Hermetism and other religions
Encyclopedia
This is a comparative religion
article which outlines both similarities between Hermetism, Hermeticism
, and other thought systems as well as their interactions between one another.
Christianity and Hermetism have interacted in such a way that controversy surrounds the nature of the influence. Some, such as Richard August Reitzenstein
believed that Hermetism had heavily influenced Christianity; while others, such as Marie-Joseph LaGrange
, believed that Christianity heavily influenced Hermetism; most see the exchange as more mutual. Both religions hold redemption, revelation
and focus on the knowledge of God as the meaning of humanity
's existence. This knowledge of God comes upon a mystical experience dependent upon rebirth, the focal point of arguments for influence from one of these religions upon the other. The focus of this rebirth are the words "Life," "Light," and "Truth" as well as a moral attitude of the seeker in his attainment of higher knowledge. Both also share a dualistic philosophy
which comes from a shared philosophical background in popular schools of Hellenistic
thought. Early Christianity and Hermetism both are esoteric
without having an excessive emphasis on secrecy, relying upon inward experience, assisted by instruction and ultimately the result of revelation by God. Former president of the American Academy of Religion
, Catherine L Albanese, has theorized that Hermetic thought has had a profound influence in Mormonism
, Unitarianism
, Universalism
, and the Shakers
. In Prisci Theologi and the Hermetic Reformation in the Fifteenth Century, Lutheran Bishop James Heiser evaluated the writings of Marsilio Ficino
and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola
as contributions to a “Hermetic Reformation."
Both texts utilize the concept of Logos
and emphasize that the followers of their respective religions are apart from the rest of the world, suitable for only a few followers. Each of the two texts stress the importance of redemption, revelation, and rebirth to find knowledge of God and contain striking similarity in the wording of how moral attitudes promote higher knowledge in general Opposed to the basis of the contemporary mystery cults, both texts relayed that the core of religious practice should be done internally through the personal experience of the believer rather than externally through sacrament
al ritual. Dualism plays a strong part in each of the two works.
Mary Lyman also points out four distinct contrasts between the two works despite their similarities. First, that the Fourth Gospel is a homogeneous work while the Corpus Hermeticum is a work which is found in fragments which she suspects were written by many authors over a wide range of time. Second, cosmic speculation is paramount to the Hermetic work while the fourth Gospel focuses on issues of religion. Third, the Hermetic text focuses on the asceticism
of the day while the Fourth Gospel ignores it completely. Fourth, the Gospel's figures are all unique and grounds itself in the life of Jesus of Nazareth while the Hermetic text uses an "elusive literary tradition" which does little to identify or separate its characters. Though she relays that a scholar named Angus believed that the two would be more similar if they had the same proportion of Hermetic writings as Christian writings.
, suggests that Mormonism
has its roots in Hermetism and Hermeticism after following a philosophical trail from Renaissance Europe
. The early Mormons, most notably Joseph Smith, were linked with magic, alchemy
, Freemasonry
, divining
and "other elements of radical religion" prior to Mormonism. Brooke attests correlations with the view that spirit and matter are one and the same, the covenant of celestial marriage
, and the ability of humanity to become deified or ultimately perfect.
Further, Brooke argues that Mormonism can only be understood in conjunction with the occult and the Reformation
-era sectarian idea of restoration. He sees ties to Hermeticism in Mormon support for Pelagianism
, communitarianism
, polygamy
and Dispensationalism
. He does however digress that there was a change since the 1860s in the LDS Church which has widely removed Hermetic influence. Catherine L Albanese picked up on Brooke's work and further claims that Smith's heavenly realm is derived from Emanuel Swedenborg
's Divine Man and Hermeticism in general, linking it in with several American
Christian movements which move Christianity in odd directions.
However, scholars at the LDS-owned Brigham Young University
have denounced Brooke's work and even scolded the publisher, Cambridge University Press
, for printing it. Philip I Barlow criticizes the work as carelessly seeking out relations to Hermeticism which Brooke knows better than Mormonism, and believes that Brooke's links to Hermeticism can be explained away with "a particular and selectively literal reading of the Bible." Albanese was criticised by Richard J Neuhaus as having denied Christianity the metaphysical
in order to minimize its influence and that she is avoiding theology
by calling her book a cultural history
. Albanese believes that the metaphysical denial in scholarly research is due to its strong feminist
qualities. Neuhaus believes American Christianity is more Gnostic in nature than Hermetic.
and biblical faith
along with the Cathar
s. Both groups saw the fundamental relationship between God and man was found through gnosis
in a goal to "see" God and in some instances become one with God.
Christian Gnostics, however, felt that there was something seriously wrong with Nous, a part of The All; to them, it seemed that the concept could be stretched so far as to say that by bringing the world into existence, God had to remove himself from it at the same time. They also differed on the basis of theology
, cosmology
, and anthropology
. Though both agreed in God's transcendence over the Universe, Hermetists believed that God could still be comprehended through philosophical reasoning, in agreement with philosophers and Christian theologians, but Gnostics felt God was completely unknowable. While the Gnostics indulged in mythological
references often, Hermetic texts are generally void of mythology, with Poimandres as an exception. Hermetism is optimistic about God, while many forms of Chritian Gnosticism are pessimistic about the creator
(a different being from their conception of God
): Several Christian Gnostic sects saw the Cosmos
were the product of an evil creator and thus evil itself, while Hermetists saw the Cosmos as a beautiful creation in the image of God. Both view that mankind was originally divine and has become entrapped in the material world, a slave to passion and distracted from divine nature. However, the Gnostics often held a pessimistic view of mankind as a result while the Hermetic belief is generally positive towards mankind just the same. Rather, Hermetists believed that the human body was not bad in itself, but materialistic impulses such as sexual desire
were the cause of evil in the world.
needed protection by being either Muslim, Christian, Jewish, or Sabian
. They took the Corpus Hermeticum as their scripture and Hermes Trismegistus
as their prophet, and decided to call themselves Sabians. As no one was sure what the Qur'an
meant by Sabian, they were accepted as being such having a monotheistic
scripture and a prophet
. This group played a large role in Baghdad's intellectual life from 856-1050.
