Hermes Trismegistus

Hypnotic séance. Painting by Swedish artist Richard Bergh, 1887.

Western Esotericism

What Is Western Esotericism? Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term under which scholars have categorised a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements which have developed within Western society. These ideas and currents are united by the fact that they...

Hermeticism

Hermeticism

Hermeticism Hermeticism, also called Hermetism, is a religious, philosophical, and esoteric tradition based primarily upon writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus (“thrice-greatest Hermes”). These writings have greatly influenced the Western esoteric tradition and were considered to be of great importance during both the Renaissance and the Reformation. The tradition traces its origin to a prisca theologia, a doctrine that affirms the...

Hermes Trismegistus

Hermes Trismegistus

Hermes Trismegistus Hermes Trismegistus (“thrice-greatest Hermes”; Mercurius ter Maximus) is the purported author of the Hermetic Corpus, a series of sacred texts that are the basis of Hermeticism. Origin and identity Hermes Trismegistus may be associated with the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. Greeks in the Ptolemaic Kingdom of...