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Libra Esoterica

Esoteric Christianity, or The Lesser Mysteries

by Annie Besant & Annie Wood Besant

  • First published:
  • 20th century
  • Language: English
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Description

Description from Project Gutenberg (opens in a new tab)

"Esoteric Christianity, or The Lesser Mysteries" by Annie Besant is a scholarly examination of the hidden aspects of Christian teachings, written in the early 20th century. The work delves into concepts of the Gnosis and the Mysteries within Christianity, asserting that many profound truths have been overlooked or simplified for mass consumption. The author aims to explore the complexity of these esoteric teachings, suggesting they were once integral to early Christian beliefs but have faded over time. The opening of this work presents an overview of the necessity for religions, including Christianity, to have a hidden side that caters to varying levels of human understanding and spiritual evolution. Besant emphasizes the importance of esoteric knowledge, arguing that true spiritual teachings can only be fully grasped by those prepared for them. Drawing from historical references and early Christian writings, she begins to outline the existence of these hidden teachings in Christianity, laying the groundwork for a more in-depth exploration of the subject in subsequent chapters. This sets a tone of inquiry into the depth and complexity of faith, suggesting that a restoration of this esoteric knowledge is essential for a deeper understanding of Christian tenets. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Provenance

Why this book is in the catalog

Included because retained bibliographic metadata links this work to Consciousness, mysticism, and metaphysics, Occultism and esotericism, and Theosophy, Anthroposophy, and New Thought.

  • Occultism and esotericism

    Controlled discovery queries from openalex and project-gutenberg matched “esoteric” and “esotericism”. Retained metadata contains “esoteric” in the title, “esoteric” in the description, and “esoteric” in the edition title.

    • “esotericism”· via OpenAlex
    • “esoteric”· via Project Gutenberg
    • “esoteric”· in title
    • “esoteric”· in description
    • “esoteric”· in edition title
  • Theosophy, Anthroposophy, and New Thought

    Controlled discovery queries from online-books-page, project-gutenberg, and wellcome matched “Theosophy” and “theosophy”. Retained metadata contains “Theosophy” in the subject metadata, “theosophical” in the edition notes, and “theosophical” in the cataloging notes.

    • “Theosophy”· via The Online Books Page
    • “theosophy”· via Project Gutenberg
    • “Theosophy”· via Wellcome Collection
    • “Theosophy”· in subject
    • “theosophical”· in edition notes
    • “theosophical”· in cataloging note
  • Consciousness, mysticism, and metaphysics

    Controlled discovery queries from project-gutenberg matched “mysticism”. Retained metadata contains “Mysticism” in the subject metadata.

    • “mysticism”· via Project Gutenberg
    • “Mysticism”· in subject

Membership records how this book met the catalog’s discovery criteria — relevance to a tradition, not a judgment of the book’s claims.

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Editions

5 editions cataloged here.

The Online Books Page curated catalog record

based on the third impression, 1914

1914———Source listed online copy

The Online Books Page curated catalog record

second edition; London and Varanasi: Theosophical Pub. Soc., 1905

1905———Source listed online copy

OpenAlex scholarly book record

1902-01-01North Eastern Hill University; North-Eastern Hill University Library (North Eastern Hill University)English—Open access (green)

Subjects

12 subject headings

Identifiers & provenance

How this record was assembled, and the authority identifiers it carries.

Cataloged from

Cataloging notes

  • Original print publication date and source edition are absent from Project Gutenberg metadata.
  • Source-listed Library of Congress call number(s): BP567 .B47 1905
  • Source-listed Library of Congress call number(s): BP567 .B47 1914
  • The Online Books Page bibliographic note: based on the third impression, 1914
  • The Online Books Page bibliographic note: second edition; London and Varanasi: Theosophical Pub. Soc., 1905
Catalog id
project-gutenberg:26938
Edition coverage
Multi source partial
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