The most famous of the Harranian Sabians was Thabit ibn Qurra
, who made great advances in alchemy
, astronomy
, and mathematics
, citing his paganism as the reason for his ability. The author Antoine Faivre theorizes that Hermes Trismegistus is mentioned in the Qu'ran as well, under the name of Idris
. (19:56, 19:57) Idris is also identified with Enoch, who is also identified with Hermes. He is called "Thrice Wise," relating to Hermes' title "Thrice Great."
and Hermetism has been one of mutual influence and a subject of controversy within the Jewish religion.
This identification paved the way for the exchange and melding of ideas between Judaism and Hermetism during the Middle Ages
. The most prominent interrelation between the two systems is in the development of Kabbalah
which developed into three separate brands: a Jewish stream, a Christian
stream (Cabala
in Christianity), and a Hermetic stream (Qabalah in Hermeticism). Medieval Hermetism, aside from alchemy
, is often seen as analogous to and was heavily influenced by these Kabbalistic ideas.
Hermetism and Kabbalah arose together in the 12th and 13th centuries. The Practical Kabbalah also relied upon magic and astrology but focused more on the Hebrew language in its incantations than the general language of Hermetism in general.
Secondly, Jewish scholars of the Middle Ages attempted to make use of treatises on astrology
, medicine
and theurgy
as a justification for practicing natural magic forbidden by a number of commandments in the Torah
and reinforced by prophetic books codified by rabbi
nic authorities. They noted the wonders performed by celebrated biblical figures such as the patriarchs
and King Solomon and which were seen as a God-given and condoned use of natural magic. They attributed these arts to divine knowledge imparted by Jewish heroes to gentiles such as the India
ns, Babylon
ians, Egypt
ians, and Greeks
, and felt that by approaching magic
from a religious standpoint would legitimize their use of the sciences. In particular, they believed the Hermetic teachings to have its origins in ancient Jewish sources.
These Jewish scholars, particularly the ones who distrusted Aristotelian rationality
, looked to Hermetism as a backing to discuss theological interpretation of the Torah
and the ten commandments
. Fabrizo Lelli writes: "As for Christians and Muslims, so likewise for Jews, Hermetism was an alternative to Aristotelianism--the likeliest prospect, in fact, for integrating an alien system into their religion. This was because the response of the Hermetica
to intellectual problems was generally theosophical
."
In the use of these Hermetic treatises, these Jewish scholars, though at times inadvertently, introduced Hermetic ideas into Jewish thought. Shabbetay Donnolo's 10th century commentary on the Sefer Yezirah shows Hermetic influence, as well as the 13th century texts later compiled into the Sefer ha-Zohar, and in the contemporary Kabbalistic works of Abraham Abulafia
as well as of other Jewish thinkers influenced by Kabbalah such as Isaac Abravanel who used Hermetic Qabalah to affirm the superiority of Judaism. Lelli suggests that it was natural for these Jewish Kabbalists to elevate Hermetic teachings to a major role in Jewish thought in a time when they began to produce their own "antirationalist--exegesis of scripture." This was despite the fact that many Hermetic works were ascribed to Aristotle
in the time through pseudepigrapha; these scholars saw that as a justification to give the same elevated authority to the medical, astronomical, and magical Hermetic texts.
However, most Medieval Jewish scholars aware of the Hermetic tradition did not mention Hermetism explicitly, but rather referred to them through Hermetic ideas that were borrowed from Islam or brought Hermeticism up only to reject it. While scholars such as Moses ibn Ezra
, Bahya ibn Paquda
, Judah ha-Levi, and Abraham ibn Ezra
specifically brought up Hermeticism to integrate into their philosophies, others such as Moses ben Maimon (Maimonides) specifically rejected anything Hermetic as being responsible for counterparadigmic views of God. Maimonides warned his readers against what he viewed as the degenerative effect of Hermetic ideas, particularly those of the Sabians, and was effective in persuading many Jewish thinkers away from Hermetic integration, known as Hebrew Hermetism.
Scholars, such as Abraham ibn Ezra, felt justified in invoking the authority of Hermes to offer esoteric explanations of Jewish ritual. This culminated in a wide use of Hermetic texts for the use of theurgy and talisman
construction. The Jewish version of the theurgic practice of drawing divine spirits down to Earth was horadat haruhaniyut, "the lowering of spirituality." Books such as the Sefer Mafteah Shlomoh, Sefer Meleket Muskelet, Sefer ha-Tamar and Sefer Hermes. The Hermetic texts most valued by Jewish scholars were those which dealt with astrology, medicine, and astral magic; however shunned by Maimonides as dangerous and destructive.
Despite Maimonides' denunciation of Hermetism, Jewish scholars in the Renaissance struggled to reconcile his beliefs with those of the proponents of Hermetic thought within Judaism. Renaissance scholars argued that the rationalism of Maimonides drew upon the prisca sapienta that had both Mosaic and Hermetic origins and that Abraham ibn Ezra's Commentary on the Pentateuch was evidence that they shared the same views on the relationship between religion
and science
.
However, scholars such as Averroist Elijah del Medigo carried on Maimonides' crusade. Medigo claimed that the theurgic practices of Hermetism were against the teachings of the Torah. Others, such as Yohanan Alemanno
, claimed that the Hermetic teachings were part of a primordial wisdom of the ancients and put the writings of Hermes as being equal to those of King Solomon. Hermetism was also prominent in the works of David Messer Leon, Isaac Abravanel, Judah Abravanel, Elijah Hayyim, Abraham Farissol, Judah Moscato
and Abraham Yagel
.
The works of Baruch Spinoza
have also been ascribed a Hermetic element and Hermetic thinkers such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
have accepted Spinoza's version of God.
and Platonism
.
, so called magical or practical Kabbalah. Occultism uses the Hermetic and Kabbalistic theory of creation and angelic/demonic forces, as a basis for ritual magic, and theurgy. Most magic theory involves the manipulation of Yetzirah
, the world of Formation, and letting the effect trickle down to the physical universe (in accordance to the Hermetic concept of "as above, so below"). This includes the communication and manipulation of inhabitants of Yetzirah, angelic or demonic forces. The spelling of "Qabalah", is generally referred to as the Hermetic Qabalah
, often having a magical or occult slant. While "Kabbalah" refers to the traditional Jewish branch.
These beliefs were influential in Europe
an occult lore, especially from the Renaissance forward. During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, magicians wrote grimoires which show a major influence from both Hermeticism and Kabbalah and have since become a basis for most practical occultism. In more recent times, magical orders such as The Golden Dawn have revived and revised these traditions.
has Hermetic influence. Among Transcendentalist thinkers, she especially points to Ralph Waldo Emerson
who has ideas of humankind transcending into deification similar to those of Joseph Smith. She also points to the spiritual narcissism of Henry David Thoreau
.
has some relation to Hermeticism. Wicca
, one of the earliest and most famous of the Neopagan religions, honours a Goddess and a God, who are seen by some as being aspects of a single greater deity. See Wiccan views of divinity
. Silver Ravenwolf
expresses this in terms of the Qabalistic
Tree of Life
:
Ravenwolf holds that the God and Goddess are merely the masculine and feminine aspects of The All, and that both in turn express themselves through sub-aspects as the gods and goddesses of the various pantheons, just as in Hermeticism archangels, angels, and demons are all seen as aspects of God.
The Hermetic use of signs, herbs, stones and animal imagery as a means for drawing down the planetary powers into such signs is mirrored in the sympathetic magic
practices of Neopagan witchcraft
.
Amongst pagan white supremacist groups, the Odinist White Order of Thule
integrates Hermetic philosophy into its indoctrination process.
plays a large role in influencing Hermeticism. In 525 BCE, Egypt was conquered by the Persian Empire, bringing Zoroastrian ideas along with it. In obscure texts, Hermes claims to look to Zoroaster
as a spiritual father, having learned much of the zodiac
from him. It is further said that Zoroaster had penetrated the mystery of the zodiac more than any other. Alternatively, it has been suggested that Zoroaster (like so many others) and Hermes are one and the same. However, it is possible that this was from a faked Zoroastrian text. Theurgy is often called Zoroastrian Magic as well.
Comparative religion
Comparative religion is a field of religious studies that analyzes the similarities and differences of themes, myths, rituals and concepts among the world's religions...
article which outlines both similarities between Hermetism, Hermeticism
Hermeticism
Hermeticism or the Western Hermetic Tradition is a set of philosophical and religious beliefs based primarily upon the pseudepigraphical writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus...
, and other thought systems as well as their interactions between one another.
Christianity
Richard August Reitzenstein
Richard August Reitzenstein was a German classical philologist and scholar of Ancient Greek religion, hermetism and Gnosticism. He is described by Kurt Rudolph as “one of the most stimulating Gnostic scholars”...
believed that Hermetism had heavily influenced Christianity; while others, such as Marie-Joseph LaGrange
Marie-Joseph Lagrange
Marie-Joseph Lagrange was a Catholic priest in the Dominican Order and founder of the École Biblique in Jerusalem...
, believed that Christianity heavily influenced Hermetism; most see the exchange as more mutual. Both religions hold redemption, revelation
Revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, through active or passive communication with a supernatural or a divine entity...
and focus on the knowledge of God as the meaning of humanity
World population
The world population is the total number of living humans on the planet Earth. As of today, it is estimated to be billion by the United States Census Bureau...
's existence. This knowledge of God comes upon a mystical experience dependent upon rebirth, the focal point of arguments for influence from one of these religions upon the other. The focus of this rebirth are the words "Life," "Light," and "Truth" as well as a moral attitude of the seeker in his attainment of higher knowledge. Both also share a dualistic philosophy
Dualism
Dualism denotes a state of two parts. The term 'dualism' was originally coined to denote co-eternal binary opposition, a meaning that is preserved in metaphysical and philosophical duality discourse but has been diluted in general or common usages. Dualism can refer to moral dualism, Dualism (from...
which comes from a shared philosophical background in popular schools of Hellenistic
Hellenistic philosophy
Hellenistic philosophy is the period of Western philosophy that was developed in the Hellenistic civilization following Aristotle and ending with the beginning of Neoplatonism.-Pythagoreanism:...
thought. Early Christianity and Hermetism both are esoteric
Esotericism
Esotericism or Esoterism signifies the holding of esoteric opinions or beliefs, that is, ideas preserved or understood by a small group or those specially initiated, or of rare or unusual interest. The term derives from the Greek , a compound of : "within", thus "pertaining to the more inward",...
without having an excessive emphasis on secrecy, relying upon inward experience, assisted by instruction and ultimately the result of revelation by God. Former president of the American Academy of Religion
American Academy of Religion
The American Academy of Religion is the world's largest association of scholars in the field of religious studies and related topics. It is a nonprofit member association,...
