Since fatherman listed some points about Gnosticism and there was a discussion about Magic on another thread, I thought we could start a thread regarding Hermetic Gnosticism.

11 points from The Hermetic Fellowship:
Full Explanation Link Here

1)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.

2)Holds that if we would attain to the Divine, we must aspire to the Divine; spiritual growth cannot be achieved without human effort

3)Is eclectic and draws material from sources spanning the entire Western Esoteric Tradition

4)Is polytheistic, yet ultimately monotheisitic (i.e., posits a multiplicity of Manifestations of the Divine Which emanate from an ultimate Divine Unity)

5)Holds that the Divine is both immanent and transcendent

6)Holds that the Universe is Divine and basically good

7)Teaches that when we seek the Divine, we may best begin with the Mysteries of Nature

8]Encourages spiritual curiosity

9)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

10)Urges those who seek the Divine to also seek balance in embracing all things

11)Is a poetic rather than an ascetic worldview

Way cool! I agree with every single one of those 11 points. Who knew I could agree with hermeticism?

My only exposure has been Golden Dawn (very little) and I didn't much care for it. Of course that was long ago ... damn, 20 years actually.

I'm off to read the website now. I'm psyched!

Hey Aletheia. It is pretty wild. Interested to know more of your thoughts after you've done some more exploring.

Are you familiar with the book "Meditations on the Tarot; A Journey into Christian Hermeticism"? Written anonymously. Talk about a fascinating read! Very cool, indeed.

Super way cool.
I Hadn't heard of this before and I plan to read the site tomorrow. Thanks Gnosteric !

flow....

Sounds intriguing, and I'm going to have to mark that site above as a 'favorite' to look at in more depth later.

I tend to take exception to a couple of points, or at least see things from a somewhat different angle:
1) I would tend to take the unity as a given a priori, or on faith, if you will. And on that basis, see the great work of humankind to be service to others in the light of that unity.
2)I would tend to see spiritual growth not so much as a matter of human effort as much as being a matter of getting the hell out of my own way. It's more a matter of simply being open to the Divine Transcendent immanent within and uniting us all. I guess that is the Lutheran in me--I have a difficult time seeing it as MY work but rather as a response to grace. Spiritual disciplines such as meditation, yoga, contemplative prayer and so on, do more to open me to the gift of grace and not so much as what I need to do in order to be holy or whatever. Maybe to some, this is a matter of a shift in emphasis, but it is important to me to see it in this way as openness and vulnerability rather than working to earn holy merit badges from the universe that lead to growth.

Otherwise, there is much in the Gnostic tradition that is worth my taking the time to examine more fully. I'm a flaming panentheist from the word, "Go", so the Divine as both Transcendent and as Immanent is pretty much of a no-brainer to me. Likewise, to see the Divine revealed in multiple forms, even in the gods of other religions as, for example, in Hinduism where an innumerable host of divinities are grounded in Brahma, the Ultimate Reality, is okay too. I especially value, too, the equality and willingness to do more than pay lip service to that unity where the inclusion of women are concerned--something noted by Elaine Pagels and others.

This thread interests me. I will post to it later. I recommend Karn King's recent book What Is Gnosticism.