Editing Mircea Eliade (section)

==Biography==
{{Anthropology of religion}}
{{Philosophy of religion sidebar}}

===Childhood===
Born in [[Bucharest]], he was the son of [[Romanian Land Forces]] officer Gheorghe Eliade (whose original surname was Ieremia)<ref name="Biografie in Handoca">''Biografie'', in Handoca</ref><ref name="smihai">Silviu Mihai, [http://www.cotidianul.ro/index.php?id=3920&art=8997&diraut=123&cHash=ae6af0be58 "A doua viaţă a lui Mircea Eliade" ("Mircea Eliade's Second Life")], in ''[[Cotidianul]]'', February 6, 2006; retrieved July 31, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref> and Jeana ''née'' Vasilescu.<ref name="Căl. p.956">Călinescu, p. 956</ref> An [[Romanian Orthodox Church|Orthodox]] believer, Gheorghe Eliade registered his son's birth four days before the actual date, to coincide with the [[Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar|liturgical calendar]] feast of the [[Forty Martyrs of Sebaste]].<ref name="smihai"/> Mircea Eliade had a sister, Corina, the mother of [[Semiotics|semiologist]] [[Sorin Alexandrescu]].<ref name="scnostal">Simona Chiţan, "Nostalgia după România" ("Nostalgia for Romania"), interview with Sorin Alexandrescu, in ''[[Evenimentul Zilei]]'', June 24, 2006</ref><ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> His family moved between [[Tecuci]] and Bucharest, ultimately settling in the capital in 1914,<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> and purchasing a house on Melodiei Street, near [[Piața Rosetti]], where Mircea Eliade resided until late in his teens.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo">Sergio Vila-Sanjuán, [http://www.lavanguardia.com/cultura/20070530/51355796343/paseo-por-el-bucarest-de-mircea-eliade.html "Paseo por el Bucarest de Mircea Eliade" ("Passing through Mircea Eliade's Bucharest")], in ''[[La Vanguardia]]'', May 30, 2007 {{in lang|es}}; retrieved January 16, 2008</ref>

Eliade kept a particularly fond memory of his childhood and, later in life, wrote about the impact various unusual episodes and encounters had on his mind. In one instance during the [[World War I|World War&nbsp;I]] [[Romanian Campaign (World War I)|Romanian Campaign]], when Eliade was about ten years of age, he witnessed the bombing of Bucharest by [[German Empire|German]] [[zeppelin]]s and the patriotic fervor in the occupied capital at news that Romania was able to stop the [[Central Powers]]' advance into [[Moldavia]].<ref name="ihincep">[[Ion Hadârcă]], [http://www.sud-est.md/numere/20070428/article_3/ "Mircea Eliade la începuturi" ("Mircea Eliade at His Beginnings")] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071108070458/http://www.sud-est.md/numere/20070428/article_3/ |date=2007-11-08 }}, in ''Revista Sud-Est'', 1/2007; retrieved January 21, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>

He described this stage in his life as marked by an unrepeatable [[epiphany (feeling)|epiphany]].<ref name="ipcmahapar">[[Ioan P. Culianu]], "Mahaparanirvana", in [http://www.elhilodeariadna.org/index.asp ''El Hilo de Ariadna''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071230010917/http://www.elhilodeariadna.org/index.asp |date=2007-12-30 }}, Vol. II</ref><ref name="Ellwood98-99">Ellwood, pp. 98–99</ref> Recalling his entrance into a drawing room that an "eerie iridescent light" had turned into "a fairy-tale palace", he wrote,
<blockquote>I practiced for many years [the] exercise of recapturing that epiphanic moment, and I would always find again the same plenitude. I would slip into it as into a fragment of time devoid of duration—without beginning, middle, or end. During my last years of lycée, when I struggled with profound attacks of [[Depression (mood)|melancholy]], I still succeeded at times in returning to the golden green light of that afternoon. [...] But even though the beatitude was the same, it was now impossible to bear because it aggravated my sadness too much. By this time I knew the world to which the drawing room belonged [...] was a world forever lost.<ref>Eliade, ''Autobiography'', in Ellwood, pp. 98–99</ref></blockquote>

[[Robert S. Ellwood|Robert Ellwood]], a professor of religion who did his graduate studies under Mircea Eliade,<ref>Ellwood, p. 5</ref> saw this type of [[nostalgia]] as one of the most characteristic themes in Eliade's life and academic writings.<ref name="Ellwood98-99"/>

===Adolescence and literary debut===
After completing his primary education at the school on Mântuleasa Street,<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> Eliade attended the [[Spiru Haret National College]] in the same class as [[Arșavir Acterian]], [[Haig Acterian]], and [[Petre Viforeanu]] (and several years the senior of [[Nicolae Steinhardt]], who eventually became a close friend of Eliade's).<ref name="Steinhardt, in Handoca">Steinhardt, in Handoca</ref> Among his other colleagues was future philosopher [[Constantin Noica]]<ref name="smihai"/> and Noica's friend, future art historian [[Barbu Brezianu]].<ref>Veronica Marinescu, [http://www.curierulnational.ro/Specializat/2004-03-13/%E2%80%9CAm+luat+din+intamplarile+vietii+tot+ce+este+mai+frumos%E2%80%9D,+spune+cercetatorul+operei+brancusiene " 'Am luat din întâmplările vieții tot ce este mai frumos', spune cercetătorul operei brâncușiene" (" 'I Took the Best Out of Life's Occurrences', Says Researcher of Brâncuși's Work")] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180526190816/http://www.curierulnational.ro/Specializat/2004-03-13/%E2%80%9CAm+luat+din+intamplarile+vietii+tot+ce+este+mai+frumos%E2%80%9D,+spune+cercetatorul+operei+brancusiene|date=2018-05-26}}, interview with [[Barbu Brezianu]], in ''[[Curierul Național]]'', March 13, 2004; retrieved February 22, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>