, Catherine L Albanese, has theorized that Hermetic thought has had a profound influence in Mormonism
Mormonism
Mormonism is the religion practiced by Mormons, and is the predominant religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. This movement was founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. beginning in the 1820s as a form of Christian primitivism. During the 1830s and 1840s, Mormonism gradually distinguished itself...
, Unitarianism
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
, Universalism
Universalism
Universalism in its primary meaning refers to religious, theological, and philosophical concepts with universal application or applicability...
, and the Shakers
Shakers
The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, known as the Shakers, is a religious sect originally thought to be a development of the Religious Society of Friends...
. In Prisci Theologi and the Hermetic Reformation in the Fifteenth Century, Lutheran Bishop James Heiser evaluated the writings of Marsilio Ficino
Marsilio Ficino
Marsilio Ficino was one of the most influential humanist philosophers of the early Italian Renaissance, an astrologer, a reviver of Neoplatonism who was in touch with every major academic thinker and writer of his day, and the first translator of Plato's complete extant works into Latin...
and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola
Giovanni Pico della Mirandola
Count Giovanni Pico della Mirandola was an Italian Renaissance philosopher. He is famed for the events of 1486, when at the age of 23, he proposed to defend 900 theses on religion, philosophy, natural philosophy and magic against all comers, for which he wrote the famous Oration on the Dignity of...
as contributions to a “Hermetic Reformation."
The Fourth Gospel
The Fourth Gospel, or Gospel of John, is purported to have similarities with the Corpus Hermeticum in religious thought and religious questing. There are also, however, deep differences as well.Both texts utilize the concept of Logos
Logos
' is an important term in philosophy, psychology, rhetoric and religion. Originally a word meaning "a ground", "a plea", "an opinion", "an expectation", "word," "speech," "account," "reason," it became a technical term in philosophy, beginning with Heraclitus ' is an important term in...
and emphasize that the followers of their respective religions are apart from the rest of the world, suitable for only a few followers. Each of the two texts stress the importance of redemption, revelation, and rebirth to find knowledge of God and contain striking similarity in the wording of how moral attitudes promote higher knowledge in general Opposed to the basis of the contemporary mystery cults, both texts relayed that the core of religious practice should be done internally through the personal experience of the believer rather than externally through sacrament
Sacrament
A sacrament is a sacred rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites.-General definitions and terms:...
al ritual. Dualism plays a strong part in each of the two works.
Mary Lyman also points out four distinct contrasts between the two works despite their similarities. First, that the Fourth Gospel is a homogeneous work while the Corpus Hermeticum is a work which is found in fragments which she suspects were written by many authors over a wide range of time. Second, cosmic speculation is paramount to the Hermetic work while the fourth Gospel focuses on issues of religion. Third, the Hermetic text focuses on the asceticism
Asceticism
Asceticism describes a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from various sorts of worldly pleasures often with the aim of pursuing religious and spiritual goals...
of the day while the Fourth Gospel ignores it completely. Fourth, the Gospel's figures are all unique and grounds itself in the life of Jesus of Nazareth while the Hermetic text uses an "elusive literary tradition" which does little to identify or separate its characters. Though she relays that a scholar named Angus believed that the two would be more similar if they had the same proportion of Hermetic writings as Christian writings.
Mormonism
A theory by John Brooke, an award winning author and professor at Tufts UniversityTufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
, suggests that Mormonism
Mormonism
Mormonism is the religion practiced by Mormons, and is the predominant religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. This movement was founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. beginning in the 1820s as a form of Christian primitivism. During the 1830s and 1840s, Mormonism gradually distinguished itself...
has its roots in Hermetism and Hermeticism after following a philosophical trail from Renaissance Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. The early Mormons, most notably Joseph Smith, were linked with magic, alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
, Freemasonry
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
, divining
Divination
Divination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic standardized process or ritual...
and "other elements of radical religion" prior to Mormonism. Brooke attests correlations with the view that spirit and matter are one and the same, the covenant of celestial marriage
Celestial marriage
Celestial marriage is a doctrine of Mormonism, particularly The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and branches of Mormon fundamentalism.Within Mormonism, celestial marriage is an ordinance associated with a covenant that always...
, and the ability of humanity to become deified or ultimately perfect.
Further, Brooke argues that Mormonism can only be understood in conjunction with the occult and the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
-era sectarian idea of restoration. He sees ties to Hermeticism in Mormon support for Pelagianism
Pelagianism
Pelagianism is a theological theory named after Pelagius , although he denied, at least at some point in his life, many of the doctrines associated with his name. It is the belief that original sin did not taint human nature and that mortal will is still capable of choosing good or evil without...
, communitarianism
Communitarianism
Communitarianism is an ideology that emphasizes the connection between the individual and the community. That community may be the family unit, but it can also be understood in a far wider sense of personal interaction, of geographical location, or of shared history.-Terminology:Though the term...
, polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
and Dispensationalism
Dispensationalism
Dispensationalism is a nineteenth-century evangelical development based on a futurist biblical hermeneutic that sees a series of chronologically successive "dispensations" or periods in history in which God relates to human beings in different ways under different Biblical covenants.As a system,...
. He does however digress that there was a change since the 1860s in the LDS Church which has widely removed Hermetic influence. Catherine L Albanese picked up on Brooke's work and further claims that Smith's heavenly realm is derived from Emanuel Swedenborg
Emanuel Swedenborg
was a Swedish scientist, philosopher, and theologian. He has been termed a Christian mystic by some sources, including the Encyclopædia Britannica online version, and the Encyclopedia of Religion , which starts its article with the description that he was a "Swedish scientist and mystic." Others...
's Divine Man and Hermeticism in general, linking it in with several American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Christian movements which move Christianity in odd directions.
However, scholars at the LDS-owned Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
have denounced Brooke's work and even scolded the publisher, Cambridge University Press
Cambridge University Press
Cambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
, for printing it. Philip I Barlow criticizes the work as carelessly seeking out relations to Hermeticism which Brooke knows better than Mormonism, and believes that Brooke's links to Hermeticism can be explained away with "a particular and selectively literal reading of the Bible." Albanese was criticised by Richard J Neuhaus as having denied Christianity the metaphysical
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...
in order to minimize its influence and that she is avoiding theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
by calling her book a cultural history
Cultural history
The term cultural history refers both to an academic discipline and to its subject matter.Cultural history, as a discipline, at least in its common definition since the 1970s, often combines the approaches of anthropology and history to look at popular cultural traditions and cultural...
. Albanese believes that the metaphysical denial in scholarly research is due to its strong feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
qualities. Neuhaus believes American Christianity is more Gnostic in nature than Hermetic.
Miscellaneous
Albanese portends that several Christian denominations were affected by Hermeticism. The Shakers had been influenced in their belief of a dual God, being both male and female: Heavenly Father and Holy Mother Wisdom. She claims that Universalism was a clear mix of Christianity and Hermeticism where they come together, much like Rosicrucianism.Gnosticism
Hermeticism is a Gnostic religion, being one of the two major branches of Gnosticism, the other being Christian Gnosticism, together they are often seen as being sister religions, both flourishing in the same period in [Alexandria], in the same spiritual climate, sharing the goal of the soul escaping from the material realm through true understanding, and emphasizing personal knowledge of God. Both were part of the third pillar of Western culture; representing the balance between Greek rationalityRationality
In philosophy, rationality is the exercise of reason. It is the manner in which people derive conclusions when considering things deliberately. It also refers to the conformity of one's beliefs with one's reasons for belief, or with one's actions with one's reasons for action...
and biblical faith
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
along with the Cathar
Cathar
Catharism was a name given to a Christian religious sect with dualistic and gnostic elements that appeared in the Languedoc region of France and other parts of Europe in the 11th century and flourished in the 12th and 13th centuries...
s. Both groups saw the fundamental relationship between God and man was found through gnosis
Gnosis
Gnosis is the common Greek noun for knowledge . In the context of the English language gnosis generally refers to the word's meaning within the spheres of Christian mysticism, Mystery religions and Gnosticism where it signifies 'spiritual knowledge' in the sense of mystical enlightenment.-Related...
in a goal to "see" God and in some instances become one with God.
Christian Gnostics, however, felt that there was something seriously wrong with Nous, a part of The All; to them, it seemed that the concept could be stretched so far as to say that by bringing the world into existence, God had to remove himself from it at the same time. They also differed on the basis of theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
, cosmology
Cosmology
Cosmology is the discipline that deals with the nature of the Universe as a whole. Cosmologists seek to understand the origin, evolution, structure, and ultimate fate of the Universe at large, as well as the natural laws that keep it in order...
, and anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
. Though both agreed in God's transcendence over the Universe, Hermetists believed that God could still be comprehended through philosophical reasoning, in agreement with philosophers and Christian theologians, but Gnostics felt God was completely unknowable. While the Gnostics indulged in mythological
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
references often, Hermetic texts are generally void of mythology, with Poimandres as an exception. Hermetism is optimistic about God, while many forms of Chritian Gnosticism are pessimistic about the creator
Demiurge
The demiurge is a concept from the Platonic, Neopythagorean, Middle Platonic, and Neoplatonic schools of philosophy for an artisan-like figure responsible for the fashioning and maintenance of the physical universe. The term was subsequently adopted by the Gnostics...
(a different being from their conception of God
Monad (Gnosticism)
The Monad in early Christian gnostic writings is an adaption of concepts of the Monad in Greek philosophy to Christian gnostic belief systems.The term monad comes from the Greek feminine noun monas , "one unit," where the ending -s in the nominative form resolves to the ending -d in declension.In...
): Several Christian Gnostic sects saw the Cosmos
Cosmos
In the general sense, a cosmos is an orderly or harmonious system. It originates from the Greek term κόσμος , meaning "order" or "ornament" and is antithetical to the concept of chaos. Today, the word is generally used as a synonym of the word Universe . The word cosmos originates from the same root...
were the product of an evil creator and thus evil itself, while Hermetists saw the Cosmos as a beautiful creation in the image of God. Both view that mankind was originally divine and has become entrapped in the material world, a slave to passion and distracted from divine nature. However, the Gnostics often held a pessimistic view of mankind as a result while the Hermetic belief is generally positive towards mankind just the same. Rather, Hermetists believed that the human body was not bad in itself, but materialistic impulses such as sexual desire
Sexual attraction
Sexual attractiveness or sex appeal refers to an individual's ability to attract the sexual or erotic interest of another person, and is a factor in sexual selection or mate choice. The attraction can be to the physical or other qualities or traits of a person, or to such qualities in the context...
were the cause of evil in the world.
Islam
In 830 CE, a group of Hermetic pagans in HarranHarran
Harran was a major ancient city in Upper Mesopotamia whose site is near the modern village of Altınbaşak, Turkey, 24 miles southeast of Şanlıurfa...
needed protection by being either Muslim, Christian, Jewish, or Sabian
Sabians
The Sabians of Middle Eastern tradition were a monotheistic Abrahamic religious group mentioned three times in the Quran: "the Jews, the Sabians, and the Christians." In the Hadith they are nothing but converts to Islam, while their identity in later Islamic literature became a matter of...
. They took the Corpus Hermeticum as their scripture and Hermes Trismegistus
Hermes Trismegistus
Hermes Trismegistus is the eponymous author of the Hermetic Corpus, a sacred text belonging to the genre of divine revelation.-Origin and identity:...
as their prophet, and decided to call themselves Sabians. As no one was sure what the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
meant by Sabian, they were accepted as being such having a monotheistic
Monotheism
Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one and only one god. Monotheism is characteristic of the Baha'i Faith, Christianity, Druzism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Samaritanism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.While they profess the existence of only one deity, monotheistic religions may still...
scripture and a prophet
Prophet
In religion, a prophet, from the Greek word προφήτης profitis meaning "foreteller", is an individual who is claimed to have been contacted by the supernatural or the divine, and serves as an intermediary with humanity, delivering this newfound knowledge from the supernatural entity to other people...
. This group played a large role in Baghdad's intellectual life from 856-1050.
The most famous of the Harranian Sabians was Thabit ibn Qurra
Thabit ibn Qurra
' was a mathematician, physician, astronomer and translator of the Islamic Golden Age.Ibn Qurra made important discoveries in algebra, geometry and astronomy...
, who made great advances in alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
, astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
, and mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, citing his paganism as the reason for his ability. The author Antoine Faivre theorizes that Hermes Trismegistus is mentioned in the Qu'ran as well, under the name of Idris
Idris (prophet)
Idris‘ is an Islamic prophet mentioned in the Qur'an whom the Qur'an says was exalted by God to a high station in life. Although Idris is, at times, identified with the Biblical Enoch, the true Biblical identity of Idris remains uncertain...
. (19:56, 19:57) Idris is also identified with Enoch, who is also identified with Hermes. He is called "Thrice Wise," relating to Hermes' title "Thrice Great."
Judaism
The relationship between JudaismJudaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
and Hermetism has been one of mutual influence and a subject of controversy within the Jewish religion.
Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. The most prominent interrelation between the two systems is in the development of Kabbalah
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
which developed into three separate brands: a Jewish stream, a Christian
Christian Kabbalah
The Renaissance saw the birth of Christian Kabbalah/Cabbalah , also spelled Cabbala/Cabala...
stream (Cabala
Cabala
Cabala may refer to one of several systems of Mysticism:* Kabbalah, the religious mystical system of Judaism...
in Christianity), and a Hermetic stream (Qabalah in Hermeticism). Medieval Hermetism, aside from alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
, is often seen as analogous to and was heavily influenced by these Kabbalistic ideas.
Hermetism and Kabbalah arose together in the 12th and 13th centuries. The Practical Kabbalah also relied upon magic and astrology but focused more on the Hebrew language in its incantations than the general language of Hermetism in general.
Secondly, Jewish scholars of the Middle Ages attempted to make use of treatises on astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
, medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
and theurgy
Theurgy
Theurgy describes the practice of rituals, sometimes seen as magical in nature, performed with the intention of invoking the action or evoking the presence of one or more gods, especially with the goal of uniting with the divine, achieving henosis, and perfecting oneself.- Definitions :*Proclus...
as a justification for practicing natural magic forbidden by a number of commandments in the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
and reinforced by prophetic books codified by rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
nic authorities. They noted the wonders performed by celebrated biblical figures such as the patriarchs
Patriarchs (Bible)
The Patriarchs of the Bible, when narrowly defined, are Abraham, the ancestor of all the Abrahamic nations; his son Isaac, the ancestor of the nations surrounding Israel/Judah; and Isaac's son Jacob, also named Israel, the ancestor of the Israelites...
and King Solomon and which were seen as a God-given and condoned use of natural magic. They attributed these arts to divine knowledge imparted by Jewish heroes to gentiles such as the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
ns, Babylon
Babylon
Babylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
ians, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ians, and Greeks
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, and felt that by approaching magic
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
from a religious standpoint would legitimize their use of the sciences. In particular, they believed the Hermetic teachings to have its origins in ancient Jewish sources.
These Jewish scholars, particularly the ones who distrusted Aristotelian rationality
Term logic
In philosophy, term logic, also known as traditional logic or aristotelian logic, is a loose name for the way of doing logic that began with Aristotle and that was dominant until the advent of modern predicate logic in the late nineteenth century...
, looked to Hermetism as a backing to discuss theological interpretation of the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
and the ten commandments
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
. Fabrizo Lelli writes: "As for Christians and Muslims, so likewise for Jews, Hermetism was an alternative to Aristotelianism--the likeliest prospect, in fact, for integrating an alien system into their religion. This was because the response of the Hermetica
Hermetica
The Hermetica are Greek wisdom texts from the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE, mostly presented as dialogues in which a teacher, generally identified with Hermes Trismegistus or "thrice-greatest Hermes", enlightens a disciple...
to intellectual problems was generally theosophical
Theosophy
Theosophy, in its modern presentation, is a spiritual philosophy developed since the late 19th century. Its major themes were originally described mainly by Helena Blavatsky , co-founder of the Theosophical Society...
."
In the use of these Hermetic treatises, these Jewish scholars, though at times inadvertently, introduced Hermetic ideas into Jewish thought. Shabbetay Donnolo's 10th century commentary on the Sefer Yezirah shows Hermetic influence, as well as the 13th century texts later compiled into the Sefer ha-Zohar, and in the contemporary Kabbalistic works of Abraham Abulafia
Abraham Abulafia
Abraham ben Samuel Abulafia , the founder of the school of "Prophetic Kabbalah", was born in Zaragoza, Spain, in 1240, and died sometime after 1291, in Comino, Maltese archipelago.-Early life and travels:...
as well as of other Jewish thinkers influenced by Kabbalah such as Isaac Abravanel who used Hermetic Qabalah to affirm the superiority of Judaism. Lelli suggests that it was natural for these Jewish Kabbalists to elevate Hermetic teachings to a major role in Jewish thought in a time when they began to produce their own "antirationalist--exegesis of scripture." This was despite the fact that many Hermetic works were ascribed to Aristotle
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
in the time through pseudepigrapha; these scholars saw that as a justification to give the same elevated authority to the medical, astronomical, and magical Hermetic texts.
However, most Medieval Jewish scholars aware of the Hermetic tradition did not mention Hermetism explicitly, but rather referred to them through Hermetic ideas that were borrowed from Islam or brought Hermeticism up only to reject it. While scholars such as Moses ibn Ezra
Moses ibn Ezra
Rabbi Moses ben Jacob ibn Ezra, known as ha-Sallah was a Jewish, Spanish philosopher, linguist, and poet. He was born at Granada about 1055 – 1060, and died after 1138. Ezra is Jewish by religion but is also considered a great influence in the Arabic world in regards to his works...
, Bahya ibn Paquda
Bahya ibn Paquda
Bahya ben Joseph ibn Paquda was a Jewish philosopher and rabbi who lived at Zaragoza, Spain, in the first half of the eleventh century...
, Judah ha-Levi, and Abraham ibn Ezra
Abraham ibn Ezra
Rabbi Abraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra was born at Tudela, Navarre in 1089, and died c. 1167, apparently in Calahorra....
specifically brought up Hermeticism to integrate into their philosophies, others such as Moses ben Maimon (Maimonides) specifically rejected anything Hermetic as being responsible for counterparadigmic views of God. Maimonides warned his readers against what he viewed as the degenerative effect of Hermetic ideas, particularly those of the Sabians, and was effective in persuading many Jewish thinkers away from Hermetic integration, known as Hebrew Hermetism.
Scholars, such as Abraham ibn Ezra, felt justified in invoking the authority of Hermes to offer esoteric explanations of Jewish ritual. This culminated in a wide use of Hermetic texts for the use of theurgy and talisman
Amulet
An amulet, similar to a talisman , is any object intended to bring good luck or protection to its owner.Potential amulets include gems, especially engraved gems, statues, coins, drawings, pendants, rings, plants and animals; even words said in certain occasions—for example: vade retro satana—, to...
construction. The Jewish version of the theurgic practice of drawing divine spirits down to Earth was horadat haruhaniyut, "the lowering of spirituality." Books such as the Sefer Mafteah Shlomoh, Sefer Meleket Muskelet, Sefer ha-Tamar and Sefer Hermes. The Hermetic texts most valued by Jewish scholars were those which dealt with astrology, medicine, and astral magic; however shunned by Maimonides as dangerous and destructive.
Renaissance
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
and science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
.
However, scholars such as Averroist Elijah del Medigo carried on Maimonides' crusade. Medigo claimed that the theurgic practices of Hermetism were against the teachings of the Torah. Others, such as Yohanan Alemanno
Yohanan Alemanno
Yohanan Alemanno was an Italian Jewish humanist philosopher and exegete, and teacher of the Hebrew language to Italian humanists including Pico della Mirandola...
, claimed that the Hermetic teachings were part of a primordial wisdom of the ancients and put the writings of Hermes as being equal to those of King Solomon. Hermetism was also prominent in the works of David Messer Leon, Isaac Abravanel, Judah Abravanel, Elijah Hayyim, Abraham Farissol, Judah Moscato
Judah Moscato
Judah Moscato was an Italian rabbi, poet, and philosopher of the sixteenth century; born at Osimo, near Ancona; died at Mantua...
and Abraham Yagel
Abraham Yagel
Abraham Yagel was an Italian Jewish catechist, philosopher, and cabalist. He lived successively at Luzzara, Venice, Ferrara, and Sassuolo.-Life and identity:...
.
The works of Baruch Spinoza
Baruch Spinoza
Baruch de Spinoza and later Benedict de Spinoza was a Dutch Jewish philosopher. Revealing considerable scientific aptitude, the breadth and importance of Spinoza's work was not fully realized until years after his death...
have also been ascribed a Hermetic element and Hermetic thinkers such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German writer, pictorial artist, biologist, theoretical physicist, and polymath. He is considered the supreme genius of modern German literature. His works span the fields of poetry, drama, prose, philosophy, and science. His Faust has been called the greatest long...
have accepted Spinoza's version of God.
Ancient philosophy
Hermetism had a strong philosophical influence, especially from StoicismStoicism
Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium in the early . The Stoics taught that destructive emotions resulted from errors in judgment, and that a sage, or person of "moral and intellectual perfection," would not suffer such emotions.Stoics were concerned...
and Platonism
Platonism
Platonism is the philosophy of Plato or the name of other philosophical systems considered closely derived from it. In a narrower sense the term might indicate the doctrine of Platonic realism...
.
The Occult
Much of the Western Esoteric tradition is based on a blend of Hermeticism and the Kabbalah Ma'asitKabbalah Ma'asit
Practical Kabbalah in historical Judaism, is a branch of the Jewish mystical tradition that concerns the use of magic. It was considered permitted White Magic by its practitioners, reserved for the elite, who could separate its spiritual source from Kelipot realms of evil if performed in holiness...
