MA Western Esotericism
Our Master program gives students a unique possibility to dive deeper into the history of Western esotericism under the supervision of specialists. The MA comes in a one-year and a two-year variety. In the one-year program students follow elective courses and write a final thesis. The two-year Research MA variety consists of the same electives, but in addition, students can do tutorials with HHP teachers, and have to complete three core courses on method and theory in Religious Studies. They will also conduct independent research for a longer MA thesis. For more information about the religious studies components, please refer to the UvA website or the UvA Course Catalogue 2017-2018.
On this page you will find more information about our elective courses on esotericism, available for both one-year and two-year MAs. There are three core modules, covering different historical periods and thematic aspects: Contested Knowledge, Renaissance Esotericism, and Occult Trajectories. Additionally there is a shorter introductory module entitled “Western Esotericism and Its Scholars”. Please note that the three core modules come in two varieties each, taught in alternating years. This alternation makes it possible for Research MA students, specializing in a particular period, to follow two courses on their period over two consecutive years. Thus, for example, someone writing an MA thesis on Renaissance kabbalah might want to follow Renaissance Esotericism I and II, while a candidate researching occultist authors of the 20th century might do Occult Trajectories I and II.
All our MA courses are given in seminar form where students interact closely with the instructor and with each other. Through group discussion, powerpoint presentations, book reviews and research papers, students are taught to think and work as independent academic researchers. More than just acquiring specialist knowledge in a cutting-edge field in the humanities, our MA students are thus being prepared for the realities of professional academic life.
Religionism and Historicism (6EC)
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When: 1st semester, block 3
Instructor: Wouter J. Hanegraaff
Language of instruction: English
Course description:
This module is concerned with the notion of historicity and its relation to religious universalism. While modern notions of “religion” typically imply a claim of universal truth and validity grounded in the true nature of reality, a consistent emphasis on historicity implies questioning and relativizing such claims by emphasizing historical specificity, unicity, contingency, contextuality, and unpredictable change. In short, while religion makes general claims about an ultimate truth (e.g. “God”, “the Divine”, “the Absolute”, or “the Sacred”) that by definition cannot be touched by the forces of history and social change, it is in the very nature of historicity to question and undermine such claims. Sooner or later, all students of religion find themselves confronted with this conflict, and have to work out its implications with respect to the very meaning and significance of studying “religion” from an academic point of view. The objective of this course is make students aware of these problematics and experiment with existing attempts at resolving it.
Download the program of the mini-conference on Tuesday 23 January 2018:
Program Religionism and Historicism 2018Contested Knowledge (12EC) Theories and Methods in the Study of Esotericism
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When: 1st semester, block 1-2
Instructor: Wouter J. Hanegraaff
Language of instruction: English
Course description:
The study of Western esotericism has been emerging as a new field in the Humanities since the 1990s, and this development is accompanied by a lively debate about questions of method and theory. In this module we will investigate the historical origins and intellectual backgrounds of esotericism research since the period of the Enlightenment, while concentrating on the theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches that have been advocated by its chief representatives after the period of World War II. Special attention will go to the relation between “religionist” scholarship and its implicit spiritual agendas, more sceptical “reductionist” types of research inspired by specific philosophical and social scientific theories, and the “historical/empirical” type of scholarship that has become dominant in recent decades and is central to the program of the University of Amsterdam. Special attention will go to current debates about the cultural/geographical and disciplinary boundaries of “esotericism” as a field of study that problematizes conventional boundaries between religion, philosophy, natural science, popular culture, and the arts.
Suggestions
On Tuesday mornings, 9.00-12.00, Prof. Hanegraaff teaches a lecture course “Western Culture and Counter Culture” in the Bachelor program. Master students in the program Western Esotericism or the Research Master Study of Religion are very welcome to attend this course as auditors, as it will provide them with a useful historical overview from antiquity to the present. While not mandatory, it is recommended to combine the module “Contested Knowledge” with the 6-point module “Religionism and Historicism” (First semester, block 3), which forms a natural extension of it (resulting total: 18 pts). If you plan to do so, you are advised to read the course book Western Esotericism: A Guide for the Perplexed (Bloomsbury: London 2013) already during blocks 1-2. This will help you contextualize the texts and lectures and understand their relevance to Western esotericism as a field of study.Download the study guide:
Study guide 2017-2018Renaissance Esotericism I & II (12EC)
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When: 1st semester, block 1-2
Instructors: Dr. Peter Forshaw
Language of instruction: English
Course description:
Renaissance Esotericism II: Occult Philosophies
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa’s On Occult Philosophy (1533) is the best-known Renaissance encyclopedia of magic. Its syncretic mixture of material drawn from medieval grimoires, from classical antiquity and from sources new to the Christian West, such as the Jewish tradition of Kabbalah, is an invaluable resource for our understanding of early modern occult philosophy and modern occultism. In this module we shall investigate Philosophia occulta, an important current of Western esotericism, considering the various kinds of knowledge and experience that participate in Renaissance ideas of magic. Ranging through the natural, celestial and divine realms we shall examine
some of the sciences and philosophies and encounter some of the significant figures that contributed to its development. We shall seek
to amplify Agrippa’s writings with material drawn from other influential contemporary sources and conclude the module with sessions on subsequent esoteric approaches that display affinities with his occult philosophy.
Download the study guide:
Study guide 2017-2018 Renaissance Esotericism I will be offered in 2018-2019.Occult Trajectories I & II (12EC)
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When: 2nd semester, block 1-2
Instructor: Dr. Marco Pasi
Language of instruction: English
Course description Occult Trajectories II :
The course focuses on different aspects of the historical evolution of western esotericism in the modern period, from the eighteenth century up to the present days. The aim is to follow both the internal development, understood from the specific perspective of the field, and the broader cultural context in which western esotericism has taken shape, in order to understand both the inside logics of esotericism and its responses to external social pressure. Every year a different theme is chosen that offers a unique entry point in this historical development. For this year, the subject will be modern western esotericism and politics. Esotericism has been often identified with right-wing or reactionary politics. Authors such as Theodor Adorno and Umberto Eco have argued that there is an essential link between esotericism and political movements of the 20th century such as nazism and fascism. Esotericism is therefore supposed to be reactionary by nature. Is this idea tenable, or does it call for a more complex picture? Starting in the 1960s authors such as Frances Yates have argued that esoteric ideas may have played a role in the origins and the development of modern science. The connection between freemasonry and Enlightenment ideas in the 18th century, on the other hand, has been emphasized by a number of authors. During the 19th century, movements such as spiritualism and occultism were more often identified with liberal, progressive, and generally left-wing ideas, than with conservatism. Finally, even in the 20th century, it is not hard to find movements and authors associating esoteric concepts and practices with political ideas that are at the antipodes of the organicist, totalitarian vision of nazi-fascism. Indeed, as this course shall show, a number of highly influential esoteric movements are linked directly to the anarchist tradition. Finally, we shall investigate a number of esoteric currents that allege to represent a post-political form of politics. The course will focus on these problematic issues, and will try to highlight their complexity through the use of both primary sources and secondary literature.