As a child, Eliade was fascinated with the natural world, which formed the setting of his very first literary attempts,<ref name="smihai"/> as well as with [[Romanian folklore]] and the Christian faith as expressed by peasants.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> Growing up, he aimed to find and record what he believed was the common source of all religious traditions.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> The young Eliade's interest in physical exercise and adventure led him to pursue [[mountaineering]] and sailing,<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> and he also joined the [[Cercetașii României|Romanian Boy Scouts]].<ref>Maria Vlădescu, "100 de ani de cercetaşi" ("100 Years of Scouting"), in ''[[Evenimentul Zilei]]'', August 2, 2007</ref>

With a group of friends, he designed and sailed a boat on the [[Danube]], from [[Tulcea]] to the [[Black Sea]].<ref>Constantin Roman, ''Continental Drift: Colliding Continents, Converging Cultures'', [[CRC Press]], [[Institute of Physics Publishing]], Bristol and Philadelphia, 2000, p. 60 {{ISBN|0-7503-0686-6}}</ref> In parallel, Eliade grew estranged from the educational environment, becoming disenchanted with the discipline required and obsessed with the idea that he was uglier and less virile than his colleagues.<ref name="smihai"/> To cultivate his willpower, he would force himself to swallow insects<ref name="smihai"/> and only slept four to five hours a night.<ref name="ihincep"/> At one point, Eliade was failing four subjects, among which was the study of the [[Romanian language]].<ref name="smihai"/>

Instead, he became interested in [[natural science]] and [[chemistry]], as well as the [[occult]],<ref name="smihai"/> and wrote short pieces on [[Entomology|entomological]] subjects.<ref name="ihincep"/> Despite his father's concern that he was in danger of losing his already weak eyesight, Eliade read passionately.<ref name="smihai"/> One of his favorite authors was [[Honoré de Balzac]], whose work he studied carefully.<ref name="smihai"/><ref name="ihincep"/> Eliade also became acquainted with the [[Modernism|modernist]] short stories of [[Giovanni Papini]] and [[social anthropology]] studies by [[James George Frazer]].<ref name="ihincep"/>

His interest in the two writers led him to learn Italian and English in private, and he also began studying [[Persian language|Persian]] and [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]].<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/><ref name="ihincep"/> At the time, Eliade became acquainted with [[Saadi (poet)|Saadi]]'s poems and the ancient [[Mesopotamia]]n ''[[Epic of Gilgamesh]]''.<ref name="ihincep"/> He was also interested in philosophy—studying, among others, [[Socrates]], [[Vasile Conta]], and the [[Stoicism|Stoics]] [[Marcus Aurelius]] and [[Epictetus]], and read works of history—the two Romanian historians who influenced him from early on were [[Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu]] and [[Nicolae Iorga]].<ref name="ihincep"/> His first published work was the 1921 ''Inamicul viermelui de mătase'' ("The Silkworm's Enemy"),<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> followed by ''Cum am găsit piatra filosofală'' ("How I Found the [[Philosopher's stone|Philosophers' Stone]]").<ref name="ihincep"/> Four years later, Eliade completed work on his debut volume, the autobiographical ''[[Romanul Adolescentului Miop|Novel of the Nearsighted Adolescent]]''.<ref name="ihincep"/>

===University studies and Indian sojourn===

Between 1925 and 1928, he attended the [[University of Bucharest]]'s Faculty of Philosophy and Letters in 1928, earning his diploma with a study on Early Modern Italian philosopher [[Tommaso Campanella]].<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> In 1927, Eliade traveled to Italy, where he met Papini<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> and collaborated with the scholar [[Giuseppe Tucci]].

It was during his student years that Eliade met [[Nae Ionescu]], who lectured in [[Logic]], becoming one of his disciples and friends.<ref name="smihai"/><ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/><ref>Călinescu, pp. 954, 955; Nastasă, p. 76</ref> He was especially attracted to Ionescu's radical ideas and his interest in religion, which signified a break with the [[Rationalism|rationalist]] tradition represented by senior academics such as [[Constantin Rădulescu-Motru]], [[Dimitrie Gusti]], and [[Tudor Vianu]] (all of whom owed inspiration to the defunct literary society ''[[Junimea]]'', albeit in varying degrees).<ref name="smihai"/>

Eliade's scholarly works began after a long period of study in [[British India]], at the [[University of Calcutta]]. Finding that the [[Maharaja]] of [[Kassimbazar]] sponsored European scholars to study in India, Eliade applied and was granted an allowance for four years, which was later doubled by a Romanian scholarship.<ref name="Nastasă, p.237">Nastasă, p. 237</ref> In autumn 1928, he sailed for [[Calcutta]] to study [[Sanskrit]] and philosophy under [[Surendranath Dasgupta]], a [[Bengal]]i [[University of Cambridge|Cambridge alumnus]] and professor at Calcutta University, the author of a five volume ''History of Indian Philosophy''. Before reaching the [[Indian subcontinent]], Eliade also made a brief visit to [[Egypt]].<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> Once in India, he visited large areas of the region, and spent a short period at a [[Himalaya]]n ''[[ashram]]''.<ref>McGuire, p. 150; Nastasă, p. 237</ref>

He studied the basics of [[Indian philosophy]], and, in parallel, learned Sanskrit, [[Pali]] and [[Bengali language|Bengali]] under Dasgupta's direction.<ref name="Nastasă, p.237"/> At the time, he also became interested in the actions of [[Mahatma Gandhi]] and the ''[[Satyagraha]]'' as a phenomenon; later, Eliade adapted Gandhian ideas in his discourse on spirituality and Romania.

