Theurgy in Late Antiquity

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Publisher : Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht
ISBN 13 : 364754020X
Total Pages : 329 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (475 download)

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Book Synopsis Theurgy in Late Antiquity by : Ilinca Tanaseanu-Döbler

Download or read book Theurgy in Late Antiquity written by Ilinca Tanaseanu-Döbler and published by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. This book was released on 2013-05-15 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Theurgy is commonly taken to denote a complex of rites which are based on the so-called Chaldean Oracles, a collection of oracles in hexameters, which were probably composed during the late 2nd century AD. These rituals are mostly known through Neoplatonic sources, who engage in a passionate debate about their relevance to the salvation of the soul and thus to the philosopher's ultimate goal. Ilinca Tanaseanu-Döbler examines the development of the discourse on theurgy, attempting to reconstruct what was understood as theurgic ritual in the late antique sources. Withstanding the temptation to impose a unity on the disparate sources which span several centuries, she thus goes beyond the picture of a coherent, extra-philosophical tradition drawn by the Neoplatonists to sketch the variations in the rituals subsumed under 'theurgy' and their function, and shows how every author constructs his own 'theurgy'. This perspective leads to consider theurgy as an example of an 'artificial' ritual tradition, composed from already existing elements to create something claimed as sui generis. Theurgy offers the great opportunity to look at such a tradition from its beginning up to its end and to analyse the mechanisms of inventing and reinventing such a ritual tradition in process.

Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity

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Publisher : Angelico Press / Sophia Perennis
ISBN 13 : 9781597311670
Total Pages : 326 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (116 download)

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Book Synopsis Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity by : Algis Uzdavinys

Download or read book Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity written by Algis Uzdavinys and published by Angelico Press / Sophia Perennis. This book was released on 2016-08-14 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity

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Author :
Publisher : Sophia Perennis
ISBN 13 : 9781597310864
Total Pages : 308 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (18 download)

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Book Synopsis Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity by : Algis Uždavinys

Download or read book Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity written by Algis Uždavinys and published by Sophia Perennis. This book was released on 2010 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The ancient philosophy, in its original Orphico-Pythagorean and Platonic form, is not simply a way of life in accordance with the divine or human intellect (nous), but also the way of alchemical transformation and mystical illumination achieved through initiatic 'death' and subsequent restoration at the level of divine light. To use another mythical image, philosophy restores the soul's wings and leads the purified lover of wisdom to Heaven. As a means of spiritual reintegration and unification, ancient philosophy is inseparable from the hieratic rites. Therefore those scholars who themselves follow the anagogic path of Platonic tradition are more or less firmly convinced that their philosophy ultimately derives from the Egyptian and Mesopotamian temple liturgies and rituals, reinterpreted and revived by the Neoplatonists under the name of 'theurgy' in late antiquity. The theurgic 'animation' of statues appears to be among the main keys for understanding how various royal and priestly practices, related to the daily ritual service and encounter with the divine presence in the temples, developed into the Neoplatonic mysticism of late antiquity. The traditional theory of symbolism still stands on the Neoplatonic foundation established by Iamblichus, Proclus, and Damascius. "This book clearly establishes three things: that traditional myth (as the Neoplatonists maintained) is the symbolic expression of metaphysics, as metaphysics is the exegesis of myth; that Greek philosophy was not an isolated 'miracle' but a reinterpretation of perennial themes common to the ancient Near Eastern, Mesopotamian, Indian, and especially Egyptian religions; and that Platonic philosophical discourse was but one-half of a whole which included an invocatory/contemplative practice known as 'theurgy'. It was not merely the ancestor of western speculative philosophy, but an askesis, a yoga-a way of realization (though no longer a living tradition) worthy to be included among the great spiritual methods of all places and times." Charles Uupton, author of Knowings "In this most stimulating and wide-ranging work, Algis Uzdavinys, drawing on the resources of his enormous learning, leads Neoplatonic theurgy back to its roots in Ancient Egypt, thereby setting Platonic philosophy in a new and wider context. Students of Neoplatonism will find themselves much indebted to him for this, and all readers will find their outlook on life significantly changed.- Prof. John M. Dillon, Trinity College, Dublin, author of Middle Platonists

Divination and Theurgy in Neoplatonism

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Author :
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317148991
Total Pages : 352 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (171 download)

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Book Synopsis Divination and Theurgy in Neoplatonism by : Crystal Addey

