The reflection of Michel Onfray is without doubt deep and as reactionary in this decadent world we can only meet enough in what he says. Mr. Onfray love the land and the peasantry, speaks very well and gives some references of old books about it, apparently essential. Cosmos is a tribute to nature and also a dramatic conclusion on how modern humans is remote, no longer respects and understands more. It is explained in some detail how man can learn from nature in order to learn from life and happiness. This is the subject of the book.
This he demonstrates with examples, as the life of the eel for the life lesson and wine for the life of happiness.
Here is one of my main personal criticism. Michel Onfray is quite heavy to read. It explains in fifteen pages that can be said in two. There are many repetitions turned in different ways and it is common to see several lines or synonyms follow. It follows in my opinion that this book is for those who love the style Onfray or those who like this kind of writing. For others, it will often be long. Cosmos is an exercise in style in length, and I find it unfortunate that this kind of thinking is thereby intended for the very patient player. This is only a personal view for the reader who does not like to spend twenty pages to read every detail of a demonstration. Without this personal problem, I give 4 stars. It's not the size of the book that bothers me is that what is said in there could have held two times fewer pages and thus reach more people.
A very central subject and returns throughout the book, is the opposition between Christianity (monotheism more generally) and Paganism. Paganism is a religion plurimilénaire still alive today, even in Europe since 1973 as it is the official religion in Iceland. It has its mythology differs by region, and Gods are especially embodied by the feelings and nature. In these unfavorable time for the planet and that ecological awareness, paganism knows a renewal for man there is one with nature and all that surrounds it. He observes and respects, she tells him. Michel Onfray not said Gentile since he is an atheist, and that paganism is not limited to nature, but it takes a lot of example.
M.Onfray opposed paganism to monotheism, especially Christianity, he held responsibility for the loss of unity between man and nature-animals-stars because of the unique and dogmatic monotheistic book, which is not true. Criticism of Mr. Onfray on Christianity is solid (on any non existence of Jesus as well) and we learn a lot there.
As a pagan I did not Christianity in the heart, but I find this sometimes harsh criticism there or she does not deserve particular when Mr. Onfray argues that Christianity is responsible for processing that animals suffer today ' hui. To support his thesis he cites Christian texts, especially when it is said that everything in nature is available to man and that there is more to the man than to rule over the Earth. Animal abuse is correlated with the commercial world and that Christianity has nothing to do in there. While it is true that these texts are subject to debate, or at the time they were written, people were not thinking about the industrialization of farming to satisfy a consumer society. It is in my awkward and wrong to say that the Christian scriptures lead animal abuse or any man's dominion over the rest. Especially today where they no longer have any influence. To be honest Mr. Onfray could say that the pagans practiced animal sacrifice, something that disappeared with Christianity.
We could, following the same reasoning, argue that atheism is responsible for this animal abuse. The believer is spiritual, not materialistic (eg nun), the revolution of 1789 killed the Christian God. Since the French Revolution was a bourgeois revolution and said that it was more or less where the start of the reign of the goods (and capitalism example with the law that removes the hatter corporations), atheism was necessary for the behavior of individuals are unique and materializes in consumerism (as if the individual is an atheist, he has only this life and has no spiritual search so much benefit materially): atheism is therefore responsible for harm done to animals (since this is because we have to eat everything and everywhere, so consumption, which treats animals as a commodity). This is also a shorter simplistic but already much more consistent, I think.