In 1930, while living with Dasgupta, Eliade fell in love with his host's daughter, [[Maitreyi Devi]], later writing a barely disguised autobiographical novel ''[[Bengal Nights (novel)|Maitreyi]]'' (also known as "La Nuit Bengali" or "Bengal Nights"), in which he claimed that he carried on a physical relationship with her.<ref name="kamani">Ginu Kamani, [http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/143651.html "A Terrible Hurt: The Untold Story behind the Publishing of Maitreyi Devi"], at the University of Chicago Press website; retrieved July 16, 2007</ref>

Eliade received his PhD in 1933, with a thesis on [[Yoga]] practices.<ref name="smihai"/><ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/><ref>''Biografie'', in Handoca; Nastasă, p. 237</ref><ref name="ribas">Albert Ribas, "Mircea Eliade, historiador de las religiones" ("Mircea Eliade, Historian of Religions"), in ''El Ciervo. Revista de pensamiento y cultura'', Año 49, Núm. 588 (Marzo 2000), pp. 35–38</ref> The book, which was translated into French three years later,<ref name="Nastasă, p.237"/> had significant impact in academia, both in Romania and abroad.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/>

He later recalled that the book was an early step for understanding not just Indian religious practices, but also Romanian spirituality.<ref>Eliade, in Nastasă, p. 238</ref> During the same period, Eliade began a correspondence with the [[Sri Lanka|Ceylonese]]-born philosopher [[Ananda Coomaraswamy]].<ref name="McGuire, p.150">McGuire, p. 150</ref> In 1936–1937, he functioned as honorary assistant for Ionescu's course, lecturing in [[Metaphysics]].<ref>Nastasă, p. 442; Ornea, p. 452</ref>

In 1933, Mircea Eliade had a physical relationship with the actress Sorana Țopa, while falling in love with Nina Mareș, whom he ultimately married.<ref name="scnostal"/><ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/><ref name="pcommare">[[Paul Cernat]], [http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=16282&print=true "Jurnalul unui om mare" ("The Diary of A Big Man")] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150603012848/http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=16282&print=true |date=June 3, 2015 }}, in ''[[Observator Cultural]]'', Nr. 338, September 2006; retrieved January 23, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref> The latter, introduced to him by his new friend [[Mihail Sebastian]], already had a daughter, Giza, from a man who had divorced her.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> Eliade subsequently adopted Giza,<ref name="Şora, Handoca">Șora, in Handoca</ref> and the three of them moved to an apartment at 141 [[Dacia Boulevard]].<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> He left his residence in 1936, during a trip he made to the United Kingdom and Germany, when he first visited London, [[Oxford]] and [[Berlin]].<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/>

===''Criterion'' and ''Cuvântul''===
[[File:Casa lui Eliade.jpg|thumb|250px|Eliade's home in [[Bucharest]] (1934–1940)]]

After contributing various and generally polemical pieces in university magazines, Eliade came to the attention of journalist [[Pamfil Șeicaru]], who invited him to collaborate on the [[Nationalism|nationalist]] paper ''[[Cuvântul]]'', which was noted for its harsh tones.<ref name="smihai"/> By then, ''Cuvântul'' was also hosting articles by Nae Ionescu.<ref name="smihai"/>

As one of the figures in the ''[[Criterion (literary society)|Criterion]]'' [[literary society]] (1933–1934), Eliade's initial encounter with the traditional far right was polemical: the group's conferences were stormed by members of [[A. C. Cuza]]'s [[National-Christian Defense League]], who objected to what they viewed as [[pacifism]] and addressed [[Antisemitism|antisemitic]] insults to several speakers, including Sebastian;<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bejan|first=Cristina A.|title=Intellectuals and Fascism in Interwar Romania: The Criterion Association|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|year=2019|isbn=978-3-030-20164-7|location=Cham, Switzerland}}</ref><ref>Ornea, pp. 150–151, 153</ref> in 1933, he was among the signers of a manifesto opposing [[Nazi Germany]]'s state-enforced racism.<ref>Ornea, pp. 174–175</ref>

In 1934, at a time when Sebastian was publicly insulted by Nae Ionescu, who prefaced his book (''De două mii de ani...'') with thoughts on the "eternal damnation" of Jews, Mircea Eliade spoke out against this perspective, and commented that Ionescu's references to the verdict "[[Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus|Outside the Church there is no salvation]]" contradicted the notion of God's [[omnipotence]].<ref name="aoamniotica"/><ref>Eliade, 1934, in Ornea, p. 408; see also Ellwood, p. 85</ref> However, he contended that Ionescu's text was not evidence of antisemitism.<ref>Eliade, 1934, in Ornea, pp. 408–409</ref>

In 1936, reflecting on the early history of the [[Kingdom of Romania|Romanian Kingdom]] and its [[History of the Jews in Romania|Jewish community]], he deplored the expulsion of Jewish scholars from Romania, making specific references to [[Moses Gaster]], [[Heimann Hariton Tiktin]] and [[Lazăr Șăineanu]].<ref>Eliade, 1936, in Ornea, p. 410</ref> Eliade's views at the time focused on innovation—in the summer of 1933, he replied to an anti-[[Modernism|modernist]] critique written by [[George Călinescu]]:
<blockquote>All I wish for is a deep change, a complete transformation. But, for God's sake, in any direction other than [[spirituality]].<ref>Eliade, 1933, in Ornea, p. 167</ref></blockquote>

He and friends [[Emil Cioran]] and [[Constantin Noica]] were by then under the influence of ''[[Trăirism]]'', a school of thought that was formed around the ideals expressed by Ionescu. A form of [[existentialism]], ''Trăirism'' was also the synthesis of traditional and newer right-wing beliefs.<ref>Ornea, Chapter IV</ref> Early on, a public polemic was sparked between Eliade and [[Camil Petrescu]]: the two eventually reconciled and later became good friends.<ref name="Şora, Handoca"/>

Like Mihail Sebastian, who was himself becoming influenced by Ionescu, he maintained contacts with intellectuals from all sides of the political spectrum: their entourage included the right-wing [[Dan Botta]] and [[Mircea Vulcănescu]], the non-political Petrescu and [[Ionel Jianu]], and [[Belu Zilber]], who was a member of the illegal [[Romanian Communist Party]].<ref name="tanasezilber2">[[Stelian Tănase]], [http://www.revista22.ro/html/index.php?art=569&nr=2003-08-18 "Belu Zilber", Part II] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927010402/http://www.revista22.ro/html/index.php?nr=2003-08-18&art=569 |date=2007-09-27 }}, in ''[[22 (magazine)|22]]'', Nr. 701, August 2003; retrieved October 4, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>

