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| '''Hermetism''' was a religion based upon the Philosophical ], including the '']'', '']'', ]n '']''<ref>(Van den Broek "Gnosticism and Hermetism in Antiquity" from ''Gnosis and Hermeticism: from Antiquity to Modern Times'' p. 5)</ref>, and the literature inspired by the corpus; separated from ], which encompasses other works centered upon ].<ref>(Faivre "Western Hermeticism and the Concept of Western Esotericism" from ''Gnosis and Hermeticism: from Antiquity to Modern Times'' pp. 109-10)</ref> Hermetism has been described as part of the third pillar of Western culture which provides a balance between ] ] and ].<ref>(Van den Broek and Hanegraaff p. vii)</ref> | |||
| == Etymology == | |||
| ''Hermetism'' is derived from the name ''Hermes''. ] is said to be the founder of Hermetism, and was known to the Egyptians as ] and the Greeks as ]. <ref>(Three Initiates pp. 17-8)</ref> ''Hermes'' comes from the ancient Greek root ''herm'' which means "vitality" or "the active, positive, radiant principle of nature." <ref>(Hall ''The Hermetic Marriage'' p. 223)</ref> To the Hermetists, herm would represent the Masculine aspect of the Universe. | |||
| == Hermetic beliefs == | |||
| Hermeticism encompasses both ] and ] within its belief system, which teaches that there is ], or one "Cause", of which we, and the entire ], are all a part. Also it subscribes to the notion that other beings such as ] and ]s, ]s and ]s exist in the ]. | |||
| === As above, so below === | |||
| ] displaying the Hermetic concept of "]." Occultists of the 18th and 19th centuries have speculated that ] may be based on '']''.]] | |||
| These words circulate throughout occult and magical circles, and they come from Hermetic texts. The concept was first laid out in ''The ] of Hermes Trismegistus'', in the words "That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above, corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracles of the One Thing."<ref>(Scully p. 321)</ref> | |||
| In accordance with the various levels of reality: physical, mental, and spiritual, this relates that what happens on any level happens on every other. This is however more often used in the sense of the ]. The microcosm is oneself, and the macrocosm is the universe. The macrocosm is as the microcosm, and vice versa; within each lies the other, and through understanding one (usually the microcosm) you can understand the other.<ref>(Garstin p. 35)</ref> | |||
| === Reincarnation === | |||
| There are mentions in Hermeticism about ]. As Hermes states: | |||
| :"O son, how many bodies we have to pass through, how many bands of demons, through how many series of repetitions and cycles of the stars, before we hasten to the One alone?"<ref>(''Way of Hermes'' p. 33)</ref> | |||
| === Morality, good and evil === | |||
| Hermes explains in Book 9 of the ''Corpus Hermeticum'' that '']'' brings forth both good and evil, depending on if he receives input from God or from the ]s. God brings good, while the demons bring evil. Among those things brought by demons are: | |||
| :"adultery, murder, violence to one's father, sacrilege, ungodliness, strangling, suicide from a cliff and all such other demonic actions."<ref>(''Way of Hermes'' p. 42)</ref> | |||
| This provides a clearcut view that Hermeticism does indeed include a sense of morality. However, the word good is used very strictly, to be restricted to use to the ''Supreme Good'', God.<ref>(''Way of Hermes'' p. 28)</ref> It is only God (in the sense of the Supreme Good, not The All) who is completely free of evil to be considered good. Men are exempt of having the chance of being good, for they have a body, consumed in the physical nature, ignorant of the ''Supreme Good''.<ref>(''Way of Hermes'' p. 47)</ref> | |||
| Among those things which are considered extremely sinful, is the focus on the material life, said to be the only thing that offends God: | |||
| :"As processions passing in the road cannot achieve anything themselves yet still obstruct others, so these men merely process through the universe, led by the pleasures of the body."<ref>(''Way of Hermes'' pp. 32-3)</ref> | |||
