Esotericism’s Expanding Horizon: Why This Book Came to Be

Abstract

The academic study of esotericism is currently undergoing a phase of expansion and diversification. This is true whether we look at the topics, geographical regions, and subject languages of new research projects in the field, at the disciplines involved in its study, or the demographic composition of its scholars. The past decade has seen monographs, anthologies, and journal special issues on topics such as African-American esotericism (Finley, Guillory and

The past and future of the study of Islamic esotericism

“…96 The volume rejects the view that esotericism is a particularly "Western" undertaking consisting of religious, philosophical, and ritual traditions that go back to Mediterranean antiquity. 97 The editors Egil Asprem and Julian Strube draw attention to the "cultural essentialism that sneaks in with the term 'Western'" which has sanitized the established longue durée narratives from any reference to colonialism and colonial exchanges. They highlight the importance of engaging with "scholars have been able to produce great work on 'esoteric' subjects without the concept of 'Western esotericism'."…”

“…They highlight the importance of engaging with "scholars have been able to produce great work on 'esoteric' subjects without the concept of 'Western esotericism'." 98 Based on the premise that "West" and "East" are ever-shifting constructs based primarily on political, cultural, and economic aspirations of different groups at specific periods of time, my contribution to the volume outlines the way "Western esotericism" has neatly followed the European trajectory of modernity and appealed to Europeanist civilizational narratives that begin in ancient Greece and the decline narrative. 99 In the case of Islam, as Feras Hamza warns, inferring the meaning of Islamic terms from the field of Western esotericism risks ignoring political and cultural specifics.…”