ESOTERICA

Episodet

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  ESOTERICA at 1,000,000 Followers 25.09.2026 11min

  My deepest gratitude to all of you as @TheEsotericaChannel crosses 1,000,000 subscribers.ESOTERICA sales for the holidays!Check out and Subscribe - feel free to add other worthwhile ReligionTube Channels!Let's Talk Religion - https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkReligionAngela's Symposium - https://www.youtube.com/@drangelapucaReligion for Breakfast - https://www.youtube.com/@ReligionForBreakfastThe Modern Hermeticist - https://www.youtube.com/@TheModernHermeticistSeekers of Unity - https://www.youtube.com/@SeekersofUnityDan McClellan - https://www.youtube.com/@maklelanKipp Davis - https://www.youtube.com/@DrKippDavisLilith Incantation Bowls back in limited stock - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/shop/p/handcraft-aramaic-incantation-bowl-limited-edition20% off any purchase at our Rare Book Store - code HOLIDAY at checkout - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/New Necromantic Mirror of Floron shirt and 15% off all merch with code HOLIDAY at checkout - https://my-store-d6a943.creator-spring.com/Looking to buy books on western esotericism check out my study guide - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Medieval Mystical Women - The Beguines - Hadewijch Mechthild of Magdeburg and Marguerite Porete 25.09.2026 23min

  The typical view of the middle ages is one of cultural, intellectual and religious stagnation. This is hardly the truth. The European Middle ages were marked by innovations at almost every cultural register including spirituality. This episode explores the radical and probing mystical spirituality of the Beguines, a lay culture of women who worked in the skilled trades, publicly preached, aided the poor and destitute, all as part of their own autonomous spiritual vocation. These women were also extraordinary mystics and theologians. We briefly explore three of these amazing women here: Hadewijch of Antwerp, Mechthild of Magdeburg & Marguerite Porete to reveal how their mysticism abounds in love, light, madness, and annihilation.This episode is also a collaboration with my colleague Filip Holm over at Let's Talk Religion where he will be exploring the role of women in Sufism / Islamic Mysticism. Check out his video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVSZaxcg6RY#mysticism #beguine #womenRecommended Readings:Hadewijch: The Complete Works - 978-0809122974Marguerite Porete: The Mirror of Simple Souls - 978-0809134274Mechthild of Magdeburg: The Flowing Light of the Godhead - 978-0809137763Swan - The Wisdom of the Beguines - 978-1629190082McGinn - The Flowering of Mysticism - 978-0824517434 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Ancient Christian Magic - Protection, Exorcism, and Love Magic from Ancient Coptic Texts 25.09.2026 54min

  While Christianity is often thought of as hostile to any form of magical practice, history reveals that magic has been practiced through all of Christian history. In this episode of Esoterica we explore the earliest Christian magic preserved in Greek and Coptic sources from late-classical Egypt. Here we find a wide range of magical practices from protection, exorcisms, love magic, curses - even a spell for a good singing voice. Studying early Christian magic gives us an important glimpse into a wider range of Christianity than just the world of theologians, monks, and priests.Recommending Readings:Meyer and Smith - Ancient Christian Magic - 978-0691004587Coptic Magical Papyri - https://www.coptic-magic.phil.uni-wuerzburg.de/#magic #christian #coptic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Esotericism in Philosophy: Pythagoras and Parmenides 25.09.2026 24min

  Philosophy is taken to be the paragon of rational argumentation and logical analysis but I want to explore the esoteric and mystical aspect of ancient Greek philosophy - a dimension often ignored or unstressed . This is the first in a series that will explore this more arcane side of western philosophy from ancient Greece to contemporary analytic and continental schools.Support Esoterica on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelRecommended Readings:Kirk, Raven and Schofield - The Presocratic Philosophers: A Critical History with a Selection of Texts - 978-0521274555Philosophy Before Socrates - Richard D. McKirahan - 978-1603841825Eric Dodds - The Greeks and the Irrational - 978-0520242302 Walter Burkert - Lore and Science in Ancient Pythagoreanism - 978-0674539181Charles Kahn - Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans - 978-0872205758Peter Kingsley - Ancient Philosophy, Mystery, and Magic: Empedocles and Pythagorean Tradition - 978-0198150817Parmenides - Martin Heidegger - 978-0253212146 (caveat lector!)#esotericism #presocratic #philosophy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  The Philosophy of Witchcraft 25.09.2026 53min