The group also included [[Haig Acterian]], [[Mihail Polihroniade]], [[Petru Comarnescu]], [[Marietta Sadova]] and [[Floria Capsali]].<ref name="aoamniotica">[[Andrei Oişteanu]], [https://archive.today/20071019121943/http://www.revista22.ro/html/index.php?nr=2007-12-05&art=4157 "Mihail Sebastian şi Mircea Eliade: cronica unei prietenii accidentate" ("Mihail Sebastian and Mircea Eliade: the Chronicle of an Abrupt Friendship)"], in ''[[22 (magazine)|22]]'', Nr. 926, December 2007; retrieved January 18, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>

He was also close to [[Mihail (Marcel) Avramescu|Marcel Avramescu]], a former [[Surrealism|Surrealist]] writer whom he introduced to the works of [[René Guénon]].<ref name="pccheie">[[Paul Cernat]], [http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=8679&print=true "Eliade în cheie ezoterică" ("Eliade in Esoterical Key")] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912131216/http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=8679&print=true |date=September 12, 2015 }}, review of Marcel Tolcea, ''Eliade, ezotericul'' ("Eliade, the Esoteric"), in ''[[Observator Cultural]]'', Nr. 175, July 2003; retrieved July 16, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref> A doctor in the [[Kabbalah]] and future [[Romanian Orthodox Church|Romanian Orthodox]] cleric, Avramescu joined Eliade in editing the short-lived [[Western esotericism|esoteric]] magazine ''Memra'' (the only one of its kind in Romania).<ref>[[Paul Cernat]], [https://web.archive.org/web/20110423225049/http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=14626 "Recuperarea lui Ionathan X. Uranus" ("The Recuperation of Ionathan X. Uranus")], in ''[[Observator Cultural]]'', Nr. 299, December 2005; retrieved November 22, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>

Among the intellectuals who attended his lectures were [[Mihai Şora]] (whom he deemed his favorite student), [[Eugen Schileru]] and [[Miron Constantinescu]]—known later as, respectively, a philosopher, an art critic, and a sociologist and political figure of the [[Communist Romania|communist regime]].<ref name="Şora, Handoca"/> [[Mariana Şora|Mariana Klein]], who became Șora's wife, was one of Eliade's female students, and later authored works on his scholarship.<ref name="Şora, Handoca"/>

Eliade later recounted that he had himself enlisted Zilber as a ''Cuvântul'' contributor, for him to provide a [[Marxism|Marxist]] perspective on the issues discussed by the journal.<ref name="tanasezilber2"/> Their relation soured in 1935, when the latter publicly accused Eliade of serving as an agent for the secret police, ''[[Siguranța Statului]]'' (Sebastian answered to the statement by alleging that Zilber was himself a secret agent, and the latter eventually retracted his claim).<ref name="tanasezilber2"/>

===1930s political transition===
Eliade's articles before and after his adherence to the principles of the [[Iron Guard]] (or, as it was usually known at the time, the ''Legionary Movement''), beginning with his ''Itinerar spiritual'' ("Spiritual Itinerary", serialized in ''Cuvântul'' in 1927), center on several political ideals advocated by the far right.

They displayed his rejection of [[Liberalism and radicalism in Romania|liberalism]] and the [[Modernization|modernizing]] goals of the [[1848 Wallachian revolution]] (perceived as "an abstract apology of Mankind"<ref>Eliade, 1933, in Ornea, p. 32.</ref> and "ape-like imitation of [Western] Europe"),<ref>Eliade, 1936, in Ornea, p. 32.</ref> as well as for democracy itself (accusing it of "managing to crush all attempts at national renaissance",<ref name="Eliade, 1937, in Ornea, p.53">Eliade, 1937, in Ornea, p. 53</ref> and later praising [[Benito Mussolini]]'s [[Italian fascism|Fascist Italy]] on the grounds that, according to Eliade, "[in Italy,] he who thinks for himself is promoted to the highest office in the shortest of times").<ref name="Eliade, 1937, in Ornea, p.53"/> He approved of an [[Ethnic nationalism|ethnic nationalist]] state centered on the Orthodox Church (in 1927, despite his still-vivid interest in [[Theosophy (Blavatskian)|Theosophy]], he recommended young intellectuals "the return to the Church"),<ref>Eliade, 1927, in Ornea, p. 147</ref> which he opposed to, among others, the [[Secularism|secular]] nationalism of [[Constantin Rădulescu-Motru]];<ref>Eliade, 1935, in Ornea, p. 128.</ref> referring to this particular ideal as "Romanianism", Eliade was, in 1934, still viewing it as "neither fascism, nor [[chauvinism]]".<ref>Eliade, 1934, in Ornea, p. 136</ref>

Eliade was especially dissatisfied with the incidence of unemployment among intellectuals, whose careers in state-financed institutions had been rendered uncertain by the [[Great Depression]].<ref>Eliade, 1933, in Ornea, pp. 178, 186.</ref>

In 1936, Eliade was the focus of a campaign in the far right press, being targeted for having authored "pornography" in his ''[[Miss Christina|Domnișoara Christina]]'' and ''Isabel și apele diavolului''; similar accusations were aimed at other cultural figures, including [[Tudor Arghezi]] and [[Geo Bogza]].<ref>Ornea, pp. 445–455.</ref> Assessments of Eliade's work were in sharp contrast to one another: also in 1936, Eliade accepted an award from the [[Romanian Writers' Society]], of which he had been a member since 1934.<ref>Nastasă, pp. 525–526.</ref> In summer 1937, through an official decision which came as a result of the accusations, and despite student protests, he was stripped of his position at the university.<ref>Nastasă, p. 86; Ornea, pp. 452–453; Şora, in Handoca</ref>

