René Guénon (1886–1951), a towering figure in the perennialist school of thought, dedicated much of his intellectual life to defending the primacy of metaphysical principles against the encroachments of modernity. In his philosophy he advances the conviction that human beings possess a faculty or appetite for the transcendent—an innate capacity to apprehend the divine, the universal, and the eternal—which he refers to as the “superconscious.” This faculty, he argues, stands above the limited scope of the individual psyche and the material world, serving as the bridge between man and the metaphysical order. From Guénon’s perspective, modern psychology, as a “mundane science,” fundamentally misunderstands human nature by reducing it to empirical, temporal, and individualistic phenomena, thereby neglecting the superconscious and its significance.
Guénon’s metaphysical framework is rooted in what he calls the “Primordial Tradition,” a universal truth underlying all authentic spiritual traditions. For Guénon, the human being is not merely a biological or psychological entity but a microcosm reflecting the macrocosmic order of reality. Within this schema, the superconscious represents the highest faculty of human consciousness, distinct from both the ordinary conscious mind and the subconscious. Unlike the subconscious, which modern psychology—particularly in its Freudian and Jungian forms—explores as a repository of repressed instincts or collective archetypes, the superconscious is an active, supra-individual principle oriented toward the eternal and the absolute. It is the seat of intellectual intuition, a direct apprehension of metaphysical truths that transcends rational analysis or sensory experience. Guénon would argue that psychology’s failure to recognize this faculty stems from its confinement to the “profane” domain, a term he uses to describe sciences divorced from sacred principles.
Modern psychology, as it emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, sought to establish itself as a rigorous empirical discipline, modeled after the natural sciences. Figures like Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and later behaviorists like B.F. Skinner focused on observable behaviors, unconscious drives, or measurable cognitive processes. Guénon would view this methodological choice as emblematic of modernity’s materialist bias, which reduces the human being to a mere aggregate of physical and mental functions. Psychology, in his eyes, exemplifies the “reign of quantity”—a phrase he coined to describe the modern obsession with the measurable and the contingent at the expense of qualitative, transcendent realities. By limiting its scope to the psyche (from the Greek psyche, meaning “soul” but stripped of its metaphysical connotations in modern usage), psychology ignores the superconscious, which operates beyond the individual ego and the temporal flux of emotions or thoughts.
For Guénon, the superconscious is not a psychological phenomenon but a metaphysical one, aligned with what traditional doctrines call the “Intellect” (with a capital “I”) or the “heart” in its esoteric sense. This faculty enables man to participate in the divine order, accessing truths that lie beyond the reach of discursive reasoning or empirical observation. Psychology’s preoccupation with the subconscious, as seen in Freud’s emphasis on repressed desires or Jung’s exploration of the collective unconscious, would strike Guénon as a descent into the “infra-human” rather than an ascent toward the “supra-human.” While Jung’s concept of archetypes might superficially resemble Guénon’s notion of universal principles, Guénon would likely dismiss it as a psychologized distortion, lacking the ontological grounding of true metaphysical symbols. The superconscious, in contrast, is not a product of human imagination or evolutionary heritage but a reflection of the eternal archetypes inherent in the divine Intellect.
Guénon’s critique would extend to psychology’s therapeutic aims, which he might see as symptomatic of its mundane orientation. Modern psychology seeks to alleviate suffering, resolve inner conflicts, or enhance personal well-being—all goals confined to the individual and temporal sphere. While these aims are not inherently objectionable, Guénon would argue that they reflect a profound misdiagnosis of human malaise. For him, the root of human discontent lies not in unresolved psychological complexes but in the soul’s estrangement from its metaphysical purpose—the realization of the superconscious. By treating symptoms within the psyche rather than addressing this deeper spiritual alienation, psychology perpetuates the illusion that man can find fulfillment within the profane world. Guénon might liken this to a physician treating a surface wound while ignoring a fatal internal injury.
Moreover, Guénon would likely accuse psychology of contributing to the “inversion” of traditional hierarchies, a recurring theme in his work. In traditional metaphysics, the faculties of the human being are ordered hierarchically: the superconscious (or Intellect) reigns supreme, followed by reason, imagination, and the senses. Psychology, by contrast, inverts this order, elevating the subconscious or the rational mind while ignoring the superconscious altogether. This inversion mirrors the broader modern tendency to prioritize the material over the spiritual, the individual over the universal. Guénon might point to the rise of psychoanalysis as a particularly egregious example, where the subconscious—a realm of chaotic impulses and shadowy residues—usurps the role of the guiding principle, effectively dethroning the higher faculties that define man’s true nature.
Another dimension of Guénon’s critique would target psychology’s secularism. As a discipline born in the post-Enlightenment West, psychology operates within a framework that eschews the sacred, treating religious experiences as psychological phenomena to be explained rather than as manifestations of metaphysical realities. Guénon, who saw authentic spirituality as the antidote to modernity’s ills, would view this as a fatal flaw. The superconscious, in his system, is inseparable from the sacred; it is the faculty through which man communes with the divine. By reducing mystical states or spiritual aspirations to neuroses, archetypes, or coping mechanisms, psychology not only misrepresents them but also denies their objective validity. This desacralization, for Guénon, is a hallmark of the “mundane sciences,” which lack the initiatic knowledge necessary to comprehend the higher dimensions of existence.
In conclusion, René Guénon would likely criticize modern psychology as a mundane science for its failure to recognize the superconscious—the metaphysical appetite or faculty that distinguishes man as a being oriented toward the transcendent. By confining itself to the empirical, the individual, and the profane, psychology neglects the supra-individual and eternal dimensions of human consciousness, thereby offering an incomplete and distorted picture of human nature. For Guénon, this omission is not merely a theoretical error but a symptom of modernity’s spiritual crisis, which severs man from his divine potential. While psychology may succeed in mapping the lower reaches of the psyche, it remains blind to the heights of the superconscious, where true knowledge and fulfillment reside. In Guénon’s uncompromising vision, only a return to metaphysical principles and the recognition of the superconscious can restore the sciences—including psychology—to their proper role as servants of the sacred rather than as architects of a desacralized world.