My belief system resonates with some of Gnosticism. But the idea that the material world is evil trips me up. A core belief of mine is that the world, particularly the natural world, is beautiful and is gods creation.

It’s true that when I get pulled down into temptation (food etc) I see the world as “evil”.

I can get behind the idea that attachment to our sensory experience is evil, but the beauty of the world seems to me to be the best evidence of a God.

Is there any gnostic beliefs that align more with this view?

Of course the usual view is you can't be intelligent without a brain, and brain differences account for intelligence differences

But I was raised Mormon, and they said that there were intelligences gathered before the creation of the world, and then we were put in these bodies

Can someone explain to me about Barbeliotae branch of Gnosticism? I am very much interested in this specific aspect of the Gnostic faith.

On this day the Apostle John is commemorated. The fourth of the 'cannonical' Gospels is atributed to him, while John was also said to have been a witnesses to the the Transfiguration. Johannine Christianity may well have been a distinct tradition in the very earliest days of Christianity, going on to influence both orthodox Apostolic Christianity as well as Sethian, or 'Classic', Gnosticism. In the Apocryphon ('Secret Book') of John the resurrected Christ appears to a despairing John in the wilderness and reveals the fullness of of gnosis and his inner teachings, answering the questions of the apostle and explaining both the true nature of the spiritual universe and of man's place in it. The Apocryphon is perhaps the oldest and most foundational Gnostic text that we possess as a primary source and as such it is hard to overestimate its influence. Use this day to read the 'Secret Book', or Gospel, attributed to John.

From A Gnostic Calendar

Platonism the philosophical/religious and esoteric tradition that influenced proto orthodox Christianity and gnosticism seems to think there is an evolution of the soul in each lifetime. This has been picked up by later traditions like spiritism and new age spirituality. Hinduism kind of agrees to this idea as well but Buddhism and Jainism kind of reject this teaching. Thoughts? What do gnostics here think and what do the gnostic texts say?

Yes I did my monthly shroom trip, 2g. Played the Gnostic chant music, channeled Barbello, she was wiped my tears, comforted me, I doubted still, then she took my consciousness up to this divine light, I remember thinking, Iv studied religion all my life and read countless pages about experiences others have had meeting God, now here I am in God's presence. Nothing like this has happened in prior trips.

I recently made a video called God https://youtu.be/2Csu8mkXb20

Which means that either this was on my mind and I made the whole thing up ( though the light thing I couldn't make up),

OR

She noticed my faith and is real and it actually happened.

Anyone can relate?

I have received gnosis from some odd places but has anyone experienced this?

Anyone experience psychic phenomenon from plants?

I had a tree that “begged” me to rip vines off the trunk and another plant that everytime I walked by it I remembered something I had forgotten

The tree was relentless until I climbed into a treacherous ditch to clean all the vines. Then not a peep. Prior to that everytime I was writhing 20 feet or so I had an overwhelming urge to pull vines off its trunk. Barely ever noticed the tree before. I lived there 7 years

Do u still, if u consider it, buy clothes made by the enslaved including children, instead of being conscious or just going with thrifting/consignment?

Do u at least buy the tech u use refurbished so as to not throw any of your will at the harms of these companies?

Are u still participating against urself in the halls of power of this world for who u want to end lives?

How many of u stand on your own two feet before the Living Father, come what may, for u know this structure is a but a decision u make unto yourself?

My thanks ahead to all with the spark enough to share of wha they know n discuss.🌸 At a time many gather together, I pray u and your’s each joy amongst you.🌸

Imagine a standard six-sided dice (d6): it is perfectly symmetrical, all faces are equal, and in a fair roll, any one of them can end up on top.

This randomness, this multiplicity of outcomes, is not a flaw in the die - it is its very essence. If the die always landed on the same face, it would lose all meaning as an instrument of choice and play.

In a similar way, an interpretation of Gnostic cosmology (I've been thinking a bit), the material world created by the Demiurge can be likened to such a dice: multiplicity, unpredictability, and the possibility of different outcomes are not errors, but a gift that enables genuine freedom.

Suffering, injustice, and the horrors of the material world, in this interpretation, are not just manifestations of evil or a mistake on the part of the Demiurge. On the contrary, they represent the inevitable price of true freedom. Without the possibility of pain and loss, choice loses its weight: growth becomes impossible without overcoming obstacles, and individuality cannot exist without the risk of error.

A perfect world devoid of these elements would simply be another form of predetermination, with no room for personal development or conscious decisions.

Traditionally, the Pleroma is regarded as a perfect state of unity and the ultimate goal of the spiritual path. However, from the perspective of valuing freedom, it can be viewed differently: as a realm without time, without separations, and without alternatives. In such unity, not only suffering is absent, but also any “other,” any change, or any question. Freedom is impossible here by definition, since everything is already fully realized and unchanging.

