Call for papers: Introduction and New Age Vol. 2 Editors: Decharneux Baldwin (Senior Research FNRS CIERL - ULB Belgium), Olivier SANTAMARIA (FNRS Researcher CIERL - ULB, Belgium) as part of the Group for Research and Study on Masonic and Esoteric Movements (Gremm).
Volume 2 of "Introduction and Esotericism" will follow the guideline that has been the success of the first volume (GRANJON, gaunt, Balzano, NOBILIO (eds.), Esoteric and Initiation. Studies of epistemology and history of religions, Ferndown (Belgium), EME, et al. "Sacred & Divine, 2010), namely interdisciplinarity and variety of reflections on the notion of esotericism. Publishers want to give this second volume a thread suggested by the notion of "secret".
The concept of esotericism is indeed often associated with the idea of a "hidden teaching, a" reserved information "which introduces a distinction between insiders and outsiders. Some authors (Riffard, 1990) have sometimes thought that the presence of the "arcane discipline" was needed so that we can speak of esotericism. Other (Faivre, 1992) have pointed out the difficulties in using this concept in a definition of critical esotericism noting that many esoteric currents have nothing "secret" in their mode of dissemination.
However, the etymology of the word "esoteric" suggests the idea of something "inside" and "veiled". In the first sense, the "secret" can refer to the ultimate meaning of a symbol or a myth, which is accessible only by personal effort at several levels of interpretation (hermeneutics). The secret is so that another term for the knowledge itself - the "Gnosis" - which is incommunicable nature through rational discourse or language (hence the use of pictorial forms of expression, symbolic and mythical). In a second sense, the secret may relate to the means or techniques (physical or mental) used to achieve this knowledge (which would lead to spiritual experience or enlightenment).
Therefore, esotericism is not limited to matters of religion and philosophy. Instead, it is widely open to visual arts - theater, dance or film - music, literature, or architecture and the arts martial, to name a few. Moreover, because of the emphasis on the idea of knowledge (of God, of Man, but also of Nature), esoteric perspectives have become part of the history of modern science. Finally, in the context of political revolutions that have created a division between state and church institutions, the Western democracies have experienced a proliferation of esoteric societies, and an extension of certain doctrines that now seem to meet a certain "demand spirituality. "
Publishers wish by combining different approaches, consider the relevance of the concept of "secret" understood as a major component of speech and thought patterns esoteric.
Papers should be written in French or English.
Targets: To March 31, 2010: Title (provisional) 1500 / 2000 + symbols (abstract or chapter). On June 30, 2010: first version of the final text (25000 signs, including endnotes).
Contact: Olivier Santamaria (osantama@ulb.ac.be)
