Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Conference: Ways of Gnosis



Ways of Gnosis: 
Mystical and Esoteric Traditions
from Antiquity to the Present Time
10-13 April 2013.

All-Russia State Library for Foreign Literature
Association for the Study of Esotericism and Mysticism
  
in collaboration with
Institute "Russian Anthropological School" of the Russian State University for the Humanities (Moscow), the Research Centre for Esotericism and Mysticism at Russian Christian Academy for the Humanities (St. Petersburg), the European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism (ESSWE), the Scientific-Educational Centre "Free Philosophical Society"

and supported by
the European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism (ESSWE),

International academic symposium

One of the most important elements of mystical and esoteric traditions is the phenomenon of gnosis, defined as prophetic knowledge with soteriological value for its bearers. The gnostic worldview, its symbols and motives can be found in masterpieces of Western art and literature. Over the past two millenniums, Western spiritual culture has been consistently influenced by gnostic thought, and it is now difficult to imagine the history of Western art, literature, science, philosophy and religion without gnosis, that has certain parallels in structure and ideas with some Eastern cultures (for example, India).

The international academic symposium "Ways of Gnosis" plans to examine this phenomenon from different points of view (phenomenological, hermeneutical, and historical); to show its real significance in Eastern and Western mystical and esoteric traditions; to investigate the meeting of worldviews in "Alexandrian gnosis" and the interrelation of "gnostic" currents to each other; to point out the influence of different aspects, symbols, and images of gnostic traditions in daily life; to show the historical continuity of gnostic ideas in the European cultural tradition; to compare different forms of gnosis in Eastern and Western culture; to elucidate different approaches to the phenomenon of gnosis, and, finally, to demonstrate the role of gnostic doctrines in the history of Russian culture.

This symposium brings together two regular conferences previously held separately - "Russia and Gnosis," organized by the Library for Foreign Literature (Moscow) and "Mystic and Esoteric Movements in Theory and Practice," the annual conference of the Association for the Study of Esotericism and Mysticism (ASEM). Thus, the symposium simultaneously hosts the Sixth International Conference "Mystic and Esoteric Movements in Theory and Practice" and the Tenth "Russia and Gnosis" Conference. There will be one joint plenary session and one joint thematic session; however, the two conferences will otherwise have separate programs.

During the symposium, Masonic relics and manuscripts from the Russian collection of the "Museum of Freemasons' Symbols and History" will be exhibited by the "Free Philosophical Society", which will also organize a round-table discussion about "Traditions of Freemasonry and Its Implications for Today". 

Working languages: Russian and English. Translation into English will be provided for those not fluent in Russian.

President of the Organizing Committee: Ekaterina Genieva, Head of the Library for Foreign Literature (Moscow).
Members of the Organizing Committee: ESSWE President Wouter J. Hanegraaff (Amsterdam, Netherlands), Birgit Menzel (Mainz, Germany), Georgy Dergachev (Moscow, Russia), ASEM President Sergey Pakhomov (Saint-Petersburg, Russia), Alexander Petrov (Moscow, Russia), Irina Protopopova (Moscow, Russia), Roman Svetlov (Saint-Petersburg, Russia), Yuriy Zavhorodniy (Kiev, Ukraine), Vadim Zhdanov (Erlangen, Germany). 

Organizing Committee Secretaries: Alexander Rychkov (Moscow, Russia), Kateryna Zorya (Kiev, Ukraine), Darya Lotareva (Moscow, Russia), Yuriy Khalturin (Moscow, Russia).

Postal address:  Nikoloyamskaya St., 1. Moscow, Russia 109189. Library for Foreign Literature, Centre for Religious and Russian Émigré. Symposium "Ways of Gnosis".

Contact E-mail: symposium04.2013@gmail.com

Contact phone numbers: +7 (495) 915-79-86, 8-921-384-30-29.




No comments: