Exotericism

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Exotericism (from ἐξωτερικός “external”, “foreign”) describes the outward-facing or externally accessible aspects of a philosophy or religion, in contrast to esoteric aspects that are only accessible to an inner circle .

Concept emergence

The term originally referred to popular philosophical writings aimed at the general public, especially the writings of Aristotle ( ἐξωτερικά ) written in dialogue form . The distinction first appears in The Auction of the Philosophical Orders , a satire by Lucian of Samosata . When a peripatetic comes up for auction, it says:

Mercury: He is a man of orderly nature, who thinks equitably, knows how to send himself into life, and what is most extraordinary, he is double.
Buyer: How so?
Mercury: He appears another from the outside, he is another from within. So if you want to buy it, don't forget that this one is called the esoteric and that the exoteric.

This classification was then adopted by Cicero . Aristotle himself uses the term to designate superficial forms of discourse, whereby the contrast is not the esoteric , but the philosophical , the precise and in-depth treatment of a topic. In the 20th century, the esoteric-exoteric distinction was made prominent again in research on the history of philosophy, in particular by the German-American philosopher Leo Strauss .

Religious Studies and Theology

In religious studies and theology, exotericism describes the aspects of a religion that are openly accessible, i.e. can also be read in public books. On the other hand, there are esoteric religious teachings and practices, which - mostly through secret initiations or oral traditions - are only known to a limited group of participants. In almost every religion or religious trend there is not only an exoteric but also an esoteric part, such as Kabbalah in Judaism and Sufism in Islam .

Further meaning

The term can also be used derogatory, whereby exoteric denotes the public image of an actually purely esoteric teaching. This picture need not necessarily be false, but it is at least incomplete and fragmentary to the knowledge of the initiated.

According to this spectrum of meanings, an exoteric

  • to be an "ignorant" or "uninitiated" or
  • someone who insists on the transparency and traceability of processes or content, in contrast to the occultist , or
  • someone who makes complex content transparent and comprehensible, for example a scientist who strives for popular, generally understandable expression.

literature

  • Roland Biewald: Small Lexicon of Occultism. Militzke, Leipzig 2005, p. 65
  • Rudolf Eisler: Dictionary of Philosophical Terms. 2nd edition Mittler, Berlin 1904. Vol. 1, p. 329, sv "Exoteric"
  • Hannes Kerber: Strauss and Schleiermacher on How to Read Plato. An Introduction to 'Exoteric Teaching' , in Martin D. Yaffe / Richard S. Ruderman (eds.): Reorientation. Leo Strauss in the 1930s. Palgrave Macmillan, Munich 2014, pp. 203-214.
  • Hans Schulz, Otto Basler: German foreign dictionary. Vol. 5. 2. Ed. De Gruyter, Berlin & New York 2004, p. 462f, sv "exoteric"
  • Leo Strauss: Persecution and the Art of Writing. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 1988.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Lucian's works. Translation by August Friedrich Pauly . JB Metzler, Stuttgart 1827, 3rd volume, p. 363 text on Wikisource ; Greek at www.perseus.tufts.edu
  2. ↑ Cicero De finibus bonorum et malorum , December 5 , Latin at www.perseus.tufts.edu
  3. ↑ Aristotle Eudemian Ethics 1217b22
  4. ↑ Aristotle Topik VIII 1, 151b 9
  5. ^ Leo Strauss: Persecution and the Art of Writing. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 1988.
  6. ↑ See Hannes Kerber: Strauss and Schleiermacher on How to Read Plato. An Introduction to 'Exoteric Teaching' , in Martin D. Yaffe / Richard S. Ruderman (eds.): Reorientation. Leo Strauss in the 1930s. Palgrave Macmillan, Munich 2014, pp. 203-214.