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The library

The Collective Press Lycaeum

The scholarly wing of the house: research on the tradition and its transmission, and the public-domain originals every claim walks back to. Every work in the catalogue is marked as taught, as the tradition tells it, or a narrative; every original names its edition and its rights.

42 works · 284 issues · 22071 pages · 57 with facing English

Begin with

La Iniciación, Nº 1May 1942, Montevideo: the first number of the monthly at the heart of this archive — the Spanish beside our English, with fifty-eight notes on its twenty-five pages.Open the reader →Balzac, SéraphîtaBalzac’s strangest novel: a seer who is neither man nor woman, on a Norwegian fjord. The French faces our English page by page.Open the reader →Boehme, AuroraThe first book of a shoemaker from Görlitz, written in 1612 and read by mystics ever since — in John Sparrow’s seventeenth-century English.Open the reader →The Emerald TabletThe shortest text in the library, and one of the most quoted: the alchemists’ founding statement, read in a few minutes.Open the reader →

The reading room

The works, oldest text first.

Every issue we hold opens in the reader: the original on one side and, where it is not already in English, our translation on the other, with the commentary beneath the page you are on. Every passage withheld says so in place.

284 issues · 22071 pages · 2025 commentary notes

The source library

The sources themselves.

The Lycaeum stands on public-domain ground: the Sacred Books of the East, the classical philosophers, the yogic and alchemical manuals. Each tradition below opens onto its sources, and nearly every document is preserved in our own archive — reading never depends on an external site. For the reading sequence built on these roots, wander the Mysterious Thread.

90 sources across 13 tradition families · 142 original documents, 140 preserved in our archive, 135 of them readable here in full

One map of the lineage

The concepts of the house on the left; the sources, by tradition, to the right. Every thread is a recorded lineage claim. Choose a source to drop to its place in the source library below.

The map runs wider than a phone — drag it sideways, or read the same sources as a list in the source library below.

