January 22, 2024
Although modern philosophy is mainly an intellectual pursuit, it has had immense impact on the shaping of our world. The philosophy of Francis Bacon (1561 – 1626) was largely responsible for the current scientific worldview and the explosion of technology; Auguste Comte (1798 – 1857) schematized the foundations of a theory of linear progress in [...]January 21, 2024
Marsilio Ficino was a prominent figure in the Italian Renaissance, making significant contributions to the study and revival of Magic. His magical teachings were an amalgamation of Neoplatonism, Hermeticism, and Christian thought. Before delving into Ficino’s magical doctrines, it is essential to explore some of the key themes underlying Renaissance magic. – Religious and Cultural [...]January 21, 2024
The wisdom tradition and religious thought of the ancient Aztecs is shrouded in mystery. Whilst we cannot completely ‘know’ how these people encountered life, we can intuitively enter an understanding of how they thought, using symbolic language to decipher what remains perceivable through the shifting sands of time. One such remaining treasure is the myth [...]January 21, 2024
The recent atrocities in the Middle East and the subsequent actions, reactions, comments, discussions, and demonstrations around the world have highlighted again how quickly we can become polarized in our opinions today. It is like a chain reaction: the moment one person starts to take sides for who is more deserving of sympathy and support, [...]September 8, 2023
‘To be or not to be, that is the question’. How many times have we heard, seen, or read this sentence? From Laurence Olivier to Bugs Bunny, so many have tried their hand at interpreting what is quite possibly the most famous soliloquy in literature. Hamlet’s themes, characters, and iconic lines have permeated various forms [...]September 8, 2023
In view of what is happening today, it is possible that science may hold a less important place in the culture of tomorrow. Why? Because when science is called upon to express its view on certain subjects, it often adopts an excessively authoritarian tone. This uncompromising approach has discredited it in the eyes of public [...]September 8, 2023
To spread and transmit its teachings, Western alchemy has often resorted to the visual arts, with their symbolic and imaginative language. This fact should not surprise us if we take into account that ‘working according to nature’ is the modus operandi of the alchemist. In other words, if one sets out to discover the hidden [...]September 8, 2023
“We live in times when to speak endangers the body, but to remain silent endangers the soul” – Erasmus of Rotterdam Nowadays, Erasmus comes to our mind when we hear about the student exchange program of the European Union. The educational program was named after a Dutch Renaissance philosopher, Desiderius Erasmus, who was a great [...]September 8, 2023
That fear is the greatest adversary on the path of wisdom? We already knew that. But we have to experience it. Wisdom is not about filling our heads with ideas that are never applied (precisely because of fear or cowardice, or comfort, which is another form of fear and cowardice); wisdom is to learn to [...]