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Post by Admin on May 30, 2021 15:41:38 GMT
Esotericism and Narrative: The Occult Fiction of Charles Williams www.academia.edu/37003435/Esotericism_and_Narrative_The_Occult_Fiction_of_Charles_WilliamsSituates the life and fiction of Inkling Charles Williams in the network of modern occultism, with special focus on his initiatory experiences in A.E. Waite’s Fellowship of the Rosy Cross. Roukema evaluates fictional projections of magic, kabbalah, alchemy and ritual experience in Williams’s seven novels of supernatural fantasy. From this specific analysis, he develops more broadly applicable approaches to the serious expression of religious experience in fiction. Roukema shows that esoteric knowledge has frequently been blurred into fiction because of its inherent narrativity and adaptability, particularly by authors already attracted to the syncretism, multivalence and lived fantasy of the modern occult experience.
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Post by Admin on Jun 3, 2021 15:43:15 GMT
Seth Pancoast and the Kabbalah: Medical Pluralism and the Reception of Physics in Late-Nineteenth Century Philadelphia www.academia.edu/31325628/Seth_Pancoast_and_the_Kabbalah_Medical_Pluralism_and_the_Reception_of_Physics_in_Late_Nineteenth_Century_PhiladelphiaReligion, History of Religion, Nineteenth Century Studies, History of Science, New Age (Western Esotericism), Kabbalah, Theosophy, New Age spirituality, History of Science and Religion, Nineteenth Century Occultism, Contemporary Kabbalah, Kabbalah and science Seth Pancoast was the author of "The Kabbalah, Or, The True Science of Light" (1877) a book that elucidated a form of therapy based on the administration of rays of light in colours corresponding the Kabbalistic sephiroth. It was a late-nineteenth century melange of occultist Kabbalah with aspects of Quakerism, Mesmerism, Theosophy, and chromotherapy, (the use or colour in healing), as well as contemporary medical and scientific theories in orthodox and heterodox varieties. I argue that Pancoast's Kabbalistic therapy must be understood in the context of the medical pluralism that characterised late-1870s Philadelphia. It must also be contextualised in Pancoast's anachronistic attachment to the concept of the ray of light, his embrace of the ether as a medium through which rays were said to travel, and his rejection of the wave theory of light (which, paradoxically, was closely related to the rise of the concept of the ether). The apparent inconsistencies in Pancoast's understanding of physics make more sense when we understand Pancoast's theological understanding of light, which was probably influenced by the Quaker doctrine of the Inner Light as well as occultist theories of the Astral Light, among other things. Understanding the multiple overlapping religious, medical, and scientific cultures represented in Pancoast's unique vision of Kabbalah is important in reaching an understanding the historical, cultural, and religious contexts in which it formed. This, in turn, helps us understand the emergence of certain New Age perspectives on Kabbalah that are indebted to that cultural milieu, especially the alliance between Kabbalah and alternative health that is almost taken for granted today.
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Post by Admin on Jun 4, 2021 15:40:39 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 4, 2021 17:49:57 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 4, 2021 17:55:53 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 4, 2021 17:58:16 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 4, 2021 23:25:15 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 6, 2021 15:41:54 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 7, 2021 15:40:29 GMT
Kabbalah Recreata: Reception and Adaptation of Kabbalah in Modern Occultism www.academia.edu/232269/Kabbalah_Recreata_Reception_and_Adaptation_of_Kabbalah_in_Modern_OccultismIn the early twentieth century, certain elements of the Kabbalah were transformed by being given new interpretations and uses in the context of what I term the “programmatic syncretism” of modern, fin de siècle occultism. In so doing I focus specifically on one text by Aleister Crowley, which I consider the full-blown example of the phenomenon in question. The text demonstrates how the occultists' Kabbalah functions first and foremost as a classificatory tool and a mnemonic system, mainly for practical use in magical rituals. That use is part of a reinterpretation of the Kabbalah in the modern occult revival, mainly from Eliphas Levi through the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, culminating in the works of Aleister Crowley. It is my intention that this focus will not only shed light on a process of reinterpretation peculiar to fin de siècle occultism, but also on the processes characteristic of religious innovation in the modern age in general.
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Post by Admin on Jun 9, 2021 15:40:47 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 13, 2021 11:05:49 GMT
The ancient alchemists called the mind “the sun” and the heart “the moon,” for to them strength, reason, and logic were masculine, paternal, solar powers; while love, beauty, intuition, and kindliness were feminine, maternal, lunar qualities. This will probably make clear why gold and silver had to be blended in the great alchemical enterprises, for gold and silver of the alchemists were not dead metals but living qualities in human life.