Download or read book Divination and Theurgy in Neoplatonism written by Crystal Addey and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-05-13 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why did ancient philosophers consult oracles, write about them, and consider them to be an important part of philosophical thought and practice? This book explores the extensive links between oracles and philosophy in Late Antiquity, particularly focusing on the roles of oracles and other forms of divination in third and fourth century CE Neoplatonism. Examining some of the most significant debates between pagan philosophers and Christian intellectuals on the nature of oracles as a central yet contested element of religious tradition, Addey focuses particularly on Porphyry's Philosophy from Oracles and Iamblichus' De Mysteriis - two works which deal extensively with oracles and other forms of divination. This book argues for the significance of divination within Neoplatonism and offers a substantial reassessment of oracles and philosophical works and their relationship to one another. With a broad interdisciplinary approach, encompassing Classics, Ancient Philosophy, Theology, Religious Studies and Ancient History, Addey draws on recent anthropological and religious studies research which has challenged and re-evaluated the relationship between rationality and ritual.

The Metamorphosis of Magic from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern Period

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Publisher : Peeters Publishers
ISBN 13 : 9789042912274
Total Pages : 426 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (122 download)

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Book Synopsis The Metamorphosis of Magic from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern Period by : Jan N. Bremmer

Download or read book The Metamorphosis of Magic from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern Period written by Jan N. Bremmer and published by Peeters Publishers. This book was released on 2002 with total page 426 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Deities, demons, and angels became important protagonists in the magic of the Late Antique world, and were also the main reasons for the condemnation of magic in the Christian era. Supplicatory incantations, rituals of coercion, enticing suffumigations, magical prayers and mystical songs drew spiritual powers to the humain domain. Next to the magician's desire to regulate fate and fortune, it was the communion with the spirit world that gave magic the potential to purify and even deify its practitioners. The sense of elation and the awareness of a metaphysical order caused magic to merge with philosophy (notably Neoplatonism). The heritage of Late Antique theurgy would be passed on to the Arab world, and together with classical science and learning would take root again in the Latin West in the High Middle Ages. The metamorphosis of magic laid out in this book is the transformation of ritual into occult philosophy against the background of cultural changes in Judaism, Graeco-Roman religion and Christianity. This volume, the first in the new series Groningen Studies in Cultural Change, offers the papers presented at the workshop The Metamorphosis of Magic from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern Period held from 22 to 24 June 2000, and organised by Jan N. Bremmer and Jan R. Veenstra. The papers have been written by scholars from such varying disciplines as classics, theology, philosophy, cultural history, and law. Their contributions shed new light upon several old obscurities; they show magic to be a significant area of culture, and they advance the case for viewing transformations in the lore and practice of magic as a barometer with which to measure cultural change.

Icons of Power

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Publisher : Penn State Press
ISBN 13 : 9780271047911
Total Pages : 194 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (479 download)

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Book Synopsis Icons of Power by : Naomi Janowitz

Download or read book Icons of Power written by Naomi Janowitz and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2010-11-01 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Janowitz sifts through the polemics to make sense of the daunting mosaic of religious belief and practice in Late Antiquity. Janowitz reveals how ritual practitioners held common assumptions about why their rituals worked and how to perform them. Icons of Power makes an important contribution to our understanding of society in Late Antiquity.

Orpheus and the Roots of Platonism

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Publisher : The Matheson Trust
ISBN 13 : 1908092076
Total Pages : 117 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (8 download)

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Book Synopsis Orpheus and the Roots of Platonism by : Algis Uždavinys

Download or read book Orpheus and the Roots of Platonism written by Algis Uždavinys and published by The Matheson Trust. This book was released on 2011 with total page 117 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A book on the religious, mystic origins and substance of philosophy. This is a critical survey of ancient and modern sources and of scholarly works dealing with Orpheus and everything related to this major figure of ancient Greek myth, religion and philosophy. Here poetic madness meets religious initiation and Platonic philosophy. This book contains fascinating insights into the usually downplaid relations between Egyptian initiation, Greek mysteries and Plato's philosophy and followers, right into Hellenistic Neoplatonic and Hermetic developments.