, so called magical or practical Kabbalah. Occultism uses the Hermetic and Kabbalistic theory of creation and angelic/demonic forces, as a basis for ritual magic, and theurgy. Most magic theory involves the manipulation of Yetzirah
Yetzirah
Yetzirah is the third of four worlds in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, following Atziluth and Briah...
, the world of Formation, and letting the effect trickle down to the physical universe (in accordance to the Hermetic concept of "as above, so below"). This includes the communication and manipulation of inhabitants of Yetzirah, angelic or demonic forces. The spelling of "Qabalah", is generally referred to as the Hermetic Qabalah
Hermetic Qabalah
Hermetic Qabalah is a Western esoteric and mystical tradition...
, often having a magical or occult slant. While "Kabbalah" refers to the traditional Jewish branch.
These beliefs were influential in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an occult lore, especially from the Renaissance forward. During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, magicians wrote grimoires which show a major influence from both Hermeticism and Kabbalah and have since become a basis for most practical occultism. In more recent times, magical orders such as The Golden Dawn have revived and revised these traditions.
Transcendentalism
Catherine L Albanese theorized that TranscendentalismTranscendentalism
Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that developed in the 1830s and 1840s in the New England region of the United States as a protest against the general state of culture and society, and in particular, the state of intellectualism at Harvard University and the doctrine of the Unitarian...
has Hermetic influence. Among Transcendentalist thinkers, she especially points to Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century...
who has ideas of humankind transcending into deification similar to those of Joseph Smith. She also points to the spiritual narcissism of Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, historian, and leading transcendentalist...
.
Neopaganism
NeopaganismNeopaganism
Neopaganism is an umbrella term used to identify a wide variety of modern religious movements, particularly those influenced by or claiming to be derived from the various pagan beliefs of pre-modern Europe...
has some relation to Hermeticism. Wicca
Wicca
Wicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
, one of the earliest and most famous of the Neopagan religions, honours a Goddess and a God, who are seen by some as being aspects of a single greater deity. See Wiccan views of divinity
Wiccan views of divinity
Wiccan views of divinity are generally theistic, and revolve around a Goddess and a God, thereby being generally dualistic,...
. Silver Ravenwolf
Silver RavenWolf
Silver RavenWolf , born Jenine E. Trayer, is an American author and lecturer who focuses on Neopaganism. She is married and has four children. She currently resides in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania.- Biography :...
expresses this in terms of the Qabalistic
Hermetic Qabalah
Hermetic Qabalah is a Western esoteric and mystical tradition...
Tree of Life
Tree of life (Kabbalah)
The Tree of Life, or Etz haChayim in Hebrew, is a mystical symbol used in the Kabbalah of esoteric Judaism to describe the path to God and the manner in which he created the world ex nihilo...
:
- "Down we go then, to the first two branches of the tree, right below the All. Each branch is exactly the same, one on the right side of the tree and one on the left. Totally balanced in every respect to each other. They represent the GodHorned GodThe Horned God is one of the two primary deities found in some European pagan religions. He is often given various names and epithets, and represents the male part of the religion's duotheistic theological system, the other part being the female Triple Goddess. In common Wiccan belief, he is...
and the Goddess, or the Lord and the Lady. Separate yet equal, together they combine into the essence of the All."
Ravenwolf holds that the God and Goddess are merely the masculine and feminine aspects of The All, and that both in turn express themselves through sub-aspects as the gods and goddesses of the various pantheons, just as in Hermeticism archangels, angels, and demons are all seen as aspects of God.
The Hermetic use of signs, herbs, stones and animal imagery as a means for drawing down the planetary powers into such signs is mirrored in the sympathetic magic
Sympathetic magic
Sympathetic magic, also known as imitative magic, is a type of magic based on imitation or correspondence.-Similarity and contagion:The theory of sympathetic magic was first developed by Sir James George Frazer in The Golden Bough...
practices of Neopagan witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
.
Amongst pagan white supremacist groups, the Odinist White Order of Thule
White Order of Thule
The White Order of Thule was a loosely organized American society formed in the mid-1990s by federal prisoner Peter Georgacarakos, art school graduate Michael Lujan and New Age occultist, Joseph Kerrick. It described itself as an "esoteric brotherhood working toward the revitalization of the...
integrates Hermetic philosophy into its indoctrination process.
Zoroastrianism
ZoroastrianismZoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of prophet Zoroaster and was formerly among the world's largest religions. It was probably founded some time before the 6th century BCE in Greater Iran.In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil...
plays a large role in influencing Hermeticism. In 525 BCE, Egypt was conquered by the Persian Empire, bringing Zoroastrian ideas along with it. In obscure texts, Hermes claims to look to Zoroaster
Zoroaster
Zoroaster , also known as Zarathustra , was a prophet and the founder of Zoroastrianism who was either born in North Western or Eastern Iran. He is credited with the authorship of the Yasna Haptanghaiti as well as the Gathas, hymns which are at the liturgical core of Zoroastrianism...
as a spiritual father, having learned much of the zodiac
Zodiac
In astronomy, the zodiac is a circle of twelve 30° divisions of celestial longitude which are centred upon the ecliptic: the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year...
from him. It is further said that Zoroaster had penetrated the mystery of the zodiac more than any other. Alternatively, it has been suggested that Zoroaster (like so many others) and Hermes are one and the same. However, it is possible that this was from a faked Zoroastrian text. Theurgy is often called Zoroastrian Magic as well.