  The apex of the Witch Trials coincided with the emergence of Modern Philosophy. But, what did these new philosophers think about Witches, Witchcraft, Demonology and the trials raging around them? From Agrippa, Descartes, Hobbes, Spinoza and beyond, let's explore how the major philosophers of early modernity reasoned about the realm of the supernatural and witchcraft. Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelOne Time Donation Support - Paypal Donation - https://www.paypal.me/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoydhtfFSk1fZXNRnkGnneQ/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Recommended Readings:Levack - The Witch-Hunt in Early Modern Europehttps://amzn.to/3xqE1vrLevack - The Witchcraft Sourcebookhttps://amzn.to/3xn6B0MPeters - Witchcraft in Europe, 400-1700: A Documentary Historyhttps://amzn.to/4aP0LUCMackay - The Hammer of Witches: A Complete Translation of the Malleus Maleficarumhttps://amzn.to/4cRfIHyClark - Thinking with Demons: The Idea of Witchcraft in Early Modern Europehttps://amzn.to/4cS3JtkHutton - The Witch https://amzn.to/43TnyML Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  How did Alchemy work? 25.09.2026 28min

  Scientists at CERN recently transmuted lead into gold thus achieving one of the long-sought after aims of the Alchemists. But, given that chemical transmutation of metals is impossible, just what was going on in the crucibles of ancient alchemy? Let's explore the history and science behind alchemical transmutation to better understand just how ingenious the alchemists really were.Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelOne Time Donation Support - Paypal Donation - https://www.paypal.me/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoydhtfFSk1fZXNRnkGnneQ/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Lead to Gold at CERN - https://journals.aps.org/prc/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevC.111.054906Recommended Readings:Linden - The Alchemy Readerhttps://amzn.to/3VUhamtPrincipe - The Secrets of Alchemyhttps://amzn.to/3vSUOqyNewman - Newton the Alchemisthttps://amzn.to/3VK513lRampling - The Experimental Fire: Inventing English Alchemy, 1300–1700https://amzn.to/3VTzlZuZuber - Spiritual Alchemyhttps://amzn.to/43Qfmg7Weeks - Paracelsus: Speculative Theory & the Crisis of the Early Reformationhttps://amzn.to/3PVbyEGParacelsus: Essential Readingshttps://amzn.to/43QUSUuAbraham - A Dictionary of Alchemical Imageryhttps://amzn.to/3xt3Xqx Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Introduction to Merkavah Mysticism - 11 of 15 - Qualifications and Praxes of the Merkavah 25.09.2026 1h 23min

  Welcome to our seminar on Merkavah MysticismHundreds of years prior to the rise of the Kabbalah, shaman-like rabbinic mystics were described as having made the terrifying and awe-inspiring descent into the Divine Palaces. There they met with and bypassed fearsome angels with magical codes, gained control over angelic powers, became transformed into beings of fire, gained vast wisdom and mounted the very throne of G!d to carefully measure the vast dimensions of the divine body. These experiences and their praxes are recorded in about 50 manuscripts now known as the Hekhalot (lit. palaces) literature. Outside of specialists this late-classical form of (a)(de)scent mysticism is poorly understood and little appreciated. In this course, we will explore the foundations, social origins, myth-world, praxes and the afterlife of Merkavah Mysticism. Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelOne Time Donation Support - Paypal Donation - https://www.paypal.me/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoydhtfFSk1fZXNRnkGnneQ/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Course Syllabus: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URUIb_AkZGM3hXzTnPFAwQYkZf_WgL0Q9wWWqSr2ug0/edit?usp=sharingCourse Materials: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-93Z0g92p4xMTFRjk5KznFvh65oRjFAo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  John Dee - The Monas Heiroglyphica - Part III - Metaphysical Power and Symbolism 25.09.2026 29min

  In our final installment of our series on John Dee's famous 1564 Monas Hieroglyphica or the Hieroglyphic Monad we explore how metaphysical power and symbolism are fused in the glyph itself. By locating Dee's thinking in the realist trajectory of Medieval, Renaissance and Hermetic philosophy, we hope to reveal how Dee fused both semiotics (the study of symbols and representation) with ontology (the study of being itself) in a grand effort to both correct all knowledge but also reform reality itself - what Dee calls "The Cabala of What is" or the "Cabala of Reality." This episode also explore how Dee continued this project even during the famous angelic conversations.Episode I - https://youtu.be/2meS9-YGYhUEpisode II - https://youtu.be/lEwK1dmco3IThese episodes represent a more introductory version of my thesis on the Monas Hieroglyphica prepared at the University of Amsterdam.You can read the entire thesis here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9iShqG1gJavUXVKVnk2d1UzQVE/view?usp=sharingStandard text and translation of the Monas Hieroglyphica - C. H. Josten, Ambix, 12:2-3 (1964): 82-221#dee #enochian #monas Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Win a 1300 Year Old Incantation Bowl Fragment - Novel Occult Book Catalog! 25.09.2026 10min

