Walden, czyli życie w lasach H.D. Thoreau jako manifest philosophiae perennis
Walden or Life in the Woods by H.D. Thoreau as a manifesto of philosophia perennis

Summary/Abstract: Henry David Thoreau’s Walden or Life in the Woods is a testimony of his spiritual quest crowned with awakening. His journey to the heart of reality reveals the dynamic and multilayered structure of the Macro and Microcosm, since Nature in Walden is a screen on which the “inner” contents of his mind are projected. These contents are charged with meaning and constitute a highly organized and coherent whole: a sacred Cosmos made of the Four Elements in accord with the esoteric doctrines of many spiritual teachings. It may be presented iconographically in the form of a Cosmic Mountain, one of the most popular archetypal images in human culture. Other archetypal patterns connected with it are: The Four Elements – Earth, Water, Fire, Air; The Cosmic Tree; The Fountain of Life – Walden Pond as symbol of the heart-mind; The Sun, the Moon, the Thunderbolt and the planet Venus as symbols of the Self or Mind; Solar and lunar animals, especially birds and fishes, as symbols of Thoreau’s spirit. Thoreau’s spiritual practice was based on daily meditation both in the sitting posture and in motion through becoming one with every act. All his actions – like building the cabin, cultivating his bean patch, or fishing – were highly ritualized. They centered around Walden Pond, that represented Thoreau’s heart-mind. In the process of meditation attentive breathing quietened both the intellect – the winds of discursive thought, and feeling – the waves of the lake of the heart, and transformed the fire of sexual desire into the fire of yearning for self-realization. This practice, coupled with manual work and daily contemplation of the pond, the movements of celestial bodies, to say nothing of animal and plant life, especially birds and fishes, made it possible for Thoreau’s attention to sound the lake of the heart and the subconscious Underworld beneath it, and attain the transcendental knowledge of the formless Self. Thanks to this awakening he was able to perform the experiment of “living sincerely” in solitude for 2 years, 2 months and 2 days, as simply as possible, in harmony with Nature. This experience flowered in turn in the writing of Walden, or Life in the Woods which is, a symbolic, yet direct document of his spiritual life, and may serve as a textbook for those who do not wish to fall prey to the consumptive and mechanical routines’ of the modern world. Needless to say, his writing style is lucid, sober, possessing an oaken strength and abounds in powerful metaphors, similes, paradoxes and puns. Thoreau’s enlightenment awoke in him deep feelings of affinity with all life and kinship with his fellow men. He was no quietist contemplative, who escaped from the world, but a man of action, who thanks to his insight attained at Walden Pond, was able to serve his society in a truly altruistic way. His was the highest moral and ethical conduct. He defended the rights of the American Indian and the Afro-Americans and took part in the abolitionist movement paving the way for “non-violent civil disobedience” of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King. Moreover his enlightenment enabled him to die with dignity untouched by panic. It is recorded that when he was asked on his deathbed whether he had made peace with God, he answered: “As far as I know we have never quarrelled”. Walden is America’s scripture of spiritual joy.

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