Color / Frequency / Chakra Co…Color / Frequency / Chakra Correspondence System — 5 lineage threadsThe 12 Consciousness Steps (o…The 12 Consciousness Steps (overall 12-fold ascent) — 5 lineage threadsConscious Nourishment / Nutri…Conscious Nourishment / Nutrition — 4 lineage threadsEffortless Action / SahajaEffortless Action / Sahaja — 4 lineage threadsMotif 7 — The PatternMotif 7 — The Pattern — 4 lineage threadsReintegration / Return to the…Reintegration / Return to the One — 4 lineage threadsBreath / PranayamaBreath / Pranayama — 3 lineage threadsMotif 1 — Triadic AnthropologyMotif 1 — Triadic Anthropology — 3 lineage threadsMotif 2 — ReintegrationMotif 2 — Reintegration — 3 lineage threadsMotif 4 — Objective LightMotif 4 — Objective Light — 3 lineage threadsObjective LightObjective Light — 3 lineage threadsPillar — MeditationPillar — Meditation — 3 lineage threadsThree Constitutional Types (t…Three Constitutional Types (triadic system) — 3 lineage threadsTriad 4 — Integration / Sahaj…Triad 4 — Integration / Sahaja (Steps 10–12) — 3 lineage threadsMotif 3 — EmbodimentMotif 3 — Embodiment — 2 lineage threadsMotif 5 — Transmission-Under-…Motif 5 — Transmission-Under-Concealment — 2 lineage threadsPillar — MovementPillar — Movement — 2 lineage threadsPillar — StudyPillar — Study — 2 lineage threadsTriad 1 — Foundation (Steps 1…Triad 1 — Foundation (Steps 1–3) — 2 lineage threadsTriad 2 — Crystallization (St…Triad 2 — Crystallization (Steps 4–6) — 2 lineage threadsTriad 3 — Transcendental (Ste…Triad 3 — Transcendental (Steps 7–9) — 2 lineage threadsConstitutional Type — Electri…Constitutional Type — Electric (Vata) — 1 lineage threadConstitutional Type — Magneti…Constitutional Type — Magnetic (Kapha) — 1 lineage threadConstitutional Type — Neutral…Constitutional Type — Neutral (Pitta) — 1 lineage threadHermetic "as above, so below"…Hermetic "as above, so below" correspondence — 1 lineage threadThe treatise's Kabbalistic st…The treatise's Kabbalistic streams — 1 lineage threadTetrabiblos as the foundation…Tetrabiblos as the foundation of Western astrology — 1 lineage threadPlatonic planetary–soul cosmo…Platonic planetary–soul cosmology (Timaeus) — 1 lineage threadAntecedent South American Mar…Antecedent South American Martinist currents — 1 lineage threadLéo Costet's Martinist milieuLéo Costet's Martinist milieu — 1 lineage thread"As above, so below" — the He…"As above, so below" — the Hermetic correspondence thesis — 1 lineage threadThe Taoist three treasures (j…The Taoist three treasures (jing–qi–shen) — 1 lineage threadThe Shekhinah as feminine ind…The Shekhinah as feminine indwelling — 1 lineage threadThe Sophia / divine feminine …The Sophia / divine feminine in Boehme — 1 lineage threadThe inherited Martinist trans…The inherited Martinist transmission — 1 lineage threadThe Nasreddin trickster-teach…The Nasreddin trickster-teacher motif — 1 lineage thread"Integral Yoga" as a shared m…"Integral Yoga" as a shared modern current — 1 lineage threadThe Costet de Mascheville fam…The Costet de Mascheville family in South American Martinism — 1 lineage threadEranos and the Bardo Thödol (…Eranos and the Bardo Thödol (Jung's commentary) — 1 lineage threadEranos and academic Kabbalah …Eranos and academic Kabbalah (Scholem) — 1 lineage threadEranos and Islamic mysticism …Eranos and Islamic mysticism (Corbin, Ibn Arabi) — 1 lineage threadEranos and the I Ching (Jung'…Eranos and the I Ching (Jung's foreword to Wilhelm) — 1 lineage threadPillar — Breathwork / Pranaya…Pillar — Breathwork / Pranayama — 1 lineage threadHinduHindu — 29 sourcesCharaka SamhitaCharaka Samhita (Ayurveda) — Hindu / AyurvedaHatha Yoga PradipikaHatha Yoga Pradipika (trans. Pancham Sinh, 1915) — Hindu / Hatha YogaHymns of the Atharva-VedaHymns of the Atharva-Veda (SBE Vol. 42) — Hindu / Vedic (Atharva-Veda)Nath / Sahajiya traditionNath / Sahajiya tradition (sahaja doctrine) — Indian tantric yogaSacred Laws of the Aryas, Part ISacred Laws of the Aryas, Part I (SBE Vol. 2) — Hindu / DharmasastraSacred Laws of the Aryas, Part …Sacred Laws of the Aryas, Part II (SBE Vol. 14) — Hindu / DharmasastraSamkhya Karika of IshvarakrishnaSamkhya Karika of Ishvarakrishna — Hindu / SamkhyaSatapatha-Brahmana, Part I — Bo…Satapatha-Brahmana, Part I — Books I–II (SBE Vol. 12) — Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)Satapatha-Brahmana, Part II — B…Satapatha-Brahmana, Part II — Books III–IV (SBE Vol. 26) — Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)Satapatha-Brahmana, Part III — …Satapatha-Brahmana, Part III — Books V–VII (SBE Vol. 41) — Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)Satapatha-Brahmana, Part IV — B…Satapatha-Brahmana, Part IV — Books VIII–X (SBE Vol. 43) — Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)Satapatha-Brahmana, Part V — Bo…Satapatha-Brahmana, Part V — Books XI–XIV (SBE Vol. 44) — Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)Sushruta SamhitaSushruta Samhita (Ayurveda) — Hindu / AyurvedaThe Bhagavadgita, with Sanatsug…The Bhagavadgita, with Sanatsugatiya & Anugita (SBE Vol. 8) — Hindu / Vedanta (Smriti)The Grihya-Sutras, Part IThe Grihya-Sutras, Part I (SBE Vol. 29) — Hindu / Vedic (Sutra)The Grihya-Sutras, Part IIThe Grihya-Sutras, Part II (SBE Vol. 30) — Hindu / Vedic (Sutra)The Institutes of VishnuThe Institutes of Vishnu (SBE Vol. 7) — Hindu / DharmasastraThe Laws of ManuThe Laws of Manu (SBE Vol. 25) — Hindu / DharmasastraThe Minor Law-Books, Part I — N…The Minor Law-Books, Part I — Narada & Brihaspati (SBE Vol. 33) — Hindu / DharmasastraThe Serpent Power / Sat-Chakra-…The Serpent Power / Sat-Chakra-Nirupana (trans. Arthur Avalon, 1919) — Hindu / TantraThe Upanishads, Part IThe Upanishads, Part I (SBE Vol. 1) — Hindu / Vedanta (Sruti)The Upanishads, Part IIThe Upanishads, Part II (SBE Vol. 15) — Hindu / Vedanta (Sruti)The Vedanta-Sutras, Part I — Sa…The Vedanta-Sutras, Part I — Sankara (SBE Vol. 34) — Hindu / Advaita VedantaThe Vedanta-Sutras, Part II — S…The Vedanta-Sutras, Part II — Sankara (SBE Vol. 38) — Hindu / Advaita VedantaThe Vedanta-Sutras, Part III — …The Vedanta-Sutras, Part III — Ramanuja's Sribhashya (SBE Vol. 48) — Hindu / Vishishtadvaita VedantaVedantaVedanta (Upanishadic & Advaita of Shankara) — Hindu / Advaita VedantaVedic Hymns, Part I — Maruts, R…Vedic Hymns, Part I — Maruts, Rudra, Vayu, Vata (SBE Vol. 32) — Hindu / Vedic (Rig-Veda)Vedic Hymns, Part II — Hymns to…Vedic Hymns, Part II — Hymns to Agni (SBE Vol. 46) — Hindu / Vedic (Rig-Veda)Yoga-Sutras of PatanjaliYoga-Sutras of Patanjali (Vivekananda 1896 / Woods 1914) — Hindu / Yoga (Patanjala Darsana)BuddhistBuddhist — 13 sourcesBardo ThödolBardo Thödol (Tibetan Book of the Dead) — Tibetan BuddhismBuddhist Mahayana TextsBuddhist Mahayana Texts (SBE Vol. 49) — Buddhist / Mahayana (Sanskrit)Buddhist SuttasBuddhist Suttas (SBE Vol. 11) — Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)DzogchenDzogchen (Great Perfection, Nyingma) — Tibetan BuddhismFo-sho-hing-tsan-king — Life of…Fo-sho-hing-tsan-king — Life of Buddha by Asvaghosha (SBE Vol. 19) — Buddhist / Mahayana (Chinese recension)MadhyamakaMadhyamaka (Nagarjuna) — Buddhist / MadhyamakaThe Dhammapada & Sutta-NipataThe Dhammapada & Sutta-Nipata (SBE Vol. 10) — Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)The Questions of King Milinda, …The Questions of King Milinda, Part I (SBE Vol. 35) — Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)The Questions of King Milinda, …The Questions of King Milinda, Part II (SBE Vol. 36) — Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)The Saddharma-PundarikaThe Saddharma-Pundarika (Lotus Sutra) (SBE Vol. 21) — Buddhist / MahayanaVinaya Texts, Part I — Patimokk…Vinaya Texts, Part I — Patimokkha & Mahavagga I–IV (SBE Vol. 13) — Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)Vinaya Texts, Part IIVinaya Texts, Part II (SBE Vol. 17) — Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)Vinaya Texts, Part III — Kullav…Vinaya Texts, Part III — Kullavagga IV–XII (SBE Vol. 20) — Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)Greek & HellenisticGreek & Hellenistic — 12 sourcesAristotleAristotle — Classical Greek philosophyClaudius Ptolemy — TetrabiblosClaudius Ptolemy — Tetrabiblos (Ashmand trans., 1822) — Hellenistic astrologyEmpedoclesEmpedocles — Presocratic GreekHeraclitusHeraclitus — Presocratic GreekHermeticismHermeticism (Corpus Hermeticum, Emerald Tablet) — Greco-Egyptian esotericismIamblichus — Life of PythagorasIamblichus — Life of Pythagoras — Neoplatonic / PythagoreanParmenidesParmenides — Presocratic GreekPlatoPlato — Classical Greek philosophyPlotinusPlotinus — NeoplatonismProclusProclus — NeoplatonismPythagorasPythagoras — Presocratic GreekWestern alchemy — the Magnum Op…Western alchemy — the Magnum Opus colour stages — Hellenistic→early-modern EuropeModern currentsModern currents — 8 sourcesAlfred North WhiteheadAlfred North Whitehead — Process