Theosophy

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Scott Duchesne (University of Guelph)
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  • The Literary Encyclopedia. WORLD HISTORY AND IDEAS: A CROSS-CULTURAL VOLUME.

The term Theosophy is derived from the Latin

theosophia

(meaning “knowledge of things divine” or literally “god-wisdom”) and is generally defined as “any philosophical and religious system based on intuitive knowledge of the divine” (Lacombe 100). As suggested by the definition, it is by no means a homogenous system of belief; the idea of theosophy has been subject to varying and often contradictory interpretations and supported by radically different documents, depending on the particular historical, social and cultural conditions of the time in which the term is in use. From the first extant references to theosophy, however, it has consistently been associated with occultist practices derived from the Western tradition, including Cabbalism and Hermeticism. By contrast, other…

1790 words

Citation: Duchesne, Scott. "Theosophy". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 July 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=1117, accessed 19 March 2024.]

1117 Theosophy 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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