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Unit Six: Esoteric and New Age Spiritual
Movements
links updated and checked Feb 28, 2005
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Michigan State University publishes a journal of scholarly
occult and esoteric studies called
Esoterica
Universiteit van
Amsterdam has one of the first programs of Hermetic Studies,
offering BA and MA programs of study.
The JR
Ritman Library in Amsterdam has one of the largest scholarly
collections of Hermetic and Occult studies in the world.
Recommended Readings
Important Names and Sources for Research
in Neopaganism
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Big
Picture of Kabbalah and the Hermetic Tradition: A clickable
map or tree diagram of the historical origins of this important
trend in esoteric religion. Part of the larger site:
Colin Low's
Hermetic Kabbalah site--one of the best resources
like it.
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Gnosticism
Resources on this web site Links to sites related to
Gnostic and other early heterodox religions contemporary
with the founding of Christianity.
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The
Sacred Texts of Hermeticism: Graeco-Egyptian mysticism
and magic.
Alchemy
Website provides a large collection of on-line texts and
discussion
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Knights
of Templar were an order of military monks who were
essential to the Crusades. After the end of the wars,
the Templars came under attack by the Church and monarchy
of France as a result of their vast wealth and alleged heretical
ideas assimilated from contact with the Muslims. They
were persecuted and exterminated, and were later adopted
by the Protestant Freemasons as martyrs for the anti-clerical,
anti-monarchical cause. The Templars are the subject
of many questionable theories from mystics in Catholic Europe,
occultists (especially Thelemites), and right wing conservative
anti-masons. For a general presentation of the Mystic
Templars, click here. Those interested in mysteries
and conspiracies like those found in the DaVinci Code
will find plenty of similar intrigue under this topic.
Beware--the Internet is full of unreliable information on
this subject.
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Twilit
Grotto Esoteric Archives--excellent reference
source for primary texts in magic and Hermeticism
from the Middle Ages to the modern era. Includes the
famous magical grimmoires, and works by Christian "heretics"
such as Agrippa, Bruno, Dee as well as numerous Jewish "heretics." |
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Heinrich
Cornelius Agrippa: (b 1486 d 1545) Renaissance scholar
of magic and occultism. Most subsequent occultists
borrowed and plagiarized from his major work.
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Giordano
Bruno: (b 1545 d 1600) Dominican monk, revolutionary
mystic and esoteric spiritualist who was burned at the stake.
More Bruno: [Galileo
Project on Bruno ]
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Jakob
Boehme (b 1575 d 1624) Hermetic mystic, bridging the
Christian, Kabbalistic and Hermetic traditions.
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Eliphas
Levi (b 1810 d 1875) Nineteenth Century scholar of Occultism
and Catholic cleric.
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Theosophy/Anthroposophy:
Madame
H.P. Blavatsky: (b 1831 d 1891) Fascinating grand
dame of the occult-spiritualist movement of the turn
of the last century. Founder of the Theosophy
movement, which in turn inspired these people:
Alice Bailey, Charles Leadbeater, G.
I. Gurdjief [brief
summary of Gurdjieff], Rudulf
Steiner (Anthroposophy and Waldorf Education founder). Oddly,
this intellectual lineage has recently been the target of
accusations of racist, or racialist motivations. This
tradition of spirituality, which consists of a blend of
Hindu and Christian ideas with an emphasis on Theurgy, Metaphysical
medicine, Alchemy, and Theology. Steiner's ideas have
also been influential on a broad scale, and are much more
Christian in nature.
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Golden
Dawn, the BOTA, the
followers of Franz
Bardon, This school tied together occult Freemasonry,
Rosicrucianism, Medieval sorcery and Egyptian mythology.
Out of this same lineage of Ceremonial Magick comes...
