One characteristic of European history of religion is a two-fold pluralism-a pluralism of religious identities on the one hand, and a pluralism of various societal systems that interact with religious systems on the other. Addressing discourses of perfect knowledge in Western culture between 1200 and 1800, this book integrates the study of Western esotericism in a larger analytical framework of European history of religion. Viewed from a structuralist perspective, 'esoteric discourse' provides an analytical framework that helps to reveal genealogies of modern identities in a pluralistic competition of knowledge. Experiential philosophy, kabbalah, astrology, Hermeticism, philology, and early modern science are linked to knowledge claims that shaped the way in which Western culture defined itself.
- ISBN10 1282786997
- ISBN13 9781282786998
- Publish Date 1 January 2010
- Publish Status Active
- Out of Print 3 June 2015
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Brill Academic Publishers
- Format eBook
- Pages 240
- Language English