Description

A leading German theosophical writer, Karl Kiesewetter (1854-95) published several influential works in the years just before his early death. They included a history of modern esotericism (1891), a biography of Mesmer (1893, also reissued in this series), studies of John Dee and of the Faust legend (both 1893), and this two-volume account of occult beliefs and practices in the ancient world (1895), which was completed by Ludwig Kuhlenbeck (1857-1920), a scholar of ancient philosophy and law. This study covers nine civilisations, including those of the ancient Near East (primarily Babylon, Persia, Egypt and Israel), South Asia, the Mediterranean (Greece and Rome) and northern Europe (the Germanic and Celtic peoples). After each general description, Kiesewetter focuses on particular aspects of that community, such as individuals (Zoroaster, Socrates and Philo), practices (divination, healing, magic) and teachings (gnosticism, the Kabbalah, creation and the afterlife), together with excerpts from texts (in German translation).