  Win an authentic piece of magical history: a 1300 year old Incantation Bowl Fragment and learn about our new antiquarian occult book catalog!Check out the catalog here: https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  The Origins of Dracula - How Printing Made a Monster 25.09.2026 36min

  How did Dracula become...Dracula? The grim tales of Vlad III the Impaler, Voivode of Wallachia, are infamous. Touted as a bloodthirsty tyrant and a pious defender of Christendom, much of our knowledge of Dracula's stems from a now lost 1463 anonymous German Pamphlet. Reprinted many times, including woodcuts of Vlad dining among his impaled and mutilated victims, these early texts detail the "frightful and strange" deeds of Vlad Dracula. But, what can we reconstruct of the lost original 1463 "Geschichte Drakole Waide - The History of Voievode Dracula"? And, can we trust such accounts as historically reliable? Was Vlad the Impaler as horrible as recounted? Did he drink the blood of his victims like the Vampire that now bears his name? Let's explore the earliest narratives of Vlad Dracula!Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelOne Time Donation Support - Paypal Donation - https://www.paypal.me/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoydhtfFSk1fZXNRnkGnneQ/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Recommended Readings:Cazacu - Dracula - https://amzn.to/4733XwHCorpus Draculianum - https://www.harrassowitz-verlag.de/search.ahtml?act=suchen&type=quick&keyword=draculianumCorpus Draculianum YouTube - @CorpusDraculianum St. Gall 'Dracula" MS - https://www.e-codices.unifr.ch/en/csg/0806/283/0/Dracole Waida - https://bildsuche.digitale-sammlungen.de/index.html?c=viewer&bandnummer=bsb00032879&pimage=00006&v=5p&nav=&l=enHistoria von dem wilden Wüterich Dracole Waida, Straßburg: [Matthias Hupfuff], 1500 - https://dlib.gnm.de/item/8Inc16936/5 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  The Mystical Theology of Affection - Bernard of Clairvaux 25.09.2026 54min

  Is Love fundamental reality? Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 - 1153) is among the pillars of western mysticism. In his mystical theology, he takes John's declaration that "God is Love" to it's radical conclusion: Love is both the means and the goal of all existence. Thus, the soul must undergo a series of transformations through love so as to be raptured up into the Divine Love which is God. Let's explore the mystical theology of Love!Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/@TheEsotericaChannel/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Recommended Readings:Bernard of Clairvaux: Selected Works - https://amzn.to/4qU6oZ1Sermons on the Song of Songs Set - https://litpress.org/Products/CFZ02/Sermons-on-the-Song-of-Songs-Set-Volumes-14The Mystical Theology of St. Bernard - https://amzn.to/4r2iO1hThe Growth of Mysticism: Gregory the Great Through the 12 Century - https://amzn.to/4caDAYG Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Introduction to Merkavah Mysticism - 13 of 15 - The Sar Torah and Sh’iur Komah 25.09.2026 1h 5min

  Welcome to our seminar on Merkavah MysticismHundreds of years prior to the rise of the Kabbalah, shaman-like rabbinic mystics were described as having made the terrifying and awe-inspiring descent into the Divine Palaces. There they met with and bypassed fearsome angels with magical codes, gained control over angelic powers, became transformed into beings of fire, gained vast wisdom and mounted the very throne of G!d to carefully measure the vast dimensions of the divine body. These experiences and their praxes are recorded in about 50 manuscripts now known as the Hekhalot (lit. palaces) literature. Outside of specialists this late-classical form of (a)(de)scent mysticism is poorly understood and little appreciated. In this course, we will explore the foundations, social origins, myth-world, praxes and the afterlife of Merkavah Mysticism. Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelOne Time Donation Support - Paypal Donation - https://www.paypal.me/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoydhtfFSk1fZXNRnkGnneQ/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Course Syllabus: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URUIb_AkZGM3hXzTnPFAwQYkZf_WgL0Q9wWWqSr2ug0/edit?usp=sharingCourse Materials: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-93Z0g92p4xMTFRjk5KznFvh65oRjFAo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Who was Belial, the Demon? 25.09.2026 33min

