I first stumbled on _The Perennial Philosophy_ decades ago as a teenager, and it provided a sense of direction which eventually led me out of the enchanted forest of religious absolutism -- not into "relativism", but into tolerant pluralism.
The underlying design of how religious language works in the "perennial philosophy" is clear, plausible and logical -- but apparently incomprehensible to the strident fundamentalist, who prefers the use of political coercion to sober deliberation. . . The issues are really quite simple:
1. The ultimate source/goal of virtually every religious system is considered by its devotees to be undefinable, beyond the grasp of human reasoning, ineffable, surpassing understanding. Humans call this Ultimate: Godhead (as distinct from "God"), Brahman (as distinct from "Brahma"), etc.
2. Since this religious Ultimate cannot he rationally defined, described, analysed, or plotted by mathematical models, religious language usage differs from that of the physical sciences. It employs verbal, visual, musical, metaphorical, mythological, and allegorical symbolism to SUGGEST that which humans may experience without being able to define: "When I heard the Learn'd Astronomer, etc." (Whitman). . . (Here is where we part company with the rigid rationalist for whom there is no reality apart from what can be measured or weighed.)
3. Religious systems arise at different times and places with various mythologies adapted to local needs. As long as these anthropomorhic creations lead the devotee to spiritual realization, they have value -- but not necessarily EQUAL value with every other mythology. Every individual understandably considers his own belief system as BETTER than those of others, and possibly the BEST of all; but this is radically different from claiming that his beliefs are the ONE AND ONLY POSSIBLE WAY to religious realization. BEST leaves open the possibility that other practices may be viable, though inferior; ONLY is binary -- you're either in or you're out, and that can make all the difference in the world. Consider the following:
4. In 9th-century Buddhist Japan the Shingon monk Kukai wrote a treatise on "The Ten Stages of Religious Consciousness" in which he predictably placed his own Shingon Sect at the top of the list. A competitor, the Tendai monk Saicho had no problem with this but was annoyed that Kukai placed the practice of the Kegon sect on the 9th rung, just ahead of Tendai on the 8th. Note that both Kukai and Saicho clearly recognized that all three sects provided ways to achieve spiritual realization, although one might be considered a BETTER practice than another. This is pluralism, NOT relativism (one thing being just as good as another). And neither claimed that his was the ONLY possible method.
5. Almost 5 centures later in his _Sand and Pebbles(Shasekishu): The Tales of Muju Ichien, a Voice for Pluralism in Kamakura Japan_ says in his Preface: "There is not just one method for entering the Way, the causes and conditions for enlightenment being many. Once a person understands their general significance, he will see that the purport of the various teachings does not vary. And when he puts them into practice, he will find that the goal of the myriad religious exercises is the same." And where does Muju get this idea? Basically from the Mahayana tradition, especially as expressed in _The Lotus Sutra_,q.v. Once again, the alternative to religious absolutism is inclusive pluralism, not "relativism".
In 1945 Aldous Huxley almost certainly never heard of these examples, but he was, and continues to be, a major force in introducing and defending religious pluralism in the West. _The Perennial Philosophy_ continues to inspire.
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