RR Pod E26 Prof. Dr. Wouter J. Hanegraaff: Hermetic Embodiment, Interpretation, & Imagination

It was my pleasure to speak with Prof. Dr. Wouter Hanegraaff about his new book, Hermetic Spirituality and the Historical Imagination: Altered States of Knowledge in Late Antiquity. As Wouter preferred not to give a general summary, I chose four very important themes of the book to discuss: what the Hermetica is really all about; the notion of embodiment in the Hermetic texts; the difficult but extremely important task of interpreting the ancient texts; and the importance of the faculty of the imagination - not only within the Hermetica, but also for the scholar trying to understand what the texts are actually saying.
Wouter does an excellent job of explaining the terms gnosis and nous (that Wouter calls the "hero of the book") and how they are used within the Hermetic texts; these terms are crucial for the rest of the discussion. Following the four themes, Wouter discusses in more detail how Platonism influenced the Hermetica, how Gadamer's concept of hermeneutics plays a role in the process of understanding these texts, the paradox of how we think about the term imagination, and how Wouter tries to 'systematically privilege weirdness' when studying the Hermetic texts.
PROGRAM NOTES
Wouter's website: www.wouterjhanegraaff.net/
List of publications: www.wouterjhanegraaff.net/books
Links to new book: www.cambridge.org/nl/academic/subjects/religion/history-religion/hermetic-spirituality-and-historical-imagination-altered-states-knowledge-late-antiquity?format=HB
www.amazon.com/Hermetic-Spirituality-Historical-Imagination-Knowledge/dp/1009123068/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3S6Q3WKJGD6PX&keywords=hermetic+spirituality&qid=1676712531&sprefix=j+christian+greer%2Caps%2C140&sr=8-1&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.e3dc0fa2-4ee8-4881-a97d-5992ecbdb227
Corpus Hermeticum: gnosis.org/library/hermet.htm
Poimandres: www.themathesontrust.org/library/poimandres-corpus-hermeticum-i
The Asclepius: hermetic.com/texts/hermetica/asclepius1
Plato:
Symposium: classics.mit.edu/Plato/symposium.html
Phaedrus: classics.mit.edu/Plato/phaedrus.html
Tommy Cowan, MA (res)
www.academia.edu/41311669/What_Most_People_Would_Call_Evil_The_Archontic_Spirituality_of_William_S_Burroughs
www.academia.edu/44124984/Archontic_States_of_Consciousness_in_Twentieth_century_Neuromancy
Hans-Georg Gadamer
plato.stanford.edu/entries/gadamer/
iep.utm.edu/gadamer/
nupress.northwestern.edu/9780810144507/gadamers-hermeneutics/
Jacques Derrida
plato.stanford.edu/entries/derrida/
iep.utm.edu/jacques-derrida/
History of Hermetic Philosophy and Related Currents (University of Amsterdam): www.amsterdamhermetica.nl/
Theme music: Daniel P. Shea
Other music: Stephanie Shea

[@janespright]

Criminally underrated channel! Thank you so much for your work. Groundbreaking work presented here and i'm just beginning to watch

[@rejectedreligion]

Much appreciated!

[@ipdvb4853]

Brilliant interview about a brilliant book about a brilliant movement. So happy to see the great Wouter on this channel!!

[@rejectedreligion]

Thank you, my friend!

[@wayofhermes]

Thanks for this interview. Great how Hanegraaff gives a new and very important reinterpretation to what the Way of Hermes is. It is not gnostic, it is not a philosophy, it is not a version of platonism, but something unique, beautiful and positive.

[@protagtom]

it's good to see you on this side of internet friend 🙂

[@rejectedreligion]

I'm so happy that you found this worth your time!

[@SobekLOTFC]

Let's goooo ☺️ Great job, Stephanie- always love to hear Dr Hanegraaff

[@rejectedreligion]

Thanks so much! I'm so glad people are enjoying the interview!

[@pedroarroyo345]

This interview was so necessary thank you madam ❤

[@rejectedreligion]

My pleasure 😊

[@protagtom]

This provides useful understanding for my practice and beliefs

[@rejectedreligion]

I'm so glad to read that! Thanks for listening!

[@WhiteBull_33]

Great interview. The best Wouter has had so far, in my opinion. I am trying to look up the contemporary writer Wouter was referring to, but I cannot seem to nail down the spelling. Castou...? Would you mind sharing. Thank you in advance.

[@rejectedreligion]

I will check my notes, and if it’s not there, I’ll message Wouter about it! Thanks again!

[@WhiteBull_33]

@@rejectedreligion I appreciate it!

[@tilde.swinton]

I loved the music used around 52 minutes into the show. Is your and / or Daniel's music available via band camp or elsewhere for us to enjoy when we want to get into an esoteric mode? :)

[@rejectedreligion]

Wow, thanks! Actually, you're not the first person to ask this question -- I am considering putting all of my tracks on spotify and/or soundcloud, although I'm not sure when I will have the time to do it! :) My brother Daniel made the theme music for me, but his own music is quite different. You can find him on soundcloud under the name THR33_D.

[@atana.potnia]

I was very fascinated by the music, too 🙂

[@traviswadezinn]

Excellent, insightful interview - key content!

[@rejectedreligion]

Thank you, Travis! I'm thrilled you enjoyed it!

[@WhiteBull_33]

I don't know if you realize the importance of this work. A seal is finally broken. My gratitude can only be expressed by how this affects my path.

[@rejectedreligion]

My apologies for the late response…I’m so very honored!!

[@InterestedInDansk]

The feminine in God is the Holy Spirit and in First century pre-christianity it was understood that the human soul that is both male and female were feminine, Simeon tells Mary *and a sword will pierce your own soul* this holy impregnation by the Divine Word is the beginning of her own *Immaculate Conception* because her soul is transformed into a celestial child an angel. This concept is the original understanding of how we humans are transformed in our souls and our minds, a first century book the *Exegesis of the Soul* states in its first line _The Wise men of old gave the soul a feminine name. Indeed she is female in her nature as well. She even has her womb._ The Fourth century hymnologist St Ephraim the Syrian composed a famous hymn in honour of Mary, and the perfection of her soul. *If by God's Holy Ghost thou art beguiled* There will be born in thee the Eternal Child. If it's like Mary, Virginal and pure, Then God will impregnate your soul for sure. God make me pregnant, and his Spirit shadow me, That God may rise up in my soul and shatter me. What good does Gabriel's 'Ave, Mary' do Unless he give me that same greeting too? This means that Mary was pregnant with her own Immaculate Conception.