The Gnostic World
The Gnostic World is an outstanding guide to Gnosticism, written by a distinguished international team of experts to explore Gnostic movements from the distant past until today. These themes are examined across sixty-seven chapters in a variety of contexts, from the ancient pre-Christian to the contemporary. The volume considers the intersection of Gnosticism with Jewish, Christian, Islamic and Indic practices and beliefs, and also with new religious movements, such as Theosophy, Scientology, Western Sufism, and the Nation of Islam.
This comprehensive handbook will be an invaluable resource for religious studies students, scholars, and researchers of Gnostic doctrine and history.
Garry W. Trompf is Emeritus Professor in the History of Ideas, and Adjunct Professor in Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Sydney, Australia.
Gunner B. Mikkelsen is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Ancient History, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.
Jay Johnston is Associate Professor, School of Literature, Art and Media, University of Sydney, Australia.
Routledge Worlds Series
The Routledge Worlds are magisterial surveys of key historical epochs, edited and written by world-renowned experts. Giving unprecedented breadth and depth of coverage, they are the works against which all future books on their subjects will be judged and are essential reading for anyone with a serious interest in the subject.
The Buddhist World
John Powers
The Hindu World
Sushil Mittal, Gene Thursby
The Islamic World
Andrew Rippin
The Occult World
Christopher Partridge
The Gnostic World
Garry Trompf, Gunner Mikkelsen, and Jay Johnston
Forthcoming:
The Biblical World, second edition
John Barton
The Early Christian World, second edition
Philip F. Esler
https://www.routledge.com/Routledge-Worlds/book-series/WORLDS
The Gnostic World
Edited by
Garry W. Trompf
in Collaboration with Gunner B. Mikkelsen and Jay Johnston
Assistant Editors
Milad Milani (Organization)
Brikha H. S. Nasoraia (Illustrations)
Advisory Editors
Ex officio as Advisory Board members of the Gnostica Monograph Series (Routledge): Jason BeDuhn, Antoine Faivre, Iain Gardner, Wouter Hanegraaff, Jean-Pierre Mah, and Raoul Mortley; with Dylan M. Burns, Michael Carter, Majella Franzmann, Joscelyn Godwin, Samuel Lieu, Christopher Partridge, and John O. Ward
First published 2019
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
2019 selection and editorial matter, Garry W. Trompf, Gunner B. Mikkelsen and Jay Johnston; individual chapters, the contributors
The right of Garry W. Trompf, Gunner B. Mikkelsen and Jay Johnston to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record has been requested for this book
ISBN: 978-1-138-67393-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-56160-8 (ebk)
Typeset in Sabon
by Out of House Publishing
Contents
Garry W. Trompf
Dylan M. Burns
Garry W. Trompf
Garry W. Trompf
Carl B. Smith II
Garry W. Trompf
Pheme Perkins
Michael A. Williams
Majella Franzmann
Mark Edwards
John D. Turner
John D. Turner
Jean-Daniel Dubois
Einar Thomassen
David W. Kim
Garry W. Trompf and David W. Kim
Brikha H. S. Nasoraia
Jean-Pierre Mah
Francis Lacroix and Jean-Marc Narbonne
Malcolm Choat
Iain Gardner
Jason David BeDuhn
Gunner B. Mikkelsen
Garry W. Trompf and Milad Milani
Doru Costache
Garry W. Trompf
Gregory Bailey
Haiyan Shen with Brikha H. S. Nasoraia
John C. Reeves
Mushegh Asatryan
Milad Milani
Farhad Daftary
Adnan Kasamanie
Victoria Arakelova and Garnik Asatrian
Michael Schneider
Zdenko Zlatar
Peter Marshall
Antoine Faivre Translated by Korshi Dosoo
Doru Costache
Garry W. Trompf
Garry W. Trompf
William Christie
Peter Otto
Tobias Churton
Al Boag
Jeffrey D. Lavoie
Wayne Hudson
Constance A. Jones
Mark Sedgwick
Harry Oldmeadow
Robert A. Segal
Dennis Walker
Lynn C. Bauman
Denis M. MacEoin
Emad Bazzi
Clinton Bennett
Peter Heehs
Garry W. Trompf
Bernard Doherty
Donald A. Westbrook and James R. Lewis
Adam Possamai
Jay Johnston
Christopher Partridge
Douglas E. Cowan
Carole Cusack
Fryderyk Kwiatkowski
Joscelyn Godwin
Jay Johnston
Victoria Arakelova is Associate Professor, Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian-Armenian University, Yerevan. She works on Near Eastern non-dogmatic milieux (Heterodox Shia trends, Yezidis), ethno-religious identities, and contact zones. She is co-author with Garnik Asatrian of The Ethnic Minorities of Armenia and The Religion of the Peacock Angel on the Yezidis.
Garnik Asatrian is Director, Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian-Armenian University, Yerevan. He works on Iranian ethno-linguistics, comparative religion studies, and Kurdology. Of many books he authored, recent titles include tudes on Iranian Ethnology, Ethnic Composition of Iran, and The Religion of the Peacock Angel, on the Yezidis. He is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Iran and the Caucasus.
Mushegh Asatryan