Hermeticism with Erik & Sam Part I

One word which gets used everywhere and almost as a substitute for Esoteric Thought and Philosophy- is Hermeticism. But what exactly is it and how did it come about? Is it a religion? A Philosophy? What was it all about? Our understanding of Hermeticism through time has changed vastly, much of the obscurity has been cleared up only within the last 100 years. In this, the first of a Two-Part series, I am joined by Erik Arneson and Sam Block to get to the bottom of the birth of Hermeticism and what it meant as it was originally conceived.

Rev. Erik Arneson is a Magician, Hermeticist and Podcaster extraordinaire. His Podcast Arnemancy is one of my favourite Occult Podcasts around these days. You won’t find many people out there better and kinder than Erik. Be sure to support Erik through Patreon if you dig what he does- I am a proud patron and love all the magical hi-jinx that Erik gets up to.

Sam Block, otherwise known as Polyphanes, has written extensively about nearly every aspect of his magical world. His Blog The Digital Ambler is an inexhaustible font of excellent information for not only Hermeticsm but Magic as well. If you would like to show some support for Sam, hit him up on Ko-fi or even better- Grab one of his Books!

Both Erik and Sam are Moderators of the Hermetic House of Life Discord Server. Beyond a doubt, Hermetic House of Life is the best place for finding out more about Hermeticism as well as ask a question or two. I also lurk about on the server and am constantly intrigued and surprised by what gets discussed there. Join now, Read the rules and have fun!

Show Notes

• Sam’s Hermeticism FAQ – You MUST Read this if you want to understand anything about Hermeticism – Part I – Part II – Part III – Part IV
• Hellenistic Egypt: Monarchy, Society, Economy, Culture by Jean Bingen
• Graeco-Roman Egypt by Simon Ellis
• Interpretatio Graeca
• Hermes and Hermeticism: A Historical Introduction
• Who Was Hermes Trismegistus? – Great Video from Gary Lachman
• Ancient Hermeticism and Esotericism
• The Difficulty of Principalizing the Way of Hermēs
• The Difficulty of Centralizing the Way of Hermēs
• The Notion of Mysteries in the Formation of Hermetic Tradition
• Corpus Hermeticum- Introduction to Hermes Trismegistus & Hermetic Philosophy – Esoterica
• The Way of Hermes – The Corpus Hermeticum Translated by Clement Salaman – This is my favourite Translation
• Asclepius: A Secret Discourse of Hermes Trismegistus Translated by Clement Salaman
• Hermetica: The Greek Corpus Hermeticum and the Latin Asclepius Translated by Brian Copenhaver
• Hermetica II: The Excerpts of Stobaeus, Papyrus Fragments, and Ancient Testimonies in an English Translation by M. David Litwa
• Secret History of Hermes Trismegistus: Hermeticism from Ancient to Modern Times by Florian Ebling
• The Tradition of Hermes Trismegistus by Christian Bull
• The Arabic Hermes: From Pagan Sage to Prophet of Science by Kevin van Bladel
• The Egyptian Hermes: A Historical Approach to the Late Pagan Mind by Garth Fowden
• Eternal Hermes: From Greek God to Alchemical Magus by Antoine Faivre
• The Hermetic Link: From Secret Tradition to Modern Thought by Jacob Slavenberg
• Ancient Magic: A Survey of the Technical Hermetica
• Understanding the Emerald Tablet
• The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus – Esoterica
• The Book of the Secret of Creation and the Art of Nature attributed to Apollonius of Tyana – Some Analysis by Jason Colavito
• The Nag Hammadi Library – While most of these are considered Gnostic, some like the Discourse on the Eighth and Ninth, and the Prayer of Thanksgiving are Hermetic
• The Quest for Hermes Trismegistus: From Ancient Egypt to the Modern World by Gary Lachman – I quite enjoy this book and it is an excellent introduction to Hermeticism

Head to Part II