ABSTRACT
This chapter considers some of the questions that most preoccupied Ananda Coomaraswamy during his lifetime of writing and extensive research. It presents the general process of thought that led him to his insistence on the need for scrupulous study of, and then adherence to, traditional symbolism. Coomaraswamy, however, acted upon the premise that for discussion of works of art to be truly valid, it necessarily entailed constant reference to religious 'ends'. He has been charged on occasion with idealizing the virtues of the pre-industrial, feudal type of community and the values which inspired traditional craftsmanship. His writings bear out such insights and point insistently to recognition of the Pure Land situated within the heart. Coomaraswamy commends the former usage of the word and particularly the emphasis on ornament as necessary for 'effective operation'. Coomaraswamy himself took the degree of consistency in symbolic expression as a reliable measure of its authenticity.
