Unity In Diversity

Unity In Diversity: T.S. Eliot and Religious Liberalism is a critical examination of Eliot's search to discover meaning and unity in his life. Through an examination of his published work, especially the poetry, this spiritual quest is detailed with full illustrations from the poems.

The content of Eliot’s poetry can suggest four significant distinctions: a seemingly agnostic or rebellious phase leading to the poet’s absorption in Indian religious belief; an interest in the Book of the Tarot as being at least representative of an ‘alternative’, an almost ‘supernatural’ form of mysticism; a return to the Christian belief of the West, and to the less
common Christian mysticism in particular; and, finally, to the essence of these outwardly diverse fields being embraced into a united whole.

Eliot strives to cultivate the essence of Reality existing within the Self of humankind, the essence that might ultimately bring about an ecstatic illumination of the One, the Ground of all Being.

Section One examines Eliot's research into Eastern religions of Buddhism and Hinduism, showing how this interest appears clearly in the imagery of his poetry.

Section Two examines Eliot's interest in mysticism and the Tarot. Taking the Tarot cards Eliot introduces into his major poem 'The Waste Land', an identification of the cards he uses is made, together with showing how these cards can be read, or interpretted to show how they are precisely selected cards and not random images, and so give a clear picture of Eliot's intent.

Section Three examines Eliot's profound interest in the Mystic Way.

Section Four examines Eliot's return to the more orthodox Anglicanism whilst still retaining a union, a 'collocation', of his lifetime of research and spiritual questing.

Appendices and a glossary cover terms used in the text, footnotes contain detailed references to enable further research, and there is a full bibliography.