The Occult Tradition

The Occult Tradition PDF Author: David S. Katz
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 0712667865
Category : Occultism
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
Is the universe alive? Are there hidden connections within it, revealed in history and in sacred texts? Can we understand or even learn to control these secrets? Have we neglected an entirely separate science that works according to a different set of principles? Certainly by the time of the Renaissance in Europe, there were many thinkers who answered in the affirmative to all of these questions. Despite the growth of modern science and a general disenchantment of the world, the 'occult' or 'esoteric' tradition has evolved in the West, manifesting itself in such diverse groups as the Freemasons, the Mormons, Christian Scientists, the Theosophists, New Ageists and American Fundamentalism. Paradoxically, the turn to science and the triumph of evolution in the nineteenth century produced an explosion of occultism, increasing its power as a kind of super-science. Gothic, fantastic, and supernatural fiction flourished, while Spiritualism emerged as a serious inquiry into the possibility of contacting the dead. After all, if you could communicate with the living at great distances, why should a similar teletechnology not be possible to the other world? Disciplines had not yet hardened, and the borders were as yet undefined between parapsychology and psychology, between mythology and anthropology. Mesmerism became hypnotism, and the subconscious came to be recognized as more than a medium's stomping ground. This book describes the growth and meandering path of the occult tradition over the past five hundred years, and shows how the esoteric world view fits together.

The Occult Tradition

The Occult Tradition PDF Author: David S. Katz
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 0712667865
Category : Occultism
Languages : en
Pages : 282

Get Book Here

Book Description
Is the universe alive? Are there hidden connections within it, revealed in history and in sacred texts? Can we understand or even learn to control these secrets? Have we neglected an entirely separate science that works according to a different set of principles? Certainly by the time of the Renaissance in Europe, there were many thinkers who answered in the affirmative to all of these questions. Despite the growth of modern science and a general disenchantment of the world, the 'occult' or 'esoteric' tradition has evolved in the West, manifesting itself in such diverse groups as the Freemasons, the Mormons, Christian Scientists, the Theosophists, New Ageists and American Fundamentalism. Paradoxically, the turn to science and the triumph of evolution in the nineteenth century produced an explosion of occultism, increasing its power as a kind of super-science. Gothic, fantastic, and supernatural fiction flourished, while Spiritualism emerged as a serious inquiry into the possibility of contacting the dead. After all, if you could communicate with the living at great distances, why should a similar teletechnology not be possible to the other world? Disciplines had not yet hardened, and the borders were as yet undefined between parapsychology and psychology, between mythology and anthropology. Mesmerism became hypnotism, and the subconscious came to be recognized as more than a medium's stomping ground. This book describes the growth and meandering path of the occult tradition over the past five hundred years, and shows how the esoteric world view fits together.

Occult Traditions

Occult Traditions PDF Author: Damon Lycourinos Lycourinos
Publisher: Manticore Press
ISBN: 9780987158130
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
Occult Traditions is the manifestation of the endeavours of scholars and practitioners alike exploring and challenging both historical and contemporary perspectives on the occult arts and sciences. The title of this book serves as a testimony for the occult acting as a designation of currents and traditions of esoteric philosophy, and magic as a participatory worldview manipulated as an instrument by the active person through the execution of the art and science of ritual, which is an extension grounded in the belief in magical powers within the self and other. Each page bears witness to aspects of occult traditions, which are in essence simultaneously meta-historical and dynamic, serving as an overall ordering force in service of the principles of the arcane correspondences that exist between the microcosm and the macrocosm. This book is an awakening to the occult reality that since the dawn of ages men and women have sought a glimpse of gnôsis within the awesome natural performance of ritual, the slithering flow of the elements, the sensational sounds of the spheres, the iconic form of dreams undreamt and now awoken, the irrational whispering of mystical verses, the silence of contemplation, and the passion-drenched erotic thirst for life, death, and rebirth. Unlike the priesthood of sterile logic and doctrinal faith, these men and women have been a visible representation of spiritual virility, of the human condition, and many times the romantic ethos, which many have convicted as an antinomian ethos, refusing, adapting, and also enchanting the dictates of conventional society, morality, and metaphysical culture. Thus, Occult Traditions invites the reader to journey along with the authors and conjurors, who have been generous enough to share their visions and gestures in this book, through various traditions relating to distinct historical developments, unique occult philosophies, and potent ritual practice. Here the reader shall encounter summoning magical assistants and the presence of the mystery traditions in the Greek Magical Papyri; deification through the arcane process of drowning in the Greek Magical Papyri; an exploration of occult theology as a continuation of Neoplatonism; a historical analysis of the grimoire traditions and a search for the original source of the Key of Solomon; the Icelandic tradition of magic as presented in an eighteenth century grimoire; a comparative analysis of medieval and Renaissance angel magic; Canaanite views of death and necromancy; an exploration of the use and attributes of incenses throughout history; a consideration of the science of divining the will of the gods; Seth as god of chaos and equilibrium; Julius Evola's ideas concerning the formula of sex, magic, and power; Buddhist 'wizards' at war in Thailand; a critical examination of the role of sex, magic, and initiation in the Wiccan Great Rite; the dynamics of altering consciousness within the spiral maze of Wiccan ritual; a restoration of the Rite of the Headless One from the Greek Magical Papyri; the elements of being and becoming in Conversation with one's Holy Guardian Angel; the Eucharistic Feast of Agathodaimon; the Rite of the Solar and Lunar Mysteries of the Altar of Eros for the Consecration of the Talismans of Helios and Selene; the Calling and Adoration of Aion, and the Spell of the Mystic Flame; and finally the Hymnic Adoration and Invocation of Thoth, to whom this book belongs, as He is lord of magic and scribe of the gods.

