Syncretism? [29 Mar 2006|09:23pm] bhavanibbana [ mood | calm ] While reading a book on Christian mysticism, I came upon the following passage: Looking for the maker of this tabernacle I ran to no avail Through a round of many births; And wearisome is birth again and again. But now, maker of the tabernacle, thou hast been seen; Thou shalt not rear this tabernacle again. All thy rafters are broken, Thy ridge-pole is shattered; The mind approaching the Eternal, Has attained to the extinction of all desires. Although the source of this passage is neither Gnostic nor Christian, I read some strong Gnostic undertones in it nonetheless. Thoughts? Also, if anyone knows who this is attributed to, you win a cookie.

Understanding... [15 Feb 2006|08:16pm] majika_medea I have written a new article examining the symbolism in Dummling and the Three Feathers. Yes, another one from the Grimm Brothers. I'm having fun at it, and for anyone interested... http://majika-medea.livejournal.com/

[15 Feb 2006|12:58pm] isnochys WHat's the story on the credibilty of the Gospel of Thomas?

Understanding Hansel and Gretel [02 Feb 2006|07:16am] majika_medea I have written a new article examining the symbolism in Hansel and Gretel. Interestingly, I am beginning to thing all of the Grimm tales were of an alchemical origin, unlike the Lang tales which see more pagan themed. I wasn't looking for this when I began, but I am learning allot from it, and finding it personally fascinating. http://majika-medea.livejournal.com/

Baal myth [26 Jan 2006|10:08am] malkhos I have been working on a literary project that consists of turning the cycle of Ugaritic myth into a short novel, epic in style. That is somewhat recherché I know. Who except for the lover of the obscure even knows what ‘Ugaritic’ might be? Briefly, everyone knows that the Bible is full of myth, and that these myths might come in some sense from an older, ‘pagan’ civilization. Casual readers of the old testament might get the impression that the Canaanites had been wiped out sometime before King David, but this is not the case. The whole area that we think of as Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel/Palestine, was inhabited in antiquity right up until the conversions to Christianity and Islam at the End of the Roman Empire by Semitic peoples who embraced many local versions of the same ancient religion that underlay Biblical myth. Jews were only a small part of the population of this area, and, just as today many holy places are shared by Jews and Palestinians, Morton Smith tells the detailed history of a shrine was used on Jan 6 each year by ‘Canaanites’ to celebrate the festival of the wine god Eschol and on the next day by to Jews to celebrate Yahweh’s triumph over Eschol, until St. Helena tore it down and built a church of the Epiphany (celebrating Jesus’ wine miracle at Cana). The temple of Baal at Heliopolis (modern Baalbek) was the largest temple of any kind in the world until the construction of the new St. Peters—but its Corinthian columns are still the largest ever executed (a replica of one is used as a water tower in St. Louis)—I could go on, but suffice to say that the traditional religion of this area was remarkably vigorous right up until the end. Be that as it may, Ugarit was a city on the coast of Syria that happened to have been burnt down and sacked in the 14th century BC—preserving the clay tablets of the personal library of the city’s priest of Baal—Ilimiku by name—mostly his own compositions. And this is the principal source for our knowledge of the ‘Canaanite’ myth that underlies the Bible. But no one knows of these texts except for a few experts—certainly less than a thousand people in the world can even read the language and script in which the tablets are written (and I am not one of them)—and they are even tedious to read in translation (available for the most part only at Seminary and major university libraries) because the individual tablets are badly preserved. So I set out to make a literary version of these myths that might be appealing to the modern lay reader, and have used not only these tablets but the traces of Semitic myth that one may find in the Bible, in Hesiod and a few other hard to find places. What I have is an introduction that expands on this very message, and four chapters, the first one describing the creation of the world, and three more following the struggles of Baal as described by Ilimiku: against the God of the Ocean, in a struggle to achieve a supremacy recognized by the gods, and against death. The project is most similar in English literature on the one hand to those of Blake and Milton, insofar as it explores biblical myth, and to Tolkien’s, insofar as it aims to reconstruct a lost mythos working with the broken pieces available to us. Though I make no claim to have equaled their achievement, I hope this gives you an idea of the genre. An integral part of the concept from the beginning was to illustrate the text using images found on the web—mostly originating from my favored period of art between, let us say, 1840 and 1940, and if possible art published in that period in postcard form. This will remind the alert reader of Eco’s Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana, but the idea was well formed in my mind before reading that excellent novel. Patrons of the old Art Magic site may recall my list there of pre-Raphaelite paintings intending to illustrate biblical scenes, but equally applicable to older Semitic myths. I have just posted a draft of the first chapter dealing with creation in my Live journal: http://malkhos.livejournal.com/1821.html#cutid1 If you make the effort to look at it, please leave a reply, especially if you find anything profoundly defective about it.

