Mircea Eliade
(1907-1986)
Mircea Eliade was an erudite in the comparative
history of religions, novelist, essayist,
philosopher. He was born in 1907, March 8,
in Bucharest and had died in 1986, April 22,
in Chicago - US. Mircea Eliade was a personality
of mondial renown.
His father was Gh. Eliade an infantry capitain.
Being a precocious child, he had made his
debut at 13 years old, at the Popular Sciences
Newspaper. He had spent his childhood in Râmnicu-Sarat,
Cernavoda and Bucuresti. In his adolescence,
being student at the "Spiru Haret"
highschool he had written articles and short
stories. Mircea Eliade have had finished the
Letters and Philosophy University in Bucharest,
at 21 years old, and went to India, at Calcutta,
studying the sanscrite and yoga with Dasgupta.
He was living in the house of his teacher
and he have falled in love with Maitreyi,
the daughter of his host (life experience
which will be reflected in his first novel).
He had returned in the country, after 3 years,
and obtained his doctorate with a disertation
about yoga. He was the universitary assistent
of Nae Ionescu. In 1933 he had published the
novel Maitreyi, which was a big succes (was
awarded). He had a religions history course.
Mircea Eliade had published the novels: Întoarcea
din rai, Lumina ce se stinge, Domnisoara Christina,
Nunta în cer, Secretul doctorului Honigberger
and the story La tiganci.
In 1940 he was cultural attaché in
London, and next in Lisbon. After the war
he remained in exile in Paris and published
his famous work Religions History Treatise
(1949). From 1957, he had lived in Chicago
where he was the head of the religions history
department at the University. Begining with
1979 he had published his capital scientific
work: The history of the religious believes
and ideas, 3 volumes, for which the French
state awarded him with the Honour Legion and
the French Academy with Bordin Prize.
He had wrote over 40 scientific studies (translated
in 16 languages) and 20 novels, stories and
short stories.
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