Dualism

Dualistic Discourse:

Strong emphasis on two forces at work in the world.

There are three types of Dualism. The most important and relevant to discussions of dualism hinges upon an ethical dichotomy of Good and Evil. This ethical dualism may manifest in a substantial dualism as well: matter and spirit. The dualism may be more abstract of philosophical: active and passive, night and day. The dualism may be gendered and sexual: God and Goddess (fertility religions). There can be interrelationships between these types of dualism, but it is extremely difficult to describe all forms of dualism in a simple scheme.

Mystic Dualism: There are two primary types of mystic Dualism. The first is typified by asceticism--discipline of mind and/or body. Multifarious in its manifestations, asceticism ranges from athletic training to self-mutilation to various hedonistic indulgences taken to the extreme.

Hatha Yoga, Tantric Yoga, Jainism and some forms of Gnosticism are the best examples of mystic dualism. Usually the motive is to separate the rational/spiritual essence from the bodily/material prison. In some form or another, this type of dualism appears in most all the major world religions--the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the body-punishing stunts of the Faqirs and yogis, religious fasting, flagellation, and so forth. The very concept of monasticism is based upon the notion that the world outside the monastery is secular, while the world of the monastery is pure and sacred.

Click here to see the links to Christian monastic orders.

Monastic life is a significant element of Catholicism, and many Asian religions. Charitable works of various kinds are a common aspect of most monastic groups, though in history some of them were operated in a more or less feudal manner (peasants support the monks). Most monasteries are quite significant producers within a culture. Education, charity, manufacturing, brewing, farming. The Peace Corps is different only in the secular nature of the work. Monastic life is economically significant. (Click for a class discussion question related to the economics of religion.)

Benedict describes four classes of monks, preferring those he calls "cenobites." These are monks who live in monasteries among the like minded under the rule of an abbot, who is a spiritual master. The second type is the anchorite, who is the solitary hermit. According to Benedict these are the most advanced for having developed themselves first in a monastery before striking out alone. He strongly criticizes the second two types: sarabaites, who are small groups without a master to guide them, hence prone to follow their desires; gyratory, who are itinerant monks wandering from monastery to monastery like hobos.

Members of a coven, which is essential to Wicca, and to many similar Neopagan religions, can be described as sarabaites. Thelema is based on structures and policies that encourage gyratory and anchorite monks. Cenobitism is not common or practical in Neopagan religions due to their lack of funds and centralization. Thelema is designed to spread in a way similar to the Franciscans. We might compare the close, fraternal ritualism of Freemasonry (which is an important source for much of many esoteric religions like Thelema) to the rule of the cenobites, but the vast majority of masons do not actually live, eat and work with their brothers, even though they spend large amounts of time together and helping each other. The leadership structure is quite different from what Benedict had in mind as well.

Rather than ethical/substantial dualism, a philosophical dualism appears in the dualist mysticism of Chinese Taoism. (See also the Unit Three Resources page) The two principles in the universe are both necessary, complementary, and fundamentally one in the Tao, which is a sort of nameless, indescribable nothingness out of which all existence and action come, and to which they return. The problem is that according to the teachings of Taoism, the description you just read is horsepucky, as is any possible description you can make. Consequently, I think that we see here another angle or dimension within which the Monistic and Dualistic modes tend to slide from one into the other. Instead of trying to separate and privilege one pole of the duality over the other, this form of Dualism sees the harmony and balance of the two forces to be the most important goal and/or fact. This emphasis on balance and harmony stands in starkest contrast to the sharp, ethical dualism of Zoroastrianism, Manicheism, Gnosticism, and the other dualistic manifestations of monotheism.

Taoism has deep connections and influences on Chinese medicine, Tai-Chi, Chi-Gung and acupuncture. Currently a popular religious movement called Falun Gong is being actively suppressed and persecuted in China. There is quite a bit of information on the Internet news services about this.

The Neopagan tradition of Wicca believes in two gods, but rather than one being good and the other evil, they are male and female, and depend upon each other for completion of the circuit that is Nature. Wicca is based on a dualist conception of deity, but it is a dualism that can be considered Monistic and Pluralistic. It is a gendered dualism typical of ancient fertility religion.

