Could such a person exist considering we all have devine spark?

I think it was the Encarites (don't remember the name) whom were an anti-marriage Gnostic sect, and Im sure either\and Marcion, Valentinian were anti-procreation..Im very interested in historical documents, papers, essays etc which talk about a possible Gnostic group which was both anti-natalist, and anti-sexual.

the russian castration sect weren't gnostic BTW, more like -i would classify them- "messianic , hyper-pentecostals". I'm also interested if any of these A.N. groups tried to stop animals reproducing. Everyone talks about human procreation being prevented..but did they for example, keep female and male pets of the same species apart? So they wouldn't mate?

As a gnostic do you consider yourself a Christian or do you see it as a different religion at this point? I'm just getting started on this journey and I was wondering how y'all feel about that.

i have plenty of Muslim and atheist friends who aren't the most open minded and i want to at least tell them what this is about

what should i know? what books do you recommend? facts that often get left unsaid or people dont really know about? literally any and everything!

So I am a little confused. I have heard two tradations where Sophia is a fallen entity and another where is she is good and helpful. Can someone please elaborate on the role of Sophia. Is there two Sophia's and what seperates them?

I am creating poker cards and I need ideas for the joker because I want Gnosticism to be the main theme, I chose Yaldabaoth as king, Sophia as queen and I need some ideas for the Joker card, any idea is helpful so please feel free to give me ideas in the comments

I can’t find much of any info on the cainites and what they believe. Some say they were libertines and others say that the gospel of Judas was a cainite text. But I can’t find a concrete explanation of their theology. There are modern folk traditions that venerate Cain. And I find these traditions fascinating. So I’d like to find info on the original tradition

So I've been heavily questioning my beliefs recently pretty much the last few days in particular been very angry, especially at whatever God is in charge of this universe had a dream last night. The only thing I really remember is going to a church I don't remember being a negative experience I don't remember it being a super positive experience. I don't remember just bolting out of there but today I definitely feel like I would call myself gnostic I definitely feel like my beliefs are More solid today than they've been in a while. Is there any possibility that could've been assigned and is there anyway I can break down this and sort of try to decode more and maybe remember more that happened because I can't stop thinking about it are there any other communities that might be able to help me better as well?

Its now next day and I feel entirely difftent like do have any memory of dreams don't feel as pulled close as. Did yesterday I prayed before I went to sleep for a dream and a sigh Shd nothing I have DID and ik wondering if it's gotta do with that alters cause I feel and look totally different today

That’s it. I’ve read about reincarnation but is there any escape from the cycle of reincarnation in Gnosticism? Sorry if this is a stupid question. I’m new to all of this and still learning more everyday. Thanks for your patience!

Hello everyone, I’ll try to keep this short.

So I have been a Christian for a few years now only to realise that my beliefs do not reflect conventional trends within Christianity. Not only that, but as I learn more about the faith there is only more (In my eyes) which does not add up with what I’ve been told. I believe in basic concepts like the divine spark within us, emanations of God, an “evil” or merely ignorant Demiurge, and the salvation via “Gnosis” or knowledge among other things. As I learn more about different religions I find myself more open to many ideas and/or interpretations. Forgive me for my lack of understanding as I am still new to all of this.

I was wondering what I must do/understand primarily before I start calling myself a Gnostic? What are your thoughts?

I'm being the devil's advocate here in bringing this up because as Gnostics we all know the Demiurge, and by extension, matter is the real antagonizing force towards our Gnosis. There is no end to the idea that falling into our desires will inevitably end in our folly, but if we self-reflect enough the realization that these things are necessary in order to come to this understanding. There is no Gnosis without tension and the acknowledgement that these things lie in opposition to us and our goals. As a result the need for these antagonizing forces almost seem necessary.

On the same level, Sophia, the unintentional mother of all such things truly is tragic. We know she is the mother of the Demiurge, and she is also deeply flawed, since she was enchanted by her own reflection in the waters, almost like an incarnation of lust / pride, one of the seven deadly sins. Her failure is the reason we all exist as we are and can acknowledge existence as we know it. Just as well, all existence is owed to the demiurge which knows no end to his own pride. As we are made in the image of these deities, so we are also given the opportunity to reflect upon our similar faults, and if we can see how we have failed similarly then we can empathize, and thus this is how the acknowledgement of a tragedy occurs.

All of this not to say that we should not look upon the antagonistic tendencies of a deity that willfully continues it's horrible acts without hubris, but tragically to perform these things at it's own expense almost seems the case. Would the Pleroma not look upon it's own child repeating it's mistakes continually as tragic? Surely if we can afford Sophia some leeway can we not do the same for the demiurge? I think it's important to consider these questions because as a Gnostic we have to acknowledge that Gnosticism is a living spiritual tradition, it is far from static, and as something lives it changes, not unlike how a cell divides and continually evolves into new and different things. If we can acknowledge the quantum state in things and see how the universe stares back at us, then in the process of staring at the demiurge in these states of gnosis then can we not also see ourselves in it as we see the universe in us?

I think this is the point of the pnuematic and hylaic dichotomy. Hilas having been drown by water nymphs in the argonautica. The water is soma, the fire is pnuema. The spirit is air in between

Anyone read April DeConick's Comparing Christianities?

I trust her as a scholar from her The Gnostic New Age, and am intrigued by this book, however it's subtitled "An Introduction..." So I'm curious how introductory it is and what makes her take unique.

Laying in bed the other night I had an interesting thought while watching the lights dazzle behind my closed eyelids - I'm sure science has some explanation but I prefer to think it's the reflection of the divine spark within, a subtle reminder of who/what you really are

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As far as I know there is no explicit answer to this in gnostic literature (feel free to correct me on that) and so it might be nothing but speculation and a hypothetical question that basically doesn't change anything, but...

What was Sophia's underlying intention of what the final result of her act, in case of success(*), ultimately should have been?

(*)I'm aware of the proposed allegory in the story of Sophia's creation of the Demiurge, that it really couldn't have happened any other way since it would also remove the learning from mistakes aspect from her very being which was, in and of itself, the very reason she was even Wisdom in the first place. However, in terms of the speculative nature of my question I ask you to leave this part aside.

That said, let me put it another way...

Could Sophia's act of creation, albeit this time "in accordance to the rules" and "permitted to proceed", not have been unprecedented? And what could this imply for what the Demiurge could or should have been?

Were there other Aeons who did/were allowed to do similar things prior to her (successfully)? And what kind of entity would ultimately arise thereof? Another, maybe somewhat "lower" Aeon? A non-aeonic denizen of the Pleroma? A singular entity in the Kenoma (from a Valentinian perspective that the Demiurge didn't create the material world and instead was born into the void)? Or even multiple beings, connected through their sharing of the same spark?

I'd greatly appreciate any thoughts on this and if it turns out I actually missed the answer already written in scriptures I apologize and, again, feel free to educate me or point me into the right direction.

So before I discovered Gnosticism and religion I was just relaxing contemplating god one day after being an atheist my entire life. My thought process was pretty vague but to make a long story short I thought that humans don’t understand what happened before the Big Bang and there’s clearly some information that seems to be above human understanding and after contemplating this for a while I all of a sudden felt a warmth across my body and for some reason this felt like god. It felt like pure love and care if that makes sense and now after looking into gnosis and how the divine is within the self I’m more sure than ever that god IS real and he is inside all of us. Not sure if anyone will find this interesting but anyone else had this type of experience and a follow up question is this gnosis?

1. Bythos (Depth, Profundity) Male
2. Ennoia (Thought, Idea) Female
3. Sige (Silence) Female
4. Charis (Grace) Female
5. Nous (Mind, Divine Mind) Male
6. Alethia (Truth) Female
7. Anthropos (Man) Male
8. Ecclesia (Church) Female
9. Bythios (Deep) Male
10. Mixis (Commingling) Female
11. Ageratos (Unaging, Undecaying) Male
12. Henosis (Union) Female
13. Autophues (Self-Existent) Male
14. Hedone (Pleasure, Bliss) Female
15. Akinetos (Immovable) Male
16. Synkrasis (Blending) Female
17. Monogenes (Only Begotten) Male
18. Makaria (Happiness) Female
19. Parakletos (Comforter, Helper)
20. Pistis (Faith) Female
21. Patrikos (Paternal) Male
22. Elpis (Hope) Female
23. Metrikos (Maternal) Male
24. Agape (Love) Female
25. Ainos (Praise, Everlasting) Male
26. Synesis (Intelligence, Understanding) Female
27. Ecclesiasticos (Ecclesiastical) Male
28. Makariotes (Happiness, Bliss) Female
29. Theletos (Willed, Longed For) Male
30. Sophia (Wisdom) Female
31. Logos (The Word) Male
32. Zoe (Life) Female

Are there any terms in modern science that directly correlate with Gnosticism? By that I mean, can you explain gnostic ideas so that a modern man could understand them?

Thank you :)

Its pretty obvious the real God is Yaldabaoth. Why do they serve them? Or whatever I should call it cause He is the one who created humans and (very likely) animals. And how these people who choose to keep living just bring more people here,its kind of odd...Why they just decide its worth it to live ?Unless they believe in other religions like Christianity which doesn't sound real of an all-powerful/knowing 'God'

What would be best books for someone new to gnosticism?

So far I've read the gospel of Thomas and Judas. And will soon read the secret apocryphon of John. Which other ones are worth reading?

Just like standard Christianity has Satanism does Gnosticism give way to worshippers of the Archons for evil purposes? I’m interested for a book idea, a reimagined Pistis Sophia.