Mysticism and religion: follow the texts
Explore spiritual traditions through their texts, translations, practices and differences. Connections are questions to investigate, not a reason to treat every tradition as interchangeable.
Reading paths and questions
Start with a specific passage. Which edition are you reading, who translated it, and what historical context does the source provide? Gnosticism, Hermeticism, Christian mysticism and Jewish mysticism have their own vocabularies. A similar symbol does not establish the same meaning, origin or belief.
The published Open Files provide reading paths into Nag Hammadi texts, Sophia and the divine spark; the Hermetica and divine mind; Jewish mystical texts, letters and protection; Christian and Jewish approaches to prayer and divine love; and Renaissance encounters between Kabbalah, Christian Cabala and Hermetic reception.
The wider Library includes the Book of Enoch, Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Jewish traditions, Wicca, the history of witchcraft, magic and mysticism. Read introductions alongside primary texts rather than presenting a single book as a summary of an entire religion. Terms such as Kabbalah, Cabala and Qabalah may appear in different contexts; check the author’s usage.
Practice and research can share a conversation without making the same kinds of claims. Someone might bring a prayer guide, a protection practice, a question about benevolent divine figures, or an interpretation of an artwork. Say whether you are describing your own experience, a religious teaching, a historical source or a modern interpretation.
You can explore these materials without identifying with any spiritual tradition. Join a discussion with one source and an open question, or use Discover People to find a collaborator for an essay, illustration, translation or independent publication.
Published Open Files
- Witchcraft, protection, and modern Wicca: three histories to untangle
- Nag Hammadi, Gnosticism, and Sophia: reading a diverse collection
- Hermetica: divine mind, rebirth, and the distance between ancient and modern books
- Letters, Light, and Protection: Reading Jewish Mysticism
- Prayer and Divine Love: Where Christian and Jewish Mystical Reading Meet
- Renaissance crossroads: Jewish Kabbalah, Christian Cabala, and Hermetic reception
Browse the Library and reading lists · Open Community and Discover People