‘Rites and Symbols of Initiation’ Published in Persian

‘Rites and Symbols of Initiation: The Mysteries of Birth and Rebirth’, a research book by Romanian historian of religion, philosopher and fiction writer Mircea Eliade (1907-1986) has been published in Persian by Tehran-based ‘Parseh Institute for Translation and Publication of Books.’

The book has been translated into Persian by essayist, translator and specialist in symbology Mohammad Kazem Mohajeri, 39. Earlier in 2008, Mohajeri translated ‘Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy’, another of Eliade’s notable books, Honaronline reported.

‘Rites and Symbols of Initiation’ was first published in 1958 and Eliade, a preeminent interpreter of world religion in the 20th century, lays out the basic patterns of initiation.

The book provides detail on the rites of passage, ceremonies that mark important transitional periods in a person’s life, from cultures the world over. Eliade lays out the basic patterns of initiation: entrance into secret cults, shamanic instruction and individual visions. Medicine men, magical substances, quartz crystals, pearl shells, spirit snakes and Melanesian mummification are also among the subjects covered in the book.

The vast information assembled in the work transcends usual scholarship. Eliade always affirms the greater experience in all initiation, the indissoluble tie between humans and the cosmos of gods, spirits, animals, ancestors, and nature.

Mircea Eliade has been published extensively in the history of religions and is regarded as one of the most influential scholars of religion of the 20th century as well as interpreter of religious symbolism and myth.

He was editor-in-chief of Macmillan’s Encyclopedia of Religion.