The
Gnostic World View:
A Brief Summary of Gnosticism
GNOSTICISM IS THE TEACHING based on Gnosis,
the knowledge of transcendence arrived at by way of interior, intuitive
means. Although Gnosticism thus rests on personal religious experience,
it is a mistake to assume all such experience results in Gnostic
recognitions. It is nearer the truth to say that Gnosticism expresses a
specific religious experience, an experience that does not lend itself
to the language of theology or philosophy, but which is instead closely
affinitized to, and expresses itself through, the medium of myth.
Indeed, one finds that most Gnostic scriptures take the forms of myths.
The term “myth” should not here be taken to mean “stories that are not
true”, but rather, that the truths embodied in these myths are of a
different order from the dogmas of theology or the statements of
philosophy.
In the following summary, we will attempt to encapsulate in prose what
the Gnostic myths express in their distinctively poetic and imaginative
language.
The Cosmos
All religious traditions acknowledge that the world is imperfect. Where
they differ is in the explanations which they offer to account for this
imperfection and in what they suggest might be done about it. Gnostics
have their own -- perhaps quite startling -- view of these matters: they
hold that the world is flawed because it was created in a flawed manner.
Like Buddhism, Gnosticism begins with the fundamental recognition that
earthly life is filled with suffering. In order to nourish themselves,
all forms of life consume each other, thereby visiting pain, fear, and
death upon one another (even herbivorous animals live by destroying the
life of plants). In addition, so-called natural catastrophes --
earthquakes, floods, fires, drought, volcanic eruptions -- bring further
suffering and death in their wake. Human beings, with their complex
physiology and psychology, are aware not only of these painful features
of earthly existence. They also suffer from the frequent recognition
that they are strangers living in a world that is flawed and absurd.
Many religions advocate that humans are to be blamed for the
imperfections of the world. Supporting this view, they interpret the
Genesis myth as declaring that transgressions committed by the first
human pair brought about a “fall” of creation resulting in the present
corrupt state of the world. Gnostics respond that this interpretation of
the myth is false. The blame for the world’s failings lies not with
humans, but with the creator. Since -- especially in the monotheistic
religions -- the creator is God, this Gnostic position appears
blasphemous, and is often viewed with dismay even by non-believers.
Ways of evading the recognition of the flawed creation and its flawed
creator have been devised over and over, but none of these arguments
have impressed Gnostics. The ancient Greeks, especially the Platonists,
advised people to look to the harmony of the universe, so that by
venerating its grandeur they might forget their immediate afflictions.
But since this harmony still contains the cruel flaws, forlornness and
alienation of existence, this advice is considered of little value by
Gnostics. Nor is the Eastern idea of Karma regarded by Gnostics as an
adequate explanation of creation’s imperfection and suffering. Karma at
best can only explain how the chain of suffering and imperfection works.
It does not inform us in the first place why such a sorrowful and malign
system should exist.
Once the initial shock of the “unusual” or “blasphemous” nature of the
Gnostic explanation for suffering and imperfection of the world wears
off, one may begin to recognize that it is in fact the most sensible of
all explanations. To appreciate it fully, however, a familiarity with
the Gnostic conception of the Godhead is required, both in its original
essence as the True God and in its debased manifestation as the false or
creator God.
Deity
The Gnostic God concept is more subtle than that of most religions. In
its way, it unites and reconciles the recognitions of Monotheism and
Polytheism, as well as of Theism, Deism and Pantheism.
In
the Gnostic view, there is a true, ultimate and transcendent God, who is
beyond all created universes and who never created anything in the sense
in which the word “create” is ordinarily understood. While this True God
did not fashion or create anything, He (or, It) “emanated” or brought
forth from within Himself the substance of all there is in all the
worlds, visible and invisible. In a certain sense, it may therefore be
true to say that all is God, for all consists of the substance of God.
By the same token, it must also be recognized that many portions of the
original divine essence have been projected so far from their source
that they underwent unwholesome changes in the process. To worship the
cosmos, or nature, or embodied creatures is thus tantamount to
worshipping alienated and corrupt portions of the emanated divine
essence.