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Aleister
Crowley (b 1875 d 1947) (See also Thelema
and this summary
of Thelemic doctrine and practices at the Religious
Tolerance Web Site) Crowley
is probably one of the most controversial, revolutionary,
artistic, influential and interesting figures of modern
occult philosophy. He was also a man of highly questionable
ethics. Although Thelema
and Wicca have important philosophical, ethical and mythical
or narrative differences, a significant number of people
participate in both movements, producing a lot of
mutual influence. Wicca emphasizes worship of
nature and reviving the religion of pre-Christian Europe
(usually Celtic or Teutonic). Thelema puts more emphasis
on Tantra (there is a vast amount of garbage and commercial
information on the Internet about Tantra--use the library
and avoid the 'net), Hermetic
intellectualism/Kabbalah,
Neo-Gnostic
Catholicism, psychoanalysis, Rosicrucianism,
revival of Egyptian religion and ceremonial magic.
In short, Thelema is a more centralized, formal and cerebral
form of esoteric spirituality than popular Wicca.
Both Wicca and Thelema rely on a pair--Priest and Priestess--to
perform their main worship ritual, though the Thelemic ritual
is very Catholic and Masonic in its format and decorum.
Thelema
is probably right behind Wicca in terms of its PR campaign,
and tends to draw a more "fiscally conservative"
type of Neopagan. There are tendencies toward political
differences between Wicca and Thelema. Like Wicca,
Thelema too has been associated with Satanism, but not without
some truth (please refer to the Satanism
page if this subject interests you.) They have
been successful at defending themselves in court against
charges of illegal activity, and the group is achieving
some respect for their scholarship and publishing.
(See also my page on "Taxes
for God"). As a more centralized group, they
(The Ordo Templi Orientis)
have more funds at their disposal for legal fees and the
like. Wicca and Thelema have benefited each other
in their respective campaigns for tolerance and acceptance.
For external criticism and history of the O.T.O., Peter
Koenig in Switzerland has an impressively stocked archive
of information about occult freemasonry, the history of
the O.T.O. and the development of Thelemic organizations
from Crowley to the present. Enter his tangled web
of intrigue and occult mania here: The
Ordo Templi Orientis Phenomenon.
The site itself presents many valid criticisms of the movement,
but ends up sounding like partisan rhetoric for a European
Vs. American copyright battle over Crowley's literary legacy--most
of which is available on-line.
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Gerald
Gardner [more]
(b 1884 d 1964) founder of the Wiccan Movement. Currently,
the term "Gardnerian Wiccan" refers to traditional
Wicca, though it is more accurately split into several types:
true Gardnerianism (which is matriarchal) and Alexandrian
(which relies on the pair of Priest and Priestess).
Goddess-centered, all women's schools of Wicca exist as
well, often referred to as Dianic Wicca. This type
of Wicca often blends in more non-Western (African, Native
American, Asian, and perhaps Graeco-Roman) aesthetics and
music. Traditional Wicca is usually "balanced"
or "M-F Wicca." Although the Priestess rules
the Gardnerian coven, the members are both male and female.
Traditional or common Wicca tends to manifest in Teutonic,
Celtic, Gypsy or eclectic forms that tend to have more of
a gothic or "fairy" aesthetic. For
brief descriptions
of the different Wiccan traditions (written by a Gardnerian),
click here. |
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For
more extensive information look at this links
collection for Western Esotericism or this one for
Wicca
and Neopaganism and this one for Chaos
Magick, and this one for Satanism
and "Dark Side" occultism.
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Since there is so much connection
between communities of people who follow different paths, there
is probably a lot more ecumenical activity among Neopagans than
any other religion. In other words, in my experience,
Neopagans have a great deal of knowledge in regards to a wide
variety of world religions, and it often comes from personal
experiences.
A few more required readings are included below...
Wicca
For more information on WHY Wicca is becoming popular, visit
my "Why Wicca?"
page.
Wicca in the Military and the Conservative
Backlash
Wiccan
soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq do not have the right to
have their religious symbol--the pentagram--engraved on their
tombstones. However, they can have "Wiccan" engraved
on their dogtags and the chaplain's manual contains information
on Wicca.
