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Gnosis: An Esoteric Tradition or Mystical Visions and Unions. Dan Merkur, Albany, State University of New York Press, 1993. 387 pp. $59.50, $19.95 (pb).
This is not a book about Gnosticism but about the kinds of knowledge (gnosis) that derive from mystical unions and ecstatic visions. It is not comprehensive but treats only Western Gnosticism, Jewish Merkabah mysticism, Islamic mysticism, medieval Christian mysticism, Renaissance spiritualistic alchemy, and the tenuous bridges between them. (Did I say "only"?]) What makes it so fascinating...