  The demon Belial seems to have emerged from an obscure force of nature to then become the leader of the Apocalyptic forces of Evil in the Dead Sea Scrolls. And, while only mentioned only once in the New Testament, Belial has become an important evil spirit in both contemporary Goetic magic and Popular Culture alike. But, what are the origins of Belial, a demon that once sat at the apex of the diabolical hierarchy?Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/@TheEsotericaChannel/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Magical Symbols - History of Sigils Angelic Alphabets and Symbols of Power 25.09.2026 23min

  This video traces the origin and development of magical symbols from late-classical Egypt through their development into Western European Magic. These characters likely began as debased hieroglyphics and would eventually develop into unique symbols of power, the seals and sigils in angelic and demonic mage, and form the basis for angelic script / alphabets. This video is a part of a series on magical and occult symbolism so make to subscribe if that interests you!Support Esoterica on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelRecommended Readings:Richard Gordon's article - https://www.academia.edu/13925134/Charakteres_between_Antiquity_and_Renaissance_Transmission_and_Re-inventionDon Skemer - Binding Words: Textual Amulets in the Middle Ages - 978-0271027234#magic #sigil #seal Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Sefer Yetzirah - Book of Formation - Introduction to a Core Early Text of Kabbalah Cabala Qabbalah 25.09.2026 32min

  The Sefer Yetzirah is perhaps the oldest text of what would become the Jewish Mysticism known as the Kabbalah. Though, virtually everything about this brief text is a mystery. When was it written, by whom and exactly what it means are all hotly debated topics by academics, kabbalists and occultists. Indeed, the text is so linked with magical power that commentaries on the text describe how one might construct artificial life itself in the form of the famed Golem. This episode explores the origin, development and contents of this elusive but profound mystical textGershom Scholem - Kabbalah - 978-0452010079 (dated but still useful)Tzahi Weiss - Sefer Yesirah and Its Contexts - 978-0812249903Peter Hayman - Sefer Yesira: Edition, Translation and Text-critical Commentary - 978-3161483813 (ILL this one)Don Karr - Notes on Editions of Sefer Yetzirah in English - https://www.academia.edu/22875900/Notes_on_Editions_of_Sefer_Yetzirah_in_EnglishAryeh Kaplan - Sefer Yetzirah: The Book of Creation - 978-0877286905 (Lurianic perspective)Sefer Yetzirah HaShalem - Harav Moshe Tzuriel - (check seforim stores)#kabbalah #yetzirah #golem Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Introduction to Merkavah Mysticism - 5 of 15 - The Danger of Reading 25.09.2026 1h 9min

  Welcome to our seminar on Merkavah MysticismHundreds of years prior to the rise of the Kabbalah, shaman-like rabbinic mystics were described as having made the terrifying and awe-inspiring descent into the Divine Palaces. There they met with and bypassed fearsome angels with magical codes, gained control over angelic powers, became transformed into beings of fire, gained vast wisdom and mounted the very throne of G!d to carefully measure the vast dimensions of the divine body. These experiences and their praxes are recorded in about 50 manuscripts now known as the Hekhalot (lit. palaces) literature. Outside of specialists this late-classical form of (a)(de)scent mysticism is poorly understood and little appreciated. In this course, we will explore the foundations, social origins, myth-world, praxes and the afterlife of Merkavah Mysticism. Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelOne Time Donation Support - Paypal Donation - https://www.paypal.me/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoydhtfFSk1fZXNRnkGnneQ/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Course Syllabus: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URUIb_AkZGM3hXzTnPFAwQYkZf_WgL0Q9wWWqSr2ug0/edit?usp=sharingCourse Materials: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-93Z0g92p4xMTFRjk5KznFvh65oRjFAo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  What is the Hermetic God and Demiurge? 25.09.2026 43min