Quoted
from the Bearcloud Faithweb: "[George W.] Bush said
that he did not believe "witchcraft is a religion,"
and he hoped "the military would rethink this decision."
Bush was then asked whether he agreed with the recent U.S. House
of Representatives' vote that said states have the constitutional
power to place the Ten Commandments in public buildings, including
public schools. He said that he had no problem with the religious
codes being placed in every public building.
In 1984 a federal judge
in Virginia ruled that Wicca was a religion protected by the
First Amendment, saying the faith occupied a place in the lives
of its members "parallel to that filled by the orthodox
belief in God." This question could be carried to
our conservative Supreme Court, a fear that is growing rapidly
now in the Neopagan community.
Related
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White House mandated Faith-Based Initiatives director H
James Towey states that pagans won't receive such funds
because they aren't interested in charitable activities.
Although the statement was unfair, there is a certain degree
of generalized truth to the remark. It is interesting
to reflect on why the pagan movement has largely neglected
public service. From my experiences observing and
communicating with pagans on this issue, I think that the
reasons are: a) Pagans are, statistically speaking, young
and poor.
b) The activities they do engage in are often mixed with
non-pagans, and they are often aimed at political and
environmental causes. Participation in food shelf
drives and the like is fairly common, but often not noted as
a pagan activity.
c) Pagans are fearful of public exposure, and non-pagans who
direct charitable activities that include pagans are
not forthright in acknowledging their presence.
d) Within the pagan community are some strong libertarians
who truly are uninterested in this type of activity.
e) Although some pagans have very conservative, libertarian
ideas, the majority of them are extremely
liberal--pro-environment, pro-ERA, pro-Choice, pro-gay
rights, etc. This clearly will alienate them from the
mainstream religious charity community. In other
words, they are alienated.
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Jerry
Falwell & Pat Robertson's hate speech Falwell
blamed a broad group of liberals for the 9-11 attacks in
remarks he made to Robertson on the latter's own TV network:
"[T]he pagans and the abortionists and
the feminists and the gays and the lesbians who are
actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the
ACLU, People for the American Way — all of them who have
tried to secularize America," Falwell continued, "I point
the finger in their face and say 'you helped this
happen.'"
"Well, I totally concur," responded
Robertson.
Bob Barr and other Christians fighting to stop Wicca on
military bases
Ex-Witch Ministries--of
extremely limited value for understanding Wicca, but very
useful for understanding Christian doctrinal reactions to
the movement. |
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US
Army Chaplain's Manual excerpt on Wiccan religion (on
the Religious Tolerance Web Site). Excellent summary
of Wiccan beliefs. |
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Military
Pagan Network: |
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Wiccans
and Military Preparedness: Arguments from within the
military for banning it in the military (and counterarguments). |
The Conflict with Mainstream Religion
In order to understand the New Age and Neopagan movements,
it is important to understand some of the historical background
of intolerance that led many of these people to turn away from
orthodox religions.
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Ontario
Consultants on Religious Tolerance
unbiased, reliable examinations of many beliefs. Highly
recommended as a basic resource.
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Christian
Resources Journal: an article describing rhetorical
tactics for Christians to evangelize "New Agers." This
is quite useful and interesting for clarifying the doctrinal
differences. |
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Pagan
Criticism of Fundamentalist Christianity interesting
application of the Bible against some of the assumptions
of Fundamentalism. |
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Tim
Maroney's criticism of the Bible: Another very interesting
page that explains why many people have abandoned the Bible
in search of new religions. |
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Racism,
Extreme Rightism and Occultism: An unusual site from
the Netherlands criticizing most occult and esoteric movements
from a left-liberal, anti-racist perspective. Typically
this kind of rhetoric comes from the extreme Right.
While this site is clearly exaggerated and biased, there
is some interesting and provocative information on a connection
I have observed between Libertarian/Fascist ideology and
some occultists. The people who made
this site appear to be unaware that the suggested association
is far from universal. |
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Duty
Is Ours: Conservative Christian website promoting anti-liberal
propaganda and the infusion of Christianity into our government.
