The Western Esoteric Traditions: A Historical Introduction
Oct 2008 · Oxford University Press
5.0star
1 reviewreport
Ebook
296
Pages
family_home
Eligible
info
reportRatings and reviews aren’t verified Learn More
About this ebook
Western esotericism has now emerged as an academic study in its own right, combining spirituality with an empirical observation of the natural world while also relating the humanity to the universe through a harmonious celestial order. This introduction to the Western esoteric traditions offers a concise overview of their historical development. Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke explores these traditions, from their roots in Hermeticism, Neo-Platonism, and Gnosticism in the early Christian era up to their reverberations in today's scientific paradigms. While the study of Western esotericism is usually confined to the history of ideas, Goodrick-Clarke examines the phenomenon much more broadly. He demonstrates that, far from being a strictly intellectual movement, the spread of esotericism owes a great deal to geopolitics and globalization. In Hellenistic culture, for example, the empire of Alexander the Great, which stretched across Egypt and Western Asia to provinces in India, facilitated a mixing of Eastern and Western cultures. As the Greeks absorbed ideas from Egypt, Babylon, Assyria, and Persia, they gave rise to the first esoteric movements. From the late sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, post-Reformation spirituality found expression in theosophy, Rosicrucianism and Freemasonry. Similarly, in the modern era, dissatisfaction with the hegemony of science in Western culture and a lack of faith in traditional Christianity led thinkers like Madame Blavatsky to look East for spiritual inspiration. Goodrick-Clarke further examines Modern esoteric thought in the light of new scientific and medical paradigms along with the analytical psychology of Carl Gustav Jung. This book traces the complete history of these movements and is the definitive account of Western esotericism.
Ratings and reviews
5.0
1 review
A Google user
- Flag inappropriate
I recently completed my MA in Western Esotericism at the University of Exeter and studied under Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke. He is the Director of the Exeter Centre for the Study of Esotericism (EXESESO) at the University of Exeter. This book is structured in the same fashion as the MA program at Exeter and provides a comprehensive overview of the key topics in the field of Western esotericism. The book is chronological and begins in ancient Alexandria, through the Italian Renaissance, post-Reformation Germany and into the Age of Enlightenment. Goodrick-Clarke covers complex topics such as Hermeticism, Neo-Platonism, Alchemy, Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism and Theosophy but makes it understandable even to novice readers. The underlying theme behind the subject of Western esotericism is the continuity in the different schools of thought that can be traced though the two thousand period from ancient Alexandria to the present day. This is a subject that has been overlooked for many years due to its association with the occult and magic. Thanks to the work of Goodrick-Clarke and scholars such as Antoine Faivre and Wouter Hanegraaff it is now being given the respect it deserves. This is an excellent starting point for anyone interested in learning more.
Mamiyah
- Flag inappropriate
February 7, 2020
Awesome
Rate this ebook
Tell us what you think.
Reading information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can listen to audiobooks purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
eReaders and other devices
To read on e-ink devices like Kobo eReaders, you'll need to download a file and transfer it to your device. Follow the detailed Help Center instructions to transfer the files to supported eReaders.