philosophyGoethe — Theory of ColoursGoethe — Theory of Colours (1810) — Modern colour theoryHegelian–Marxist dialecticHegelian–Marxist dialectic — Modern Western philosophyHenri BergsonHenri Bergson — Modern philosophyMaurice Merleau-PontyMaurice Merleau-Ponty — Modern phenomenologyPierre Teilhard de ChardinPierre Teilhard de Chardin — Modern process/evolutionary theologySri AurobindoSri Aurobindo — Modern Integral Yoga (India)William JamesWilliam James — Modern philosophy/psychology of religionZoroastrianZoroastrian — 8 sourcesPahlavi Texts, Part IPahlavi Texts, Part I (SBE Vol. 5) — Zoroastrian / Middle PersianPahlavi Texts, Part IIPahlavi Texts, Part II (SBE Vol. 18) — Zoroastrian / Middle PersianPahlavi Texts, Part IIIPahlavi Texts, Part III (SBE Vol. 24) — Zoroastrian / Middle PersianPahlavi Texts, Part IV — Dinkar…Pahlavi Texts, Part IV — Dinkard VIII–IX (SBE Vol. 37) — Zoroastrian / Middle PersianPahlavi Texts, Part V — Dinkard…Pahlavi Texts, Part V — Dinkard VII & Zad-sparam (SBE Vol. 47) — Zoroastrian / Middle PersianThe Zend-Avesta, Part I — Vendi…The Zend-Avesta, Part I — Vendidad (SBE Vol. 4) — Zoroastrian / MazdeanThe Zend-Avesta, Part II — Yast…The Zend-Avesta, Part II — Yasts & Nyayis (SBE Vol. 23) — Zoroastrian / MazdeanThe Zend-Avesta, Part III — Yas…The Zend-Avesta, Part III — Yasna & Gathas (SBE Vol. 31) — Zoroastrian / MazdeanChineseChinese — 7 sourcesTaoism — Laozi & ZhuangziTaoism — Laozi & Zhuangzi — Chinese / TaoistTexts of Confucianism, Part ITexts of Confucianism, Part I (SBE Vol. 3) — Chinese / ConfucianTexts of Confucianism, Part II …Texts of Confucianism, Part II — The Yi King (I Ching) (SBE Vol. 16) — Chinese / Confucian–YijingTexts of Confucianism, Part III…Texts of Confucianism, Part III — Li Ki I–X (SBE Vol. 27) — Chinese / ConfucianTexts of Confucianism, Part IV …Texts of Confucianism, Part IV — Li Ki XI–XLVI (SBE Vol. 28) — Chinese / ConfucianTexts of Taoism, Part I — Tao T…Texts of Taoism, Part I — Tao Teh King & Kwang-tze I–XVII (SBE Vol. 39) — Chinese / TaoistTexts of Taoism, Part II — Kwan…Texts of Taoism, Part II — Kwang-tze XVIII–XXXIII (SBE Vol. 40) — Chinese / TaoistChristianChristian — 3 sourcesJakob BoehmeJakob Boehme — Christian theosophyMeister EckhartMeister Eckhart — Christian mysticismPseudo-Dionysius the AreopagitePseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite — Christian apophatic theologyIslamicIslamic — 3 sourcesSufismSufism (Junayd, Ghazali, Ibn Arabi, Rumi) — Islamic mysticismThe Qur'an, Part I — Suras I–XVIThe Qur'an, Part I — Suras I–XVI (SBE Vol. 6) — IslamicThe Qur'an, Part II — Suras XVI…The Qur'an, Part II — Suras XVII–CXIV (SBE Vol. 9) — IslamicJainJain — 2 sourcesJaina Sutras, Part I — Akaranga…Jaina Sutras, Part I — Akaranga & Kalpa Sutra (SBE Vol. 22) — Jain / SvetambaraJaina Sutras, Part II — Uttarad…Jaina Sutras, Part II — Uttaradhyayana & Sutrakritanga (SBE Vol. 45) — Jain / SvetambaraMusic theoryMusic theory — 2 sourcesBoethius — De institutione musi…Boethius — De institutione musica (musica universalis) — Late-antique / medieval music theoryGuido of Arezzo — 'Ut queant la…Guido of Arezzo — 'Ut queant laxis' (solfège hexachord) — Medieval music theoryComparative apparatusComparative apparatus — 1 sourceGeneral Index to the 49 Volumes…General Index to the 49 Volumes of the SBE (SBE Vol. 50) — Comparative / scholarly apparatusJewishJewish — 1 sourceJewish KabbalahJewish Kabbalah (Sefer Yetzirah, Zohar, Lurianic) — Jewish esotericismWestern esoteric curr…Western esoteric currents — 1 sourceMartinez de PasquallyMartinez de Pasqually — Martinism / Élus Coëns
Hindu29 sources · 44 documents
The Vedanta-Sutras, Part I — Sankara (SBE Vol. 34)Hindu / Advaita VedantaSutras c. 200 CE, Sankara c. 8th c.; SBE 1890
The Vedanta-Sutras, Part II — Sankara (SBE Vol. 38)Hindu / Advaita VedantaSutras c. 200 CE, Sankara c. 8th c.; SBE 1896
Vedanta (Upanishadic & Advaita of Shankara)Hindu / Advaita VedantaUpanishads c. 800–400 BCE; Shankara c. 700 CE
  • The Upanishads, Part I — trans. F. Max Muller (Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 1)Read in full — our archive →from Sacred Texts
  • The Upanishads, Part II — Katha, Mundaka, Taittiriya, Brihadaranyaka, Svetasvatara, Prasna & Maitrayana, trans. F. Max Muller (SBE Vol. 15)Read in full — our archive →from Sacred Texts
Charaka Samhita (Ayurveda)Hindu / Ayurvedac. 2nd c. BCE–2nd c. CE
Sushruta Samhita (Ayurveda)Hindu / Ayurvedac. 1st millennium BCE–early CE

