Angels of Desire: Esoteric Bodies, Aesthetics and Ethics, 1st Edition (Paperback)

Esoteric Bodies, Aesthetics and Ethics, 1st Edition

By Jay Johnston

Routledge

320 pages

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Description
Contents
Author
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Subjects

Description

The idea that the human body consists of 'subtle bodies' - psycho-spiritual essences - can be found in a variety of esoteric traditions. This radical form of selfhood challenges the dualisms at the heart of Western discourse : mind/body, divine/human, matter/spirit, reason/emotion, I/other. 'Angels of Desire' explores the aesthetics and ethics of subtle bodies. What emerges is an understanding of embodiment not exclusively tied to materiality. The book examines the use of subtle bodies across a range of traditions, yogic, tantric, theosophical, hermetic and sufi. 'Angels of Desire' shows the relevance of the subtle body for religion, philosophy, art history and contemporary feminist religious studies and theories of desire.

Introduction Section I: Subjectivity Chapter 1: Subtle Bodies Chapter 2: Difference Chapter 3: Subtle Subjects of Desire Section II: Aesthetics Chapter 4: "Seering" Desire: The Between Chapter 5: Inhabiting Sight Chapter 6: Duree: the Aesthetics of Desire-Time Section III: Ethics Chapter 7: An Ethics of Emptiness Chapter 8: Witnessing: Detached Immersion Chapter 9: An Ethics of Grace: The Law of Desiring Angels Conclusion: The Angelic Ternary

About the Author

Jay Johnston is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Studies in Religion at the University of Sydney, Australia.

About the Series

Gnostica

Gnostica publishes the latest scholarship on esoteric movements, including the Gnostic, Hermetic, Manichaean, Theosophical and related traditions. Contributions also include critical editions of texts, historical case studies, critical analyses, cross-cultural comparisons and state-of-the-art surveys.

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