Praying and Contemplating in Late Antiquity

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9783161565946
Total Pages : 229 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (659 download)

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Book Synopsis Praying and Contemplating in Late Antiquity by : Eleni Pachoumi

Download or read book Praying and Contemplating in Late Antiquity written by Eleni Pachoumi and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Praying and Contemplating

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9783161561191
Total Pages : 240 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (611 download)

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Book Synopsis Praying and Contemplating by : Eleni Pachoumi

Download or read book Praying and Contemplating written by Eleni Pachoumi and published by . This book was released on 2018-11 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The present volume is focused on the interactions and syncretistic tensions between religion and philosophy in Late Antiquity. A variety of papers examine issues of personal religious attitudes, initiation to the mysteries, Orphism, notions of theurgy, magic, the philosopher's quest for intimacy or union with the divine, magic and Christianity, the role of prayer in philosophical texts, and oracles, dream-visions and divination. The contributions include a wide range of specialisations, such as Neoplatonism, Chaldaean Oracles, Theurgy, Patristic literature, Christian religious texts and Manichaeism. Contributors:John Dillon, Eleni Pachoumi, John Finamore, Mark Wildish, Wayne Hankey, John Hilton, Mark Edwards, Bronwen Neil, Annemaré Kotzé, Matthew Dickie, Lech Trzcionkowski, Philip Bosman

The Power of Religion in Late Antiquity

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Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317019539
Total Pages : 435 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (17 download)

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Book Synopsis The Power of Religion in Late Antiquity by : Andrew Cain

Download or read book The Power of Religion in Late Antiquity written by Andrew Cain and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-09-17 with total page 435 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Late Antiquity witnessed a dramatic recalibration in the economy of power, and nowhere was this more pronounced than in the realm of religion. The transformations that occurred in this pivotal era moved the ancient world into the Middle Ages and forever changed the way that religion was practiced. The twenty eight studies in this volume explore this shift using evidence ranging from Latin poetic texts, to Syriac letter collections, to the iconography of Roman churches and Merowingian mortuary goods. They range in chronology from the late third through the early seventh centuries AD and apply varied theories and approaches. All converge around the notion that religion is fundamentally a discourse of power and that power in Late Antiquity was especially charged with the force of religion. The articles are divided into eight sections which examine the power of religion in literature, theurgical power over the divine, emperors and the deployment of religious power, limitations on the power of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, the use of the cross as a symbol of power, Rome and its transformation as a center of power, the power of religion in the barbarian west, and religious power in the communities of the east. This kaleidoscope of perspectives creates a richly illuminating volume that add a new social and political dimension to current debates about religion in Late Antiquity.

Theurgy and the Soul

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Publisher : Angelico Press / Sophia Perennis
ISBN 13 : 9781621380726
Total Pages : 350 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (87 download)

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Book Synopsis Theurgy and the Soul by : Gregory Shaw

Download or read book Theurgy and the Soul written by Gregory Shaw and published by Angelico Press / Sophia Perennis. This book was released on 2014-09-12 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iamblichus was once considered one of the great philosophers. The Emperor Julian followed Iamblichus's teachings to guide the restoration of traditional pagan cults in his campaign against Christianity. Although Julian was unsuccessful, Iamblichus's ideas persisted well into the Middle Ages and beyond. His vision of a hierarchical cosmos united by divine ritual became the dominant worldview for the entire medieval world. Even Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote that he expected a reading of Iamblichus to cause a "revival in the churches." But modern scholars have dismissed him, seeing theurgy as ritual magic or "manipulation of the gods." Shaw, however, shows that theurgy was a subtle and intellectually sophisticated attempt to apply Platonic and Pythagorean teachings to the full expression of human existence in the material world.

Invoking Angels

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Publisher : Penn State Press
ISBN 13 : 0271051434
Total Pages : 408 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (71 download)

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Book Synopsis Invoking Angels by : Claire Fanger

Download or read book Invoking Angels written by Claire Fanger and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2012-02-01 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A collection of essays examining medieval and early modern texts aimed at performing magic or receiving illumination via the mediation of angels. Includes discussion of Jewish, Christian and Muslim texts"--Provided by publisher.

The Practical Art of Divine Magic

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Publisher : Llewellyn Worldwide
ISBN 13 : 0738746312
Total Pages : 319 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (387 download)

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Book Synopsis The Practical Art of Divine Magic by : Patrick Dunn

Download or read book The Practical Art of Divine Magic written by Patrick Dunn and published by Llewellyn Worldwide. This book was released on 2015-08-08 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The ancient world of Egypt, Greece, and Rome was home to a set of magical and spiritual technologies, called theurgy, that unite the practice of magic with the aims of religion. Theurgy, or "godwork," is the art of creating a stronger bond between the theurgist and his or her deities. The results of this stronger bond were imminently practical: stronger magic, more meaningful existence, and a better life. With the fall of Rome, these techniques faded into obscurity, and many of them were lost forever. This book revives, restores, and reinvents these practices for a contemporary pagan or magical practitioner. A mixture of scholarly research and examination of source texts and daring experimentation and extrapolation leads to a complete and workable system that can inform a variety of practices, all presented in a relaxed, lighthearted, and readable way. Whether you practice witchcraft, ceremonial magic, or chaos magic, you can benefit from the practice of theurgy. You will learn techniques to create stronger bonds with divine forces, call up and communicate with spiritual beings, summon a magical assistant, create statues imbued with divine spirit, and master your own mind. The ultimate goal is union with the divine, but theurgy is a practical path, and every step on that path is designed to improve your life.

