The Meaning of Idealism

"Pavel Florensky's treatment of Platonism in the present work is one of the most important studies on this subject ever written. The great scholar of antiquity, Aleksei Losev, called The Meaning of Idealism the most profound work on Platonism and Idealism produced in the 20th century. It is a journey: from Plato and Aristotle to Neoplatonism, from Neoplatonism to Medieval theories of being and knowing, from these theories to Orthodox spirituality, from Orthodox spirituality to Vedic mysticism, from Vedic mysticism to astrology, from astrology to modern science--including relativity, the mathematical theory of invariants, and the multidimensional universe. In the course of this journey Florensky corroborates his theories with etymological discussions and analyses of modern art, including the works of Rodin and Picasso.The most novel dimension Florensky introduces in his interpretation of Idealism is his doctrine of genus and spiritual countenance (lik in Russian, related to litso, face, and lichnost, person). Finally, Florensky links his understanding of the Platonic idea with images of the ancient gods and their use in the ancient mysteries."--Front flap of dust jacket.