Podcast episodes – The Secret History of Western Esotericism Podcast (SHWEP)

Exploring Porphyry's universe crawling with gods and daimones, discussing metempsychosis and divine possession. Understanding Porphyry's metaphysics and physics of divinity, including the role of Zeus and connection to fate. Exploring the concept of the soul descending into the body and the night sky as the afterlife. Beliefs on reincarnation, divine judgment, and philosophy in the afterlife. Understanding possession, divine intervention, and salvation through union with the gods. Analyzing the separation of body and soul in death and exploring the relationship between the body and soul.

Porphyry of Tyre, a prolific Platonist writer, is introduced. Topics include Platonist metaphysics, esoteric reading-strategies, exorcisms, divine possessions, and a lost work on the River Styx. The podcast explores Porphyry's biography, education, metaphysical ideas, works, influences, surviving works and fragments, as well as his lost works and recent discoveries.

Charles M. Stang, expert on the divine twin in Late Antiquity, discusses the idea of the divine double and its presence in religious and philosophical thought. The podcast explores texts such as the gospel of Thomas, Plotinus, and Manicism, highlighting the tension between acknowledging the structure of everything and the exhortation to live a certain way. It also explores the influence of Christian strategies on late antique religious practices and discusses the concept of twin companions in Manichaeism. The podcast delves into the cultural origins of the divine double in Iranian religious influences and second temple Judaism.

Jason BeDuhn, religious scholar, discusses the Manichaean movement and its prophet, Mani. Topics include the concept of universal condition, the relationship between Manichaeism and Gnosticism, the symbolism of sacrifice, Manichaean eschatology, and the social structure and rituals of the mannequies.

Radcliffe G. Edmonds III discusses the 'Mithrasliturgie', exploring topics such as immortalization, divinization, visionary cosmic ascent, and even magical crocodile-surfing. They also delve into Mithraism, gender roles in Egyptian trade guilds, Zosimus, Maria, ritual practices in the Mithras liturgy, and symbolism in medieval Islamicate Esotericism.

Explore the astral imagery in the cult of Mithras, including the symbolism in the tauroctany and the prevalence of astral elements in temple iconography. Discover the enigmatic connection between Mithraic grades and planets, and delve into the interpretation of a possible Mithraic artifact. Explore the symbolism of death and ascent in Mithraic rites, including the representation of cosmic ascent in cave depictions.

Exploring the enigmatic Roman cult of Mithras, including its origins and rapid expansion throughout the empire, the mysterious lion-headed god and temple layout, the symbolism and social makeup of Mithraic temples, the social context and rituals of the cult, and the iconography and interpretations of salvation in the esoteric cult.

Leading scholar Jean-Marc Narbonne discusses the interconnections between Plotinus' thought and the Gnostics. Topics include tensions within Plotinus' doctrine, Plotinus as a mystic drawing from various traditions, the evolution of Plato's view on evil, and Plotinus' critique of the Gnostics.

Copticist and scholar Dylan Burns discusses Platonistic Sethian tractates and the movements behind them. Topics include the usage of the term 'Gnosticism' among scholars, the distinction between Sethian Gnosticism and the Sathians, neoplatonism language in the Sethian Corpus, the concept of penuma in Stoicism and early Christian literature, the omnipresence and providence of God according to the Sethians, and the complexity of the Gnostic myth.

This podcast explores the ineffable in Plotinus and his unique approach to the first principle. It discusses the esoteric nature of Platonist writing and the encounter with the one as a non-experience that defies reason and language. The concept of unsaying and apophatic discourse in Plotinus's works is analyzed, highlighting the denial of consciousness attributed to the one. The podcast also delves into different approaches to understanding Plotinus and his writing style, examining the concept of mysticism and its relation to philosophy.