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Zostrianos
Zostrianos is a 3rd-century Sethian Gnostic text from the New Testament apocrypha. The main surviving copies come from the Nag Hammadi library, but it is heavily damaged.John D. Turner of the University of Nebraska writes concerning its date: "... one may date Allogenes around 200 C.E., with Zostrianos coming a bit later around 225 C.E. (Porphyry certainly recognized it as a spurious and recent work)." Porphyry's biography of Plotinus mentions ''Zostrianos''. The ''Enneads'' of Plotinus also criticize many Gnostic ideas that are given in ''Zostrianos''. Overview Like Marsanes and Allogenes, the text concerns a vision received by a man named Zostrianos and explains and enumerates, in great detail, the emanations that the Gnostics said are produced by God (the true, highest God as opposed to the demiurge), in the Gnostics' esoteric cosmology. Similarly to other gnostic literature, Zostrianos says, "Flee from the madness and the bondage of femaleness and choose for yourselves the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allogenes
Allogenes is a repertoire, or genre, of mystical Gnostic texts dating from the first half of the Third Century, CE. They concern Allogenes, "the Stranger" (or "foreigner"),Greek: (''allogenēs''), used in the Septuagint, meaning "rom adifferent family/nation" a half-human, half-divine capable of communicating with realms beyond the sense-perceptible world, into the unknowable. Sources and Dating The Coptic text of ''Allogenes'' (Allog), the first Allogenes source to be discovered in modern times, is the third item in Codex XI of the Nag Hammadi library (NHC XI,3), held on leaves 45-69. The tops of many leaves are missing, as is the entire opening to the work. ''The Temptation of Allogenes'' (Allogenes T), also in Coptic, is the fourth item in the Codex Tchacos, discovered in the 1970s but not made public until 2006. As this source also contains the text for the controversial Gospel of Judas, far more attention has been accorded to that work than to ''The Temptation of Allogenes' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nag Hammadi Library
The Nag Hammadi library (also known as the " Chenoboskion Manuscripts" and the "Gnostic Gospels") is a collection of early Christian and Gnostic texts discovered near the Upper Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi in 1945. Thirteen leather-bound papyrus codices buried in a sealed jar were found by a local farmer named Muhammed al-Samman. The writings in these codices comprise 52 mostly Gnostic treatises, but they also include three works belonging to the ''Corpus Hermeticum'' and a partial translation/alteration of Plato's ''Republic''. In his introduction to ''The Nag Hammadi Library in English'', James Robinson suggests that these codices may have belonged to a nearby Pachomian monastery and were buried after Saint Athanasius condemned the use of non-canonical books in his Festal Letter of 367 A.D. The discovery of these texts significantly influenced modern scholarship's pursuit and knowledge of early Christianity and Gnosticism. The contents of the codices were written in the C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kalyptos
In Sethian Gnosticism, Kalyptos ("the Hidden One") is one of the three emanations of Barbelo (along with Protophanes and Autogenes according to ''Zostrianos''). Kalyptos is mentioned in Nag Hammadi texts such as ''Zostrianos'', ''The Three Steles of Seth'', ''Allogenes the Stranger'', and ''Marsanes''. See also *Aeon (Gnosticism) *Hypostasis (philosophy and religion) Hypostasis (Greek: ὑπόστασις, ''hypóstasis'') is the underlying state or underlying substance and is the fundamental reality that supports all else. In Neoplatonism the hypostasis of the soul, the intellect (''nous'') and "the one" was ... References Gnostic deities {{Gnosticism-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barbelo
Barbēlō (Greek: Βαρβηλώ)Iren., Epiph., Philast., ''Pist. Soph''., Hier.; -ρώ Epiph. as an alternative, 92 A, and similarly the Epitome, p. 354 Dind.; -λ, Epit. ''l. c. bis;'' -λώθ Theodoret. refers to the first emanation of God in several forms of Gnostic cosmogony. Barbēlō is often depicted as a supreme female principle, the single passive antecedent of creation in its manifoldness. This figure is also variously referred to as 'Mother-Father' (hinting at her apparent androgyny), 'First Human Being', 'The Triple Androgynous Name', or 'Eternal Aeon'. So prominent was her place amongst some Gnostics that some schools were designated as ''Barbeliotae'', Barbēlō worshippers or Barbēlō gnostics. The nature of Barbēlō Nag Hammadi Library In the ''Apocryphon of John'', a tractate in the Nag Hammadi Library containing the most extensive recounting of the Sethian creation myth, the Barbēlō is described as "the first power, the glory, Barbēlō, the perfect g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Youel (Gnosticism)
In Sethian Gnosticism, Youel or Yoel is an angel who is described as a male virgin. Youel is mentioned in Nag Hammadi texts such as ''The Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit'', ''Zostrianos'', ''Allogenes the Stranger''. In the latter two texts, Youel gives five revelations to protagonists Zostrianos and Allogenes, respectively, during their visionary ascents to heaven. See also *Jehoel Yahoel or Jehoel ( he, יהואל, also spelled Jehoel in some English texts, and Yaoel in French sources) is the name of an angel appearing in the Old Church Slavonic manuscripts of the Apocalypse of Abraham, a pseudepigraphical work dating from ... References Gnostic deities {{Gnosticism-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Protophanes
In Sethian Gnosticism, Protophanes ("the First-Appearing One") is one of the three emanations of Barbelo (along with Kalyptos and Autogenes according to ''Zostrianos''). Protophanes is mentioned in Nag Hammadi texts such as ''Zostrianos'', ''The Three Steles of Seth'', Allogenes the Stranger'', and ''Marsanes''. See also *Aeon (Gnosticism) In many Gnostic systems, various emanations of God are known by such names as One, Monad, ''Aion teleos'' (αἰών τέλεος "The Broadest Aeon"), Bythos (, "depth" or "profundity"), ''Proarkhe'' ("before the beginning", ), ''Arkhe'' ("the ... References Gnostic deities {{Gnosticism-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Autogenes