  The concept of the Demiurge is often associated with the demonic cosmos creator of the Gnostics. But, what do we know about the ancient Hermetic Demiurge? Emerging from the world of Greco-Egyptian religion and philosophy, Hermeticism was a powerfully optimistic means of reuniting one's high consciousness (Nous) with the Divine Parental Light after exorcising one's body of fatalistic daimonic infestation. But, the Hermetic Spiritual Philosophy is ambivalent about the place of any Demiurge in it's cosmology and means of salvation. Yet, some texts do speak of a magnificent Solar Demiurge as the conduit and cosmic artisan. Just what is the place of the Demiurge in Hermeticism?Demiurge 1 - https://youtu.be/mTnQ__VSQzcDemiurge 2 - https://youtu.be/GWHLuZgixHIDemiurge 3 - https://youtu.be/xfG0w4k6EA8Demiurge 4 - https://youtu.be/kq-CoIFf8l0Thumbnail art from Zdzisław Beksiński Consider Supporting Esoterica!Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelOne Time Donation Support - Paypal Donation - https://www.paypal.me/esotericachannelMerch - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoydhtfFSk1fZXNRnkGnneQ/storeNew to Studying Esotericism? Check out my Reading Guide here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1caKNlW7sogEF7lAeYNbOQF9pt5O5b70yAXa-icUJO3o/edit?usp=sharingRare Occult Books - https://www.esotericaoccultbooks.com/Recommended Readings:Hermetic Spirituality and the Historical Imagination - https://amzn.to/4r7cRRBHermetica I: The Corpus Hermeticum, Asclepius, and Nag Hammadi Hermetica Ordered as a Path of Initiation - https://amzn.to/47P4kvfDr. David Litwa's YT channel - @m.davidlitwa The Demiurge in Ancient Thought: Secondary Gods and Divine Mediators - https://amzn.to/49tSc3Z Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Mystical Language - Hildegard of Bingen's Lingua Ignota (Unknown Language) - Early Invented Tongue 25.09.2026 27min

  The first in a series here at Esoterica exploring esoteric languages and symbol systems! This video takes a look at the Lingua Ignota (Unknown Language) of the 12th century mystic and polymath Hildegard of Bingen.Support Esoterica on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/esotericachannelO Orzchis Ecclesia - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGCAOf9gjBMRecommended Readings:Sarah Higley - Hildegard of Bingen’s Unknown Language: An Edition, Translation, and Discussion - ISBN-13: 978-1403976734Hildegard's Music on Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=hildegard+musicHildegard - Hildegard of Bingen: Scivias - ISBN-13: 978-0809131303Selected Writings: Hildegard of Bingen - ISBN-13: 978-0140436044Fiona Maddocks - Hildegard of Bingen - ISBN-13: 978-0571302437Illuminations of Hildegard of Bingen - Matthew Fox - ISBN-13: 978-1879181977#hildegard #ignota #conlang Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Gospel of Thomas, Gnostic Egypt and Pistis Sophia w/ Dr. M David Litwa 25.09.2026 1h 10min

  Conversation with Dr. M David Litwa on his recent work on the Gospel of Thomas, his upcoming trip to Egypt and why the Pistis Sophia doesn't get studied.Dr. Litwa's Youtube Channel - @m.davidlitwa Introduction to the Gospel of Thomas - https://amzn.to/41wMKZhEgypt Trip - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlF3lW3M1fEItinerary - https://travefy.com/trip/6yw9rqqtdjzsqz2afmhbc7ckkb53msqSign-up - https://portal.argosdestinations.com/public/form/view/68839f3cff70b48bc2be2200 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Magic in Theory - The Stellar Ray Theory of Al-Kindi 25.09.2026 29min

  This episode is the first in a series focusing on theories of magic. We begin with one of the most popular medieval theories: the stellar rays of Al-Kindi. Al-Kindi, a 9th century Islamicate philosopher, who argued that the stars emits rays which trickle down to the sub-lunar world where they qualify matter. Further, all entities emit rays. Certain occult or hidden rays can be manipulated by the sage to induce apparently supernatural or magical effects though speech, powerful symbols and animal sacrifice. This idea provided a route to natural, as opposed to ritual/demonic, magic in the middle ages and underwrote much of astrological theory. The stellar ray theory would also be built into the famous book of the magic the Picatrix which would be one of the earliest books learned magic to enter Western Europe. Indeed, the argument in defense of occult forces in the universe is essential for modern physics.Recommended readings:Pormann and Peterson - The Philosophical Works of al-Kindi - 978-0199062805 Liana Saif - The Arabic Influences on Early Modern Occult Philosophy - 978-1137399465Al-Kindi - De Radiis (pp. 139-260) - Marie-Thérèse d'Alverny and Françoise HudryArchives d'histoire doctrinale et littéraire du Moyen Age, Vol. 41, 1974 - https://www.jstor.org/stable/i40184716Al-Kindi: On the Stellar Rays - trans. Zoller and Hand - http://www.projecthindsight.com/archives/medieval%20contents/al-kindi.htmlEsmé L K Partridge - Al-Kindi's Theory of The Magical Arts: A Commentary on Al-Kindi's Treatise 'On Rays' - https://www.academia.edu/36457042/Al-Kindis_Theory_of_The_Magical_Arts_A_Commentary_on_Al-Kindis_Treatise_On_Rays#magic #astrology #alkindi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices