International Journal for the Study of New Religions 1.2 (2010) 295–298 ISSN 2041-9511 (print) ISSN 2041-952X (online) doi:10.1558/ijsnr.v1i2.295

Hidden Intercourse: Eros and Sexuality in the History of Western Esoteri- cism, edited by Wouter J. Hanegraaff and Jeffrey J. Kripal. Aries Book Series, vol. 7. Brill 2008. 566pp., hb. €155.00/US$229.00 ISBN-13: 9789004168732.

Reviewed by Sara Møldrup Thejls, University of Copenhagen, thejls@hum. ku.dk Keywords ; In 2005 a conference at the Esalen Institute was held on the intriguing topic of eros and sexuality in Western esotericism. The anthology reviewed here is comprised of papers presented at this meeting. One can wonder why a book like this has not been published earlier. As Wouter Hanegraaff and Jeffrey Kripal state in the introduction to the volume, the relationship between esotericism and the domains of eros and sexuality are obvious and have previously been acknowledged both by practitioners and scholars, but actual scholarly analyses of this relationship have been rare (ix–x). According to the editors, the reason for this is that “the domains of Western esotericism, on the one hand, and that of eros and sexuality, on the other, have both tended to become the object of censorship, suppression, concealment, and a certain polite public silence” (x). The development of the study of esotericism as an academic subdiscipline has, without doubt, facilitated the possibility of engaging the diverse topics under scrutiny in the present volume. The book is published in the Aries Book Series: “Texts and Studies in Western Esotericism.” The very existence of such a series demonstrates the growth of the academic study of Western esotericism. Hidden Intercourse presents a wide range of topics, both well-known and wholly new materials. The anthology is organized historically, and covers the period from late antiquity to the present day. In the first article, Roelof van den Broek present a discussion of the nega- tive and positive view of sexuality in hermetic and Gnostic materials with a special emphasis on the Asclepius. He extends his discussion to include such well-known texts as Poimandres and the Greek and Coptic versions of Ascle- pius, but also includes information regarding the less well-known Borborites and their possible use of semen and menstrual blood in Eucharistic-style

© Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2010, 1 Chelsea Manor Studios, Flood Street, London SW3 5SR 296 Book Reviews rituals. Van den Broek gives a well-balanced and nuanced discussion of this highly polemical literature, and his deep knowledge of the literature is, as always, evident. April DeConick’s contribution stays in the same circle with her analysis of the Valentinian perception of sexuality. Her focus is the “bridal chamber” that is central to the Gospel of Philip and the theories of spiritual procreation available to the advanced Gnostic, the goal of which was to reproduce the divine seed by which both the practitioner and God would find redemption. The following chapter by Pierre Lory is the only one focusing on Islamic esoteric traditions on sexuality. The specific theme of his article is the idea of sexual intercourse between demons [ jinns] and humans, and how this con- gress relates to the problem of the concealment and revelation of different dimensions of reality. He also includes a very interesting discussion regarding the attitude of Islamic Law toward the marriage of a jinn and a human being, and the possible children produced by such a relationship. is the focus of the two subsequent chapters by Elliot Wolfson and Moshe Idel, both of whom have published monographs on eros and kab- balah and who are two of the leading scholars in the field. Wolfson writes in his preferred style of dialectic paradoxes: “Hermeneutically, exposure is the most exposed concealment, and concealment the most concealed exposure. To attend this paradox is to ascertain that the exposed is precisely what is concealed in being exposed as what is concealed” (65). The dialectic style of Wolfson reflects his view of esotericism (and eroticism) as being continuously involved in a process of concealment and revelation. The focus of Wolfson’s article is speech and silence and its role in the erotic relationship between divine forces. Idel on the other hand takes up a particular term, ta’anug [delight or pleas- ure] and examines the significance attributed to this term by different kabba- listic authors, especially those writing about ecstatic kabbalah, and in eight- eenth century Hasidism. Claire Fanger places another medieval tradition under scrutiny, the com- mentaries on the Song of Songs. Her treatment of the concept of eros in John of Morigny’s Liber Florum Celestis is well written and highly interest- ing. Wouter Hanegraaf discusses the phenomenon of the Renaissance trattati d’amore with Marsilio Ficino’s De Amore and Giordano Bruno’s De gli eroici furori as his focal points. With these texts we arrive at what could be deemed as the heart of the sub- ject of the book—the culmination of eros and esotericism in Italian renais- sance with its neoplatonic metaphysics and cosmology and what Hanegraaff

© Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2010 Book Reviews 297 terms Ficino’s homoerotic mysticism and Bruno’s heteroerotic frenzies (204). Erotic themes are ubiquitous in alchemical imagery, and there has been much speculation as to the meaning and nature of these images. Did they solely refer to physical materials and chemical changes, or was there a more spiritual and psychological aspect connected to alchemical work? Lawrence Principe concludes that alchemical imagery was a result of the need for secrecy and the alchemist’s desire both to conceal and reveal his work. The use of gendered and erotic imagery was an easy way of transferring the chemical work into symbolic imagery. Moving from the emphasis on , in the contribution by Allison Coudert demonology comes back into focus. This time it is discussed in con- nection with women’s sexuality and witchcraft in the early modern period. The demonization of women and the sexual imagery attributed to witchcraft illumines the gender roles of the period and thus the stories tell more about the authors of those stories than being actual historical missives. According to Coudert the stereotypical image of the witch was the creation of men suf- fering from fear of the power of women. In the next chapter, Antoine Faivre discusses theosophers’ accounts of Sophi- ac encounters, particularly Johann Georg Gichtel’s “marriage” to Sophia. In Gichtel’s account, he tells of a special gnosis given to him by Sophia during intercourse and that she furthermore helped him to find appropriate houses in which to live. In addition to his article, Faivre also presents original text pieces and English translations of important sources on Sophia. Cathy Gutierrez’s article and sexuality is done in the context of the spiritualists’ abandonment of the concept of hell and their interplay with the free love movement. Arthur Versluis’s chapter is closely related to Gutierrez’s. In his work on sexual mysticism in nineteenth century America, he touches upon many of the same topics that turn up in Gutierrez’s con- tribution but with an emphasis on three distinct characters, namely John Humphrey Noyes, Thomas Lake Harris and Alice Bunker Stockham. These three represent different approaches to sexual mysticism. Noyes founded the Oneida community based upon communal marriage and the practice of male continence (coitus reservatus) that was combined with Christian doctrine. Harris built upon Swedenborgian/Böhmian theories of androgynic mysti- cism. He claimed to have spiritually married the “Lily Queen” and conse- quently lived in celibacy with his earthly wife. Stockham is not well known, but she further developed Noyes’ doctrine of practicing coitus reservatus in marriage. Her revised form of marital sexuality would lead to a reformation of the relationship between the sexes and even to a potential transformation

© Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2010 298 Book Reviews of the whole society. An essential figure in any book on esotericism and sexuality is Paschal Bev- erly Randolph and, in his contribution, John Patrick Deveney provides a good introduction to Randolph and the influence he had on later esotericists. One of the most witty contributions to the volume is Marco Pasi’s chapter on the Belgian spiritualist George Le Clément det Saint-Marcq who, in his teaching, advocated the practice of spermatophagy (literally, the eating of sperm). This practice, he claimed, was the original Eucharist and was prac- ticed in secret by the Catholic priesthood. The chapter provides a thorough overview of the life and career of Le Clément det Saint-Marcq while also discussing the central doctrines of his sexual magical system and his influ- ence on other adherents of sexual , mainly Theodor Reuss and . Theodor Reuss is also the first citation in the next article by Hugh Urban. In this chapter, Urban traces the adoption of Tantra by the esoteric group, the (O.T.O.), which was founded by Reuss. He also dis- cusses the adaptation and reinterpretation of tantric teachings and practices by Western esotericists, especially by Aleister Crowley. Hans Thomas Hakl, in his contribution, casts light on four magical groups that are practically unknown: The Fraternitas Saturni, Giuliano Kremmerz and his Fraternity of Myriam and the Ordine Osirideo Egiziano, Julius Evola and the Ur Group, and finally Maria de Naglowska and the Confrère de la Fléche d’Or. His well-researched article provides the reader with an invalu- able overview of four groups that hitherto have been almost inaccessible. The final contribution to the anthology works as the final link of the chain, bringing the reader back to Esalen where the whole project started. Jeffrey Kripal provides a good overview of the role of neo-tantrism in the doctrines and practices Esalen. The most interesting part of this chapter is the descrip- tion of the unpublished “Esalen Novel” by John Heider. Hidden Intercourse is an important and well-edited volume. It presents a perfect balance between well-known material, which is central to the study of esotericism and eros, and research on new topics and groups. The articles are well placed in the anthology and, despite their great variety, the continu- ity is never lost. The articles are generally well, and sometimes humorously, written, and are never ridiculing of the subject matter. All in all, this is a vital book for the study of Western esotericism and sexuality in Western culture.

© Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2010