Eliade decided to sue the [[Minister of Education, Research and Youth (Romania)|Ministry of Education]], asking for a symbolic compensation of 1 [[Romanian leu|leu]].<ref name= "Ornea, p.453">Ornea, p. 453.</ref> He won the trial, and regained his position as Nae Ionescu's assistant.<ref name="Ornea, p.453" />

Nevertheless, by 1937, he gave his intellectual support to the Iron Guard, in which he saw "a Christian revolution aimed at creating a new Romania",<ref name="Eliade, 1937, in Ornea, p.203">Eliade, 1937, in Ornea, p. 203</ref> and a group able "to reconcile Romania with God".<ref name="Eliade, 1937, in Ornea, p.203"/> His articles of the time, published in Iron Guard-affiliated papers such as ''[[Sfarmă-Piatră]]'' and ''[[Buna Vestire]]'', contain ample praises of the movement's leaders ([[Corneliu Zelea Codreanu]], [[Ion Moța]], [[Vasile Marin]], and [[Gheorghe Cantacuzino-Grănicerul]]).<ref>Ornea, pp. 202–206</ref><ref name="oscaderea">[[Ovidiu Şimonca]], [http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=14834 "Mircea Eliade şi 'căderea în lume'" ("Mircea Eliade and 'the Descent into the World'")] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20121222064543/http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=14834|date=2012-12-22}}, review of Florin Ţurcanu, ''Mircea Eliade. Le prisonnier de l'histoire'' ("Mircea Eliade. The Prisoner of History"), in ''[[Observator Cultural]]'', Nr. 305, January–February 2006; retrieved July 16, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref> The transition he went through was similar to that of his fellow generation members and close collaborators—among the notable exceptions to this rule were [[Petru Comarnescu]], sociologist [[Henri H. Stahl]] and future dramatist [[Eugène Ionesco]], as well as Sebastian.<ref>Ornea, p. 180</ref>

He eventually enrolled in the ''Totul pentru Țară'' ("Everything for the Fatherland" Party), the political expression of the Iron Guard,<ref name="smihai"/><ref name="Ornea, p.207">Ornea, p. 207</ref> and contributed to its [[1937 Romanian general election|1937 electoral campaign]] in [[Prahova County]]—as indicated by his inclusion on a list of party members with [[Counties of Romania|county]]-level responsibilities (published in ''Buna Vestire'').<ref name="Ornea, p.207"/>

===Internment and diplomatic service===
The stance taken by Eliade resulted in his arrest on July 14, 1938, after a crackdown on the Iron Guard authorized by [[King of Romania|King]] [[Carol II of Romania|Carol II]]. At the time of his arrest, he had just interrupted a column on ''Provincia și legionarismul'' ("The Province and Legionary Ideology") in ''[[Vremea]]'', having been singled out by Prime Minister [[Armand Călinescu]] as an author of Iron Guard propaganda.<ref>Ornea, pp. 208–209</ref>

Eliade was kept for three weeks in a cell at the ''[[Siguranța|Siguranța Statului]]'' Headquarters, in an attempt to have him sign a "declaration of dissociation" with the Iron Guard, but he refused to do so.<ref name="Ornea, p.209">Ornea, p. 209</ref> In the first week of August he was transferred to a makeshift camp at [[Miercurea-Ciuc]]. When Eliade began coughing blood in October 1938, he was taken to a clinic in [[Moroeni]].<ref name="Ornea, p.209"/> Eliade was simply released on November 12, and subsequently spent his time writing his play ''Iphigenia'' (also known as ''Ifigenia'').<ref name="aoamniotica"/> In April 1940, with the help of [[Alexandru Rosetti]], he became Cultural Attaché to the United Kingdom, a posting cut short when Romanian-British foreign relations were broken.<ref name="Ornea, p.209"/>

After leaving London he was assigned the office of Counsel and [[Press secretary|Press Officer]] (later Cultural Attaché) to the Romanian Embassy in [[Portugal]],<ref name="pcommare"/><ref>''Biografie'', in Handoca; Nastasă, p. 442</ref><ref name="cavrcitim">[[Cătălin Avramescu]], [http://www.dilemaveche.ro/index.php?nr=135&cmd=articol&id=3508 "Citim una, înţelegem alta" ("We Read One Thing and Understand Another")] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160411015053/http://dilemaveche.ro/index.php?nr=135&cmd=articol&id=3508|date=2016-04-11}}, in ''[[Dilema Veche]]'', Vol. III, August 2006; retrieved January 28, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref><ref name="mlimpost">[[Michael Löwy]], [http://assr.revues.org/document3128.html Review of Daniel Dubuisson, ''Impostures et pseudo-science. L'œuvre de Mircea Eliade''], in [http://assr.revues.org/ ''Archives de Science Sociale et Religion''], 132 (2005) {{in lang|fr}}; retrieved January 22, 2008</ref> where he was kept on as diplomat by the [[National Legionary State]] (the Iron Guard government) and, ultimately, by [[Ion Antonescu]]'s regime. His office involved disseminating propaganda in favor of the Romanian state.<ref name="pcommare"/> In 1941, during his time in Portugal, Eliade stayed in [[Estoril]], at the Hotel Palácio. He would later find a house in [[Cascais]], at Rua da Saudade.<ref>[[Exiles Memorial Center]].</ref><ref>Pimentel, I. (2014) ''Cascais 650 anos:território, história, memória : 1364–2014'', Câmara Municipal de Cascais.</ref>

In February 1941, weeks after the bloody [[Legionnaires' rebellion and Bucharest pogrom|Legionary Rebellion]] was crushed by Antonescu, ''Iphigenia'' was staged by the [[National Theater Bucharest]]—the play soon raised concerns that it owed inspiration to the Iron Guard's ideology, and even that its inclusion in the program was a Legionary attempt at subversion.<ref name="aoamniotica"/>