Literary Modernism and the Occult Tradition

Literary Modernism and the Occult Tradition PDF Author: Leon Surette
Publisher: National Poetry Foundation
ISBN:
Category : American poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
Criticism. This collection of essays is posited on the conviction that mythical, ecstatic and revelatory topoi in the modernist works of Yeats, Eliot, Williams, H.D., Pound, Joyce, et al, are motivated not by a sceptical and positivistic dismissal of the religious past -- as implausibly maintained by the New Criticism -- but rather these features arise out of a radical and reformist attempt to revive ancient pagan religious sensibilities. In essence, the modern occult amounts to a neo-pagan piety that is polytheistic, fleshly, erotic and ecstatic -- opposed to a Christian or Jewish piety that's monotheistic, otherworldly, ascetic and revealed. In short, the occult manifests itself in modernist literature in what Nietzsche would have called a Dionysian guise -- confused because of its rejection of Judeo-Christian sensibilities with a sceptical secularism. Among the dozen contributors here are Peter Liebregts, John Coggrave, Barry Ahearn, Leonora Woodman, M. Anthony Trembly and Archie Henderson.

Lightbringers of the North

Lightbringers of the North PDF Author: Perttu Häkkinen
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 164411464X
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 616

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Book Description
• Examines the significant figures and groups of Finland’s occult world, including their esoteric practices and the secret societies to which they were connected • Investigates the relationship of nationalism and esotericism in Finland as well as the history of Finnish parapsychology and the Finnish UFO craze • Looks at the unique evolution of Freemasonry in Finland, showing how, when Finland was still part of Russia and the Masonic order was banned, adherents created a number of other secret societies Finland has long been viewed as the land of sorcerers and shamans. Exploring the rich history of Finnish occultism, Perttu Häkkinen and Vesa Iitti examine the significant figures and groups of Finland’s occult world from the late 19th century to the present day. They begin with Pekka Ervast, known as the Rudolf Steiner of the North, who was a major figure in Theosophy before starting a Rosicrucian group called Ruusu-Risti, and they look at the Finnish disciples of G. I. Gurdjieff and the grim case of the cult of Tattarisuo. Investigating the relationship of nationalism and esotericism in Finland, the authors tell the stories of Sigurd Wettenhovi-Aspa, who thought that Finns were the root of all Western civilization, and of Yrjö von Grönhagen, who became a close friend of Heinrich Himmler and Karl Maria Wiligut. They also explore the history of Finnish parapsychology, the Finnish UFO craze, and the unique evolution of Freemasonry in Finland, showing how, when the Masonic order was banned, adherents created a number of other secret societies, such as the Carpenter’s Order, the Hypotenuse Order, and the Brotherhood of February 17--which later became hubs for the OTO and AMORC. Unveiling both the light and dark sides of modern esotericism in Finland, the authors show how, because of its unique position as partially European and partially Russian, Finland’s occult influence extends into the very heart of left-hand and right-hand occult groups and secret societies around the world.

