By Charles Upton
Pub Date: 07/2001
Publisher: Sophia Perennis
Binding: Paper, 576pp.
ISBN: 0900588306
Our Price: 10% off $27.95

Related Books: Tradition and Religion Today,  The New Age

Charles Upton brings to wider public attention a new religious phenomenon. Neither religious fundamentalism nor liberal ecumenism, neither occultism nor the New Age--the return of Traditional Metaphysics, based on the doctrine of The Transcendent Unity of Religions, drawn from the little-known writings of the Traditionalist School that includes Ananda Coomaraswamy, Frithjof Schuon, Titus Burckhardt, Martin Lings, Seyyed hossein Nasr, Leo Schaya, and others--founded by modern metaphysician and prophetic writer Renè Guènon, who died in 1950. This phenomenon is the true Third Force in spirituality today.

The System of Antichrist is based on an extensive study of comparative religion and metaphysics, thirteen years practicing under the guidance of a Sufi master, and first-hand experience of the Beatnic scene, the liberal peace movement, the "psychedelic" counterculture and the New Age movement. Through Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism and Zoroastrianism, Upton traces the doctrine of Antichrist as a negative force that explains contemporary social and individual fragmentation and decay. In an exegesis that is centered on the Truth of traditional metaphysics, he explains the psychic phenomenon of UFO's, delves into the pitfalls of postmodern "philosophy", and  identifies the hazards and inconsistencies of occultism and the New Age.

Consistent with his theme of the deterioration and materialization of society and community, Upton illuminates the signs that mark the end of the cosmic cycle known in Hinduism as the Kali Yuga (Iron Age). The legends from a variety of religions, from Christianity to the Hopi and Lakota Indians, show correspondence and consistency in their reflection of the eternal meaning of the end of "this world," of Antichrist as both historical figure and symbol of the human ego, and of the awakening from the illusory dream of of "this world" when the ego is annihilated in God.

The System of Antichrist is a valuable resource for people seeking insight into the unique spiritual dangers and opportunities of the end times, and those looking for social, psychological and spiritual orientation in the face of the Apocalypse.

Review by Rama Coomaraswamy

Charles Upton’s System of Antichrist is a remarkable text in many ways. Not only is it a cogent discussion that leads through the many confusions associated with the current religious and pseudo-religious offerings available to serious spiritual seekers, it is animated by true stories of a person who has sampled many of their seeming delights. It is not unusual to find fundamentalist Christians to lose sight of the essential truth of their religion—in their attacks new age religions they themselves make similar errors. What is unusual is that Mr. Upton is a Muslim who overcame many of the challenges of the modern world by embracing the religion of Mohammed, but at the same time, he never lost respect for the truth to be found in his Christian origins

His critique of the present religious scene is based not on feelings or anger, but on a more metaphysical understanding of evil, the evil outside of us, and above all the evil within us, which make us susceptible and draws us to the evil outside of us. He allows us to share his own experiences as he progressed through life, and shows us how, by a study and acceptance of the teachings of all the revealed religions, and of their legitimate exponents, he not only was gifted in seeing through many errors, but was able to grow in the love of God and wisdom.

Mr. Upton’s critique is essentially a metaphysical one, as indeed it must be to be effective, but it is gentle and even chivalrous. He is not out to slay his enemies, but rather to expose their errors lest others continue to fall into traps he himself has known only too well. With this in view, the book starts out by defining the dominant themes of the post-modernist outlook, comparing them to what for lack of a better term can be called the “traditionalist” view of reality. He then proceeds to define the true nature of the new age movement and the dangers involved in being involved in the occult, and in the process he identifies the commonalities and clearly refutes the doctrines of these movements.

By choosing  several well-known, potentially harmful, pseudo-religious movements for closer examination, Mr. Upton provides guidelines for the recognition and avoidance of the pitfalls of these and other such movements that we may be exposed to now or in the future; it would seem that as one dies, ten others spring up in their place under new names or styles. Among those considered in detail are the Seth material, A Course in Miracles, The Celestine Prophecy, Don Carlos Castenaeda and the pseudo-Hindu teachings of Deepak Chopra. With these examples in mind, it becomes clear how easy it is for us to become centered in the unreliable source of truth presented by our psyches and feelings—“the fallacy of the psychic absolute.” His discussion of the dangers of “channeling,” which in one form or another is encouraged by all these movements, is excellent.

The book is a great help because, although the author is a practicing Moslem, his familiarity with other traditions such as Christianity and Hinduism demonstrate the universality of his critique. It is not a question of one man’s point of view, or even the perspective of one religion, but rather the universal conceptions of “traditionalists”. The book is aptly named The System of Antichrist; as the author points out, while the Antichrist may be seen as an individual of great power who attempts to replace God, there are in fact, as the Apostle John taught, “many Antichrists,” each contributing to the systematic attempt to displace the Good. In each of us there is the lurking Antichrist of our unredeemed ego, constantly trying to replace and supplant the Spirit of God that dwells within us. Mr. Upton’s book brings us far in unveiling the deviousness of the Antichrist, and showing how that Spirit within each of us can take its rightful place.

-Rama Coomaraswamy, May 2001