In 1942, Eliade authored a volume in praise of the ''[[Estado Novo (Portugal)|Estado Novo]]'', established in Portugal by [[António de Oliveira Salazar]],<ref name="mlimpost"/><ref name="mesalaz">Eliade, ''Salazar'', in "Eliade despre Salazar" ("Eliade on Salazar"), ''[[Evenimentul Zilei]]'', October 13, 2002</ref><ref>Ellwood, p. 90</ref> claiming that "The Salazarian state, a Christian and [[Totalitarianism|totalitarian]] one, is first and foremost based on love".<ref name="mesalaz"/> On July 7 of the same year, he was received by Salazar himself, who assigned Eliade the task of warning Antonescu to withdraw the [[Romanian Army]] from the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]] ("[In his place], I would not be grinding it in Russia").<ref name="in Handoca">Eliade, in Handoca</ref> Eliade also claimed that such contacts with the leader of a neutral country had made him the target for [[Gestapo]] surveillance, but that he had managed to communicate Salazar's advice to [[Mihai Antonescu]], Romania's [[List of Romanian Foreign Ministers|Foreign Minister]].<ref name="in Handoca"/>

In autumn 1943, he traveled to [[German occupation of France during World War II|occupied France]], where he rejoined [[Emil Cioran]], also meeting with scholar [[Georges Dumézil]] and the [[Collaborationism|collaborationist]] writer [[Paul Morand]].<ref name="pcommare"/> At the same time, he applied for a position of lecturer at the [[University of Bucharest]], but withdrew from the race, leaving [[Constantin Noica]] and [[Ion Zamfirescu]] to dispute the position, in front of a panel of academics comprising [[Lucian Blaga]] and [[Dimitrie Gusti]] (Zamfirescu's eventual selection, going against Blaga's recommendation, was to be the topic of a controversy).<ref>Nastasă, pp. 442–443</ref> In his private notes, Eliade wrote that he took no further interest in the office, because his visits abroad had convinced him that he had "something great to say", and that he could not function within the confines of "a minor culture".<ref name="pcommare"/> Also during the war, Eliade traveled to [[Berlin]], where he met and conversed with controversial political theorist [[Carl Schmitt]],<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/><ref name="pcommare"/> and frequently visited [[Spain under Franco|Francoist Spain]], where he notably attended the 1944 Lusitano-Spanish scientific congress in [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]].<ref name="pcommare"/><ref name="jgspania">Joaquín Garrigós, [http://www.dilemaveche.ro/index.php?nr=191&cmd=articol&id=6740 "Pasiunea lui Mircea Eliade pentru Spania" ("Mircea Eliade's Passion for Spain")] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160411015054/http://dilemaveche.ro/index.php?nr=191&cmd=articol&id=6740 |date=2016-04-11 }}, in ''[[Dilema Veche]]'', Vol. IV, October 2007; retrieved January 21, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref><ref name="aoopium">[[Andrei Oişteanu]], [http://www.revista22.ro/html/index.php?nr=2007-05-11&art=3719 "Mircea Eliade, de la opium la amfetamine" ("Mircea Eliade, from Opium to Amphetamines")] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070516220935/http://www.revista22.ro/html/index.php?art=3719&nr=2007-05-11 |date=2007-05-16 }}, in ''[[22 (magazine)|22]]'', Nr. 896, May 2007; retrieved January 17, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref> It was during his trips to Spain that Eliade met philosophers [[José Ortega y Gasset]] and [[Eugenio d'Ors]]. He maintained a friendship with d'Ors, and met him again on several occasions after the war.<ref name="jgspania"/>

Nina Eliade fell ill with [[uterine cancer]] and died during their stay in [[Lisbon]], in late 1944. As the widower later wrote, the disease was probably caused by an abortion procedure she had undergone at an early stage of their relationship.<ref name="pcommare"/> He came to suffer from clinical depression, which increased as Romania and her [[Axis Powers|Axis]] allies suffered major defeats on the Eastern Front.<ref name="pcommare"/><ref name="aoopium"/> Contemplating a return to Romania as a soldier or a [[monk]],<ref name="pcommare"/> he was on a continuous search for effective [[antidepressant]]s, medicating himself with [[passion flower]] extract, and, eventually, with [[methamphetamine]].<ref name="aoopium"/> This was probably not his first experience with drugs: vague mentions in his notebooks have been read as indication that Mircea Eliade was taking [[opium]] during his travels to [[Calcutta]].<ref name="aoopium"/> Later, discussing the works of [[Aldous Huxley]], Eliade wrote that the British author's use of [[mescaline]] as a source of inspiration had something in common with his own experience, indicating 1945 as a date of reference and adding that it was "needless to explain why that is".<ref name="aoopium"/>

===Early exile===
At signs that the [[Communist Romania|Romanian communist regime]] was about to take hold, Eliade opted not to return to the country. On September 16, 1945, he moved to France with his adopted daughter Giza.<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/><ref name="pcommare"/> Once there, he resumed contacts with Dumézil, who helped him recover his position in academia.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> On Dumézil's recommendation, he taught at the ''[[École Pratique des Hautes Études]]'' in Paris.<ref name="Şora, Handoca"/> It was estimated that, at the time, it was not uncommon for him to work 15 hours a day.<ref name="ribas"/> Eliade married a second time, to the Romanian exile Christinel Cotescu.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/><ref name="msrsotia">Mihai Sorin Rădulescu, [http://www.zf.ro/articol_87328/cottestii__familia_sotiei_lui_mircea_eliade.html "Cotteştii: familia soţiei lui Mircea Eliade" ("The Cottescus: the Family of Mircea Eliade's Wife")] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080803223957/http://www.zf.ro/articol_87328/cottestii__familia_sotiei_lui_mircea_eliade.html |date=2008-08-03 }}, in ''[[Ziarul Financiar]]'', June 30, 2006; retrieved January 22, 2008 {{in lang|ro}}</ref> His second wife, the descendant of [[boyar]]s, was the sister-in-law of the conductor [[Ionel Perlea]].<ref name="msrsotia"/>