(They are against the separation of Church and State, against
liberal politics.) This site has lots of information
on the nexus between dogma and politics. |
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Balaam's
Ass Speaks a good example of fundamentalist vitriol.
The journal of the Van Nattan family. They condemn
the martial arts, Promise Keepers, Islam, Barney, pagans,
Catholics, you name it. Recent pressures on them in
regards to Hate Crimes laws have forced them and other hate
groups to take their negative rhetoric to more clandestine
forms, so you won't see much visible on this site.
They hint at their hatred all over the place. You'll
have to order their CD-ROM if you want to see the real thing.
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The
Cutting Edge a rather disturbing web site of Fundamentalist
paranoia about The New World Order, Harry Potter, Bill Clinton,
Weather Control, ... |
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The
New Paradigms Project: Similar to the previous site,
but with a much more secular-political tone. Contains
good resources for conspiracy theories, paranoia, politics,
etc. |
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David Icke : Another site dedicated to paranoia,
but in this case with more emphasis on aliens, Aquarian
Conspiracy (fear of the New Age movements), galactic apocalypse,
and of course Bill Clinton paranoia. A favorite
of the fans of Art
Bell. Wonderful example of Twenty-first Century
neo-Gnosticism. |
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Megiddo
Report of the FBI, A highly controversial report inspired
by similar work done by the Anti Defamation League and
the Ontario Consultants for Religious Tolerance.
It indicated that we need to fear terrorism from apocalyptic
cults who thought that the millennium would bring the
end of the world. Most of the groups targeted were
connected to racist religions like Christian Identity
and some branches of Teutonic Neopaganism called "Odinism"
and others influenced by the Turner Diaries.
Relevant links include:
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Watch
Unto Prayer: A web site dedicated to paranoia
about the New World Order, and One World Religion,
FBI, etc. (highly biased) |
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The
Uhuh Web Site's Megiddo List
a right wing Christian apocalyptic group has done
a lot of research into the issues, and they are upset
that the FBI has labeled them as potential terrorists.
They are suggesting that the FBI is being manipulated
by Neopagans and "secular humanists" who
wish to persecute them. You can be the judge of the
implications and allegations. |
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Project
Megiddo and Religious inTolerance More fear in
relation to the FBI's decision to direct attention
away from Witches and Satanists and instead toward
apocalyptic Y2K cults, racist religions, etc. |
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The
Making of Project Megiddo and the Secret Agenda to
Destroy Christianity in America
More of the same. (there is quite a lot of this
stuff on the Internet, coming from groups implicated
in the report.) |
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In spite
of the controversy sparked by the FBI report, it should be noted
that Y2K came and went without violence, though
one highly suspicious Christian cult (Concerned
Christians) was deported (thanks to preparation from the Megiddo
Report?) with weapons near Megiddo mount in Israel. It should
also be noted that public outcry over this report seems to be
quite limited in scope, considering that the report is about three
years old now. In other words, the understandably offended
reactions of religious people who were suddenly labeled as terrorists
did not create a great deal of sympathy in the media or public
opinion, even among Christians such as the Apologetics Index listed
above. Most of the reactions I saw on the Internet from Christians
involved overreactions, inaccurate readings of the report, and
attempts to distance themselves from groups that undeniably have
such inclinations. It was clear that the FBI was concerned
about groups who had a fervent belief that Y2K would be the date
for Armageddon, and who had the means and motive for actual violence. That
groups like the John Birch Society would be offended is understandable,
but the report does not implicate the JBS. Instead, it points
out that the conservative and arguably racist rhetoric of this
and other similar groups appeals to that small portion of the
population which the FBI did indeed see as a threat.
Anger over this issue still simmers on the Internet, and could
surface again in a more conservative political environment. The
Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance have been criticized
by some Christians who dislike the portrayal they are given there
(as intolerant, etc.) They
claim (and I personally agree) that what they are doing is making
people aware of potential violence and hatred that is indeed connected
to a small minority of religious movements around the world.