The Characteristics of Gnosticism [08 Dec 2005|10:32pm] drtao I am compiling a list of characteristics of "Gnosticism" (the variety from Late Antiquity, not its modern application) for a paper I am writing. I have combined a number of sources, but do any of you have any thoughts on what I may be leaving out? A "Gnostic" religion will contain many (if not all) of the following: a negative view of the visible world and its creator ("demiurge") a dualism between demiurge and "transcendent divine spirit" (Meyer) a divine spark in humankind, which may also manifest as a hidden counterpart of the self the enclosure of that spark in a material body, which is the result of a "fallenness" or "tragic event in the precosmic world" (van den Broek) the means of "salvation" or escape from the body and the visible world through a saving "gnosis," or "unmediated mystical knowledge" (Meyer) "wisdom" (or a similar manifestation of the divine) personified as a character in a cosmic drama innovative interpretation of creation myths the incorporation of material, often including an elaborate series of symbols, from a wide variety of philosophical and religious traditions, including Jewish, Greek, and Platonist a vision of a "radically enlightened life that transcends the mundane world and attains to the divine" (Meyer) an emphasis on personal and direct experience of the divine, unmediated by any church hierarchy (Pagels) x-posted to gnostic_study, gnosticism, and my own journal.

Carpocratians, Phibionites, the works! [24 Oct 2005|02:24am] synesis [ mood | gnostic ] ( A quick intro to give some idea of where I’m coming from. ) Most of my current reading in the general Gnostic area is more to do with sexual/social libertinism in Gnostic sects. This is mostly a hobby, so I read where I can and want rather than with a particular aim in mind. It seems to me that the dominant response of most Gnostic groups to the severance they felt with the material world was primarily ascetic and searching to transcend the physical condition. There does seem to be a minority of groups, however, that adopted a more libertine approach to physical existence. This reminds me of the division between dakshinachara and vamachara in Tantra, not only in the mode of approach but also in the way that the latter has been vilified by the more orthodox. Among the Gnostics there’s the same sort of condemnation, particularly of the consumption of sexual fluids as a eucharist (the same technique is used in the tantric pancamakara rituals, and just as widely condemned): Thomas said: "We have heard that there are some on the earth who take the male seed and the female monthly blood, and make it into a lentil porridge and eat it, saying: 'We have faith in Esau and Jacob.' Is this then seemly or not?" Jesus was wroth with the world in that hour.and said unto Thomas: "Amēn, I say: This sin is more heinous than all sins and iniquities. Such men will straightway be taken into the outer darkness and not be cast back anew into the sphere, but they shall perish, be destroyed in the outer darkness in a region where there is neither pity nor light, but howling and grinding of teeth. And all the souls which shall be brought into the outer darkness, will not be cast back anew, but will be destroyed and dissolved." (Pistis Sophia, Cap 147) This is a condemnation of the practice from a Gnostic scripture, my notes also have a reference to Ieou II, 43, but I don’t have access to that outside of Oxford, so I can’t check immediately. There are also references in Epiphanius (Panarion 26) possibly derived from Hippolytus, as well as Clement of Alexandria (Stromateis 3. 2-5). But these are naturally coloured by their nature as polemics. Actually, Epiphanius uses the term phibionitai to refer to the group of Gnostics whose liturgy and beliefs were largely centred around sex and sexual fluids – not immediately knowing the derivation of this name, I checked Liddell and Scott, which gives a masculine noun ‘phibi’, ‘name of the Ibis = Hermes Thoth’. I also looked it up in a Coptic dictionary, which gives a similar derivation. I find this interesting, because it suggests a possible Hermetic connection. My questions are two-fold, really: First, does anyone know of any textual resources for this side of Gnosticism that aren’t reported or polemical texts? I can’t think of anything standard, but I’m not a specialist, so I could be overlooking something blindly obvious. Second, it seems that Gnostic revivalism from the early C20th has focused predominantly on the more ascetic of the Gnostic sects, perhaps because of their fabulous and beautiful cosmologies. Has there been any specifically Gnostic revival of these more libertine Gnostic sects? (Specifically, Gnostic revival. I know how they’ve been co-opted within western magic, given that Crowley co-opted parts of Hippolytus for his nominally secret sexual teachings, but this a more heterodox, syncretistic approach than a revival would seem to be.) Additionally, if you personally are an adherent of one of the ascetic schools of thought, how do you view the teachings of the more carnal of your compatriots? Soma = sema? All tones and kinds of responses most welcome :-)

