Oriental Mysticism
What means Oriental?
There is always difference between Japanese and Westerners the way to understand Culture and Tradition of "Near and Middle" Asia. Always Islamic and Ancient Memories about Fertile Crescent Area and Egyptian Air swarming are Current of Westron History because that Area was their Source of religion and culture, we needed only them for understanding Europian civilized Culture with indirectly. If we will truly conceive about Asians, we also should categorize our own situation about these "cousins" or "barbarians".

Asia is Very Wide and Composite, and Long History overwhelming Europian "Penisula". We eastislander in rural locality, always need some points and foci for limited perspective, but unless we accept wholeheartedly Continent, we would not need to say understanding True-self.



What means Mysticism?
In Religion, Founders cannot become Orthodoxy, because if they belong to Orthodoxy,
they aren't Founders. Passive Attitude toward World Affairs is required for Seclusion from Pursuit of Orthodoxy and Need for attracting Disciples, until they
can gather enough disciples, they cannot change attitude to more warlike and
positive attitude toward Conservatives.

The Japanese Term applied to English "Mysticism" vaguely and negatively means illogical, superstitious, or unorthodox. (or overlook-positively means parodoxical, fantastical, non doctrinal) Europians generally used this word for Gnosticism which contains almost
all of non-orthodox, but non-paganistic creeds. In elder Age, this word simply means
some supernatural creed which both Saints who sometimes secluded for Learning and
Meditation and Witches who hid from Orthodox Society for Evil Acts handle for
using their Power over Ordinary Structure of Society. And we can concept such status requires Orthodox Belief and Religion against Unorthodoxy...in modern World, Science plays this role as Churches in Feudal Europe. And Main Famous Sects of Gnosticism
were generally having secluded and passive nature to Ordinary World in Fundamental
Creed, it shapes the Image of term "Mysticism".

In Islamic Society, Unorthodoxy weren't oppressed much not-like Christians. For Founder Muhammed in life could take positive attitude toward Arabian Society,
they could maintain Unity of Politics and Religion until Technology derived
from Science overwhelmed this flexibility. They could not use letterpress and
scientific Image Trainings for Religious Matters.
Some of Islamic Unorthodoxy took the form of Sufism, creed of close Connection between Allah and Sufis. We can guess Influence of "Paganistic" Buddhism and Hinduism.

So if we had to apply similar phenomena in our World, our passive and secluded attitude to ordinary world movement as Taoist, Buddhist and Shinntoist must be considered. Confucianism took the Role of Christian Church of Feudal Europe and Technology of Modern Industrial Society. So in conclusion, we can vaguely apply Secluded Nature and
pseudo-Hermit Priest, Risis in Hinduistic and Taoistic Scheme to the term "Mystic".




"People of Books" (Ahl al-kitab) and Pagans
Moses wreaked havoc to his own People because he knew his God is very Jealous and his People revered Golden Statue of Bull as Aaron taught them while his absence. He didn't say his God is the Only God Pancreater, maybe such Idea wasn't invented in his Age. So we can freely explain God of Moses as merely a Desert Jealous God.

Think about Ancient Judaeans and Baali-Phoenchians, we saw fundamental gap attitude differed to nature and human, God spoke to only Righteous People and killed many Outsiders. Isaiah could perfectly justify his Act.

Zoroasternism seemed greatly to precede before Judaean Monotheism, maybe they only had Jealous Dessert God and didn't Concept One who needn't any other Deities. And Idea of "people of book" appeared from Islamic Teachings. Saracens tolerated existence of them as far as they paid specific tax. But Saracens ultimately try to think defeat Out of their Teaching with Jyhad...And like Buddhism, Hinduism, and Chinese Polytheism were included by this category. Timur once tried to conquer Ming Dynasty before his Death...under the Name of Allah.
Dualism and Almighty Being
Concept of Duality between Soul and Flesh, Light and Darkness, Good and Evil derived from Oriental Area for complex-perplexed Hierophants of Ancient Days. Indian Trimulti of Creator, Maintainer and Destroyer maybe preceded Concept of Struggle of Angels and Demons as Indian Idea of Fifth Element quintessence,
while Easterners generally sought Communication and Harmony of Dualism represented in Model of Yin and Yang, Western belligerence want more hard Explanation of Change and Solution.
God of Plant and Curse of Martyr
"Christ cursed Jerusalem and Peter and Paul cursed Rome with their coherent strongest magic, their death."

So Roman Army of Vespasian and Hadrian destroyed Jerusalem and Vandals and Goths sucked Rome as Later Charles Vth's Mercenaries sucked Holy Rome.

Such Magic was called "Martyr" by their Heritages. Even though Self-Sacrifice of God obviously and oftenly appeared in the Every Oriental Mythologies. Jews believed Abraham sacrificed blood of Antelope instead of that of his own son...Isaac, Christians believed Jesus sacrificed himself for Atonement of Adam Father of All Human's Folly.

Islamic Orthodox didn't stressly attach such heritage before Polythiestic Culture as Christians, but Shiite restarted the Idea of Martyr for their Iranic sense about Religion...

Baal and Anat
After migration of Canaan after long Exile from Egypt and Sinai, Judaeans repeatedly struggled against more lowland / fertility culture as Nomad-style Fundamenttalists. Many Native Canaanite honoured Storm Fathers and Earth Goddesses as Babylonian Parallel. But many cultural and linguistical resemblance could not be avoided even from most fundamentalistic Jews, such as explanation of God as "El", Lord as "Baal".
See here more about their Story.

Gnosticism
Gnosticism is greatly influenced from the Eastern Mediterranian Influence during cataclysm and rise of Christianism. Gnosticism never haven't been Unified Existence...And opposition of Greek Hellenistic Culture and Jewish Culture caused the shape of Orthodoxy and Un-Orthodoxy. Even 12 Disciples of Christ were forced to abandone (or reform) traditional way of Judaism for Missionary to Outsiders. Esoteric Cults flourished in the scheme of sophisticated and Skepticism to Traditional Way...so Gnosticism could not be counted from the Start. We can count many varieties of Gnosticism outskirt of Orthodox Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Kabbalism, Christianism, Islam, etc...


Neo-Platonic Mysticism systemized Concept of Emanation, and in this Idea, Pancreator isn't separated from the Materialistic World. In the attitude to Anti-Judaism, some of Gnosticism Sects contradicted to Jewish Teachings and incited to Orthodoxy directly to cut off from Judaism, and they taught about Idea of Evil Creator (Cathari called him Ialdabaoth) and Good Spiritual Existence of Feminine and Serpentine Existence.


Avesta org.
http://www.avesta.org/sitemap.htm

The Bible the Revised Standard Version
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/rsv.browse.html

Old Testament Apocrypha
http://home.sol.no/~noetic/oac.htm

Nag Hammadi Library
http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/nhl.html

World Wide Gnosis
http://www.worldwidegnosis.org/

The Gnostic Archive Resources
http://www.webcom.com/~gnosis/

Insight Books.com
http://www.insight-books.com/index.html

The Cosmic Mysteries of Mithras
http://www.well.com/user/davidu/mithras.html

The Virtual Mithraeom
http://museums.ncl.ac.uk/archive/mithras/intro.htm

Back to Spiral Corridor
Chantry of Mithras
Temple of Set

Syncretism of Deities