The basic Gnostic myth has many variations, but all of these refer to
Aeons, intermediate deific beings who exist between the ultimate, True
God and ourselves. They, together with the True God, comprise the realm
of Fullness (Pleroma) wherein the potency of divinity operates fully.
The Fullness stands in contrast to our existential state, which in
comparison may be called emptiness.
One of the aeonial beings who bears the name Sophia (“Wisdom”) is of
great importance to the Gnostic world view. In the course of her
journeyings, Sophia came to emanate from her own being a flawed
consciousness, a being who became the creator of the material and
psychic cosmos, all of which he created in the image of his own flaw.
This being, unaware of his origins, imagined himself to be the ultimate
and absolute God. Since he took the already existing divine essence and
fashioned it into various forms, he is also called the Demiurgos or
“half-maker” There is an authentic half, a true deific component within
creation, but it is not recognized by the half-maker and by his cosmic
minions, the Archons or “rulers”.
The Human Being
Human nature mirrors the duality found in the world: in part it was made
by the false creator God and in part it consists of the light of the
True God. Humankind contains a perishable physical and psychic
component, as well as a spiritual component which is a fragment of the
divine essence. This latter part is often symbolically referred to as
the “divine spark”. The recognition of this dual nature of the world and
of the human being has earned the Gnostic tradition the epithet of
“dualist”.
Humans are generally ignorant of the divine spark resident within them.
This ignorance is fostered in human nature by the influence of the false
creator and his Archons, who together are intent upon keeping men and
women ignorant of their true nature and destiny. Anything that causes us
to remain attached to earthly things serves to keep us in enslavement to
these lower cosmic rulers. Death releases the divine spark from its
lowly prison, but if there has not been a substantial work of Gnosis
undertaken by the soul prior to death, it becomes likely that the divine
spark will be hurled back into, and then re-embodied within, the pangs
and slavery of the physical world.
Not all humans are spiritual (pneumatics) and thus ready for Gnosis and
liberation. Some are earthbound and materialistic beings (hyletics), who
recognize only the physical reality. Others live largely in their psyche
(psychics). Such people usually mistake the Demiurge for the True God
and have little or no awareness of the spiritual world beyond matter and
mind.
In the course of history, humans progress from materialistic sensate
slavery, by way of ethical religiosity, to spiritual freedom and
liberating Gnosis. As the scholar G. Quispel wrote: “The world-spirit in
exile must go through the Inferno of matter and the Purgatory of morals
to arrive at the spiritual Paradise.” This kind of evolution of
consciousness was envisioned by the Gnostics, long before the concept of
evolution was known.
Salvation
Evolutionary forces alone are insufficient, however, to bring about
spiritual freedom. Humans are caught in a predicament consisting of
physical existence combined with ignorance of their true origins, their
essential nature and their ultimate destiny. To be liberated from this
predicament, human beings require help, although they must also
contribute their own efforts.
From earliest times Messengers of the Light have come forth from the
True God in order to assist humans in their quest for Gnosis. Only a few
of these salvific figures are mentioned in Gnostic scripture; some of
the most important are Seth (the third Son of Adam), Jesus, and the
Prophet Mani. The majority of Gnostics always looked to Jesus as the
principal savior figure (the Soter).
Gnostics
do not look to salvation from sin (original or other), but rather from
the ignorance of which sin is a consequence. Ignorance -- whereby is
meant ignorance of spiritual realities -- is dispelled only by Gnosis,
and the decisive revelation of Gnosis is brought by the Messengers of
Light, especially by Christ, the Logos of the True God. It is not by His
suffering and death but by His life of teaching and His establishing of
mysteries that Christ has performed His work of salvation.
The Gnostic concept of salvation, like other Gnostic concepts, is a
subtle one. On the one hand, Gnostic salvation may easily be mistaken
for an unmediated individual experience, a sort of spiritual
do-it-yourself project. Gnostics hold that the potential for Gnosis, and
thus, of salvation is present in every man and woman, and that salvation
is not vicarious but individual. At the same time, they also acknowledge
that Gnosis and salvation can be, indeed must be, stimulated and
facilitated in order to effectively arise within consciousness. This
stimulation is supplied by Messengers of Light who, in addition to their
teachings, establish salvific mysteries (sacraments) which can be
administered by apostles of the Messengers and their successors.
One needs also remember that knowledge of our true nature -- as well as
other associated realizations -- are withheld from us by our very
condition of earthly existence. The True God of transcendence is unknown
in this world, in fact He is often called the Unknown Father. It is thus
obvious that revelation from on High is needed to bring about salvation.
The indwelling spark must be awakened from its terrestrial slumber by
the saving knowledge that comes “from without”.
Conduct
If the words “ethics” or “morality” are taken to mean a system of rules,
then Gnosticism is opposed to them both. Such systems usually originate
with the Demiurge and are covertly designed to serve his purposes. If,
on the other hand, morality is said to consist of an inner integrity
arising from the illumination of the indwelling spark, then the Gnostic
will embrace this spiritually informed existential ethic as ideal.
To the Gnostic, commandments and rules are not salvific; they are not
substantially conducive to salvation. Rules of conduct may serve
numerous ends, including the structuring of an ordered and peaceful
society, and the maintenance of harmonious relations within social
groups. Rules, however, are not relevant to salvation; that is brought
about only by Gnosis. Morality therefore needs to be viewed primarily in
temporal and secular terms; it is ever subject to changes and
modifications in accordance with the spiritual development of the
individual.
As noted in the discussion above, “hyletic materialists” usually have
little interest in morality, while “psychic disciplinarians” often grant
to it a great importance. In contrast, “Pneumatic spiritual” persons are
generally more concerned with other, higher matters. Different
historical periods also require variant attitudes regarding human
conduct. Thus both the Manichaean and Cathar Gnostic movements, which
functioned in times where purity of conduct was regarded as an issue of
high import, responded in kind. The present period of Western culture
perhaps resembles in more ways that of second and third century
Alexandria. It seems therefore appropriate that Gnostics in our age
adopt the attitudes of classical Alexandrian Gnosticism, wherein matters
of conduct were largely left to the insight of the individual.
Gnosticism embraces numerous general attitudes toward life: it
encourages non-attachment and non-conformity to the world, a “being in
the world, but not of the world”; a lack of egotism; and a respect for
the freedom and dignity of other beings. Nonetheless, it appertains to
the intuition and wisdom of every individual “Gnostic” to distill from
these principles individual guidelines for their personal application.
Destiny
When Confucius was asked about death, he replied: “Why do you ask me
about death when you do not know how to live?” This answer might easily
have been given by a Gnostic. To a similar question posed in the Gnostic
Gospel of Thomas, Jesus answered that human beings must come by Gnosis
to know the ineffable, divine reality from whence they have originated,
and whither they will return. This transcendental knowledge must come to
them while they are still embodied on earth.
Death does not automatically bring about liberation from bondage in the
realms of the Demiurge. Those who have not attained to a liberating
Gnosis while they were in embodiment may become trapped in existence
once more. It is quite likely that this might occur by way of the cycle
of rebirths. Gnosticism does not emphasize the doctrine of reincarnation
prominently, but it is implicitly understood in most Gnostic teachings
that those who have not made effective contact with their transcendental
origins while they were in embodiment would have to return into the
sorrowful condition of earthly life.
In regard to salvation, or the fate of the spirit and soul after death,
one needs to be aware that help is available. Valentinus, the greatest
of Gnostic teachers, taught that Christ and Sophia await the spiritual
man -- the pneumatic Gnostic -- at the entrance of the Pleroma, and help
him to enter the bridechamber of final reunion. Ptolemaeus, disciple of
Valentinus, taught that even those not of pneumatic status, the
psychics, could be redeemed and live in a heavenworld at the entrance of
the Pleroma. In the fullness of time, every spiritual being will receive
Gnosis and will be united with its higher Self -- the angelic Twin --
thus becoming qualified to enter the Pleroma. None of this is possible,
however, without earnest striving for Gnosis.
Gnosis and Psyche: The Depth Psychological
Connection
Throughout the twentieth Century the new scientific discipline of depth
psychology has gained much prominence. Among the depth psychologists who
have shown a pronounced and informed interest in Gnosticism, a place of
signal distinction belongs to C. G. Jung. Jung was instrumental in
calling attention to the Nag Hammadi library of Gnostic writings in the
1950's because he perceived the outstanding psychological relevance of
Gnostic insights.
The
noted scholar of Gnosticism, G. Filoramo, wrote: "Jung's reflections had
long been immersed in the thought of the ancient Gnostics to such an
extent that he considered them the virtual discoverers of 'depth
psychology' . . . ancient Gnosis, albeit in its form of universal
religion, in a certain sense prefigured, and at the same time helped to
clarify, the nature of Jungian spiritual therapy." In the light of such
recognitions one may ask: "Is Gnosticism a religion or a psychology?"
The answer is that it may very-well be both. Most mythologems found in
Gnostic scriptures possess psychological relevance and applicability.
For instance the blind and arrogant creator-demiurge bears a close
resemblance to the alienated human ego that has lost contact with the
ontological Self. Also, the myth of Sophia resembles closely the story
of the human psyche that loses its connection with the collective
unconscious and needs to be rescued by the Self. Analogies of this sort
exist in great profusion.
Many esoteric teachings have proclaimed, "As it is above, so it is
below." Our psychological nature (the microcosm) mirrors metaphysical
nature (the macrocosm), thus Gnosticism may possess both a psychological
and a religious authenticity. Gnostic psychology and Gnostic religion
need not be exclusive of one another but may complement each other
within an implicit order of wholeness. Gnostics have always held that
divinity is immanent within the human spirit, although it is not limited
to it. The convergence of Gnostic religious teaching with psychological
insight is thus quite understandable in terms of time-honored Gnostic
principles.
Conclusion
Some writers make a distinction between “Gnosis” and “Gnosticism”. Such
distinctions are both helpful and misleading. Gnosis is undoubtedly an
experience based not in concepts and precepts, but in the sensibility of
the heart. Gnosticism, on the other hand, is the world-view based on the
experience of Gnosis. For this reason, in languages other than English,
the word Gnosis is often used to denote both the experience and the
world view (die Gnosis in German, la Gnose in French).
In a sense, there is no Gnosis without Gnosticism, for the experience of
Gnosis inevitably calls forth a world view wherein it finds its place.
The Gnostic world view is experiential, it is based on a certain kind of
spiritual experience of Gnosis. Therefore, it will not do to omit, or to
dilute, various parts of the Gnostic world view, for were one to do
this, the world view would no longer conform to experience.
Theology has been called an intellectual wrapping around the spiritual
kernel of a religion. If this is true, then it is also true that most
religions are being strangled and stifled by their wrappings. Gnosticism
does not run this danger, because its world view is stated in myth
rather than in theology. Myths, including the Gnostic myths, may be
interpreted in diverse ways. Transcendence, numinosity, as well as
psychological archetypes along with other elements, play a role in such
interpretation. Still, such mythic statements tell of profound truths
that will not be denied.
Gnosticism can bring us such truths with a high authority, for it speaks
with the voice of the highest part of the human -- the spirit. Of this
spirit, it has been said, “it bloweth where it listeth”. This then is
the reason why the Gnostic world view could not be extirpated in spite
of many centuries of persecution.
The Gnostic world view has always been timely, for it always responded
best to the “knowledge of the heart” that is true Gnosis. Yet today, its
timeliness is increasing, for the end of the second millennium has seen
the radical deterioration of many ideologies which evaded the great
questions and answers addressed by Gnosticism. The clarity, frankness,
and authenticity of the Gnostic answer to the questions of the human
predicament cannot fail to impress and (in time) to convince. If your
reactions to this summary have been of a similarly positive order, then
perhaps you are a Gnostic yourself!
+ Stephan A. Hoeller (Tau Stephanus, Gnostic Bishop)
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