Read in the reader — The Sushruta Samhita →

Sacred Laws of the Aryas, Part I (SBE Vol. 2)Hindu / Dharmasastrac. 600–300 BCE; SBE 1879
Sacred Laws of the Aryas, Part II (SBE Vol. 14)Hindu / Dharmasastrac. 600–300 BCE; SBE 1882
The Institutes of Vishnu (SBE Vol. 7)Hindu / Dharmasastrac. 100 BCE–300 CE; SBE 1880
The Laws of Manu (SBE Vol. 25)Hindu / Dharmasastrac. 200 BCE–200 CE; SBE 1886
The Minor Law-Books, Part I — Narada & Brihaspati (SBE Vol. 33)Hindu / Dharmasastrac. 100–600 CE; SBE 1889
Hatha Yoga Pradipika (trans. Pancham Sinh, 1915)Hindu / Hatha Yogac. 15th c. CE; PD translation 1915
  • The Hatha Yoga Pradipika (trans. Pancham Sinh, 1915)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā — trans. Pancham Sinh (1915)cited from Sacred Texts
  • The Hathayogapradipika of Svatmarama (trans. Pancham Sinh, 1915) page scansRead in full — in the Lycaeum →The Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā — trans. Pancham Sinh (1915)cited from the Internet Archive
Samkhya Karika of IshvarakrishnaHindu / Samkhyac. 4th c. CE (school c. 4th c. BCE–4th c. CE)

Read in the reader — The Samkhya Karika, 2 issues →

  • The Samkhya Karika of Isvara Krishna, with the Commentary of Gaudapada (page scans + full text)Read in full — our archive · 3 pages →from the Internet Archive
  • The Sankhya Karika and the Bhashya, or Commentary of Gaudapada (Colebrooke & Wilson)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Sānkhya Kārikā, with the Bhāshya of Gauḍapāda — trans. H. T. Colebrooke and H. H. Wilson (1837)cited from the Internet Archive
The Serpent Power / Sat-Chakra-Nirupana (trans. Arthur Avalon, 1919)Hindu / Tantrasource c. 16th c. CE; PD translation 1919
  • The Serpent Power — being the Sat-Chakra-Nirupana and Paduka-Panchaka, trans. Arthur Avalon (1919)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Serpent Power — Arthur Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe) (1924)cited from the Internet Archive
  • The Serpent Power, Arthur Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe) — scanned editionRead in full — in the Lycaeum →The Serpent Power — Arthur Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe) (1924)cited from the Internet Archive
The Bhagavadgita, with Sanatsugatiya & Anugita (SBE Vol. 8)Hindu / Vedanta (Smriti)c. 200 BCE–200 CE; SBE 1882
The Upanishads, Part I (SBE Vol. 1)Hindu / Vedanta (Sruti)c. 800–400 BCE; SBE 1879
The Upanishads, Part II (SBE Vol. 15)Hindu / Vedanta (Sruti)c. 800–300 BCE; SBE 1884
Hymns of the Atharva-Veda (SBE Vol. 42)Hindu / Vedic (Atharva-Veda)c. 1200–1000 BCE; SBE 1897
Satapatha-Brahmana, Part I — Books I–II (SBE Vol. 12)Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)c. 800–600 BCE; SBE 1882
Satapatha-Brahmana, Part II — Books III–IV (SBE Vol. 26)Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)c. 800–600 BCE; SBE 1885
Satapatha-Brahmana, Part III — Books V–VII (SBE Vol. 41)Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)c. 800–600 BCE; SBE 1894
Satapatha-Brahmana, Part IV — Books VIII–X (SBE Vol. 43)Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)c. 800–600 BCE; SBE 1897
Satapatha-Brahmana, Part V — Books XI–XIV (SBE Vol. 44)Hindu / Vedic (Brahmana)c. 800–600 BCE; SBE 1900
Vedic Hymns, Part I — Maruts, Rudra, Vayu, Vata (SBE Vol. 32)Hindu / Vedic (Rig-Veda)c. 1500–1000 BCE; SBE 1891
Vedic Hymns, Part II — Hymns to Agni (SBE Vol. 46)Hindu / Vedic (Rig-Veda)c. 1500–1000 BCE; SBE 1897
The Grihya-Sutras, Part I (SBE Vol. 29)Hindu / Vedic (Sutra)c. 600–300 BCE; SBE 1886
The Grihya-Sutras, Part II (SBE Vol. 30)Hindu / Vedic (Sutra)c. 600–300 BCE; SBE 1892
The Vedanta-Sutras, Part III — Ramanuja's Sribhashya (SBE Vol. 48)Hindu / Vishishtadvaita VedantaSutras c. 200 CE, Ramanuja c. 11th–12th c.; SBE 1904
Yoga-Sutras of Patanjali (Vivekananda 1896 / Woods 1914)Hindu / Yoga (Patanjala Darsana)c. 200 BCE–400 CE; PD translations 1896/1914