The marriage of the sun and moon was, therefore, the marriage of the heart and mind or of strength and beauty, inspiration, and courage; and in its greatest expression the union of science and theology, or God and Nature. The great need of this alliance is plainly evident in the world today, where cold intellectualism and commercialism need the finer sentiments of friendliness and altruism to offset their heartless cruelty. On the other hand, fanaticism, blind faith, and ungoverned emotionalism require the strong hand of logic and reason to steer them away from the rocks of insanity and death. Perfect equilibrium in the nature of people is seldom met with; in fact, it is Nature’s greatest rarity. A person who has that perfectly balanced viewpoint is the living Philosopher’s Stone, for he has strength matched with kindliness and justice tempered with mercy.
Manly Hall
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Post by Admin on Jun 14, 2021 15:42:03 GMT
Kabbalah and Contemporary Spiritual Revival www.academia.edu/672876/Kabbalah_and_Contemporary_Spiritual_RevivalPreface In the last decades of the 20th century, a surprising revival of interest in Kabbalah and Hasidism occurred in Israeli society, in Jewish communities in the Diaspora, and to a certain degree in the Western culture in general. Since the late 1960’s, and especially, during the last two decades, new Kabbalistic movements came into being, whereas old Kabbalistic Yeshivot and Hasidic groups have become more active. Today, many forms of Kabbalistic rituals and practices are performed, revived, and re-invented, along with Kabbalistic themes being integrated in literature, art, music and popular culture. Most contemporary Kabbalistic and Hasidic movements emerged out of earlier forms of 20th century Kabbalah, reproducing and developing previous Kabbalistic themes and practices. Yet, today`s Kabbalah is created in the framework of postmodern culture and new spiritual formations (especially, the New Age) stimulating its revival and to a large extent shaping its cultural expressions. The present volume includes sixteen articles which investigate the new forms of Kabbalah, their cultural contexts and their contacts with other forms of contemporary spiritual revival. The papers were written by prominent scholars from a variety of disciplines, including history of Kabbalah, sociology, anthropology, and religious studies. Some of the articles deal with various forms of contemporary Kabbalah and Hasidism. Yaakov Ariel investigates the origins of the movements of Renewal and return to tradition; Chava Weissler examines the Performance of Kabbalah in the Jewish Renewal Movement in the United States, and Rachel Werczberger explores the theme of healing in the rituals of Jewish Spiritual Renewal in Israel. The Contemporary Renaissance of Breslov Hasidism is discussed by Zvi Mark, and Jonathan Garb presents his research of the mystical Renaissance in the contemporary Ashkenazi Haredi World in Israel. Elliot R. Wolfson’s study focuses on the Kabbalistic-Pietistic Teachings of Itamar Schwartz, one of the more prolific contemporary teachers of Kabbalah in the Haredi world. Jonatan Meir examines the boundaries of Kabbalah in the thought of R. Yaakov Moshe Hillel, of Yeshivat Hevrat Ahavat Shalom of Jerusalem. In her study `Kabbalah for the Gentiles`, Jody Myers draws attention to three contemporary Kabbalah teachers (Ariel Bar Tzadok, Yitzchak Ginsburgh and Michael Laitman) who affirm the appropriateness of teaching Kabbalah to non-Jews. Other articles trace the...
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Post by Admin on Jun 15, 2021 15:41:03 GMT
Translations of the Zohar: Historical Contexts and Ideological Frameworks www.academia.edu/31574509/Translations_of_the_Zohar_Historical_Contexts_and_Ideological_FrameworksThe Zohar, a compilation of Kabbalistic texts which were written in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, was bestowed an authoritative and sacred status in many Jewish communities. Together with its central role in Jewish culture, the Zohar stimulated considerable interest in Christian Kabbalistic and Western esoteric circles. In recent years, a newly awakened interest in the Kabbalah and the Zohar has been evident in many circles both in Israel and all over the world. The interest in the Zohar stimulated its translation into different languages, each created according to different motivations and within diverse theological and ideological frameworks. This article offers a review of the history of translations of the Zohar and discusses the historical contexts and ideological frameworks in which these were created.
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Post by Admin on Jun 22, 2021 15:37:36 GMT
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Post by Admin on Jun 23, 2021 15:40:28 GMT
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