Victorian Occultism and the Making of Modern Magic

Victorian Occultism and the Making of Modern Magic PDF Author: A. Butler
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230294707
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 239

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Book Description
The late Victorian period witnessed the remarkable revival of magical practice and belief. Butler examines the individuals, institutions and literature associated with this revival and demonstrates how Victorian occultism provided an alternative to the tightening camps of science and religion in a social environment that nurtured magical beliefs.

Lucifer Ascending

Lucifer Ascending PDF Author: Bill Ellis
Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
ISBN: 081318293X
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 363

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Book Description
Despite their centuries-old history and traditions, witchcraft and magic are still very much a part of modern Anglo-American culture. In Lucifer Ascending, Bill Ellis looks at modern practices that are universally defined as "occult," from commonplace habits such as carrying a rabbit's foot for good luck or using a Ouija board, to more esoteric traditions, such as the use of spell books. In particular, Ellis shows how the occult has been a common element in youth culture for hundreds of years. Using materials from little known publications and archives, Lucifer Ascending details the true social function of individuals' dabbling with the occult. In his survey of what Ellis terms "vernacular occultism," the author is poised on a middle ground between a skeptical point of view that defines belief in witchcraft and Satan as irrational and an interpretation of witchcraft as an underground religion opposing Christianity. Lucifer Ascending examines the occult not as an alternative to religion but rather as a means for ordinary people to participate directly in the mythic realm.

The Occult Book

The Occult Book PDF Author: John Michael Greer
Publisher: Union Square & Co.
ISBN: 1454925787
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 441

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Book Description
Explore the occult from ancient times to the modern day with one of its most respected scholars and practitioners. Take an enlightening journey through occult history, exploring 100 dramatic incidents, arcane knowledge, and key historical figures from around the world. John Michael Greer delves into two millennia of tradition, from the earliest alchemists to pagan rituals; from the Philosopher’s Stone to Cabala, the first tarot, and the Knights Templar; and from the first horoscopes to fortune-telling trials and the birth of modern witchcraft, or Wicca. Each entry features a stunning image or intriguing item of ephemera.

Renaissance Magic and the Return of the Golden Age

Renaissance Magic and the Return of the Golden Age PDF Author: John S. Mebane
Publisher: U of Nebraska Press
ISBN: 9780803281790
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 340

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Book Description
For all their pride in seeing this world clearly, the thinkers and artists of the English Renaissance were also fascinated by magic and the occult. The three greatest playwrights of the period devoted major plays (The Tempest, Doctor Faustus, The Alchemist) to magic, Francis Bacon often referred to it, and it was ever-present in the visual arts. In Renaissance Magic and the Return of the Golden Age John S. Mebane reevaluates the significance of occult philosophy in Renaissance thought and literature, constructing the most detailed historical context for his subject yet attempted.

The Occult Sciences

The Occult Sciences PDF Author: Edward Smedley
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Occultism
Languages : en
Pages : 408

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Book Description


The Art of the Occult

The Art of the Occult PDF Author: S. Elizabeth
Publisher: Frances Lincoln
ISBN: 0711254168
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 243

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Book Description
A visual feast of eclectic artwork informed and inspired by spiritual beliefs, magical techniques, mythology and otherworldly experiences. Mystical beliefs and practices have existed for millennia, but why do we still chase the esoteric? From the beginning of human creativity itself, image-makers have been drawn to these unknown spheres and have created curious artworks that transcend time and place – but what is it that attracts artists to these magical realms? From theosophy and kabbalah, to the zodiac and alchemy; spiritualism and ceremonial magic, to the elements and sacred geometry – The Art of the Occult introduces major occult themes and showcases the artists who have been influenced and led by them. Discover the symbolic and mythical images of the Pre-Raphaelites; the automatic drawing of Hilma af Klint and Madge Gill; Leonora Carrington's surrealist interpretation of myth, alchemy and kabbalah; and much more. Featuring prominent, marginalised and little-known artists, The Art of the Occult crosses mystical spheres in a bid to inspire and delight. Divided into thematic chapters (The Cosmos, Higher Beings, Practitioners), the book acts as an entertaining introduction to the art of mysticism – with essays examining each practice and over 175 artworks to discover. The art of the occult has always existed in the margins but inspired the masses, and this book will spark curiosity in all fans of magic, mysticism and the mysterious.