Encyclopedia

Cyrene

An ancient Greek and later Roman city in present-day Libya, famous as a center of learning and the birthplace of the Cyrenaic school of philosophy. It appears in Hermetic and Platonic texts as a site of ancient wisdom.

14 books · 228 mentions

Cinnabar

The bright red ore of mercury, highly valued in alchemy for its color and as a primary source for extracting quicksilver.

14 books · 209 mentions

Continuous Quantity

14 books · 198 mentions

Chaldeans

An ancient Semitic people of Mesopotamia often identified in Western esoteric tradition as the foundational masters of astrology, magic, and celestial divination. Their 'Chaldean Oracles' were highly influential in Neoplatonic and Renaissance thought.

14 books · 182 mentions

Celestial Influence

The belief that the movements and positions of heavenly bodies exert a direct effect on terrestrial events, human health, and the natural world.

14 books · 159 mentions

Consonance and Dissonance

Categorizations of musical intervals based on their perceived stability or tension, used in early modern natural philosophy to illustrate the harmony or discord of the macrocosm.

13 books · 277 mentions

Claudius

The fourth Roman Emperor, often discussed in early modern architectural and historical treatises for his public works and his role in the transition of the Roman Empire.

13 books · 212 mentions

Cairo

A major center of Islamic learning and trade, often associated in Western esoteric texts with the preservation of ancient Egyptian wisdom and the site of the Pyramids.

13 books · 193 mentions

Celestial Spheres

The concentric, transparent shells in pre-Copernican astronomy that carried the planets and stars around the Earth, often associated with the 'music of the spheres.'

13 books · 179 mentions

Calabria

A region in southern Italy, historically significant as a center of Pythagoreanism and later as the home of the influential mystic and theologian Joachim of Fiore.

13 books · 151 mentions

Cupellation

A metallurgical process used to separate precious metals from base metals, often used as an alchemical metaphor for the purification of the soul.

12 books · 450 mentions

Chyle

A milky bodily fluid consisting of lymph and emulsified fats, central to early modern physiological theories regarding digestion and the formation of blood.

12 books · 286 mentions

Catoptrics

A branch of optics dealing with the phenomena of reflected light and mirrors, often associated in the early modern period with natural magic and the creation of illusions.

12 books · 239 mentions

Cucurbit

A gourd-shaped chemical vessel used in distillation, typically forming the lower part of an alembic where the substance to be heated is placed.

12 books · 222 mentions

Circumcision

A ritual practice and theological concept often interpreted allegorically in esoteric traditions as the removal of spiritual impurities or the 'circumcision of the heart.'

12 books · 209 mentions

Caleb

A biblical figure from the Book of Numbers and one of the twelve spies sent by Moses to scout Canaan, often interpreted in esoteric and Swedenborgian texts as representing the spiritual state of faith.

12 books · 199 mentions

Codex

A book constructed of a number of sheets of paper, vellum, or papyrus, which replaced the scroll as the standard form for transmitting sacred and esoteric knowledge.

12 books · 173 mentions

Chiron

In Greek mythology, a centaur known for his wisdom and medical knowledge, often appearing in alchemical literature as a symbol of the union of nature and intellect.

12 books · 157 mentions

Chicago

A major American city that became a significant center for the publication and academic study of esoteric and mystical texts in the late 19th and 20th centuries.

12 books · 153 mentions

Caucasus

A mountain range between the Black and Caspian Seas, often mythologized in Western literature as the site of Prometheus's punishment. In alchemical lore, it sometimes symbolizes a remote source of hidden knowledge.

12 books · 147 mentions

Cities

Large human settlements that serve as centers of commerce, culture, and administration, often analyzed in early modern political and utopian literature.

12 books · 134 mentions

Celestial spheres

The concentric shells of the universe in Aristotelian and Ptolemaic cosmology, believed to carry the planets and stars through the heavens.

12 books · 112 mentions

Conic Sections

The curves (ellipse, parabola, and hyperbola) obtained by intersecting a cone with a plane, which became central to the development of optics and celestial mechanics. Their study was revitalized during the Renaissance, influencing both mathematical theory and instrument design.

11 books · 323 mentions

Cohobation

An alchemical process involving the repeated distillation of a liquid from the same solid matter to increase its potency or fix the volatile parts.

11 books · 289 mentions

Camera Obscura

11 books · 249 mentions

Congelation

One of the core processes in the alchemical Great Work, referring to the solidification or fixing of a liquid substance into a stable, solid form.

