The Greek word Gnosis (γνῶσις) implies genuine knowledge of the truth. Underlying this is the premise that in order to understand truth, one must experience it. Gnosis refers to authentic knowledge from direct transcendent experiences which are beyond the five senses and the logical mind, often in the form of visionary experiences. A person’s own efforts to expand their consciousness can lead to such experiences of truth which form the basis of a personal spirituality, rather than being taught a belief system by an external figure. Gnosis can also refer to the wisdom traditions that embody the collective knowledge of humanity. This knowledge was not envisioned as a rational scientific knowledge or philosophy, but rather as a knowing that arises in the heart in an intuitive and mysterious manner.

In November 1913 Carl Jung stepped over the threshold of an extraordinary imaginative journey, which in later life he called his “confrontation with the unconscious”. Dedicated to ‘bringing back the boon’ he laboured to accurately document his introspective visionary experiences in his private journals (The Black Books). Jung faithfully and with great artistic craft transcribed these recorded numinous visions or “revelations from his Soul” in a more formal elaboration by means of antique illuminated calligraphic text and stunning artwork. The result was the mysterious Red Book, a massive red leather-bound volume, which Jung titled Liber Novus, the “Book of the New”.

The Red Book is Jung's voyage of discovery into his deepest self. It is the most detailed description of a deeply personal experience, which was Jung’s Gnosis, and the foundation of all his subsequent work. “The years when I was pursuing my inner images were the most important in my life - in them everything essential was decided. It all began then; the later details are only supplements and clarifications of the material that burst forth from the unconscious, and at first swamped me. It was the primo materia for a lifetime's work.” (1)

Written for @jungsouthernafrica

Image credit: Detail of an illustration of a solar barge on page 55 of Carl Jung's The Red Book. Translated, the complete text on the page reads: "One word that was never spoken. / One light that was never lit up. / An unparalleled confusion. / And a road without end." According to translator Sonu Shamdasani, the solar barge "was seen as the typical means of movement of the sun" in ancient Egypt. "The Sun God protected the barge against the monster Aphophis, who attempted to swallow the solar barge as it traveled across the heavens." Foundation of the Works of C.G. Jung

Source: http://gnosis.org

Reference: (1) Jung, C. G. 1875-1961. Memories, Dreams, Reflections. New York: Pantheon Books, 1963

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