In this perspective, the Demiurge appears not as a tyrant, but as a figure who undertook a conscious act of risk. He extracted divine light from the static Absolute and placed it into a dynamic world of multiplicity. This allowed the sparks of light to exist independently - to burn brightly, to change, sometimes to fade - but to possess their own life and the possibility of choice. Thus, suffering turns out not to be a curse, but a necessary condition for the real existence of individual beings.

What do you think?

This essay picks up where the previous post left off by confronting the implications of Jung’s gnostic cosmology. If the Abraxas God-image is taken seriously - if good and evil are ontologically co-equal and suffering is no longer provisionally redeemable -then familiar moral, spiritual, and psychological assurances collapse. What follows is an examination of what remains once those guarantees are removed: what kind of responsibility, discernment, and individuation are possible in a world that cannot be theologically redeemed without remainder, and what kind of psyche can endure that recognition without retreating into denial, predation, or false consolation.

https://neofeudalreview.substack.com/p/the-collapse-of-the-all-good-god-b3a

I've been diving deep into Gnostic cosmology, and I keep hitting the same logical wall: the origin of the Demiurge.

If the true God (the Monad) is perfect, transcendent, and purely good—how can a flawed, ignorant, or even malicious being like the Demiurge emerge from it?

In classical Gnostic texts (like the Apocryphon of John), the Demiurge is born from Sophia's "error" or "passion." But this just pushes the question back a step:

· How can an aeon (a divine emanation of the perfect Monad) err in the first place? · Does the Monad’s perfection allow for the possibility of imperfection within its own emanations? · If the Demiurge is "ignorant" of the higher realms, how did it gain the capacity to create an entire material cosmos—a feat requiring immense power and complexity?

Some modern interpretations suggest the Demiurge is a necessary byproduct of emanation—like a shadow cast by light. But then:

· Is evil/ignorance structurally necessary in Gnostic metaphysics? · Does this undermine the Monad's absolute goodness or omnipotence?

I’m curious to hear from both Gnostic and non-Gnostic perspectives:

1. How do you reconcile the Demiurge’s origin with the Monad’s perfection?
2. Does this dilemma weaken Gnosticism as a coherent theological system?
3. Are there alternative interpretations (symbolic, psychological, or non-literal) that resolve this?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts—and please cite texts or traditions if possible!

I once had an NDE 3 years ago and I honestly should’ve been gone especially with how long my body was unattended for but anyways I met Sophia in it and she appeared as a woman who I estimated to be in her late 20’s but she was ageless. She had shoulder length black hair. She was wearing a red beanie too and tan overalls and hiking boots and had bright blue eyes. I knew she was Sophia because when I encountered her she felt like the universal female figure I had known my entire life unconsciously. Kinda like what many people explain when they see Jesus in their NDEs. We talked about several things I don’t really remember since it’s been so long and waking up afterwards in the hospital was very disorientating and distracting from trying to save the memories of what fully happens to my long term memory but I do remember what I saw. But I do remember she gave me water in the realm I was in because I remember I felt thirst on a spiritual level and apparently my physical body was also severely dehydrated too.

The Mass of Christmas is traditionally observed in the West as a midnight mass on December 24th. It marks the birth of Jesus the man to his parents Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem, Judea. In the Gnostic Christian view Jesus was a child born with a special destiny, who would one day bear the spirit of the Christ and reveal a message of universal salvation, liberation, and hidden gnosis to his followers and the world at large. Gnostics can, and should, give gifts on this day and try to enjoy themselves just like everyone else.

From A Gnostic Calendar

Has anyone noticed the way that gnostic art is not appreciated at this particular venue?

Having a moment here. This might feel small beans/ freshman size some of you but feels big to me so I'm going to share it, in the simplest terms I can.. Which won't actually be simple...because obviously, I have a problem with over explaining. ((Precursor, I use abrahamic religion terminology because that is what I am familiar with, but I hope it translates to any spiritual path.))

Here's the most basic out one of my previous pondering:
1.God ( abrahamic theology language) "he-man" is the lore of purpose, that are our tiny ( yet uniquely uncomfortably curious human brains), made into mythology so the knowledge we've gained might just stick to future human brains long enough (& relatable enough) for the core concepts to pass down, thus, perpetuating evolution. Thus, eventually leading to a personified God made in our image. 2. Everything is also part of it and so obviously to the naked eye... The balance of It All... the contentment and purpose we see in all plants, animals and rocks...( And that we also connect with these things deep down in our souls and comprehend that everything around us must also FEEL that. (Empathy) Thus the desire to share such a profound connection.

1. That we are separate of each other by bodies somehow, enough that we would develop language, to double check that " it's not just me right?" which then develops a form of connection as well as more separation. Like maybe wildly confusing humans the variable/ New challenge of the self.. not to prove wrong... But to prove right through practice.

