Greetings. I wanted to provide an opportunity for folks to ask questions and comment on contemporary as well as ancient Gnosticism, both as philosophy and as religion.

Feel free to address any questions directly to me or to the board for discussion and debate.

Let's have some fun with this!

Peace,

RadicalGnostic

Hello I have studied Gnosticism for some time, not so much the history of Gnoscticism but more so the Gnostics texts found in Nag Hammadi. Primarily the 'The Gospel Of Thomas', 'The Hypostasis of the Archons', 'The Thunder, Perfect Mind' and the 'The Apocryphon of John', being my favourites.

Philosophically I found it very interesting, it put many things in perspective and for me it cleared up many inconsistencies I had found in the Bible.

As a religion I found its view of the physical world too negative, I see no reason to believe that the physical world is in anyway corrupt or inherently evil. The layers upon layers of human "reality" we have created seperating us from the natural world may be seen as corrupt but the natural world itself no, it is what it is, neither good nor evil in my opinion. I also have as much difficulty believing that we trapped here by a "god" as I do believing that we were put here to proove our obedience to God.

But anyways thats just the way I see it, but one thing I would like to ask your opinion on is part of the first line in the text 'The Apocalypse of Peter'.... "As the Savior was sitting in the temple in the three hundredth (year) of the covenant and the agreement of the tenth pillar,". Do you believe this 'covenant and the agreement of the tenth pillar' is a reference to the 'Pillars of Ashoka'? If so, is this one of the clearest references to Buddhism in the Gnostic texts?

I wouldn't be surprised if it was.

RadicalGnostic

THE GNOSTIC SOCIETY LIBRARY:The Nag Hammadi Library
http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/nhl.html

Sean

Perhaps y'all could start with a definition of what gnosticism is.
For us simple folks.

Gnosticism is very simple (theoretically of course). It is simply knowing the Self and abiding in the eternal peace of the Self which underlies the ego. That is all that really needs to be said.


You are the Self, the infinite Being, the pure, unchanging Consciousness, which pervades everything. Your nature is bliss and your glory is without stain. Because you identify yourself with the ego, you are tied to birth and death. Your bondage has no other cause.

---Shankara

That is Gnosticism.

Gnosis is a knowledge of transcendence, of being alien in the material world.

Try reading a couple of short articles on the subject:

http://www.gnosis.org/gnintro.htm

http://www.gnosis.org/whatisgnostic.htm

Dr. Stephan Hoeller (author/lecturer) is the Regionary Bishop of our church, the Ecclesia Gnostica.

RadicalGnostic

thanks for the links RadicalG

I looked at the links provided, and read much of it ( I bookmarked the sites in my "educational" folder) and a question came to me.

What is the gnostic position on gods relationship with man?
Is it along the lines of the judeo-christo-muslim line that god watches over us, punishing us for transgressions? Or is it a more aloof & distant deity?

Gnostocs believe satan created the world and that man is inherently the root of all evil. In a nutshell.

Is that how they explain all of the old testament gods dysfunction!? As that archetype of satan at work, rather than a benevolent god?

Probably one of the best books ever written on the subject of Gnosticism ...

The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels
http://www.amazon.com/Gnostic-Gospels-Elai...3472964-5048423

Sean

Agreed

Humans are spirits imprisoned in matter, according to the Gnostic view. God is the Eternal Parent who yearns for our return Home to the Pleroma. As the Divine transcends all matter, in order to help show us the way back to our celestial home Christ was emanated as the First Born of many. He somehow overshadowed Jesus of Nazareth, who taught us His Father and shows us the way Home. "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life." More of a Christian Deist view.

Humans are not at fault for somekind of "fall" in Gnosticism. The world is flawed because it was molded by a flawed maker, the Demiurge. Evil is in the world due to spiritual wickedness in high places, rather than as a result of humanities "sin". The Demiurge is not evil like the Christian devil; he is blind, ignorant of his origins, and arrogant. Eventually the Demiurge will hear the call of the Holy Mother and retire to the Pleroma.

I hope I've answered your questions.

Peace,

RadicalGnostic

You have Radical G, you have. Thank you for that clear and concise answer.


Would it be fair to say that gnostics consider humans to be incomplete creatures, as opposed to being flawed?

No. Our spirit is our real self. The body and the rest of the material world are flawed. The goal of Gnosticism is to transcend the material universe and experience of divinity while still in the body so that once outside of the bodily prison the spirit may return to the Pleroma.

Our real self is not flawed, but the bodily prison as well as all matter is flawed. Can the flaw be remedied? Yes, the Gnostics say, as we each come to understand the experience of transcendence and/or God even the Demiuge (like his offspring Abraxas) will be enlightened as to the truth of our existence.

Peace,

RadicalGnostic

Could you give us a little more insight to who and what the Demiurge is?

The Demiuge (using the Greek term for "half-maker") is described in several Gnostic writings, including Pistis Sophia and The Reality of the Rulers. Searching the gnosis.org site for either will turn up English translations.

In a nutshell, the Half-Maker, called Saclas, Yadalbaoth and Samael, is the offspring of the Feminine aspect of deity without the consent or union of her consort. She calls him Blind God (Samael) when he declares himself god with no other. It is this same Samael which fashioned the fools paradise of Eden and seduced the first human into material imprisonment and then sleep. It is Samael who separates the androgyne into two and has a temper tantrum when the humans learn the truth of their existence from their Mother in the form of a serpent.

Peace,

RadicalGnostic