New Approaches to the Study of Esotericism (Supplements to Method & Theory in the Study of Religion, #17)

Esotericisms Expanding Horizon: Why This Book Came to Be Egil Asprem and Julian Strube Receptions of Revelations: A Future for the Study of Esotericism and Antiquity Dylan Burns Towards the Study of Esotericism without the Western: Esotericism from the Perspective of a Global Religious History Julian Strube That I Did Love the Moor to Live with Him: Islam in/and the Study of Western Esotericism Liana Saif The Occult among the Aborigines of South America? Some Remarks on Race, Coloniality, and the West in the Study of Esotericism Mariano Villalba Dont Take Any Wooden Nickels: Western Esotericism, Yoga, and the Discourse of Authenticity Keith Cant Rejected Knowledge Reconsidered: Some Methodological Notes on Esotericism and Marginality Egil Asprem Race and (the Study of) Esotericism Justine Bakker What Can the Whole World Be Hiding? Exploring Africana Esotericisms in the American Soul-Blues Continuum Hugh R. Page, Jr. and Stephen C. Finley Double Toil and Gender Trouble? Performativity and Femininity in the Cauldron of Esotericism Research Manon Hedenborg White What do Jade Eggs Tell Us about the Category Esotericism? Spirituality, Neoliberalism, Secrecy, and Commodities Susannah Crockford Interpretation Reconsidered: The Definitional Progression in the Study of Esotericism as a Case in Point for the Varifocal Theory of Interpretation Dimitry Okropiridze Afterword: Outlines of a New Roadmap Egil Asprem and Julian Strube Contents 5 Notes on Contributors 7 Esotericism's Expanding Horizon: Why This Book Came to Be 9 Receptions of Revelations: A Future for the Study of Esotericism and Antiquity 28 Towards the Study of Esotericism without the ``Western'': Esotericism from the Perspective of a Global Religious History 53 ``That I Did Love the Moor to Live with Him'': Islam in/and the Study of ``Western Esotericism'' 75 The Occult among the Aborigines of South America? Some Remarks on Race, Coloniality, and the West in the Study of Esotericism 96 ``Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels'': Western Esotericism, Yoga, and the Discourse of Authenticity 117 Rejected Knowledge Reconsidered: Some Methodological Notes on Esotericism and Marginality 135 Race and (the Study of) Esotericism 155 ``What Can the Whole World Be Hiding?'': Exploring Africana Esotericisms in the American Soul-Blues Continuum 176 Double Toil and Gender Trouble? Performativity and Femininity in the Cauldron of Esotericism Research 190 What Do Jade Eggs Tell Us about the Category ``Esotericism''? Spirituality, Neoliberalism, Secrecy, and Commodities 209 Interpretation Reconsidered: The Definitional Progression in the Study of Esotericism as a Case in Point for the Varifocal Theory of Interpretation 225 Afterword: Outlines of a New Roadmap 249 Index 261 "This volume offers new approaches to some of the biggest persistent challenges in the study of esotericism and beyond. Commonly understood as a particularly "Western" undertaking consisting of religious, philosophical, and ritual traditions that go back to Mediterranean antiquity, this book argues for a global approach that significantly expands the scope of esotericism and highlights its relevance for broader theoretical and methodological debates in the humanities and social sciences. The contributors offer critical interventions on aspects related to colonialism, race, gender and sexuality, economy, and marginality. Equipped with a substantial introduction and conclusion, the book offers textbook-style discussions of the state of research and makes concrete proposals for how esotericism can be rethought through broader engagement with neighboring fields"-- Provided by publisher