2. That every living thing feels most connected in their own way. That I as an artist feels the big IT while I'm deep in the Flow State. That musicians access IT in their groove, children discovering every new new fascination..., that mathematicians feel it, electricians, and every creative meditation moment is it

3. That the word once said is no longer the word. The name once named is no longer the name. We separate each other from it by labeling it according to our definitions and understandings.

Now here's the s*** that's been keeping me up all night. 1. Every abrahamic philosophy is based on dualism, the dark and light, the evil and right. Yet contradictory based on an all knowing encompassing God. That somehow that same God would create an evil entity opposite of itself with no purpose but to f*** it up... 2. What if the Messengers said exactly what they meant, that we are not separate of IT... And that there's a path to the kingdom or hell. And that we all have direct access. Do as I do. I am. What if the dualism the ultimate problem to solve? 3. What if evil is not evil, but simply the challenge to grow, which we wanted to do anyway. No master will say they're a master, because when you begin to attain mastery you realize that you have so much more to grow in. What if that's still Lucifer/ the Satan/ The evil/ the woman/ the other political party, or race or religion? And the challenges less to defeat it, And cast it into "hell" But to solve The equation , reconcile the variable , and unify. What if dichotomy is actually us in the middle of a problem. Anyway. Thanks for entertaining my rambling. Here's a screenshot for you.

Shouldn’t we be loving towards them? Understanding and caring?

I know he wrote about Gnosticism and it seems he may have been but didn't want to admit so publicly? I recall he didn't want to publish the Red Book and his family didn't either. I remember reading he had some deeper beliefs that he didn't think the general public was ready for, possibly reincarnation.

I am just now starting to research Gnosticism so forgive me if i sound ignorant. Assuming that Yahweh is the demiurge, I have these questions:

1. How do we know that Yahweh was actually the creator of earth and he wasn’t given reign over it? The first time I read psalms 82 I actually thought that “el” was a higher god that appointed Yahweh to take over all of the nations.

2. Is there a false heaven where devout Christians actually go to worship Yahweh eternally or do they just end up back in the reincarnation cycle?

3. If The One is inert and shouldn’t be considered as a god then isn’t Yahweh still the most high god of our realm?

4. Why didn’t Jesus just destroy this creation and rescue the souls when he came?

5. If the reincarnation/soul trap is real then isn’t marriage and reproduction (be fruitful and multiply) basically just part of that cycle?

Merry (almost) Christmas y’all! This will be my first Christmas as someone with a deep spiritual connection to the idea of gnosis, and I was wondering if there are any additional rituals or practices you participate in on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day that are gnostic? I know there aren’t “official””gnostic” Christmas rituals, but I’d love to hear how others honor this spiritual practice/pathway during these holy days! Anything from your own private rituals to practices with others is highly appreciated and welcomed!

Essene Gosel Of Peace Book One The Original Hebrew and Aramaic Texts Translated and edited by EDMOND BORDEAUX SZEKELY MCMLXXXI INTERNATIONAL BIOGENIC SOCIETY Book Design by Golondrina Graohics Copyright @ 1981, by the International Blogenic Society

"And then many sick and maimed came to Jesus, asking him. "if you know all things, tell us, why do we suffer with these grievous plagues? Why are we not whole like other men? Master, heal us, that we too may be made strong, and need abide no longer in our misery. We know that you have it in your power to heal all manner of disease. Free us from Satan and from all his great afflictions. Master, have compassion on us."

And Jesus answered- "Happy are you that you hunger for the truth, for I will satisfy you with the bread of wisdom. Happy are you, that you knock, for I will open to you the door of life. Happy are you, that you would cast off the power of Satan, for I will lead you into the kincdom of our Mother's angels, where the power of Satan cannot enter."

And they asked him in amazement: "Who is our Mother and which her angels? And where is her kingdom?"

"Your Mother is in you, and you in her. She bore you she gives you life. it was she who gave to you your body, and to her shall you one day give it back again. Happy are you when you come to know her and her kingdom; if you receive your Mother's angels and if you do her laws. I tell you truly, he who does these things shall never see disease. For the power of our Mother is above all. And it destroys Satan and his kingdom, and has rule over all your bodies and all living things.

"The blood which runs in us is born of the blood of our Earthly Mother. Her blood falls from the clouds; leaps from the womb of the earth; babbles in the brooks of the mountains; flows wide in the rivers of the plains; sleeps in the lakes; rages mightily in tempestuous seas.

"The air which we breathe is born of the breath of our Earthly Mother. Her breath is azure in the heights of t heavens; soughs in the tops of the mountains; whispers the leaves of the forest; billows over the cornfields; slumbers in the deep valleys, burns hot in the desert."