The Mandaeans: Gnostic Astrology as an Artifact of Cultural Transmission - Softcover

Masco, Maire M

Softcover

ISBN 10: 193847600X ISBN 13: 9781938476006

Publisher: Fluke Press, 2012

Synopsis

A small community of Gnostics called the Mandaeans survived in the Persian Gulf region from the 2nd century CE into the present day. The Mandaeans are the only culture that has practiced both Gnosticism and astrology continuously for more than 1800 years. Mandaean astrology is a unique synthesis of Babylonian, Hellenistic, Arabic, and Jyotisha (Indian) systems. Astrological interpretations are recorded in the Sfar Malwašia (The Book of the Zodiac), a book used exclusively by Mandaean priests for the benefit of the Mandaean community. Analyses of the astrological techniques employed by the Mandaeans illustrate the cultural influences that converged in the early centuries of the Common Era. “The Mandaeans: Gnostic Astrology as an Artifact of Cultural Transmission” is the first study to consider the historical development of astrology using the Sfar Malwašia to demonstrate the cross-cultural influences in Persian Gulf. This is an abridged edition of the MA thesis written by Maire M. Masco in 2012. The thesis discusses the genethlialogical and mundane astrological techniques found in the Sfar Malwašia, or Mandaean “Book of the Zodiac.”

About this title

About the Author

Maire M. Masco holds a MA degree in Cross Cultural Studies with an emphasis on the history of astrology. Her articles have been published in the U.S., Australia, and India. She lectures internationally on East/West religious traditions, Jyotisha astrology, and observational astronomy. Masco lives in Tacoma, WA

Edition details

• Publisher: Fluke Press
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 193847600X
• ISBN 13: 9781938476006
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 164