With so much discussion and rising interest in the Essenes, the Cathars and the Albigensians, and their “secret” and obscure teachings, an in depth book on Gnostic history has been long overdue.

The word Gnostic has been bandied about as a general description of any movement that contravened traditional Christian values or the edicts of the Roman Catholic Church. It is interesting to note that many of these sects would not describe themselves or their teachings as “gnostic” as such.

In his book, The Essence of the Gnostics, Bernard Simon takes us on a meticulous journey through all of the traditions we associate with Gnosticism. With great skill, he lays bare the bones of this obscure giant in an insightful investigation of the facts, the history and the relevance of this thought system.

Long before there was a system of belief called Gnosticism there were those who searched for a special and intimate knowledge of God and all his/her mysterious ways. The belief system came to notice in the early part of the first century CE.

Gnostics operated from hidden places and carried a veil of mystery and secrecy, yet it has survived in one form or another, to the present day. Its adherents range from magicians to theologians, many of whom have been branded as heretics and murdered in the thousands by the orthodox Church.

The word Gnostic comes from the Greek language, and stands for ‘knowing through observation or experience’. This word gives us both Gnosticism and agnosticism, although agnosticism is the absence of knowledge of God, whereas Gnosticism not only admits God’s existence, but also claims special and perhaps intimate knowledge. In short, Gnosticism is not so much based on faith so much as actual experience of the Godforce, however we might define it.

All religious teachings acknowledge that the world we live in is imperfect. However, where they differ is in the explanation they offer for the imperfection, and the pathway or method offered for redemption.

Whilst many religionists hold that humans are to blame for these imperfections and urge us to be governed by God, the Gnostics believed that the world is flawed because it was created in a flawed manner, thereby implicating the creator.

Such a perspective was regarded as blasphemous by Christian authorities at the dawn of the new religion, and led to the sect’s persecution. Equally concerning were the Gnostics’ liberal views regarding sex, the role of women and the toleration of other faiths.

In The Essence of the Gnostics, Bernard Simon offers a fascinating insight into this ancient and yet in many ways, contemporary faith.

He points out that part of its roots can be found in Zoroastrianism. Zoroastrians believed in one God and were taught that the world was basically the battleground of two beings: Ahura Mazda, the god of light, creation and goodness, and Ahriman, god of darkness, destruction, corruption and death.

This duality between these two polarities remains an integral part of Gnosticism in its later forms. However, such a juxtaposition of two polarities can be found in almost every major ancient religious movement, both in the East and West and is hardly unique to Gnosticism. Indeed the Christian belief in the “devil” or Satan was founded on these traditions.

It is important to understand the central components of ancient Gnostic thought. The first is the ritual of cleansing, or baptism. The second is ritual meals on a regular basis. The third is the birth and death of the instigator of the religion in a mysterious or miraculous way. And finally, in all cases, there is an accompanying Goddess or feminine principle (a mother or a consort) and the initial rejection of the words of wisdom.

Notice the similarity between this and Jesus’ teachings. However, unlike orthodox Christianity, Gnostics explored their religion by asking questions such as what did the creator do before creation? Or who created God? Something orthodox Christians were not allowed or encouraged to do.

The originators of Gnosticism had their own Supreme Being, as well as a retinue of demigods and their representatives on Earth. Their system of belief incorporated at least one unique theory of creation, together with an account of the origin of good and evil.

They argued the need for an alternative to Jehovah or Yahweh, Judaism’s ‘jealous god,’ and described such a being as a “loving father” in a very similar fashion to that espoused by Jesus. Simon outlines that at one point Gnosticism came very close to becoming the mainstream Christian church, and had that occurred we would indeed be living in a very different world.

Gnosticism and its mysterious history might well have been forgotten were it not for the Nag Hammadi scriptures, discovered in the 1940s in Egypt. These codices contain such texts as the Gospels of Thomas, Philip and Truth. A translation of Thomas into English demonstrates that Jesus seems to have taught his disciples in more depth than the masses, which is in keeping with the Gnostic idea there are three levels of awareness.

One of these levels is the feminine aspect of God, and the spiritual principle known as the Divine Sophia or Wisdom. According to these scriptures it is Sophia, the last emanation of the transcendent God, who makes a mistake and creates the Demiurge, a vengeful, negative, egotistical creator “God.”

She must then set about putting that mistake right, ultimately achieving union with the Christ figure in order to offer salvation, and a way back to purity. Is this not the wonderful and often overlooked truth reflected in the story of Mary Magdalene?

Look at the world today and you will see the principle of feminine wisdom, Sophia herself, is once again receiving the veneration she deserves. We see this in The Da Vinci Code novel that sparked so much interest, we see this in the many Marian apparitions claimed all over the planet, and we see this in every woman as they continue to find their voices both in the church and the secular world.

The core of Gnosticism is the belief that inside every person is a spark of divinity placed there from a supreme divinity. The divine can be awakened by, and discovered through, a process of contemplation and self-knowledge. This process of internal enlightenment can best be accomplished through the assistance of a divine mediator (such as the Holy Spirit) or redemption figure, however, salvation is primarily the individual’s own responsibility.

Perhaps more telling is that the divine mediator is invariably described as feminine! Simon quotes the Wisdom of Solomon written by an Alexandrian Jew in about 50 BCE: “Sophia is the breath of the power of God, pure emanation, of the glory of the Almighty; hence nothing impure can find a way into her. She is a reflection of the eternal light, untarnished mirror of God’s active power, image of his goodness.”

It is the strong sense of personal responsibility that marks all followers of Gnostic thought and leads to the ideals of the fully developed “Divine Man.” This can be traced as far back as 593 BCE to the prophet Ezekiel, and then later to 168 BCE and the Book of Daniel where this ideal is described as the “Son of Man,” a phrase and description used by Jesus when referring to himself.

It is common belief that Jesus had female as well as male disciples, and again if we refer to the Nag Hammadi scriptures there are many references to this fact. The idea of a virgin birth has a potency of its own, if we remember that to be a virgin did not just refer to sexual purity, but dedication to God or unmarried.

However, Gnosticism points to a blending or balancing of the inner Divine Male and Divine Female. They believed that in the beginning there was only one transcendent God, a male principle that existed in balance with the female principle, called the Ennoia (thought). From their union two archetypes, Mind (male) and Truth (female) were created, which in turn emanated others in male-female pairs known as Aeons. These collectively constituted the divine realm known as the Pleroma or Fullness.

Throughout this book, Simon emphasises the Gnostic desire for inner knowledge. This is generally defined as the knowledge of hidden things, in particular intuitive knowledge. The kind of transcendent knowledge that goes beyond empirical observation has, of course, always been the province of the feminine. And it is this factor, more than any other, that has disturbed the church and all who adhere to orthodox thought. This is why superstitious and slanderous stories were circulated about women being the route of evil. This is why it was Eve who tempted Adam and caused the fall from grace. This is why the feminine has been excluded from any powerful position within the church.

Yet the Gnostics recognised that an intuitive “feminine” faculty is a necessary part of a successful existence upon this Earth, and a necessary part of redemption into the divine.
All religions have a problem with balance of power between the masculine and feminine elements. Patriarchal religions would have it that the masculine is supreme, and the feminine fatally flawed, yet surely such a conflict could be easily resolved if the principles of equality were brought into play?

Androgyny takes on new meaning when looked at from a spiritual perspective. Here we discover that the male active role couples beautifully with the feminine passive. This does away with the distinction between one being “better” than the other and allows us to bring balance into our lives.

It is this blending of energy that is epitomised by the six-pointed star, we now refer to as the Star of David. This ancient symbol can be traced back to Egypt and Tibet.

The upward pointing triangle is the physical realm (fire), often referred to as the blade. It reaches upwards to the spiritual realm. Then pressing downwards, and intersecting in unity we see the chalice or blue triangle like the waters of life. Together they form a star, and the red and blue transmutes into purple, the colour of the curtain within the Temple. This symbol was first popularised by the Kabbalists. These Jewish mystics can also trace their teachings back to the Gnostics.

Today, we find instances of Gnostic belief surfacing even in the modern-day world of music and media. More and more people are beginning to appreciate the magical, spiritual and cosmic significance of this ancient system of thought. With the discovery of the Gnostic Gospels in Nag Hammadi and the Dead Sea Scrolls, the desire to experience the truth has never been greater.

However, it is important to truly understand the journey and the diverse sections within the Gnostic movement. Simon highlights their similarities and their differences, and uncovers their rise and fall in ancient times. As he does, it becomes clear why this thought system threatened orthodoxy and why thousands were put to the sword for their beliefs.

All of this would remain academic, were it not for the fact that the same hunger assails modern man just as it did the ancients. We are no longer satisfied with mere academic discovery; we can no longer be threatened or frightened into mindless servitude to a church or an institution, the modern man or woman longs to know, experience, to taste first hand.

To quote singer David Bowie, also known as an arch exponent of androgyny: “Religion is for people who believe in hell; spirituality is for people who have been there.”

Gnosticism can be termed the first “spiritual” movement in a sea of religion. If you feel drawn to experience rather than to merely “know,” then begin your journey with this insightful and balanced book.

Bernard Simon offers a fascinating journey into this ancient faith and then explores the reasons for its current renaissance, and in the end, isn’t that why you read The Da Vinci Code?

– Reviewed by Lesley Crossingham in New Dawn No. 98