Articles by Michele Olzi
Rivista Italiana di Conflittologia, 2022
Il contributo si propone di mostrare il ruolo politico della vittima in relazione al concetto fou... more Il contributo si propone di mostrare il ruolo politico della vittima in relazione al concetto foucaultiano di “società di controllo”. Quest'ultimo è stato concepito in modo peculiare dal filosofo politico francese Michel Foucault (1926-1984). Più specificamente, il carattere della vittima è emerso negli scritti di Foucault dedicati alle tecniche disciplinari di sorveglianza. Tra questi si possono includere la tortura e l'esecuzione pubblica. Secondo Foucault, le esecuzioni pubbliche svolgono un ruolo politico importante nel contesto sociale francese del XVIII secolo. In altre parole, l'esecuzione della vittima comporta una peculiare dinamica politica che investe la dimensione del potere, dell'autorità e della sovranità. The paper aims to show the political role of the victim with relation to the foucaultian concept of “society of control”. This latter was conceived peculiarly by French political philosopher, Michel Foucault (1926-1984). More specifically, the character of the victim emerged in Foucault’s writings devoted to disciplinary techniques of surveillance. Among these, torture and public execution can be included. According to Foucault, public executions play a major political role in the French social context of the XVIII century. In other words, the execution of the victim entails a peculiar political dynamic which involves the dimension of power, authority, and sovereignty.
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PHAINOMENA Revija za fenomenologijo in hermenevtiko Journal of Phenomenology and Hermeneutics, no. 31, 2022
This paper aims to consider a series of politico-symbolic aspects in a specific politicized dysto... more This paper aims to consider a series of politico-symbolic aspects in a specific politicized dystopia of the twentieth century: Lord of the Flies (1954) by William Golding (1911–1993). This analysis is paired with a brief overview of the relationship between utopian fictions and politics.
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Metabasis.it, 2021
This paper aims to consider a series of political, identitarian, and dyspian aspects of the Netfl... more This paper aims to consider a series of political, identitarian, and dyspian aspects of the Netflix’s series, Squid Game. More specifically, the analysis of the TV series implies different considerations related to the theme of
merit. Sociological and philosophical debate recently focused on this political topic. Three different concepts (i.e. game, merit, and money) are herein introduced to further contextualize the debate.
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Heliopolis Culture Civiltà Politica, n. 1, 2021
This paper aims to offer insight into the interaction of the notions of “sexual body” and “social... more This paper aims to offer insight into the interaction of the notions of “sexual body” and “social body” in the works of the French philosopher Michel Foucault (1926-1984). Particular attention is paid to Foucault’s project, History of Sexuality (Histoire de la sexualité), whose first volume, The Will to Knowledge (La volonté de savoir), was originally published in French in 1976, as well as to the series of lectures he held at the Collège de France in the late 70s. Although Foucault refrained from further researching the “modern biopolitical apparatus of sexuality” – which was the ultimate aim of the first tome of the book series on sexuality – in order to focus on the genealogical reconstruction of Western man’s notion of pleasure, the biopolitical dimension of sexuality plays a major role in the definition of the social body of the community. Therefore, this paper presents an analysis of the main historical and political implications related to the process of the “normalization” of the sexual body.
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Europea, 2020
This article aims to consider the relationship of foundation myths to Modernity within the Europe... more This article aims to consider the relationship of foundation myths to Modernity within the European context. More specifically, the analysis will focus on the figure of the hero, its genesis, development and conception in the Italian Risorgimento, with special reference to the Italian general, Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-1882), whose conception of a “United States of Europe” represented both a mythopic narration and the search of European man for a symbolical-political identity.
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Metabasis , 2019
The study of “Collective Imaginaries” connected to the birth of modern social myths pervades the ... more The study of “Collective Imaginaries” connected to the birth of modern social myths pervades the literature of the Canadian sociologist, Gerard Bouchard. However, this research entails a specific notion of culture which introduces a multidisciplinary dimension, where several branches of the humanities can collaborate.
More specifically, the field of study of the history of religions, anthropology, and the history of ideas can interconnect themselves in showing how the genesis and possible interpretations of myth reveal storytelling linked to the essence of “power”. An episode of this story in particular, which represents the prehistory of this kratophonic tale, is the manifestation of the Sacred in premodern social contexts.
The paper aims, through a case study borrowed from the work of the Scottish anthropologist, James George Frazer (1854-1941), to show the crucial role of the Sacred, both in a premodern social context and in the birth of modern social myths, and thereby draw upon a critical review of the theories put forth by the historians of religion Bruce Lincoln and Mircea Eliade to provide a critical perspective on Bouchard’s conceptualization of culture and collective imaginaries
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La Biblioteca di Via Senato, 2016
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Book chapters by Michele Olzi
Percorsi di inclusione. Riflessioni filosofico-politiche, giuridiche e pedagogiche, 2023
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Fabrizio Sciacca (a cura di) Buoni e cattivi. Etica, politica e potere al tempo di internet, Milano: Mimesis, 2022
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Andrea Germani, Michele Olzi, Federica Rauso, Maria Rosaria Vitale (eds.), Symbols and Myths in Liberal Democratic Political Systems: Essays in Political Theory, Milan: Mimesis International, 2022
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Religioni & Media Un’introduzione ad alcune problematiche, 2021
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Simboli, politica e potere. Scritti in onore di Claudio Bonvecchio, 2018
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Encyclopaedia entries by Michele Olzi
World Religions and Spirituality Project, 2021
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World Religions and Spirituality, 2017
Encyclopedic entry, "Raoul Dal Molin Ferenzona" for World Religions and Spirituality project
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Edited volumes by Michele Olzi
Symbols and Myths in Liberal Democratic Political Systems. Essays on Political Theory, Milan: Mimesis International, 2021
The volume consists of a collection of fifteen contributions on Political Theory, whose focus int... more The volume consists of a collection of fifteen contributions on Political Theory, whose focus intersects different topics and perspectives. More specifically, a series of philosophical, moral, political, psychological, medical, anthropological, and mythosymbolical issues are considered within this collection. All contributions are divided into three main sections. A first section concerns ethical, moral and constitutional issues of Political Theory. This section includes the contributions of Fabrizio Sciacca, Cassandra Basile, Andrea Germani, and Paola Russo. A second section is devoted to the analysis of political myths and representations. This section consists of the contributions of Giangiacomo Vale, Viviana Faschi, Giada Fiorese, Raffaella Sabra Palmisano, Alessandra Spano, and Giuseppe Ambrosio. A third section focuses on the analysis of certain political dynamics of Modernity. This last section includes the contributions of Michele Lanna, Federica Rauso, Cornelia Stefan, Michele Olzi, and Maria Rosaria Vitale.
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Religioni & Media Un’introduzione ad alcune problematiche, 2021
Con l’impegno a essere più preparati a confrontarci con le credenze altrui e avere più strumenti ... more Con l’impegno a essere più preparati a confrontarci con le credenze altrui e avere più strumenti per capire il nostro rapporto con le “realtà religiose”, questo libro, nella sua prima parte, si rivolge a non specialisti per provare a suggerire come non sia affatto facile parlare “non religiosamente” di religione. Non è facile e tuttavia è urgente. Sono così offerte rapide ricognizioni sul concetto stesso di “religione” e su quello di “sacro”, sulla possibilità di uno studio laico e scientifico. Nella seconda parte del libro, a partire da casi di studio, si è cercato di approfondire il rapporto tra media e religioni andando oltre al solo reperimento di temi e immaginari religiosi presenti nei mezzi di comunicazione. Dal momento che questi ultimi sono produttori in se stessi di immaginario, dal momento che l’esperienza che facciamo dei nuovi media – pervasivi, avvolgenti e ontofanici come non mai – è per molti aspetti sempre più religiosa, diventa forse opportuno provare a leggere la contemporaneità non col passato, ma al contrario sforzarsi di vedere tutto con uno sguardo nuovo. Ed è quindi evidente come il tema “religioni e media” ci spinga a ripensare differentemente cosa siano le religioni e cosa siano i media.
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La Rosa di Paracelso, n. 2, 2020
Recenti studi nell’ambito dell’Esoterismo occidentale hanno riscontrato un problema considerevole... more Recenti studi nell’ambito dell’Esoterismo occidentale hanno riscontrato un problema considerevole nell’approccio Eurocentrico alla disciplina. Nel caso delle fedi non europee, quali l’Islam e l’esoterismo islamico sono stati spesso affrontati come influenze esterne della sua controparte occidentale, la quale (al confronto) è stata molto più studiata e ricercata. Tuttavia, recenti studi hanno dimostrato un’attuale indipendenza di ciò che possiamo definire Esoterismo islamico, a partire dall’approccio dei maestri Sufi alla loro fede, all’interpretazione esoterica del Corano; dall’influenza dei testi magici e astrologici quale il Ghāyat al-Ḥakīm (o Picatrix), all’impiego dell’Esoterismo all’interno della tarīqua nel contesto della mistica islamica per la ricerca della Haqiqa, o ‘verità ultima’.
Recent studies in the field of Western esotericism have individuated a sizeable problem with the Eurocentric approach to the discipline. As with other non-European faiths, Islam, and Islamic esotericism with it, has been mainly confronted as an outside influence to its more well-researched Western counterpart. Yet, studies have shown a lively independent existence of what we may term Islamic esotericism, from the distinct approach of Sufi masters to their faith, to the esoteric interpretations of the Qur'an; from the influences of astrological and magical texts such as the Ghāyat al-Ḥakīm upon religious discourse, to the employment of esotericism within tariqas in the Islamic mystics’ search for the Haqiqa, or ‘ultimate truth’.
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La Rosa di Paracelso, n. 1, 2020
Un’affinità elettiva lega il campo della religione e dell’esoterismo occidentale, da un lato, e q... more Un’affinità elettiva lega il campo della religione e dell’esoterismo occidentale, da un lato, e quello delle teorie della cospirazione, dall’altro. Nella tipica concezione religiosa ed esoterica e in quella cospirazionista la realtà è articolata in due livelli, il mondo ordinario e immanente della vita quotidiana e un mondo invisibile, nascosto al di là o dietro la società convenzionale. All’interno di questa realtà secondaria sia la religione che le teorie della cospirazione collocano esseri soprannaturali, forze occulte o mistiche, e organizzazioni segrete che guidano intenzionalmente il corso degli eventi storici. Malgrado questo stretto rapporto, pochi studi hanno affrontato ad ampio raggio le molteplici relazioni e le analogie strutturali tra religione e teorie della cospirazione. Tra questi, il recente Handbook of Conspiracy Theory and Contemporary Religion curato da A. Dyrendal, D.G. Robertson e E. Asprem pubblicato nel 2018 da Brill.
An elective affinity links the fields of religion and Western esotericism, on the one hand, and that of conspiracy theories, on the other. From the typical perspective of religion/esotericism and of conspiracism reality is articulated in two different realms: the ordinary and immanent world of everyday life, and an invisibile, hidden world beyond or behind the conventional society. Within this secondary reality, both religions and conspiracy theories place supernatural beings, occult or mystical forces, and secret organizations driving the course of historical events intentionally. Despite this close connection there are very few studies extensively devoted to the multiple convergences and structural analogies between religion and conspiracy theories, among which the recent Handbook of Conspiracy Theory and Contemporary Religion edited by A Dyrendal, D.G. Robertson and E. Asprem (Brill, 2018).
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La Rosa di Paracelso, 2019
Fin dagli anni Novanta con la pubblicazione degli atti delle conferenze di Utrecht (Università di... more Fin dagli anni Novanta con la pubblicazione degli atti delle conferenze di Utrecht (Università di Groninga, 1989)[1] e di Parigi (Collège de France, 1991),[2] le fonti, i temi e il simbolismo dell’alchimia hanno ricevuto un’attenzione particolare da parte del mondo accademico europeo. In particolare, la recente riedizione di The Hermetic Museum – Alchemy & Mysticism[3] assieme alla collettanea di saggi Lux in Tenebris -[4] il cui contenuto si focalizza su un aspetto prettamente visuale – hanno messo in luce un carattere multidisciplinare sia dell’ambito di ricerca, così come di determinati autori, testi o determinate tradizioni ermetiche. Ed è stato così mostrato come determinati temi e modelli dell’alchimia abbiano pervaso l’ambito musicale,[5] così come quello letterario e scientifico.[6] Tuttavia, l’influenza del simbolismo alchemico e dei processi ad esso legati non è stata limitata a una considerazione di solo carattere storico. Dinamiche di natura rituale, cerimoniale ed iniziatica son state analizzate - tra i vari e multiformi casi di tradizioni religiose o singoli gruppi iniziatici - negli studi di David Gordon White,[7] Hugh B. Urban,[8] così come in quelli di Hans Thomas Hakl e molti altri.[9]
Since the 1990s, with the publication of the proceedings of the Utrecht conference (University of Groningen)[1] and the Paris symposium (Collège de France, 1991),[2] the sources, themes, and symbolism of alchemy have received a special attention in the European academic environment. In particular, the recent re-edition of The Hermetic Museum – Alchemy & Mysticism[3], coupled with the collection of essays Lux in Tenebris[4] - whose content focuses on the more visual aspect of alchemy – have evidenced a multidisciplinary character both of the field of research, and of specific authors, texts, or particular hermetic translations. It has thus been proven how certain themes and models of alchemy have pervaded the domains of music,[5] literature and science.[6] Nevertheless, the influence of alchemical symbology and the aspects related to it has not been limited to a mere historical dimension. Dynamics of ritual nature, ceremonial and initiatic, have been analysed – among the various and multifaceted cases of religious traditions and individual initiatic groups – in the studies of David Gordon White,[7] Hugh B. Urban,[8] and those of Hans Thomas Hakl and many others.[9]
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La Rosa di Paracelso, 2018
Fin dalla pubblicazione del Dictionary of Gnosis and Western Esotericism (2004), lo studio attual... more Fin dalla pubblicazione del Dictionary of Gnosis and Western Esotericism (2004), lo studio attuale dell'Esoterismo Occidentale ha tenuto in gran considerazione il concetto di gnosi, a partire dalla definizione di Wouter J. Hanegraaff, nella quale descrive la conoscenza gnostica come 'il più alto livello nella gerarchia del sapere, la quale include ragione e fede', ammettendo che 'nonostante molti studiosi abbiano provato a rispondere alla domanda “che cos'è lo Gnosticismo”, seri tentativi di rispondere alla domanda “che cos'è la gnosi” sono ancora estremamente rari'. Le idee di Gnosticismo e gnosi sono onnipresenti nella storia moderna dell'Esoterismo Occidentale; ci si sofferma nelle opere di Gerard Éncausse (1865-1916), Jules Doinel (1862-1903) e nella loro Église Gnostique; elementi neo gnostici si trovano negli scritti magico-sessuali di Paschal Beverly Randolph (1825-1875) e Aleister Crowley (1875-1947) così come nelle opere di Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961) e nel suo, di ispirazione gnostica, Septem Sermones Ad Mortuos (1916).
Since the publication of the Dictionary of Gnosis and Western Esotericism (2004), the contemporary study of Western esotericism has taken the concept of gnosis in great account, with Wouter J. Hanegraaff describing gnostic knowledge as ‘the highest level in a hierarchy of knowledge that includes reason and faith’., and conceding that ‘although countless scholars have tried to answer the question “what is Gnosticism”, serious attempts to answer the question “what is gnosis” are extremely scarce’. The ideas of Gnosticism and gnosis are ubiquitous through the modern history of Western esotericism, and touches upon the works of Gerard Éncausse (1865-1916) and Jules Doinel (1842-1903) and their Église Gnostique; the neo gnostic elements to be found in the sexual magical writings of Paschal Beverly Randolph (1825-1875) and Aleister Crowley (1875-1947); the works of Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961) and his gnostic-inspired Septem Sermones Ad Mortuos (1916).
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Articles by Michele Olzi
merit. Sociological and philosophical debate recently focused on this political topic. Three different concepts (i.e. game, merit, and money) are herein introduced to further contextualize the debate.
More specifically, the field of study of the history of religions, anthropology, and the history of ideas can interconnect themselves in showing how the genesis and possible interpretations of myth reveal storytelling linked to the essence of “power”. An episode of this story in particular, which represents the prehistory of this kratophonic tale, is the manifestation of the Sacred in premodern social contexts.
The paper aims, through a case study borrowed from the work of the Scottish anthropologist, James George Frazer (1854-1941), to show the crucial role of the Sacred, both in a premodern social context and in the birth of modern social myths, and thereby draw upon a critical review of the theories put forth by the historians of religion Bruce Lincoln and Mircea Eliade to provide a critical perspective on Bouchard’s conceptualization of culture and collective imaginaries
Book chapters by Michele Olzi
Encyclopaedia entries by Michele Olzi
Edited volumes by Michele Olzi
Recent studies in the field of Western esotericism have individuated a sizeable problem with the Eurocentric approach to the discipline. As with other non-European faiths, Islam, and Islamic esotericism with it, has been mainly confronted as an outside influence to its more well-researched Western counterpart. Yet, studies have shown a lively independent existence of what we may term Islamic esotericism, from the distinct approach of Sufi masters to their faith, to the esoteric interpretations of the Qur'an; from the influences of astrological and magical texts such as the Ghāyat al-Ḥakīm upon religious discourse, to the employment of esotericism within tariqas in the Islamic mystics’ search for the Haqiqa, or ‘ultimate truth’.
An elective affinity links the fields of religion and Western esotericism, on the one hand, and that of conspiracy theories, on the other. From the typical perspective of religion/esotericism and of conspiracism reality is articulated in two different realms: the ordinary and immanent world of everyday life, and an invisibile, hidden world beyond or behind the conventional society. Within this secondary reality, both religions and conspiracy theories place supernatural beings, occult or mystical forces, and secret organizations driving the course of historical events intentionally. Despite this close connection there are very few studies extensively devoted to the multiple convergences and structural analogies between religion and conspiracy theories, among which the recent Handbook of Conspiracy Theory and Contemporary Religion edited by A Dyrendal, D.G. Robertson and E. Asprem (Brill, 2018).
Since the 1990s, with the publication of the proceedings of the Utrecht conference (University of Groningen)[1] and the Paris symposium (Collège de France, 1991),[2] the sources, themes, and symbolism of alchemy have received a special attention in the European academic environment. In particular, the recent re-edition of The Hermetic Museum – Alchemy & Mysticism[3], coupled with the collection of essays Lux in Tenebris[4] - whose content focuses on the more visual aspect of alchemy – have evidenced a multidisciplinary character both of the field of research, and of specific authors, texts, or particular hermetic translations. It has thus been proven how certain themes and models of alchemy have pervaded the domains of music,[5] literature and science.[6] Nevertheless, the influence of alchemical symbology and the aspects related to it has not been limited to a mere historical dimension. Dynamics of ritual nature, ceremonial and initiatic, have been analysed – among the various and multifaceted cases of religious traditions and individual initiatic groups – in the studies of David Gordon White,[7] Hugh B. Urban,[8] and those of Hans Thomas Hakl and many others.[9]
Since the publication of the Dictionary of Gnosis and Western Esotericism (2004), the contemporary study of Western esotericism has taken the concept of gnosis in great account, with Wouter J. Hanegraaff describing gnostic knowledge as ‘the highest level in a hierarchy of knowledge that includes reason and faith’., and conceding that ‘although countless scholars have tried to answer the question “what is Gnosticism”, serious attempts to answer the question “what is gnosis” are extremely scarce’. The ideas of Gnosticism and gnosis are ubiquitous through the modern history of Western esotericism, and touches upon the works of Gerard Éncausse (1865-1916) and Jules Doinel (1842-1903) and their Église Gnostique; the neo gnostic elements to be found in the sexual magical writings of Paschal Beverly Randolph (1825-1875) and Aleister Crowley (1875-1947); the works of Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961) and his gnostic-inspired Septem Sermones Ad Mortuos (1916).
merit. Sociological and philosophical debate recently focused on this political topic. Three different concepts (i.e. game, merit, and money) are herein introduced to further contextualize the debate.
More specifically, the field of study of the history of religions, anthropology, and the history of ideas can interconnect themselves in showing how the genesis and possible interpretations of myth reveal storytelling linked to the essence of “power”. An episode of this story in particular, which represents the prehistory of this kratophonic tale, is the manifestation of the Sacred in premodern social contexts.
The paper aims, through a case study borrowed from the work of the Scottish anthropologist, James George Frazer (1854-1941), to show the crucial role of the Sacred, both in a premodern social context and in the birth of modern social myths, and thereby draw upon a critical review of the theories put forth by the historians of religion Bruce Lincoln and Mircea Eliade to provide a critical perspective on Bouchard’s conceptualization of culture and collective imaginaries
Recent studies in the field of Western esotericism have individuated a sizeable problem with the Eurocentric approach to the discipline. As with other non-European faiths, Islam, and Islamic esotericism with it, has been mainly confronted as an outside influence to its more well-researched Western counterpart. Yet, studies have shown a lively independent existence of what we may term Islamic esotericism, from the distinct approach of Sufi masters to their faith, to the esoteric interpretations of the Qur'an; from the influences of astrological and magical texts such as the Ghāyat al-Ḥakīm upon religious discourse, to the employment of esotericism within tariqas in the Islamic mystics’ search for the Haqiqa, or ‘ultimate truth’.
An elective affinity links the fields of religion and Western esotericism, on the one hand, and that of conspiracy theories, on the other. From the typical perspective of religion/esotericism and of conspiracism reality is articulated in two different realms: the ordinary and immanent world of everyday life, and an invisibile, hidden world beyond or behind the conventional society. Within this secondary reality, both religions and conspiracy theories place supernatural beings, occult or mystical forces, and secret organizations driving the course of historical events intentionally. Despite this close connection there are very few studies extensively devoted to the multiple convergences and structural analogies between religion and conspiracy theories, among which the recent Handbook of Conspiracy Theory and Contemporary Religion edited by A Dyrendal, D.G. Robertson and E. Asprem (Brill, 2018).
Since the 1990s, with the publication of the proceedings of the Utrecht conference (University of Groningen)[1] and the Paris symposium (Collège de France, 1991),[2] the sources, themes, and symbolism of alchemy have received a special attention in the European academic environment. In particular, the recent re-edition of The Hermetic Museum – Alchemy & Mysticism[3], coupled with the collection of essays Lux in Tenebris[4] - whose content focuses on the more visual aspect of alchemy – have evidenced a multidisciplinary character both of the field of research, and of specific authors, texts, or particular hermetic translations. It has thus been proven how certain themes and models of alchemy have pervaded the domains of music,[5] literature and science.[6] Nevertheless, the influence of alchemical symbology and the aspects related to it has not been limited to a mere historical dimension. Dynamics of ritual nature, ceremonial and initiatic, have been analysed – among the various and multifaceted cases of religious traditions and individual initiatic groups – in the studies of David Gordon White,[7] Hugh B. Urban,[8] and those of Hans Thomas Hakl and many others.[9]
Since the publication of the Dictionary of Gnosis and Western Esotericism (2004), the contemporary study of Western esotericism has taken the concept of gnosis in great account, with Wouter J. Hanegraaff describing gnostic knowledge as ‘the highest level in a hierarchy of knowledge that includes reason and faith’., and conceding that ‘although countless scholars have tried to answer the question “what is Gnosticism”, serious attempts to answer the question “what is gnosis” are extremely scarce’. The ideas of Gnosticism and gnosis are ubiquitous through the modern history of Western esotericism, and touches upon the works of Gerard Éncausse (1865-1916) and Jules Doinel (1842-1903) and their Église Gnostique; the neo gnostic elements to be found in the sexual magical writings of Paschal Beverly Randolph (1825-1875) and Aleister Crowley (1875-1947); the works of Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961) and his gnostic-inspired Septem Sermones Ad Mortuos (1916).