| It is troublesome to oneself to have no "children". This is a symbolic description, not to mean physical, biological children, but rather creations. Immediately before this claim, it is explained that God is "the Father" because it has authored all things, it creates. Whether father or mother, one must create, do something positive in their life, as the Supreme Good is a "generative power". The curse for not having "children" is to be imprisoned to a body, neither male (active) nor female (thoughtful), leaving that person with a type of sterility, that of being unable to accomplish anything.<ref>(''Way of Hermes'' p. 29)</ref> | |||
| === Creation legend === | |||
| The tale is given in the first book of the ] by ] ] to ] after much meditation. It begins as the ALL creates the elements after seeing the ] and creating one just like it (our Cosmos) from its own constituent elements and souls. From there, the ALL, being both ] (Divine Father) and ] (Universal Mother), holding the Word (the logos), gave birth to a second Nous, creator of the world. This second Nous created seven powers, or deities, (often seen as ], ], ], ], ], the ] and the ]) to travel in circles and govern destiny. | |||
| The Word then leaps forth from the materializing elements, which made them unintelligent. Nous then made the governors spin, and from their matter sprang forth creatures without speech. Earth then was separated from Water and the animals (other than Man) were brought forth from the Earth. | |||
| The Supreme Nous then created Man, ], in his own image and handed over his creation. Man carefully observed the creation of his brother, the lesser Nous, and received his and his Father's authority over it all. Man then rose up above the spheres' paths to better view the creation, and then showed the form of the ALL to Nature. Nature fell in love with it, and Man, seeing a similar form to his own reflecting in the water fell in love with Nature and wished to dwell in it. Immediately Man became one with Nature and became a slave to its limitations such as ] and sleep. Man thus became speechless (for it lost the Word) and became double, being mortal in body but immortal in ], having authority of all but subject to ]. | |||
| The tale does not specifically contradict the theory of ], other than for Man, but most Hermeticists fully accept evolutionary theory as a solid grounding for the creation of everything from base matter to Man.<ref>(''Way of Hermes'' pp. 18-20)</ref> | |||
| ==Interrelations== | |||
| {{main|Hermetism, Hermeticism and other thought systems}} | |||
| Hermetism and Hermetic thought has influenced and has been influenced by several different other religions and thought systems, including ], ], and ]. | |||
| == References == | |||
| {{reflist|2}} | |||
| == Sources == | |||
| *{{cite book | author=Abel, Christopher R. and Hare, William O. | title=Hermes Trismegistus: An Investigation of the Origin of the Hermetic Writings | location=Sequim | publisher=Holmes Publishing Group | year=1997 | id= }} | |||
| *{{cite book | author=Hall, Manly P. | title=The Hermetic Marriage | publisher=Kessinger Publishing | year=date unknown | id= }} | |||
| *{{cite book | author=Hall, Manly P. | title=The Secret Teachings of All Ages | location=San Francisco | publisher=H.S. Crocker Company | year=1928 (copyright not renewed) | id= }} | |||
| *{{cite book | author=Regardie, Israel | title=The Golden Dawn | location=St. Paul | publisher=Llewellyn Publications | year=1940 | id= }} | |||
| *{{cite book | author=Three Initiates | title=The Kybalion | location=Chicago | publisher=The Yogi Publication Society/Masonic Temple | year=1912 | id= }} | |||
| *{{cite book | author=Van den Broek, Roelof and Hanegraaff, Wouter | title=Gnosis and Hermeticism: from Antiquity to Modern Times | location=Albany | publisher=State University of New York Press | year=1998 | id= 0=7914-3612-8}} | |||
| **Van den Broek, Roelof. "Gnosticism and Hermetism in Antiquity: Two Roads to Salvation". pp. 1-20 | |||
| **Faivre, Antoine. "Renaissance Hermeticism and the Concept of Western Esotericism". pp. 109-124 | |||
| *Yates, Frances A. ''Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition''. University of Chicago Press 1964. Scholarly analysis of Hermetism and it's impact on the leading philosophers of the Renaissance. | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| * : Texts of the Corpus Hermeticum, along with introductory material. Included here are three complete introductory works by G.R.S. Mead on Hermetic tradition (part of the Gnosis Archive website). | |||
| * : Based on the hermetic teachings of philosopher Dario Salas Sommer (aka. John Baines). | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
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