¶9 These preliminary observations will greatly help to understand the considerations that will follow; we have already had occasion, in other works, quite often to allude to the ‘cyclical laws’; it would, moreover, perhaps be difficult to give a complete exposition of these laws in a form easily accessible to Western minds, but it is at least necessary to have some data on this subject if one wishes to form a true idea of what the present epoch is and what it represents exactly in the totality of world history.1 This is why we shall begin by showing that the characteristics of this epoch are indeed those that traditional doctrines have always indicated for the cyclical period to which it corresponds; and this will also show that what is anomaly and disorder from a certain point of view is nevertheless a necessary element of a vaster order, an inevitable consequence of the laws that govern the development of all manifestation.2 Moreover, let us say at once, this is not a reason to content ourselves with passively enduring the trouble and darkness that seem momentarily to triumph, for if that were the case, we would only have to remain silent; it is, on the contrary, a reason to work, as much as one can, to prepare the emergence from this ‘dark age’, the end of which many indications already allow us to foresee as more or less near, if not quite imminent.3 This too is in the order of things, for equilibrium is the result of the simultaneous action of two opposing tendencies; if one or the other could entirely cease to act, equilibrium would never be found again and the world itself would vanish; but this supposition is unrealisable, for the two terms of an opposition have meaning only in relation to each other, and, whatever appearances may be, one can be sure that all partial and transitory disequilibria ultimately contribute to the realisation of total equilibrium.4
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intellectkali-yugaprogress

Summary

Guénon indicates that these preliminary observations will help understand what follows. He has often alluded to cyclical laws, which are difficult to expound fully for Western minds but necessary to understand the present epoch. He will show that the characteristics of this epoch match those indicated by traditional doctrines, and that what seems anomaly and disorder is actually a necessary element of a vaster order. This does not justify passive endurance of trouble and darkness. On the contrary, it encourages working to prepare the exit from this ‘dark age’. Equilibrium results from the simultaneous action of two opposing tendencies. If one ceased to act, equilibrium would disappear, but this is impossible because the two terms have meaning only in relation to each other. All partial and transitory disequilibria ultimately contribute to total equilibrium.

General notes

  1. lois cycliques — Rendered as 'cyclical laws'. Guénon refers here to the traditional doctrine of cosmic and historical cycles, expounded notably in Hindu texts (yugas, manvantaras, kalpas), but also present in other traditions (the Golden, Silver, Bronze and Iron Ages of Hesiod, Plato's Great Year, the prophetic cycles of Islam, the historical ages of Joachim of Fiore, etc.). The central idea is that time is not linear and indefinite, but unfolds in cycles of varying lengths, each with its own characteristics (spiritual, social, cosmic). The modern epoch corresponds to the end of a cycle (the Kali-Yuga), marked by the obscuring of spiritual knowledge and the domination of matter. Guénon acknowledges that this doctrine is difficult to expound to Westerners, as it presupposes a radical change in the conception of time and history. ↩︎
  2. anomalie et désordre … élément nécessaire d'un ordre plus vaste — Rendered as 'anomaly and disorder … necessary element of a vaster order'. Guénon here raises an essential point of traditional metaphysics: what appears as disorder or anomaly at a local or limited level (for example, modern civilisation, the violence of history, cataclysms) is in reality a necessary part of a higher, more global order. In other words, evil is not an absolute reality, but a moment in a vaster dialectical process. It is not a question of justifying disorder, but of situating it: it is not an inexplicable accident, but a natural consequence of cyclical law. This position makes it possible to avoid both absolute pessimism (nothing makes sense) and naive optimism (progress will solve everything). Understanding cycles gives an overall view in which each phase has its place. ↩︎
  3. préparer la sortie de cet « âge sombre » — Rendered as 'prepare the emergence from this 'dark age''. Guénon refuses two extreme attitudes: passive resignation (enduring the epoch without acting) and frantic activism (believing that one can change the course of things by human will alone). The traditional position is to work, within the limits of one's means, towards the preparation of the post-crisis period, without illusion as to the immediate outcome. The 'emergence' from the Kali-Yuga cannot be brought about by human action (cycles are cosmic laws), but one can mitigate its effects on the spiritual and intellectual level, preserving knowledge for the times that will follow. Guénon's own action — his books, his articles — belongs to this preparation. ↩︎
  4. équilibre … deux tendances opposées — Rendered as 'equilibrium … two opposing tendencies'. Guénon here states a fundamental metaphysical law: universal equilibrium results from the tension between two antagonistic forces. In the cyclical domain, this corresponds to the alternation of phases of obscuration and luminous manifestation. No phase can last eternally; opposition itself is what sustains manifestation. If one tendency were to triumph definitively, the world would cease to exist. But this is impossible within the framework of cyclical manifestation, because contraries are correlative. Local disequilibria (modernity, the crisis) are moments in a global process of equilibrium. This does not suppress the necessity of fighting against disorder, but it relativises its absolute scope. ↩︎