Zoroastrianism, Gnosticism, Mithraism, Manicheism, Kabbalists These strongly dualistic religions are all interconnected. They demonstrate how an intense metaphysical dualism tends to develop into a variety of fragmented religions with complex cosmologies of demons and angels. Also, as the groups compete with each other, they will adopt different spiritual beings within the originally dualist pantheon. Hence, we might properly call these pluralistic religions. However, in spite of the numerous choirs of angels and legions of demons, it is always clear that one deity is supreme and good while another is supremely evil. In the Nag Hammadi codex is a scripture that demonstrates that some Gnostics believed that the god Yaldabaoth (distortion of Yahweh) who created the Garden of Eden was a sinister being, and the serpent came to rescue them. See The Hypostasis of the Archons.

Lucifer's name means "bearer of light" and other Gnostics adopted him as a savior. Lucifer has become a sort of hero among many religions that grew out of the Gnostic tradition. Most of them see Christ and Lucifer as the identical. Rather than indicating that they see Christ as a demonic being, Lucifer is a sort of Promethean hero symbolizing spiritual liberation in the face of the seductive attractions of this material world and those who try to oppress humanity. Gnosticism has almost always represented defiance of authority, and therefore it has been the target of the harshest persecutions by the Church. Entire villages were slaughtered by the Church. (cf. Cathars and Albigenses for later examples) However, it must be born in mind that they did not believe Lucifer or their religion was evil, but rather Yahweh (or Yaldabaoth) was the evil creator of this imprisoning, seductive world of matter. There was significant antagonism between the Gnostics and what became the Roman Catholics. When Christianity became the dominant religion, the Roman Christians took up the same brutalities of their oppressors, torturing and killing especially the Gnostics, and the various pagans. This persecution has continued to this day. The harsh suppression of Gnosticism probably is due to its belief in personal, direct revelation, the rejection of the authoritarian nature of the Roman Church, and perhaps its more egalitarian treatment of women.

	Gnostic Scriptures
	Elaine Pagels, the foremost authority on the Gnostic Gospels, wrote an interesting book called The Origin of Satan. David Remnick comments on it and her here.

Recent archeology and philology has raised questions about whether Jesus himself was a Gnostic, or Essene.

It should be noted that the term "gnostic" has been used in a very loose way, as well as in very specific and technical ways. I prefer a looser usage of the term given that gnosticism does not seem to have a singular, authoritative form. When I use the term, I am referring to religions that contain several (though not all) of the following themes:

1) Dualistic view of divinity--generally a God of good and light, and a God of evil and dark. This extends to a division of humanity into the saved and the damned, or the servants of Light and the servants of Dark. In modern society, we see examples where this distinction is framed in racist terms.

2) Sharp distinction between the material and physical as opposed to the spiritual and rational. This may extend to a rejection of modernity and technology. Almost always it connects to strong and unconventional mandates regarding sexuality.

3) Emphasis on complex pantheons of angels and demons. In modern society, this often takes the form of conspiracy theories, angels, demons, aliens and complicated cosmology with other planes of existence or planets.

4) Emphasis on an apocalyptic view of time (there is a future catastrophic event in which the forces of evil will be conquered). Scriptural exegesis usually involves looking for hidden or Kabbalistic messages in regards to this apocalypse.

5) Rejection of larger systems of authority to form smaller, heretical sects, or a complete rejection of organized religion in favor of a personal connection to divinity.

6) Reliance on mystical and ecstatic experience. This may also include the use of magical techniques and other supernatural practices such as healing and exorcism. In more mainstream sects, this takes the form of charismatic manifestations (speaking in tongues, trances, miracles, snake handling) and exorcism of evil spirits.

7) Revelation is a continuous phenomenon. The Bible is not viewed as complete and definitive. Personal messages from divine sources are encouraged.

8) Rejection of the orthodox notion of the Trinity--for instance, denial of Christ's divinity, or more explicitly and technically Gnostic, the denial of Christ's humanity as illusory. This is an essential concept of "true" Gnosticism. Some sects that can be described as Gnostic by the previous factors may not reject the standard Trinity. Religions that manifest several of these traits are connected to the ancient Gnostic & Dualist tradition, even if they do not proclaim themselves to be Gnostics. They are not necessarily Gnostics in a pure and rigorous sense of the word. I am using the term to illustrate the difference between, say, Episcopaleans and Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses.

Gnosticism left its influence on the various religions of the Middle East in many different and subtle ways. There are Gnostics in Southern Iraq, and they were the target of much bombing. For more information on the history of Gnosticism vis a vis Christianity and Judaism, I recommend this page. Ethiopia has an interesting history, blending the African, Egyptian, Christian and Gnostic traditions. This page has some interesting links to information on Solomon and the Queen of Sheba as well as other relevant themes. [Click here for an article on Religious Freedom in Ethiopia there is persecution by the Muslim majority in Egypt and even in Ethiopia]. They claim to have the Ark of the Covenant. Zoroastrians have been harshly persecuted by the Iranian government. They exist in India primarily, and they call their culture “Parsi”. The Indian government is working hard to help them restore their population. [Avesta.org: Zoroastrian site]

	Gnostic Friends Network. Modern Gnosticism--an interesting, informative and rather odd web site.
	Process Church a Christian-Psychotherapy cult that worshipped Jesus and loved Satan. Much misinformation was spread about them, including apparently false allegations that Charles Manson was a member.
	Mormonism is another interesting manifestation of Gnostic ideas in modern times.

Fundamentalism: The mainstream I will focus my attention in this discussion on Protestant Christian Fundamentalism, but Fundamentalism is not unique to Christianity.

The Protestant Reformation of the Sixteenth Century brought with it an intense preoccupation with Satan's evil influence. In England, the Puritan government of Oliver Cromwell left an ambiguous legacy of opinion about religiously motivated government. Although Cromwell is seen by some as a champion of religious freedom, other see him as a symbol of religious tyranny. The history of England from 1500 to 1700 is fascinating. Catholics, Anglicans and Protestants traded blows and governments throughout a violent and turbulent period. (Key characters in this story: King Henry VIII, Mary I, Elizabeth I, Oliver Cromwell, William & Mary) These events clearly inspired the founding fathers of America to create safeguards against church interference in the affairs of government.

Harold Bloom's book on The American Religion: Emergence of the Post-Christian Nation discusses the development of a neo-gnostic religious egoism. His book on Omens of Millenium deals more explicitly with the Gnostic themes in modern American religion.

This Gnostic strand manifests in staunch individualism and an emphasis on the role of Satan in the universe--whose influence appears in the form of secularism, hedonism and all religions different from theirs. Good examples of this include groups such as the Puritan Pilgrims, Mormons, strict Fundamentalist religions like the Amish, David Koresh, Scientology, and most any religious doomsday "cult." In the more extreme forms, there is a strong tendency to envision the world in terms of us-versus-them, and to retreat from the influences of "sinful" society. In some cases they have built bomb shelters and arsenals. Others such as Billy Graham merely preach the gospel of impending Apocalypse.

Grouping together so many different religions is not intended to point to anything more than the tendency of these groups to alienate themselves from certain parts of society, and to the fact that many (but not all) of these groups actively pursue political agendas to enforce public policy in line with their religious and ethical dualism, even in the face of violent resistance from those who do not share their religious convictions. Karen Armstrong's recent book on global fundamentalism (in Islam, Judaism and Christianity), The Battle for God, discusses this theme at length. She describes them as "fearful reactions to modernity." Few of these groups present a threat to society, but they have demonstrated themselves to be resistant to things like new styles of music, changes in social structure, urbanization, abortion, fetal implant technology and other developments related to modern technology, the sharing of ideas and the creation of new ideas. Many of these Fundamentalists are also crying out against globalization and what they call "The New World Order." Fundamentalism often ties into nationalistic and patriotic sentiment.

Such religious conservatism is not limited to Protestantism, but is also seen in Judaic and Islamic religion. To some extent it is even appearing in Hinduism. One can legitimately question the future of a world so deeply divided along such lines.

Dualism overlaps with the previous Monotheistic religions inasmuch as these groups place a great deal of emphasis on battling the forces of evil. The Essenes were another example of Dualism within the Jewish tradition. St. Paul is an excellent example of the blurring of Monism and Dualism.