Read in the reader — The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, 2 issues →

Nath / Sahajiya tradition (sahaja doctrine)Indian tantric yogac. 8th–12th c. CE onward
  • Songs of Kabir — Kabir, trans. Rabindranath Tagore (Project Gutenberg full text)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →Songs of Kabir — trans. Rabindranath Tagore, with an introduction by Evelyn Underhill (1915)cited from Project Gutenberg
  • Songs of Kabir — trans. Rabindranath Tagore, intro. Evelyn Underhill (1915) [Sant/Nath sahaja stream]Read in full — in the Lycaeum →Songs of Kabir — trans. Rabindranath Tagore, with an introduction by Evelyn Underhill (1915)cited from Sacred Texts
Buddhist13 sources · 18 documents
Madhyamaka (Nagarjuna)Buddhist / Madhyamakac. 150–250 CE
  • The Conception of Buddhist Nirvana — Th. Stcherbatsky (1927), with a translation of Nagarjuna's Mula-madhyamaka-karika & Candrakirti's Prasannapada (chapters I & XXV)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Conception of Buddhist Nirvana — Th. Stcherbatsky (1927)cited from the Internet Archive
The Saddharma-Pundarika (Lotus Sutra) (SBE Vol. 21)Buddhist / Mahayanac. 100 BCE–200 CE; SBE 1884
Fo-sho-hing-tsan-king — Life of Buddha by Asvaghosha (SBE Vol. 19)Buddhist / Mahayana (Chinese recension)orig. c. 100 CE; SBE 1883
Buddhist Mahayana Texts (SBE Vol. 49)Buddhist / Mahayana (Sanskrit)c. 100 BCE–400 CE; SBE 1894
Buddhist Suttas (SBE Vol. 11)Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)c. 400–250 BCE; SBE 1881
The Dhammapada & Sutta-Nipata (SBE Vol. 10)Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)c. 300–100 BCE; SBE 1881
The Questions of King Milinda, Part I (SBE Vol. 35)Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)c. 100 BCE–200 CE; SBE 1890
The Questions of King Milinda, Part II (SBE Vol. 36)Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)c. 100 BCE–200 CE; SBE 1894
Vinaya Texts, Part I — Patimokkha & Mahavagga I–IV (SBE Vol. 13)Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)c. 400–250 BCE; SBE 1881
  • Vinaya Texts, Part I — Patimokkha & Mahavagga I–IV (Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 13), trans. T. W. Rhys Davids & Hermann Oldenberg (1881)Read in full — our archive →from Sacred Texts
Vinaya Texts, Part II (SBE Vol. 17)Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)c. 400–250 BCE; SBE 1882
  • Vinaya Texts, Part II — Mahavagga V–X & Kullavagga I–III (Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 17), trans. T. W. Rhys Davids & Hermann Oldenberg (1882)Read in full — our archive →from Sacred Texts
Vinaya Texts, Part III — Kullavagga IV–XII (SBE Vol. 20)Buddhist / Theravada (Pali)c. 400–250 BCE; SBE 1885
  • Vinaya Texts, Part III — Kullavagga IV–XII (Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 20), trans. T. W. Rhys Davids & Hermann Oldenberg (1885)Read in full — our archive →from Sacred Texts
Bardo Thödol (Tibetan Book of the Dead)Tibetan Buddhismcompiled c. 8th–14th c. CE

Read in the reader — The Tibetan Book of the Dead →

Dzogchen (Great Perfection, Nyingma)Tibetan Buddhism8th c. CE onward
Greek & Hellenistic12 sources · 22 documents
AristotleClassical Greek philosophy384–322 BCE

Read in the reader — Aristotle — the Metaphysics →

PlatoClassical Greek philosophyc. 428–348 BCE
Hermeticism (Corpus Hermeticum, Emerald Tablet)Greco-Egyptian esotericismc. 1st–3rd c. CE (Emerald Tablet medieval)

