The Platonizing Sethian Background Of Plotinus S Mysticism
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The Platonizing Sethian Background of Plotinus’s Mysticism
In The Platonizing Sethian Background of Plotinus’s Mysticism, Zeke Mazur offers a radical reconceptualization of Plotinus with reference to Gnostic thought and praxis. A crucial element in the thought of the third-century CE philosopher Plotinus—his conception of mystical union with the One—cannot be understood solely within the conventional history of philosophy, or as the product of a unique, sui generis psychological propensity. This monograph demonstrates that Plotinus tacitly patterned his mystical ascent to the One on a type of visionary ascent ritual that is first attested in Gnostic sources. These sources include the Platonizing Sethian tractates Zostrianos (NHC VIII,1) and Allogenes (NHC XI,3) of which we have Coptic translations from Nag Hammadi and whose Greek Vorlagen were known to have been read in Plotinus’s school.
Dynamics of Monotheism in Late Antiquity
Author: Guy G. Stroumsa
language: en
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Release Date: 2025-08-05
From early Christianity to the emergence of Islam, the long late antiquity denotes a truly revolutionary period in the history of religions. In many ways, religious ritual patterns and theological worldviews were then radically transformed throughout the Near East and the Mediterranean. In particular, the traditional polytheistic systems collapsed, giving way to various forms of monotheism and dualism. In Dynamics of Monotheism in Late Antiquity, Guy G. Stroumsa seeks to analyze this multifaceted revolution as a whole, rather than focusing, as is usually the case, on distinct religious communities and traditions, such as Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Gnosticism, Christianity, Manichaeism, and earliest Islam. Many of the elements of religious change in our period can be perceived as a praeparatio coranica, as it were, as they set the scene for the advent of Islam. The thrust of the book is to identify the key dynamics through which religious change happened in the kaleidoscope of religious conceptions. The analysis emphasizes the dialectics between monotheist and dualist perceptions and systems. It will also seek to identify the core elements of the Abrahamic religions in the making.
Selfhood and the Soul
Selfhood and the Soul is a collection of original essays in honor of Christopher Gill, Emeritus Professor of Ancient Thought at the University of Exeter. The contributions cover a wide range of approaches and topics, but all are committed to examining central issues about the experience of being a person and the question of how best to live.