticism. As an academic he had already published several books on such issues starting in 1957. In the meantime, a widespread=''Drugs, Mysticism''
= As its title indicates, the book addresses a range of contemporary issues. It was expanded from three talks he gave on=''Our Savage God''
= The book's title is somewhat misleading. It attaches well, however, to its first chapter, "Rot in the Clockwork Orange", about the putative rationale of then contemporary episodes of mayhem and murder. About the hippie psychotic fringe, it made world headlines. Zaehner's focus is not on usual criminality but on hideous acts claiming a religious sanction, that with sinister cunning fakes the 'Quotations
*There is indeed a sharp division between those religions whose characteristic form of religious experience is prayer and adoration of Pascal's God ofSee also
*Notes
Bibliography
Zaehner's works
*''Foolishness to the Greeks.'' Oxford University, 1953 (pamphlet). Reprint: Descale de Brouwer, Paris, 1974. As Appendix in ''Concordant Discord'' (1970), pp. 428–443. *''Zurvan. A Zoroastrian Dilemma''. Oxford University, 1955. Reprint: Biblio and Tannen, New York, 1972. *''The Teachings of the Magi. A compendium of Zoroastrian beliefs''. George Allen & Unwin, London, 1956. Reprints: Sheldon Press, 1972; Oxford, 1976. Translation: **''Il Libro del Consiglio di Zarathushtra e altri testi. Compendio delle teorie zoroastriane.'' Astrolabio Ubaldini, Roma, 1976. *''Mysticism: Sacred and Profane''. Clarendon Press, Oxford University, 1957, reprint 1961. Translations: **''Mystik, religiös und profan''. Ernst Klett, Stuttgart, 1957. **''Mystiek sacraal en profaan''. De Bezige Bij, Amsterdam, 1969. **''Mystique sacrée, Mystique profane''. Editorial De Rocher, Monaco, 1983. *''At Sundry Times. An essay in the comparison of religions''. Faber & Faber, London, 1958. Alternate title, and translation: **''The Comparison of Religions''. Beacon Press, Boston, 1962. **''Inde, Israël, Islam: religions mystiques et révelations prophétiques''. Desclée de Brouwer, Paris, 1965. *''Hindu and Muslim Mysticism''. Athlone Press, University of London, 1960. Reprints: Schocken, New York, 1969; Oneworld, Oxford, 1994. *''The Dawn and Twilight of Zoroastrianism''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 1961. Translation: **''Zoroaster e la fantasia religiosa''. Il Saggiatore, Milano, 1962. *''Hinduism''. Oxford University Press, London, 1962. Translations: **''Der Hinduismus. Seine geschichte und seine lehre''. Goldman, München, 1964. **''L'Induismo''. Il Mulino, Bologna, 1972. **''L'hindouisme''. Desclée de Brouwer, Paris, 1974. *''The Convergent Spirit. Towards a dialectics of Religion.'' Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, 1963. Alternate title: **''Matter and Spirit. Their convergence in Eastern Religions, Marx, and Teilhard de Chardin''. Harper & Row, New York, 1963. *''The Catholic Church and World Religions''. Burns & Oates, London, 1964. Alternate title, and translation: **''Christianity and other Religions.'' Hawthorn Books, New York, 1964. **''El Cristianismo y les grandes religiones de Asia''. Editorial Herder, Barcelona, 1967. *''Concordant Discord. The Interdependence of Faiths.'' Clarendon Press, Oxford University, 1970.Criticism, commentary
A Zaehner bibliography is in Fernandes (pp. 327–346). ;Books *Albano Fernandes, ''The Hindu Mystical Experience: A comparative philosophical study of the approaches of R. C. Zaehner & Bede Griffiths.'' Intercultural Pub., New Delhi 2004. *George Kizhakkemury, ''The Converging Point. An appraisal of Professor R. C. Zaehner's approach to Islamic mysticism.'' Alwaye MCBS, New Delhi 1982. *William Lloyd Newell, ''Struggle and Submission: R. C. Zaehner on Mysticisms.'' University Press of America, Washington 1981, foreword byExternal links
* R. C. Zaehner