The Reception of Greek Ethics in Late Antiquity and Byzantium

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Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1108833691
Total Pages : 303 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (88 download)

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Book Synopsis The Reception of Greek Ethics in Late Antiquity and Byzantium by : Sophia Xenophontos

Download or read book The Reception of Greek Ethics in Late Antiquity and Byzantium written by Sophia Xenophontos and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2021-06-24 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume provides the first authoritative study of the creative appropriation of Greek ethics by late antique and Byzantine authors.

The Cambridge History of Philosophy in Late Antiquity

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Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1316175936
Total Pages : 1584 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (161 download)

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Book Synopsis The Cambridge History of Philosophy in Late Antiquity by : Lloyd P. Gerson

Download or read book The Cambridge History of Philosophy in Late Antiquity written by Lloyd P. Gerson and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2015-12-10 with total page 1584 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Cambridge History of Philosophy in Late Antiquity comprises over forty specially commissioned essays by experts on the philosophy of the period 200–800 CE. Designed as a successor to The Cambridge History of Later Greek and Early Medieval Philosophy (edited by A. H. Armstrong), it takes into account some forty years of scholarship since the publication of that volume. The contributors examine philosophy as it entered literature, science and religion, and offer new and extensive assessments of philosophers who until recently have been mostly ignored. The volume also includes a complete digest of all philosophical works known to have been written during this period. It will be an invaluable resource for all those interested in this rich and still emerging field.

Platonism and Christian Thought in Late Antiquity

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Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 0429803095
Total Pages : 391 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (298 download)

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Book Synopsis Platonism and Christian Thought in Late Antiquity by : Panagiotis G. Pavlos

Download or read book Platonism and Christian Thought in Late Antiquity written by Panagiotis G. Pavlos and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-06-07 with total page 391 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Platonism and Christian Thought in Late Antiquity examines the various ways in which Christian intellectuals engaged with Platonism both as a pagan competitor and as a source of philosophical material useful to the Christian faith. The chapters are united in their goal to explore transformations that took place in the reception and interaction process between Platonism and Christianity in this period. The contributions in this volume explore the reception of Platonic material in Christian thought, showing that the transmission of cultural content is always mediated, and ought to be studied as a transformative process by way of selection and interpretation. Some chapters also deal with various aspects of the wider discussion on how Platonic, and Hellenic, philosophy and early Christian thought related to each other, examining the differences and common ground between these traditions. Platonism and Christian Thought in Late Antiquity offers an insightful and broad ranging study on the subject, which will be of interest to students of both philosophy and theology in the Late Antique period, as well as anyone working on the reception and history of Platonic thought, and the development of Christian thought.

Platonopolis

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Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0199257582
Total Pages : 262 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (992 download)

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Book Synopsis Platonopolis by : Dominic J. O'Meara

Download or read book Platonopolis written by Dominic J. O'Meara and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2003-05 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Conventional wisdom suggests that the Platonist philosophers of Late Antiquity, from Plotinus (third century) to the sixth-century schools in Athens and Alexandria, neglected the political dimension of their Platonic heritage in their concentration on an otherworldly life. Dominic O'Meara presents a revelatory reappraisal of these thinkers, arguing that their otherworldliness involved rather than excluded political ideas, and he proposes for the first time a reconstruction of theirpolitical philosophy, their conception of the function, structure, and contents of political science, and its relation to political virtue and to the divinization of soul and state.Among the topics discussed by O'Meara are: philosopher-kings and queens; political goals and levels of reform: law, constitutions, justice, and penology; the political function of religion; and the limits of political science and action. He also explores various reactions to these political ideas in the works of Christian and Islamic writers, in particular Eusebius, Augustine, Pseudo-Dionysius, and al-Farabi.Filling a major gap in our understanding, Platonopolis will be of substantial interest to scholars and students of ancient philosophy, classicists, and historians of political thought.