Spiritualism (philosophy)


In philosophy, spiritualism is the concept, shared by a wide variety of systems of thought, that there is an immaterial reality that cannot be perceived by the senses. This includes philosophies that postulate a personal God, the immortality of the soul, or the immortality of the intellect or will, as well as any systems of thought that assume a universal mind or cosmic forces lying beyond the reach of purely materialistic interpretations.
Generally, any philosophical position, be it dualism, monism, atheism, theism, pantheism, idealism or any other, is compatible with spiritualism as long as it allows for a reality beyond matter. Theism is an example of a dualist spiritualist philosophy, while pantheism is an example of monist spiritualism.

French Spiritualism

This label applies to a wide range of thinkers with widely differing views. It connects christian authors, from Augustine and Ignatius to Fénelon and Pascal. Descartes gave french spiritualism its decisive defense and privileging of science. Typically the tradition marks its start with Pierre Maine de Biran who was a follower of Leibniz and provided an alternative to Kant in France. The central concern of Maine de Biran was to understanding physiology, psychology, and perception from within, as lived, through first hand evidence, attempting an empirical study of spirit. His most important contributions are perhaps his reflections on habit which inspired Félix Ravaisson's Of Habit, and can be found in Henri Bergson, and later phenomenologists Maurice Merleau-Ponty and Paul Ricœur. During the years of Victor Cousin spiritualism reigned in french universities, but with an emphasis towards history of philosophy and metaphysical psychology. The post Cousin era, lead by Ravaisson's ideal of positivist spiritualism, Paul Janet, Jules Lachelier, Alfred Jules Émile Fouillée, Jules Tannery and others, shifted the focus towards philosophy of science, especially medicine and physiology. There are several scientists considered to be par of this tradition: Claude Bernard, Pierre Janet, Théodule-Armand Ribot, Charles Richet.

Notable spiritualist thinkers

  • Aristotle
  • Henri Bergson
  • Maine de Biran
  • F. H. Bradley
  • Émile Boutroux
  • Victor Cousin
  • René Descartes
  • Giovanni Gentile
  • William Ernest Hocking
  • Alfred Jules Émile Fouillée
  • Jean-Marie Guyau
  • Paul Janet
  • Pierre Janet
  • Jules Lachelier
  • Louis Lavelle
  • René Le Senne
  • Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
  • Pindar
  • Plato
  • Josiah Royce