Frances Flannery Dreams On
Frances Flannery explores the problems of interpreting ancient accounts of visionary dreams. A wide-ranging interview featuring the first Book of Enoch, imaginal trees, and the platypus.
Podcast Episodes Themed "Esoteric Hermeneutics"
Episode 44: Esoteric Hermeneutics in Stoicism
The contribution of Stoicism to the art of esoteric reading, both of texts and of the secret correspondences within the universe, is little studied. This episode sifts the evidence to set the record straight.
Episode 38: The Esoteric Aristotle, Part I
Aristotle might not spring to mind when contemplating the names of esoteric heroes of the past. But the figure of Plato's greatest student in fact had an esoteric afterlife to rival that of Plato himself!
Peter Adamson On Plato and Beyond
Professor Adamson enters the speculative realm at the edges of Platonic interpretation, addressing issues ranging from the rise of the ineffable in late antique Platonism to the status of the giraffe in Plato's thought.
Episode 37: Peter Adamson on Plato
We discuss Plato with Peter Adamson, Professor of Philosophy at the LMU in Munich and presenter of the History of Philosophy Podcast, asking the question: how can the Plato of analytic philosophy be the same man as the esoteric Plato?
Episode 26: The Birth of the Symbol: Peter Struck on Ancient Greek Esoteric Hermeneutics
When looking for esoteric wisdom in a text, you need esoteric hermeneutics to find it. We discuss ancient techniques of esoteric reading with Professor Peter Struck, and along the way we learn some fundamental things about esoteric hermeneutics more generally.
Episode 25: The Esoteric Plato
Plato was long considered an esoteric author who hid his true doctrines within his dialogues. We look at some of the reasons for his reputation as the esoteric author par excellence, and discuss modern academic debates around the ‘esoteric question’.
Episode 24: Introducing the Father of Western Esotericism: Plato
The greatest philosopher of the western world was a trickster. In this episode we introduce Plato, the father of western esotericism, and discuss his importance to the esoteric traditions.
Episode 12: Richard Seaford on the Mysteries
With the inimitable Prof. Seaford as our mystagogue, we explore the world of the ancient Greek mystery-cults, the crucial source for western esoteric tropes of secrecy, silence, initiation, and much more.
Episode 11: The Long Secret History of Judaism, Part I
The Jews and Judaism are at the very core of western cuture and of western esotericism. This episode touches on the history of the early Jewish peoples, introduces biblical criticism, and discusses some of the key contributions of Judaism to western esotericism.