Read in the reader — The Emerald Tablet →

Claudius Ptolemy — Tetrabiblos (Ashmand trans., 1822)Hellenistic astrologycomposed c. 2nd c. CE; Ashmand English translation 1822
Western alchemy — the Magnum Opus colour stagesHellenistic→early-modern Europec. 3rd–17th c. CE
  • The Hermetic Museum, Vol. I — trans. Arthur Edward Waite (1893) [alchemical tracts describing the colour stages of the Great Work]Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Hermetic Museum, Vol. I — trans. A. E. Waite (1893)cited from Sacred Texts
  • The Turba Philosophorum — trans. Arthur Edward Waite (1896) [early alchemical dialogue on the transmutation stages]Read in full — our archive · 6 pages →from Sacred Texts
Iamblichus — Life of PythagorasNeoplatonic / Pythagoreanc. 3rd–4th c. CE
PlotinusNeoplatonism204–270 CE

Read in the reader — Plotinus — the Enneads, 2 issues →

ProclusNeoplatonism412–485 CE

Read in the reader — Proclus, 2 issues →

EmpedoclesPresocratic Greek5th c. BCE

Read in the reader — The First Philosophers of Greece, 3 issues →

HeraclitusPresocratic Greekc. 535–475 BCE

Read in the reader — The First Philosophers of Greece, 3 issues →

ParmenidesPresocratic Greekc. 515–450 BCE

Read in the reader — The First Philosophers of Greece, 3 issues →

PythagorasPresocratic Greek6th c. BCE

Read in the reader — The First Philosophers of Greece, 3 issues →

Modern currents8 sources · 12 documents
Goethe — Theory of Colours (1810)Modern colour theory1810 CE
  • Goethe — Theory of Colours (trans. Charles Lock Eastlake, London 1840)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →Theory of Colours — trans. Charles Lock Eastlake (1840)cited from the Internet Archive
Sri AurobindoModern Integral Yoga (India)1872–1950 CE

Read in the reader — Essays on the Gita, First Series →

    Maurice Merleau-PontyModern phenomenology1908–1961 CE
    • Phénoménologie de la perception — Maurice Merleau-Ponty (Paris: Gallimard, 1945; the French original)
    Henri BergsonModern philosophy1859–1941 CE

    Read in the reader — Bergson — Creative Evolution and the Introduction to Metaphysics, 2 issues →

    William JamesModern philosophy/psychology of religion1842–1910 CE
    Pierre Teilhard de ChardinModern process/evolutionary theology1881–1955 CE
    Hegelian–Marxist dialecticModern Western philosophy19th c. CE
    Alfred North WhiteheadProcess philosophy1861–1947 CE

    Read in the reader — Whitehead — the Gifford and Tarner Lectures, 2 issues →

    Zoroastrian8 sources · 15 documents
    The Zend-Avesta, Part I — Vendidad (SBE Vol. 4)Zoroastrian / Mazdeanc. 500 BCE–200 CE; SBE 1880
    The Zend-Avesta, Part II — Yasts & Nyayis (SBE Vol. 23)Zoroastrian / Mazdeanoral core pre-500 BCE; SBE 1883
    The Zend-Avesta, Part III — Yasna & Gathas (SBE Vol. 31)Zoroastrian / MazdeanGathas c. 1200–1000 BCE; SBE 1887
    Pahlavi Texts, Part I (SBE Vol. 5)Zoroastrian / Middle Persian9th c. CE redaction; SBE 1880
    Pahlavi Texts, Part II (SBE Vol. 18)Zoroastrian / Middle Persian9th c. CE; SBE 1882
    Pahlavi Texts, Part III (SBE Vol. 24)Zoroastrian / Middle Persian6th–9th c. CE; SBE 1885
    Pahlavi Texts, Part IV — Dinkard VIII–IX (SBE Vol. 37)Zoroastrian / Middle Persian9th c. CE; SBE 1892
    Pahlavi Texts, Part V — Dinkard VII & Zad-sparam (SBE Vol. 47)Zoroastrian / Middle Persian9th c. CE; SBE 1897
    Chinese7 sources · 8 documents
    Texts of Confucianism, Part I (SBE Vol. 3)Chinese / Confucianc. 1000–500 BCE; SBE 1879
    Texts of Confucianism, Part III — Li Ki I–X (SBE Vol. 27)Chinese / Confuciancompiled c. 200–100 BCE; SBE 1885
    Texts of Confucianism, Part IV — Li Ki XI–XLVI (SBE Vol. 28)Chinese / Confuciancompiled c. 200–100 BCE; SBE 1885
    Texts of Confucianism, Part II — The Yi King (I Ching) (SBE Vol. 16)Chinese / Confucian–Yijingcore c. 1000 BCE, Ten Wings c. 300 BCE; SBE 1882
    Taoism — Laozi & ZhuangziChinese / Taoistc. 6th–4th c. BCE
    Texts of Taoism, Part I — Tao Teh King & Kwang-tze I–XVII (SBE Vol. 39)Chinese / TaoistTao Te Ching c. 400–300 BCE; SBE 1891
    Texts of Taoism, Part II — Kwang-tze XVIII–XXXIII (SBE Vol. 40)Chinese / TaoistZhuangzi c. 300 BCE; SBE 1891
    Christian3 sources · 6 documents
    Pseudo-Dionysius the AreopagiteChristian apophatic theologylate 5th–early 6th c. CE