[10 Aug 2005|03:30am] swisscelt "But others shall change from evil words and misleading mysteries. Some who do not understand mystery speak of things which they do not understand, but they will boast that the mystery of the truth is theirs alone. And in haughtiness they shall grasp at pride, to envy the immortal soul which has become a pledge. For every authority, rule, and power of the aeons wishes to be with these in the creation of the world, in order that those who are not, having been forgotten by those that are, may praise them, though they have not been saved, nor have they been brought to the Way by them, always wishing that they may become imperishable ones. For if the immortal soul receives power in an intellectual spirit -. But immediately they join with one of those who misled them." "But many others, who oppose the truth and are the messengers of error, will set up their error and their law against these pure thoughts of mine, as looking out from one (perspective) thinking that good and evil are from one (source). They do business in my word. And they will propagate harsh fate. The race of immortal souls will go in it in vain, until my Parousia. For they shall come out of them - and my forgiveness of their transgressions, into which they fell through their adversaries, whose ransom I got from the slavery in which they were, to give them freedom that they may create an imitation remnant in the name of a dead man, who is Hermas, of the first-born of unrighteousness, in order that the light which exists may not believed by the little ones. But those of this sort are the workers who will be cast into the outer darkness, away from the sons of light. For neither will they enter, nor do they permit those who are going up to their approval for their release." From The Apocalypse of Peter Thoughts?

Not new news, but it's new to me [26 Jul 2005|03:58pm] strangedivine "In Al-Gurna where several excavation missions are probing for more Ancient Egyptian treasures under the sand, a team from the Polish Centre for Mediterranean Archaeology has stumbled on a major Coptic trove buried under the remains of a sixth-century monastery located in front of a Middle Kingdom tomb." ( read more )

[17 Jul 2005|01:51am] rupted I was wondering if anyone would be interested in helping me decipher something. I'm doing research on Edward Waite's Rider Tarot deck and I was hoping for some help dissecting this small quote from Waite's descpription of the Magiciam Card. In describing the lemniscate above the Magician's head and it's connection with the number 8, Waite writes: ...it may be remembered that Christian Gnosticism speaks of rebirth in Christ as a change "unto the Ogdoad." I'm familiar with the Ogdoad for the most part, but I can't find any info on being being reborn in Christ or what changes this would on the Ogdoad. I know the significance of the card is essentially unity, the merging of polarities and the highest spiritual achievement of mankind...I guess a good way to say it is that it's pretty much...Jesus, or man in the Christ. The whole, "change unto the Ogdoad" thing is what throws me. Any thoughts, answers?