Christians, Jews and Muslims all have very complex and convoluted conceptions of the nature of Satan (Eblis), Devil, etc. It is almost impossible to find anyone who would assert that Satan is a second god, inferior to the supreme God, but a god nonetheless. However, even the iconoclastic, extremely monotheistic Muslims attribute an independent, supernatural and objective existence to the being of Satan. He is usually described as a fallen angel, though the emphasis on angels in itself raises equally unsettling questions about the nature of monotheism, especially in light of the fact that the most dualistic religions place great importance on these minor beings. This suggests that these religions all have their roots in a henotheistic world view (there are many divine beings, but only one of them is supreme and should be worshipped). In other words, while Muslims often accuse Christians of shirk or blasphemy on the basis of the polytheistic implications of the Trinity, it is not really less problematic to accept the existence of Satan as a supernatural being with free will who is out to undermine the good will of Allah.

The point isn't that any of these religions are mistaken or bad. Instead, the point I wish to emphasize here is the simple fact that monotheism is much more complex and nuanced than it appears. Influences from dualistic metaphysics appear in subtle ways throughout the most mainstream of the monotheistic religions. Dualism manifests itself in Apocalyptic pessimism/anticipation, moral reductionism (attempts to simplify all moral behavior into unnuanced categories of right or wrong), attributing sin and even eternal damnation to groups of people (liberals, homosexuals, pro-choicers, other religions, etc.), conspiracy theories and/or elaborate visions of heavenly and infernal hierarchy (like Dante's Divine Comedy). Most important, these dualistic religions reject modernity, feminism and various other ideas that grow out of the secular movement. In contrast, the most extreme forms of monism demonstrate much more optimism, tolerance and perhaps naive assumptions about God's power. America is the Great Satan of much Middle East ideology. Islam is the great evil of fundamentalist Christianity. etc. Bahai and Sikhism represent attempts to break out of the dualistic model.

Extreme Dualism is especially dangerous in a hypercompetitive-corporate society. Extreme Monism tends toward naive optimism.

Other Examples of Dualism

Karl Marx is an interesting example of Gnostic-Dualistic thought, even though he casts his apocalyptic vision in terms of class warfare.

Another interesting example of Dualism is the Twelve Step Program of A.A. that casts "use" and "sobriety" as two opposite poles. Alcohol is often personified as an evil entity, and the Higher Power is the hope of escape.

At the extreme end of the dualist spectrum, we often find hate groups and racial separatist religions such as the Nation of Islam, Posse Comitatis, the John Birch Society and the K.K.K. All show extreme dualism clearly. Politics, conspiracy and religion are typically blended together in these groups. Louis Farrakhan believes (web page from Farrakhan's own web-zine) the teachings of Elijah Muhammad on Yakub, a Black scientist who 6,600 years ago created the white man, and that by the end of the 20th century, a spaceship will come and rain down upon white people and people who don't embrace Islam. This is a good example of the sort of apocalyptic conspiracy cosmology described in reference to these strongly dualist religions. [click for more details on the NOI's "gnostic" ideas--told from a critical, external perspective.]

Link to a Japanese Nazi web site This is an international issue with which all students of ethics, law and religion need to deal: What shall we do about hate groups, on-line hate, and our First Amendment rights?

Art Bell and David Icke promote the gospel of government conspiracies, and science fiction politics. For example, take a look at this page on conspiracy theories about Reptilian Aliens controlling the Earth. The Internet provides a convenient communication medium to spread what is often false about various people. The frequent allegations of crime and conspiracy directed at specific individuals present us with problematic dilemmas of protecting free speech, and defending people from slander.

A note about on-line hate groups: Hate Crimes legislation, grassroots activism and individual harassment of these groups have driven the majority of these hate groups underground. It is getting more and more difficult to find these materials on the Internet. I have seen large changes in this regard during the last year. While this is obviously a positive development, we are not able to see what is still going on. It also indicates that there is a mechanism of suppression of free speech. Students of world religions should carefully consider the implications of freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

Not all of these conspiracy-centered groups are actually hate groups, but they tend towards dualistic thinking (strong contrasts between Good & Evil, Saved & Damned) and toward these complex systems of metaphysics and conspiracy history. Further, the growth of Fundamentalist movements in Judaism, Islam and Christianity demonstrates a growing division in our society over issues of modernity and secularization (another mode of dualism). Karen Armstrong's book The Battle for God examines this polarization on a global level.

Satanism and Magic: Because there are important issues to discuss on this topic, I have created a separate paged dedicated to examining them in more detail. Click here. Also, the Religious Tolerance site has an excellent page on Satanism.