    Read in the reader — Dionysius the Areopagite, 2 issues →

    Meister EckhartChristian mysticismc. 1260–1328 CE

    Read in the reader — Meister Eckhart, 2 issues →

    Jakob BoehmeChristian theosophy1575–1624 CE

    Read in the reader — Jacob Boehme — the works in English, 12 issues →

    • The Confessions of Jacob Boehme — comp. W. Scott Palmer (1920)Read in full — our archive →from the Internet Archive
    • The Signature of All Things — Jacob Boehme (trans. John Ellistone, 1651; Everyman ed.)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Signature of All Things — trans. John Ellistone (1651)cited from the Internet Archive
    Islamic3 sources · 6 documents
    The Qur'an, Part I — Suras I–XVI (SBE Vol. 6)610–632 CE; SBE 1880
    The Qur'an, Part II — Suras XVII–CXIV (SBE Vol. 9)610–632 CE; SBE 1880
    Sufism (Junayd, Ghazali, Ibn Arabi, Rumi)Islamic mysticismc. 9th–13th c. CE
    • The Alchemy of Happiness — Al-Ghazzali, trans. Claud Field (1910)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Alchemy of Happiness — trans. Claud Field (1910)cited from Sacred Texts
    • The Masnavi of Jalalu'd-din Rumi — trans. E. H. Whinfield (1898)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →Masnavi i Ma'navi — trans. E. H. Whinfield (abridged) (1898)cited from Sacred Texts
    Jain2 sources · 4 documents
    Jaina Sutras, Part I — Akaranga & Kalpa Sutra (SBE Vol. 22)Jain / Svetambarac. 400–200 BCE; SBE 1884
    Jaina Sutras, Part II — Uttaradhyayana & Sutrakritanga (SBE Vol. 45)Jain / Svetambarac. 300 BCE–200 CE; SBE 1895
    Music theory2 sources · 3 documents
    Boethius — De institutione musica (musica universalis)Late-antique / medieval music theoryc. 6th c. CE

    Read in the reader — The Latin music theorists, 2 issues →

    Guido of Arezzo — 'Ut queant laxis' (solfège hexachord)Medieval music theoryc. 11th c. CE

    Read in the reader — The Latin music theorists, 2 issues →

    Comparative apparatus1 source · 1 document
    General Index to the 49 Volumes of the SBE (SBE Vol. 50)Comparative / scholarly apparatusSBE 1910
    Jewish1 source · 2 documents
    Jewish Kabbalah (Sefer Yetzirah, Zohar, Lurianic)Jewish esotericismclassical texts c. 12th–16th c. CE
    • Sepher Yezirah (The Book of Formation) — trans. Isidore Kalisch (1877), with Hebrew textRead in full — in the Lycaeum →Sepher Yezirah: A Book on Creation — trans. Isidor Kalisch (1877)cited from Sacred Texts
    • The Kabbalah Unveiled — Zohar (Book of Concealed Mystery; Greater & Lesser Holy Assembly), trans. S. L. MacGregor Mathers (1887/1912)Read in full — in the Lycaeum →The Kabbalah Unveiled — S. L. MacGregor Mathers (from Knorr von Rosenroth's Latin) (1887)cited from Sacred Texts
    Western esoteric currents1 source · 1 document
    Martinez de PasquallyMartinism / Élus Coënsc. 1727–1774 CE

    Read in the reader — Martinès de Pasqually →

    Research and reference

    The research shelf.

    Scholarship

    Research on the tradition, its figures, and its transmission.

    The Sacred Synthesis: An Exhaustive Assessment from the Ruins of Tomorrow7 passages · read →

    Reference

    The apparatus: registries, concordances, and working references.

    What Constitutional Typology Actually Is4 passages · read →Sacred Synthesis — Literary Apparatus (Glossary, Bibliography, Index, Front Matter)6 passages · read →Foundational Reading List — Progressive Study Documents2 passages · read →Trialectics — a logic of unity11 passages · read →

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