Hermeticism
Hermeticism is the name given to traditions of thought associated with writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus. In the history of Western esotericism, the term is used for both the ancient writings and their later interpretation. The philosophical and religious texts known as the Hermetica were written in late antiquity, although Renaissance readers often believed them much older.[1]
Texts and transmission
The Greek Corpus Hermeticum and the Latin Asclepius are central sources. They discuss divine reality, humanity and the world. They are a collection of writings rather than the constitution of a single continuing organisation. Brian Copenhaver’s modern edition provides an English translation with historical commentary.[1]
Marsilio Ficino translated Hermetic writings into Latin during the Italian Renaissance. He placed Hermes within an ancient theological tradition that also included figures such as Orpheus, Pythagoras and Plato. This understanding helped give the texts authority among readers seeking agreement between ancient philosophy and religious truth.[2]
In the early seventeenth century Isaac Casaubon challenged their supposed extreme antiquity. Dating the texts to the ancient Mediterranean world is different from accepting the Renaissance belief that they preserved a theology older than Plato or contemporary with Moses.[2]
Use in Masonic literature
The word Hermetic appears in some systems of additional Masonic degrees. For example, John Yarker’s 1888 description of his Antient and Primitive Rite names Senates of Hermetic Philosophers. This documents the use of Hermetic language within that nineteenth-century system. It does not, by itself, establish an institutional descent from the authors of the ancient Hermetica.[3]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Brian P. Copenhaver, Hermetica: The Greek Corpus Hermeticum and the Latin Asclepius in a New English Translation, with Notes and Introduction, Cambridge University Press, 1992; publisher’s description.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Marsilio Ficino”, especially the discussion of ancient theology and the Hermetic writings.
- ↑ John Yarker, “Antient & Primitive Rite of Masonry”, The Kneph, vol. VIII, no. 1, September 1888; historical statement reproduced by the Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon.
Memphis-Misraïm: Overview · Misraïm · Memphis · History · Degrees and organisation · Egyptian symbolism · Organisations and recognition · Regalia and imagery · Sources and further reading
People: Bédarride brothers · Marconis de Nègre · John Yarker · Giuseppe Garibaldi · Papus · Jean Bricaud · Constant Chevillon · Robert Ambelain
Background: Hermeticism · Martinism · Masonic glossary · Comparison with related traditions