Together with [[Emil Cioran]] and other Romanian expatriates, Eliade rallied with the former diplomat [[Alexandru Busuioceanu]], helping him publicize [[Anti-communism|anti-communist]] opinion to the Western European public.<ref name="guleaobsc">Dan Gulea, [https://archive.today/20130113115235/http://www.observatorcultural.ro/informatiiarticol.phtml?xid=12070 "O perspectivă sintetică" ("A Syncretic Perspective")], in ''[[Observator Cultural]]'', Nr. 242, October 2004; retrieved October 4, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref> He was also briefly involved in publishing a Romanian-language magazine, titled ''Luceafărul'' ("The Morning Star"),<ref name="guleaobsc"/> and was again in contact with [[Mihai Șora]], who had been granted a scholarship to study in France, and with Șora's wife [[Mariana Şora|Mariana]].<ref name="Şora, Handoca"/> In 1947, he was facing material constraints, and [[Ananda Coomaraswamy]] found him a job as a [[French language|French-language]] teacher in the United States, at a school in [[Arizona]]; the arrangement ended upon Coomaraswamy's death in September.<ref name="McGuire, p.150"/>

Beginning in 1948, he wrote for the journal ''Critique'', edited by French philosopher [[Georges Bataille]].<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> The following year, he went on a visit to Italy, where he wrote the first 300 pages of his novel ''[[Noaptea de Sânziene]]'' (he visited the country a third time in 1952).<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> He collaborated with [[Carl Jung]] and the ''[[Eranos]]'' circle after [[Henry Corbin]] recommended him in 1949,<ref name="McGuire, p.150"/> and wrote for the ''[[Antaios (magazine)|Antaios]]'' magazine (edited by [[Ernst Jünger]]).<ref name="ribas"/> In 1950, Eliade began attending ''Eranos'' conferences, meeting Jung, [[Olga Fröbe-Kapteyn]], [[Gershom Scholem]] and [[Paul Radin]].<ref>McGuire, pp. 150–151</ref> He described ''Eranos'' as "one of the most creative cultural experiences of the modern Western world."<ref name="McGuire, p.151">McGuire, p. 151</ref>

In October 1956, he moved to the United States, settling in Chicago the following year.<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/><ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> He had been invited by [[Joachim Wach]] to give a series of lectures at Wach's home institution, the [[University of Chicago]].<ref name="McGuire, p.151"/> Eliade and Wach are generally admitted to be the founders of the "Chicago school" that basically defined the study of religions for the second half of the 20th century.<ref name="Hermeneutics in History">[http://marty-center.uchicago.edu/conferences/wach_eliade/about.shtml Conference on ''Hermeneutics in History: Mircea Eliade, Joachim Wach, and the Science of Religions''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061211130723/http://marty-center.uchicago.edu/conferences/wach_eliade/about.shtml |date=2006-12-11 }}, at the [http://marty-center.uchicago.edu/ University of Chicago Martin Marty Center. Institute for the Advanced Study of Religion]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080905212810/http://marty-center.uchicago.edu/ |date=2008-09-05 }}; retrieved July 29, 2007</ref> Upon Wach's death before the lectures were delivered, Eliade was appointed as his successor, becoming, in 1964, the ''[[Sewell Avery]] Distinguished Service Professor of the History of Religions''.<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> Beginning in 1954, with the first edition of his volume on ''[[Eternal return (Eliade)|Eternal Return]]'', Eliade also enjoyed commercial success: the book went through several editions under different titles, and sold over 100,000 copies.<ref>McGuire, pp. 151–152</ref>

In 1966, Mircea Eliade became a member of the [[American Academy of Arts and Sciences]].<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/> He also worked as editor-in-chief of [[Macmillan Publishers]]' ''Encyclopedia of Religion'', and, in 1968, lectured in religious history at the [[University of California, Santa Barbara]].<ref name="ReferenceA">Oişteanu, "Mircea Eliade şi mişcarea hippie"</ref> It was also during that period that Mircea Eliade completed his voluminous and influential ''History of Religious Ideas'', which grouped together the overviews of his main original interpretations of religious history.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> He occasionally traveled out of the United States, attending the Congress for the History of Religions in [[Marburg]] (1960), and visiting Sweden and [[Norway]] in 1970.<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/>

===Final years and death===
Initially, Eliade was attacked with virulence by the [[Romanian Communist Party]] press, chiefly by ''[[România Liberă]]''—which described him as "the Iron Guard's ideologue, [[Enemy of the people|enemy of the working class]], apologist of Salazar's dictatorship".<ref>''România Liberă'', ''passim'' September–October 1944, in Frunză, p. 251</ref> However, the regime also made secretive attempts to enlist his and Cioran's support: [[Haig Acterian]]'s widow, theater director [[Marietta Sadova]], was sent to Paris to re-establish contacts with the two.<ref name="tismetern">[[Vladimir Tismăneanu]], ''Stalinism pentru eternitate'' (Romanian translation of ''Stalinism for All Seasons''), [[Polirom]], Iaşi, 2005, pp. 187, 337. {{ISBN|973-681-899-3}}</ref> Although the move was planned by Romanian officials, her encounters were to be used as evidence incriminating her at a February 1960 trial for treason (where [[Constantin Noica]] and [[Dinu Pillat]] were the main defendants).<ref name="tismetern"/> Romania's secret police, the [[Securitate]], also portrayed Eliade as a spy for the British [[Secret Intelligence Service]] and a former agent of the Gestapo.<ref name="zfscriit">Alexandru Popescu, [http://www.zf.ro/articol_109162/alexandru_popescu__ix___scriitorii_si_spionajul.html "Scriitorii şi spionajul" ("Writers and Spying")] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080215185224/http://www.zf.ro/articol_109162/alexandru_popescu__ix___scriitorii_si_spionajul.html |date=2008-02-15 }}, in ''[[Ziarul Financiar]]'', January 26, 2007; retrieved November 8, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>