11 books · 248 mentions

Canon Law

The body of laws and regulations governing the Christian church. In early modern intellectual history, it was a central subject in debates regarding the relationship between spiritual authority and secular power.

11 books · 207 mentions

Circulation

11 books · 200 mentions

Cupel

11 books · 185 mentions

Consonance

In music theory and natural philosophy, the harmonious sounding of multiple tones, often viewed as a reflection of the mathematical order and cosmic harmony of the universe.

11 books · 182 mentions

Columella

A prominent Roman writer on agriculture whose work 'De Re Rustica' served as a primary source for farming, viticulture, and animal husbandry in the Renaissance.

11 books · 182 mentions

Capua

An ancient Italian city famous for its wealth and luxury, and for being the site where Hannibal's army wintered during the Second Punic War.

11 books · 142 mentions

Crystalline humor

10 books · 234 mentions

Consonances

Musical intervals that are perceived as stable and harmonious, central to the Pythagorean theory of the 'music of the spheres.' In the history of ideas, they represent the mathematical order and harmony believed to underlie the structure of the universe.

10 books · 232 mentions

Caspar Bauhin

A Swiss botanist and anatomist whose work in the classification of plants was a landmark in the transition to modern botanical taxonomy.

10 books · 227 mentions

Cementation

An alchemical and metallurgical process involving the heating of a metal in contact with a powdered reagent to alter its properties or purify it.

10 books · 215 mentions

Cornhill

10 books · 197 mentions

Croton

An ancient Greek city in Southern Italy where Pythagoras established his influential philosophical and mathematical school.

10 books · 178 mentions

Catullus

A Roman lyric poet of the late Republic whose rediscovered works profoundly influenced Renaissance humanists and the development of European lyric poetry.

10 books · 176 mentions

Christ Jesus

The central figure of Christianity, interpreted in esoteric traditions as the Logos or the cosmic Christ, bridging the divine and human realms.

10 books · 176 mentions

Canterbury

A historic English city and major pilgrimage site, serving as the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the center of the Church of England. It appears in early modern texts as a locus of ecclesiastical authority and scholarly production.

10 books · 163 mentions

Contrariety

A fundamental philosophical principle, particularly in Aristotelian and Lullian logic, referring to the relationship between opposing qualities or forces.

10 books · 160 mentions

Cocytus

A river of the underworld in Greek mythology, depicted by Dante as a frozen lake in the deepest circle of Hell where traitors are punished.

10 books · 159 mentions

Celestial sphere

10 books · 151 mentions

Cilicia

An ancient coastal region in southern Asia Minor, significant in the history of the Roman Empire and early Christianity as the birthplace of the Apostle Paul.

10 books · 150 mentions

Cremona

10 books · 149 mentions

Critical days

10 books · 145 mentions

Capitol

10 books · 120 mentions

Carneades

A Greek philosopher and head of the Skeptical Academy known for his arguments against dogmatism. He is often cited in Renaissance works discussing the limits of human reason and the certainty of knowledge.

10 books · 115 mentions

Castor

One of the Dioscuri in Greek and Roman mythology, the mortal twin of Pollux, frequently appearing in astronomical and symbolic texts of the early modern era.

10 books · 109 mentions

Cambridge, Massachusetts

A city in Massachusetts, United States, which became a significant center for academic publishing and biblical scholarship, particularly through Harvard University and the Riverside Press.

10 books · 100 mentions

Clazomenae

An ancient Greek city in Ionia, famous as the birthplace of the philosopher Anaxagoras, who was frequently cited in Neoplatonic discussions of the mind (Nous).

10 books · 98 mentions

Capernaum

A biblical town on the Sea of Galilee, significant in Christian theology as the center of Jesus's ministry and frequently mentioned in early modern biblical commentaries.

9 books · 357 mentions

Critias

An Athenian politician and author who appears as a character in Plato's dialogues and is the primary source for the story of Atlantis.

9 books · 279 mentions

Caput Mortuum

An alchemical term meaning 'dead head' or 'worthless remains,' referring to the residual solids left after a process of distillation or sublimation. Symbolically, it represents the stage of nigredo or the material base that must be transcended.

9 books · 239 mentions

Caiaphas

9 books · 193 mentions

Centrifugal force

9 books · 186 mentions

Cherubim

A high-ranking order of celestial beings in the angelic hierarchy, often associated with divine wisdom and the protection of sacred mysteries in Kabbalistic and Christian traditions.

9 books · 176 mentions