Thunder, Perfect Mind [11 May 2005|09:31pm] hyperwayfarer ( Thunder, Perfect Mind )

[11 May 2005|06:47pm] luigitr [ mood | optimistic ] I have just joined this "gnostic study" because I have finally given into my decades long desire to understand the gnostic philosophy and religion.  I have studied Anglicanism, Roman Catholicism (being a cradle Roman Catholic), and Judaism for years--read the Christian Bible through at least three-times.  So I finally found a fine tome on gnosticism and feel completely as starting at zero.  I have not read the Leonardo book--although I found Leonardo facinating since I was a child.  So starting from scrach I hope you will bear with me as I grow and learn.

Yazidi? [25 Apr 2005|01:46am] swisscelt Has anyone encountered information on this sect, located in Kurdistan (eastern Turkey & northern Iraq)? From what I've been able to find, they seem quite Gnostic: 'The Encyclopaedia Britannica 1986' explains : "The Yazidi religion is a syncretic combination of Zoroastrian, Manichaean, Jewish, Nestorian Christian and Islamic elements. The Yazidi themselves are thought to be descended from supporters of the Umayyad Caliph Yazid 1. They themselves believe that they are created quite separately from the rest of mankind, not even being descended from Adam, and they have kept themselves strictly segregated from the people among whom they live. Although scattered and probably numbering fewer than 1,00,000, they have a well-organized society, with a chief shaykh as the supreme religious head and an amir, or prince, as the secular head. The chief divine figure of the Yazidi is Malak Taus ('Peacock Angel'), worshipped in the form of a peacock. He rules the universe with six other angels, but all seven are subordinate to the supreme God, who has had no direct interest in the universe since he created it. The seven angels are worshipped by the Yazidi in the form of seven bronze or iron peacock figures called sanjaq, the largest of which weighs nearly 700 pounds. Yazidi are anti-dualists; they deny the existence of evil and therefore also reject sin, the devil, and hell. The breaking of divine laws is expiated by way of metempsychosis, or transmigration of souls, which allows for progressive purification of the spirit. The Yazidi relate that when the devil repented of his sin of pride before God, he was pardoned and replaced in his previous position as chief of the angels; this myth has earned the Yazidl an undeserved reputation as devil worshippers. Shaykh Adi, the chief Yazidi saint, was a 12th century Muslim mystic believed to have achieved divinity through metempsychosis. The Yazidi religious centre and object of the annual pilgrimage is the tomb of Shaykh 'Adi, located at a former Christian monastery in the town of Ash-Shaykh 'Adi, north of Mosul. Two short books written in Arabic, Kitab al-jilwah ('Book of Revelation') and Mashaf rash ('Black Writing'), form the sacred scriptures of the Yazidi, and an Arabic hymn praise of Shaykh 'Adi is held in great esteem." from http://www.meta-religion.com/World_Religions/yezidism.htm I first encountered this group while looking at http://www.lonelyplanet.com . In addition to the Mandaeans, Lonely Planet listed the Yazedi as a religious minority in Iraq, and mentioned that they were often mistaken for devil worshippers. [x-posted to gnostic_study, gnosticism]

[19 Apr 2005|04:41pm] reenhotep [ mood | contemplative ] In the Secret Book of John it is written: "But what they call the tree of knowledge of good and evil, which is the Epinoia of the light, they stayed in front of it in order that he (Adam) might not look up to his fullness and recognize the nakedness of his shamefulness. But it was I who brought about that they ate." And to I said to the savior, "Lord, was it not the serpent that taught Adam to eat?" The savior smiled and said, "The serpent taught them to eat from wickedness of begetting, lust, (and) destruction, that he (Adam) might be useful to him. And he (Adam) knew that he was disobedient to him (the chief archon) due to light of the Epinoia which is in him, which made him more correct in his thinking than the chief archon. And (the latter) wanted to bring about the power which he himself had given him. And he brought a forgetfulness over Adam." What are we to take from this passage? Are we to take a simplistic approach and assume that Christ induced the primordial couple to eat, rather than the serpent? Or, is there a mystical reading of this text that is not as simple? Any thoughts would be welcome.

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