He was slowly [[Rehabilitation (Soviet)|rehabilitated]] at home beginning in the early 1960s, under the rule of [[Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej]].<ref>Frunză, pp. 448–449</ref> In the 1970s, Eliade was approached by the [[Nicolae Ceaușescu]] regime in several ways, to have him return.<ref name="vilasanjpaseo"/> The move was prompted by the officially sanctioned nationalism and Romania's claim to independence from the [[Eastern Bloc]], as both phenomena came to see Eliade's prestige as an asset. An unprecedented event occurred with the interview that was granted by Mircea Eliade to poet [[Adrian Păunescu]], during the latter's 1970 visit to Chicago; Eliade complimented both Păunescu's activism and his support for official tenets, expressing a belief that
<blockquote>the youth of Eastern Europe is clearly superior to that of Western Europe. [...] I am convinced that, within ten years, the young revolutionary generation shan't be behaving as does today the noisy minority of [[New Left|Western contesters]]. [...] Eastern youth have seen the abolition of traditional institutions, have accepted it [...] and are not yet content with the structures enforced, but rather seek to improve them.<ref>Eliade, 1970, in [[Paul Cernat]], "Îmblânzitorul României Socialiste. De la Bîrca la Chicago şi înapoi" ("The Tamer of Socialist Romania. From Bîrca to Chicago and Back"), part of Paul Cernat, Ion Manolescu, Angelo Mitchievici, Ioan Stanomir, ''Explorări în comunismul românesc'' ("Forays into Romanian Communism"), [[Polirom]], Iaşi, 2004, p. 346</ref></blockquote>

Păunescu's visit to Chicago was followed by those of the nationalist official writer [[Eugen Barbu]] and by Eliade's friend Constantin Noica (who had since been released from jail).<ref name="oscaderea"/> At the time, Eliade contemplated returning to Romania, but was eventually persuaded by fellow Romanian intellectuals in exile (including [[Radio Free Europe]]'s [[Virgil Ierunca]] and [[Monica Lovinescu]]) to reject Communist proposals.<ref name="oscaderea"/> In 1977, he joined other exiled Romanian intellectuals in signing a telegram protesting the repressive measures newly enforced by the Ceaușescu regime.<ref name="smihai"/> Writing in 2007, Romanian anthropologist [[Andrei Oișteanu]] recounted how, around 1984, the Securitate unsuccessfully attempted to become an [[agent of influence]] in Eliade's Chicago circle.<ref name="teodoist">Cristian Teodorescu, [http://cotidianul.ro/index.php?id=11526&art=30480&cHash=19a3e7c987 "Eliade şi Culianu prin ocheanul lui Oişteanu" ("Eliade and Culianu through Oişteanu's Lens")], in ''[[Cotidianul]]'', June 14, 2007; retrieved November 7, 2007 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>

During his later years, Eliade's past was progressively exposed publicly, the stress of which probably contributed to the decline of his health.<ref name="smihai"/> By then, his writing career was hampered by severe [[arthritis]].<ref name="Şora, Handoca"/> The last academic honors bestowed upon him were the [[Académie française|French Academy]]'s [[Bordin Prize]] (1977) and the title of ''[[Honorary degree|Doctor Honoris Causa]]'', granted by [[George Washington University]] (1985).<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/scrc/findingaids/view.php?eadid=ICU.SPCL.ELIADEM|title=Guide to the Mircea Eliade Papers 1926–1998|website=www.lib.uchicago.edu|access-date=2019-11-08}}</ref>

[[File:Grave of Mircea Eliade (1907–1986) at Oak Woods Cemetery, Chicago.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Eliade's grave at Oak Woods Cemetery]]

Mircea Eliade died at the [[Bernard Mitchell Hospital]] in April 1986. Eight days previously, he suffered a stroke while reading [[Emil Cioran]]'s ''Exercises of Admiration'', and had subsequently lost his speech function.<ref name="ipcmahapar"/> Four months before, a fire had destroyed part of his office at the [[Meadville Lombard Theological School]] (an event which he had interpreted as an [[omen]]).<ref name="smihai"/><ref name="ipcmahapar"/> Eliade's Romanian disciple [[Ioan Petru Culianu]], who recalled the scientific community's reaction to the news, described Eliade's death as "a ''[[Paranirvana|mahaparanirvana]]''", thus comparing it to the passing of [[Gautama Buddha]].<ref name="ipcmahapar"/> His body was [[Cremation|cremated]] in Chicago, and the funeral ceremony was held on University grounds, at the [[Rockefeller Chapel]].<ref name="Biografie in Handoca"/><ref name="ipcmahapar"/> It was attended by 1,200 people, and included a public reading of Eliade's text in which he recalled the [[epiphany (feeling)|epiphany]] of his childhood—the lecture was given by novelist [[Saul Bellow]], Eliade's colleague at the university.<ref name="ipcmahapar"/> His student and the bearer of his legacy, [[Charles H. Long]], co-founder of the History of Religions at the University of Chicago Divinity School, gave the eulogy.<ref>Davíd Carrasco, "Codex Charles Long / The Scholar Who Traveled to Many Places to Understand Others," in With This Root About My Person:  Charles H. Long and New Directions in the Study of Religion, ed. Jennifer Reid and Davíd Carrasco (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2020), 306.</ref> His grave is located in [[Oak Woods Cemetery]].<ref>[http://adevarul.ro/news/eveniment/mae-repatrierea-cioran-eliade-brancusi-romania-diminua-semnificativ-afluxul-turisti-1_50ad0f8d7c42d5a6638e1191/index.html "MAE: Repatrierea lui Cioran, Eliade și Brâncuși în România ar diminua semnificativ afluxul de turiști" ("Foreign Affairs Ministry: Repatriation to Romania of Cioran, Eliade and Brâncuși Would Significantly Diminish Tourist Arrivals")], in ''[[Adevărul]]'', April 11, 2011; retrieved May 21, 2014 {{in lang|ro}}</ref>