Esoteric
From Ancient Greek ἐσωτερικός (esōterikos, “belonging to an inner circle”), from ἐσωτέρω(esōterō, “further inside”), comparative of ἔσω (esō, “within”), from ἐς (es), εἰς (eis, “into”) (esoteric originally referred to the secret teachings of Greek philosophers, versus public or exoteric ones).
The term esoteric first appeared in English in the 1701 History of Philosophy by Thomas Stanley, in his description of the "Auditors of Pythagoras." The Pythagoreans were divided into "exoteric", which were under review, and "esoteric", which had performed well enough to be admitted into the "inner" circle.
"Esotericism" in current usage
In Western, English-speaking societies today, the term "esotericism" has
come to informally mean any knowledge that is difficult to understand or
remember, such as theoretical physics, or that pertains to the minutiae of a
particular discipline, such as "esoteric" baseball statistics.
The term "esoteric" does not necessarily refer to "esotericism" per se in
the sense of "inner" knowledge, disciplines, or practices.
A variety of past traditions could be classified as forms of "esotericism"
due to their "inner" focus as well as their "selective" and "secretive"
nature.
Nuances
Esotericism largely overlaps with "hidden knowledge." Some overlap exists as well between esotericism and mysticism. However, many mystical traditions do not attempt to introduce additional spiritual knowledge, but rather seek to focus the believer's attention or prayers more strongly upon the object of devotion. A mystic is thus not necessarily an esotericist.
Scope
"Esotericism" sometimes suggests an additional element of initiation, for example the requirement that one be tested before learning the higher truth. Note however that most "esoteric" teachings are widely available, and indeed often actively promoted.
Another possibility is that such knowledge may be kept secret not by the
intention of its protectors, but by its very nature—for example, if it is
accessible only to those with the proper intellectual background.
The religiously minded have sometimes used "esotericism" to refer to their
belief-systems. For this reason a brief survey of some religious traditions
follows. This is not necessarily the meaning of esotericism. Academic
esotericism constitutes the modern academic disciplines - looked at in
articles under the relevant headings.
Historical sketch of religious ideas
Esotericism is not a single tradition but a vast array of often unrelated
figures and movements. Nevertheless, the following may be helpful.
The Roman Empire gave birth not only to Christianity but also to a group of
mystery religions which emphasized initiation. Some see Christianity, with
its ritual of baptism, as a mystery religion.
Acts 2:38 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the
name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive
the gift of the Holy Spirit.
After Christianity became the state religion of Rome, dissident Christian
groups became persecuted as traitors to the state. Pagan groups came to be
suppressed as well. The terms "Gnosticism" and "Gnosis" have been challenged
as coherent categories, but refer to a family of ancient Jewish, Christian,
and pagan religious movements which often did claim to possess secret
teachings relating to the spirit world, as opposed to the ordinary world
which they tended to denigrate. Another important movement from the ancient
world was Hermeticism, sometimes called Hermetism to distinguish it from
post-Renaissance appropriations of it. Separately, ancient Babylon provided
the basis for Western astrology.
During the Middle Ages such things as astrology, alchemy, and magic were not
distinct from the standard subjects of the curriculum of an educated man.
While some people assume esotericism to be opposed to the Bible or
Christianity, as a historical matter this tension did not arise until later.
Indeed, Christianity contributed its own esoteric imagery, notably the Holy
Grail from Arthurian literature.
While many esoteric subjects have a history reaching back thousands of
years, these have generally not survived as continuous traditions. Rather,
they have benefited from various antiquarian revival movements. During the
Italian Renaissance, for example, translators such as Ficino and Pico della
Mirandola turned their attention to the classical literature of
neo-Platonism, and what was thought to be the pre-Mosaic tradition of
Hermeticism.
European esotericism was reformulated in the 17th century as Rosicrucianism,
and later entered various strands of Freemasonry. In the 19th century a
notable French revival in turn gave way to the theosophy of H. P. Blavatsky.
In the 20th century Theosophy was reformulated by Annie Besant, C. W.
Leadbeater, Alice Bailey, Rudolf Steiner and many others. Theosophy is also
considered a major influence on the many current varieties of esotericism in
metaphysical organizations, "Ascended Master Activities", and within the New
Age groups.
Yet another notable esoteric strain stems from the teachings of G. I.
Gurdjieff and P. D. Ouspensky.
Rudolf Steiner, who broke with theosophy to found his own anthroposophy,
spoke of a disagreement between esotericists at the close of the 19th
century; one branch wanted to open up esoteric knowledge to the general
public, while another group wished to maintain secrecy. Steiner himself
claimed to stand in the lineage of those who wanted to make the esoteric an
accepted part of mainstream culture. His first books, written in the 19th
century, avoided any reference to esoteric themes, but he saw the 20th
century as the dawn of a new age, when spirituality would be increasingly
central to human development. Thus, he began to publish works such as
'Theosophy' and 'Occult Science' and to lecture on esoteric themes both to
select audiences (members of the Anthroposophical Society or of his own
esoteric school) and to the general public. All but the most esoteric of
these lectures were already being published during his lifetime, and in the
last decades even the most esoteric material has been made available by the
Rudolf Steiner Archive and Press, in accordance with Steiner's wishes.
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