I strongly encourage you to look at the actual Megiddo
Report of the FBI if you are
interested in this topic. It's only about 30 pages long. Report
of Y2K violence actually averted by the FBI and police
Hermetic, Masonic, Ceremonial &
Theosophical Societies
Freemasonry is an important topic for the
study of esoteric religion, the conflict between supporters
of liberal/parliamentary and monarchist government, Catholics
Vs Protestants, and the political-economic policies that underlie
capitalist liberalism. There are a variety of Masonic
traditions--some of them are more esoteric and even magical
(Memphis & Mizraim, Golden Dawn, O.T.O.), others are primarily
philanthropic and social (Scottish Rite). There is a recent
trend of Neopagans joining the Scottish Rite masonic groups.
Research into Masonry is best done in libraries and used book
stores. It is important to keep in mind that the Catholic
Church and conservative Fundamentalists are deeply opposed to
Freemasonry, which they connect to conspiracies of globalization.
The Knights of Columbus are a Catholic response to Masonry.
Christian sources of information on Masonry are extremely biased,
unreliable and almost always absurd--even if you believe that
the agenda of laissez-faire liberalism is flawed.
Golden Dawn: This offshoot of masonry, Egypto-Christian
religion and the artistic decadence of fin de siecle Europe
had as its members the famous authors: W.B. Yeats (national
poet of Ireland), Algernon Blackwood (famous British author
of ghost stories), Arthur
Machen (an inspiration to HP Lovecraft) Aleister Crowley
(the infamous magician/poet and self-proclaimed Beast 666).
Some believe the Bram Stoker (Dracula) was a member too.
Over time, the GD has fragmented and various groups claim the
name. Partisan bickering and litigation has resulted in
a great deal of animosity between various factions. The
sites below contain useful research information, but are written
by potentially partisan members. Also, the material is
presented from the perspective of members/believers, rather
than from an objective/external perspective.
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History
of the Golden Dawn a good introduction to a complex
story |
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The
Historical Golden Dawn a more extensive and detailed
look at the GD. |
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Golden
Dawn library |
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Golden
Dawn controversy: Which is the real one? I don't
wish to enter into this ugly debate, but here is one partisan
perspective on who is real and who is not. |
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The
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn |
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Thelema:
Aleister Crowley broke off from the Golden Dawn to promote
his own message of personal freedom and the end of Christianity.
This page contains a huge collection of informative links. |
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Franz
Bardon: Famous German ceremonial magician. |
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Alchemy:
The ancient art that combined chemistry, magic and mysticism
in the pursuit of converting lead into gold and the creation
of life (the homunculus). Carl Jung was deeply influenced
by the texts and illustrations of the alchemists and Rosicrucians.
This page is a thorough collection of on-line texts and
resources. It is an excellent site. |
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Mark
Stavish's Alchemical Writings: A modern teacher and
author in the field of Alchemy. |
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The
Hermetic Library: A source for the writings of various
modern authors in the various fields of the Hermetic studies. |
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Psyche.com:
an outstanding web site dedicated to the Qabalistic branch
of this Hermetic tradition, with emphasis on the writings
of Carlos Suarès. |
Dark Side and Satanism: A separate
page of information and links is provided. Click
here. or visit these links collections: Chaos
Magick, and Satanism
and "Dark Side" occultism.
Tarot: The Tarot deck has been studied in many
ways by man different traditions. It plays a central role
in the Golden Dawn and Thelema. It also has been adopted
by several Christian mystic thinkers. Even Joseph Campbell
found it interesting. The important thing to keep in mind
is that the Tarot is not only a method of fortune telling, but
was probably used as a pictorial educational device by the Catholic
Church. Jungian psychologists have found a wealth of archetypes
and transformative symbolism in the Tarot. For more information
on the psychologization of Tarot and Astrology, click
here. Among the better pages to get an idea of the
current interpretations and uses of the Tarot are these:
Dada and Surrealism--Artistic Revolution
& Occultism
Where spirituality, art and politics come together.
Humor and Irony in Spirituality:
Counter Culture
Lastly, I feel it is absolutely necessary
to mention a few important, very strange and humorous
influences on the post-modern occult movement These writings
have had an enormous impact on Neopaganism:
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Principia
Discordia: The original book of spiritual anarchy
and humor. This is a "must read" for all
you counter-culture geeks. |
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The
Church of the Subgenius: Too hard to explain here,
but let me try: American pop culture and just about every
religion and conspiracy theory turned into an intentionally
absurd religion of self-gratification and extreme irony.
As a parody, this web site gives excellent examples of
what I have defined as extreme religious dualism.
Perhaps this Subgenius
Manifesto is a better place to start, though the previous
link is probably more entertaining. |
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TAZ--Temporary
Autonomous Zone: Hakim Bay a more serious
and provocative purveyor of spiritual anarchy. Interesting,
and very influential. |
Ancient Sources of Esoteric Religion
Assorted Resources for historical background to occultism
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Myths
and Legends One of the largest
and most complete links collections for this topic. |
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Folklore
and Mythology Electronic Texts edited and/or translated
by D. L. Ashliman University of Pittsburgh |
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Egyptology
Resources--resources for Ancient Egypt Cambridge University.
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The
Egyptian Book of the Dead |
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AVESTA
-- Zoroastrian Archives |
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Biblioteca
Arcana Huge and interesting site of classical paganism
(large emphasis on Greek traditions of Pythagoras, Hermeticism
and other ancient magic/sorcery. |
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Classical
Myth: The Ancient Sources. Large and very useful
site of scholarly quality. Connected to various
other sources of primary texts, bibliography and images.
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The
Coptic Studies' Corner |
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Gnosticism
doctrinal introduction/summary by Stephen A. Hoeller, a
modern Gnostic Bishop. Best for understanding the modern
manifestations of Gnosticism. |
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Nag
Hammadi Library On-line.
This is the most important set of sacred writings from the
Gnostics: Introduction,
Elaine
Pagels intro Three of the
most popular and famous of the Gnostic scriptures are included
below.
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Thunder
Perfect Mind: Famous Gnostic hymn to the Goddess
Sophia. Highly Recommended for study of the
feminine archetype in Ancient European and North African
religion. Very recent translation by Anne McGuire. |
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The
Hypostasis of the Archons.
The reversed story of the Garden of Eden, where the
Serpent rescues Adam & Eve by awakening them to
their imprisonment in the Demiurge's seductive creation. |
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The
Gospel of Thomas
A collection of the sayings of Jesus--some familiar,
others quite obscure and mystical. A
few experts believe that this may be the lost "Q"
document from which the sayings of Jesus were taken
to write the traditional four Gospels. If so,
a great deal was left out for doctrinal reasons. The
Gospel of Philip and the Gospel
of Truth are also quite readable and interesting
for Christians. |
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Terje
Bergerson's -- outspoken internet Gnostic from Norway.
Fascinating site, especially as an example of the bridge
between ancient Gnosticism and the new generation of tech-gnostics. |
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Gnostic
Renaissance Information Project |
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J.R.
Ritman Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica |
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Alchemy
resources & virtual library
Outstanding, amazing, large. Must see. |
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Giordano
Bruno Fascinating
philosopher and mystic who was burned at the stake for
his ideas. |
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Ars Memoriae
a very interesting site containing articles on memory
and mnemonics from a variety of perspectives, with and
emphasis on the hermetic tradition, Renaissance and Englightenment
as well as modern psychology. |
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Gene
R. Thursby's Mysticism Resources PageThis
is an excellent link for mystics in general. |
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Who's
Who in Western Mysticism
Bruce B. Janz's essay/links on Gene R. Thursby's mysticism
resources site. Useful for Christian, Jewish, Islamic
and Occult mystics. |
Navigate:
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