WHAT IS HERMETICISM? Hermeticism is an ancient spiritual, philosophical, and magical tradition. It is a path of spiritual growth. Hermeticism takes its name from the God Hermês Trismegistos (Greek, Thrice-Greatest Hermes), a Græco-Egyptian form of the great EGYPTIAN God of Wisdom and Magic, Thôth. What the Hermetic Fellowship defines as Hermeticism has also been called the Western Esoteric Tradition, and embraces the Perennial Philosophy or the Ageless Wisdom. Hermeticism takes its name from the God Hermes Trismegistos or Thrice-Greatest Hermes. Trismegistos, in turn, was so-called because of His identification with the great EGYPTIAN God of Wisdom and Magic, THOTH. Inscriptions prove that Hermes Trismegistos was already a name for Thoth at Saqqara as early as the second century BCE. the Hermetica are considered sacred texts in that they provide important information on matters of a sacred nature and can be extremely profound and valuable guides on the spiritual path Hermetics are Seekers — Seekers of Divine Truth, Seekers of Wisdom, Seekers of Understanding, Seekers of Gnosis. Hermetic spiritual curiosity encourages openness and tolerance of the ways and spiritual paths of others. This curiosity may be partially satisfied through books. As a literate and literary tradition, Hermeticism holds that as seekers we can benefit through the recorded experiences and insights of others — as well as through the mediation of a living teacher and/or a group of fellow seekers. But it is not enough to simply read about the spiritual. We will gain little without genuine, personal experience. Therefore, while we highly recommend personal study and teaching, we also stress the irreplacable value of participation in the spiritual through ritual, meditation, and other spiritual practices. During the Renaissance these texts were believed to be of ancient Egyptian origin and even today some readers believe them to date from Pharaonic Egypt. Generally, the following can be said to be characteristic of the positive form of Hermeticism advocated by the Hermetic Fellowship. HERMETICISM: -Considers humanity to be on a spiritual journey to return to a state of unity with the Divine; this is the Great Work of humankind. -Holds that if we would attain to the Divine, we must aspire to the Divine; spiritual growth cannot be achieved without human effort -Is eclectic and draws material from sources spanning the entire Western Esoteric Tradition -Is polytheistic, yet ultimately monotheisitic (i.e., posits a multiplicity of Manifestations of the Divine Which emanate from an ultimate Divine Unity) -Holds that the Divine is both immanent and transcendent -Holds that the Universe is Divine and basically good -Teaches that when we seek the Divine, we may best begin with the Mysteries of Nature -Encourages spiritual curiosity -Understands that human beings can access the Subtle Realms through technique and aspiration; to this end, it embraces theurgy, meditation, ritual, and other spiritual and magical practices -Urges those who seek the Divine to also seek balance in embracing all things -Is a poetic rather than an ascetic worldview
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 21:31:21 +0000
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