In Sethian Gnosticism, Autogenes (Meaning "Self-Born One" in Greek) is an emanation or son of Barbelo (along with Kalyptos and Protophanes according to ''Zostrianos''). Autogenes is mentioned in Nag Hammadi texts such as ''Zostrianos'', ''The Three Steles of Seth'', ''Allogenes the Stranger'', and ''Marsanes''. Autogenes in Gnosticism is roughly parallel to the Platonic soul. See also *Aeon (Gnosticism) *Plato's theory of soul Plato's theory of soul, which was inspired by the teachings of Socrates, considered the psyche ( ψυχή) to be the essence of a person, being that which decides how people behave. Plato considered this essence to be an incorporeal, eternal occu ... References Gnostic deities {{Gnosticism-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sethian (gnostic)
The Sethians were one of the main currents of Gnosticism during the 2nd and 3rd century CE, along with Valentinianism and Basilideanism. According to John D. Turner, it originated in the 2nd century CE as a fusion of two distinct Hellenistic Judaic philosophies and was influenced by Christianity and Middle Platonism. However, the exact origin of Sethianism is not properly understood. History Mentions The Sethians (Latin ''Sethoitae'') are first mentioned, alongside the Ophites, in the 2nd century, by Irenaeus (who was antagonistic towards gnosticism) and in Pseudo-Tertullian (Ch. 30). According to Frederik Wisse, all subsequent accounts appear to be largely dependent on Irenaeus. Hippolytus repeats information from Irenaeus. According to Epiphanius of Salamis (c. 375), Sethians were in his time found only in Egypt and Palestine, but fifty years earlier, they had been found as far away as Greater Armenia. Philaster's (4th century CE) ''Catalogue of Heresies'' places the Ophit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sethianism
The Sethians were one of the main currents of Gnosticism during the 2nd and 3rd century CE, along with Valentinianism and Basilideanism. According to John D. Turner, it originated in the 2nd century CE as a fusion of two distinct Hellenistic Judaic philosophies and was influenced by Christianity and Middle Platonism. However, the exact origin of Sethianism is not properly understood. History Mentions The Sethians (Latin ''Sethoitae'') are first mentioned, alongside the Ophites, in the 2nd century, by Irenaeus (who was antagonistic towards gnosticism) and in Pseudo-Tertullian (Ch. 30). According to Frederik Wisse, all subsequent accounts appear to be largely dependent on Irenaeus. Hippolytus repeats information from Irenaeus. According to Epiphanius of Salamis (c. 375), Sethians were in his time found only in Egypt and Palestine, but fifty years earlier, they had been found as far away as Greater Armenia. Philaster's (4th century CE) ''Catalogue of Heresies'' places the Ophit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Luminary (Gnosticism)
In Sethian Gnosticism, a luminary is an angel-like being (or heavenly dwelling place in the ''Apocryphon of John''). Four luminaries are typically listed in Sethian Gnostic texts, such as the ''Secret Book of John'', the '' Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit'', and ''Zostrianos''. The luminaries are considered to be emanations of the supreme divine triad consisting of the Father (Invisible Spirit), the Mother (Barbelo), and the Child (Autogenes). Listed from highest to lowest hierarchical order, they are: #Harmozel (or Armozel) #Oroiael #Daveithe (or Daveithai) #Eleleth Eleleth Eleleth is a luminary in Gnostic cosmology and one of the four Sethian luminaries. Eleleth appears in ''Hypostasis of the Archons'', ''Apocryphon of John'', and '' The Three Forms of the First Thought'' found in the Nag Hammadi library in 1945 and is probably mentioned in the Gospel of Judas as ''El''. In ''The Hypostasis of the Archons'', Eleleth comes down from the pleroma to save Norea after s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gnostic
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized personal spiritual knowledge (''gnosis'') above the orthodox teachings, traditions, and authority of religious institutions. Gnostic cosmogony generally presents a distinction between a supreme, hidden God and a malevolent lesser divinity (sometimes associated with the Yahweh of the Old Testament) who is responsible for creating the material universe. Consequently, Gnostics considered material existence flawed or evil, and held the principal element of salvation to be direct knowledge of the hidden divinity, attained via mystical or esoteric insight. Many Gnostic texts deal not in concepts of sin and repentance, but with illusion and enlightenment. Gnostic writings flourished among certain Christian groups in the Mediterranean world aro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Micheus And Michar
In Sethianism, Sethian Gnostic texts, Micheus, Michar, and Mnesinous are the three heavenly spirits that preside over the rite of baptism, performed in the wellspring of Living Water. They are mentioned in the Nag Hammadi library, Nag Hammadi tractates of the ''Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit'', ''Trimorphic Protennoia'', ''Zostrianos'', and ''Apocalypse of Adam''. In the texts, the trio is frequently mentioned along with Yesseus Mazareus Yessedekeus, the name of the Living Water. Occasionally in some of the Nag Hammadi texts, only Micheus and Michar are mentioned, without Mnesinous. Parallels In Mandaeism, Bihram is the uthra (celestial spirit) presiding over the masbuta (baptism). See also *Bihram *Shilmai and Nidbai *Adathan and Yadathan *Xroshtag and Padvaxtag in Manichaeism *Abraxas *Triple deity References Sethianism Baptism Water and religion Water spirits Triple deities Gnostic deities {{Gnosticism-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