The actual charge is the machine ("Capitalism, a structural genocide" Gary Leech, "local solution for a global disorder" also DVD and Colline Serreau "Everything can change" and "Clash of the strategy" also on DVD Naomi Klein, are 4 books that open the eyes diabolically about what the neo-liberal capitalism): "His omnipotence (of nature) is always at our service, day and night, summer and winter" bed -on a manual machine Steam 1830. "It is possible to dominate nature if we can identify weaknesses in," said Watt (steam engine inventor). "New technologies and mass production of fossil energy intensified so bewildering production of consumer goods. The need to find new markets for mass production was an important factor in the growth of the colonial project. And the market economy was quick to create new opportunities, stimulating production even more. " Herman Daly and Joshua Farley. Mass consumption is actually responsible, that is to say, having given power to multinational incarnated in Brussels venerating the immorality of profit, which sell their products on a global market so fawning free trade (produce cheaply, avoiding too strict health and pollution standards and paying less tax), requiring mass production and causing the disappearance of localism. Globalization has spent the greater speed and M.Onfray says nothing or almost (for refractory!). After born in the 60 and 70 numbers of laws for the protection of the environment, the 80s marked the advent of total liberalism in the West, and Reagan said: "A tree is a tree: how many other trees you need to contemplate? ". M.Onfray simply denounce texts from there 20 centuries and everyone unaware. This is unfortunate because it undermines its credibility and demeans its reflection.
My criticism of Christianity is much more about a fact which Mr. Onfray as reactionary could talk. Christianity is guilty of men cut the roots. He is guilty of forced conversions and destruction of entire libraries. Mr. Onfray says reactionary but do not make the connection between the similarity of the methods of globalism of today and that of Christianity. Christianity took advantage of the ignorance and good heart for people through Jesus's message of peace, to bamboozle domination purposes. Today the vast majority of people do not know what globalism (meaning single government, different from globalization). Like Christianity, he says universal, so dedicated to the conquest, and also has its message of peace to deceive ignorant people and good heart: freedom and human rights. Globalism needs to dominate, like Christianity in his day, people cut from their roots. The main technique does not change: the propaganda and education of the school. Modern man must be cut off from its roots for man rooted not accepting disappear. The reactionary is demonized as the heathen at the time, and world stultifying cultural objects and clears traditions. As in the Christianization of Europe, globalism is a change of civilization or people are completely misinformed. As in Christianity at the time of the Emperor Julian (370 AD), the globalists are a minority but want power and hold it by placing their agents at the head of all institutions. Today they are incarnated through Freemasonry. The republic is a Masonic creation, to understand the republic must understand the ideal Freemason, namely internationalist and empiricist (include here the excellent "Masonry and secret societies" of Epiphanius which is not conspiracy like many writings on Illuminati or others). Like Christianity or Islam, the republic is in its "Statute" universal, so dedicated to the conquest. Besides the first thing she did was to declare war on the whole of Europe in the name of human rights, a subject still current. As Mr. Onfray at Christianization, globalism is ethnocide.
When about the historical existence of Jesus or not, M.Onfray seems to have so something against the monotheistic religions, and by his atheism which removes the spiritual side, that just says the key events of Jesus' life are coincidentally stalled on pagan solstice celebrations or equinox moon or sun.
If this is indeed troubling, when one searches the deep spirituality, we understand that religions have two messages: one for mass (the dogmas seen to dominate) and for insiders. And that message for insiders is exactly the same in the different religions, and that can be found through alchemy. It is with an interest in alchemy that can actually ask about the existence of Jesus, because it brings much deeper arguments of atheism M.Onfray. To my knowledge, I can cite two major works: "light the material" P. Burensteinas and excellentissime "The Light of the way" of Isha Schwaller de Lubicz. Spirituality readers, do not miss it.
Cosmos is also a rewarding database on many books more or less known but certainly very informative about the topics covered. If one ignores this fact, I preferred more another book of the same kind: "Towards the happy sobriety" by Pierre Rabhi. 120 pages right to the point, written by one of the best pen I had to read.
Advocating materialism since the author is an atheist, something that does not bother me at all because paganism is in no case apostolic and free will are of major significance ("Due to free will, no religious war in Gentiles ", Nietzsche), but spirituality is therefore absent. I specify that these pagan materialism, that is to say the small pleasures of life, and not a mass and decadent materialism.
To those interested or curious about paganism, I can recommend these books very successful:
- "How to be a pagan?", Alain de Benoist (long and very intellectual)
- "Pagan background," Christopher Gerard (shorter and accessible to all)
- "Defense of paganism against the Galileans" Emperor Julian (accessible and available in any size)
Also, you can discover the GREECE Site
