ABSTRACT
Theatre, magic and perennial philosophy had a complex relationship with religion, both in terms of affinities and contrasts. In spite of considering themselves as acting and thinking within a Christian framework, philosophers, magicians and playwrights were kept under observation, criticized or persecuted in the name of religion. The affinities of these domains with religion are structural. Religion connects the participants in a ritual to its grounding events, binding the present with the past, but it also places the believers in the timelessness of the spiritual dimension. The religious ritual has a mimetic character as it replicates or evokes symbolically events constitutive of the respective religion. Analogical thought is another feature that perennial philosophy, theatre and magic share with religion. Analogously to religion, these fields have their foundation in belief. Analogical thought is another feature that perennial philosophy, theatre and magic share with religion.
