Blog post
We speak with Dan Levene, expert on the ancient Judæo-Aramaic incantation-bowls, on the bowls, the skulls, the Talmud, and what all of this tells us about late-ancient Judaism in the Sasanian empire and beyond.
Oddcast episode
In Part I of a thematic series, we begin to explore the long secret history of reincarnation in the west. in this episode we consider our earliest evidence, which clusters around two resonant names: Pythagoras and Orpheus.
Podcast episode
As a coda to our discussion of the final Platonists of Alexandria, we look at the Anonymous Prolegomena to the Philosophy of Plato. This fascinating work, originating in or around the circle of Olympiodorus, has much to tell us about the esoteric hermeneutics of the whole philosophical tradition of Platonism. It also tells us about the henadic virgin birth of the great esoteric sage of antiquity, Plato himself.
Podcast episode
We return to the history of late antiquity in the eastern Mediterranean and central Asia. Momentous events occur, empires rise and fall, and Jews, Christians, and Muslims all suddenly develop new apocalyptic notions. Come for the dry historical exposition, stay for the esoteric divine kingship.
Oddcast episode
We penetrate further into the dream-labyrinth of the Hypnerotomachia with James Russell, exploring the book's many early readers. These include a pope, a playwright, and an alchemist. Codes, rebuses, polyvalent images, esoteric architecture, and more meet in the melting-pot of Humanism.
An introduction to the podcast, discussing briefly what we mean by ‘western esotericism’. This episode also answers the burning question, ‘What’s so “secret” about The Secret History of Western Esotericism Podcast?’ and features a short quiz to test your knowledge of western esoteric history.
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