The Epistemology of Mysticism in Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s Perennialism and Its Relevance to Contemporary Islamic Studies in Indonesia

Abstract

Modern humans face three fundamental problems: existential-spiritual crises, humanitarian crises, and global environmental crises. These crises are the impact of modernity and Western anthropocentric views, which tend to disregard the existence of God and the values of the traditional wisdom of religions, including Sufism, or Islamic mysticism. This article examines the perspective of Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s perennialism, especially its epistemological construction of Islamic mysticism and its relevance to the study of contemporary Islamic thought in Indonesia. This qualitative philosophical study uses the verstehen, interpretation-hermeneutic, and analysis methods. The results show that, first, epistemologically, mysticism in Nasr's perennialist perspective is derived from the monotheistic doctrine as the core of Islamic spirituality. Second, Nasr’s perennial philosophy emphasizes the core unity of all spiritual and metaphysical traditions while respecting the diversity of existing religious and philosophical traditions. Third, Nasr’s mystical thought influences themes widely discussed in Indonesian Islamic academic studies, including art, perennialism, Sufism, spirituality, environmental theology, and modern Islamic intellectualism. Additionally, Nasr’s perennialism can serve as a conceptual foundation for the development of Strengthening Religious Moderation (PMB) policies to address exclusivism and religious intolerance in Indonesia.