The Transcendent by nature is beyond our reach and yet we strive to understand and attain the Transcendent. This book, Religion as Self Transcendence, seeks to study 'Religion' and the Religious attitude in the writings of Louis Dupre, a Catholic phenomenologist and religious philosopher. The present study closely examines and critically evaluates Dupre's concept of Self Transcendence and the path to transcendence. Dupre says that the final synthesis needs to be arrived at by using his writings as building blocks from which we can construct an edifice. This book is one such attempt.
Savio Jude D'Souza is a Salesian of Don Bosco belonging to the province of Mumbai (INB). He obtained a doctorate in Philosophy from the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome, for his work on Louis Dupre. He holds the Chair of Philosophy of Religion at Divyadaan: Salesian Institute of Philosophy, Nashik. Earlier he served as the co-coordinator of the Masters of Philosophy programme at Divyadaan and then as the Rector of the same institute from 2008-14. He continues to teach at Divyadaan, besides being involved in pastoral ministry.
Nearly all individuals at some point or the other of their lives have had an experience wherein they realize that their existence is part of a greater reality. It could be a beautiful sunset, it could be the sight of a child at play, it could be the soothing sound of a church organ, or it could just be the sense of peace one experiences in the stillness of the desert. All of a sudden one is encompassed by an all embracing feeling of mystery and unity. There could be different reasons or prior experiences which might have led to this particular experience, but they all lead to a feeling, or an awareness of transcendence. Generally, such an experience makes us aware of our radical insufficiency and at the same time points us beyond to a reality that is outside the usual limits of our comprehension. It makes us aware of another dimension in the universe. We become aware of our finitude, but at the same time we are able to see that we are fragments, yet part of a greater reality.
To a certain extent such experiences wherein one confronts one's insufficiency are unavoidable because every human being has an innate need to find the significance and meaning of his or her existence. This search for the meaning of one's existence on one hand brings one face to face with one's limitations, while at the same time it makes one aware of a greater reality, of the other dimension. This awareness usually marks the beginning of a journey that has as its aim the discovery, expression and better understanding of the transcendent reality.
The human being is a rational animal and it is his intelligence that sets man apart from other animals. Other animals too have intelligence to a lesser or a greater degree, but what is significant is that each being has a role to play and hence is a part of the great circle of life. And in this complex formation man as an intelligent animal has a special place because he is also a spiritual being. As a spiritual being he is aware of the place that he holds in the entire universe and especially his relation with the ultimate reality that lies within and yet beyond this physical universe. This 'religious' concern has been seen in human beings since creation as is evidenced in the belief in the afterlife that existed in the earliest of human civilizations. We refer to the innate sense of being religious that each and every man possesses.
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