What is Gnosis?

The word gnosis is a Greek word meaning 'knowledge' or 'science' in a general sense, but in a deeper sense it has always represented a universal science that deals, in a comprehensive way, with the deep aspects of life, the universe and the human being.

Gnosis is normally defined as a transcendental philosophy that contains the whole of the metaphysical knowledge, the secret of which was in the possession of the ancient sages.

The Oxford Universal Dictionary defines Gnosis as: 'A special knowledge of spiritual mysteries.'

This 'special knowledge', far from being a theoretical or merely intellectual one, is experimental and involves a series of realizations and experiences that lead the individual from the relativity and multiple mirages of existence to a world of ever-increasing realization and certainty — certainty about literally everything.

In the words of Serge Hutin, contemporary expert in Gnosticism: 'In revealing the mystery that cloaks his origin and his destiny, Gnosis allows man to understand the significance of all things.'

Ancient and modern experts all agree that the origin of Gnosis cannot be established at a particular time and place. There is no possible origin of Gnosis in the normal frame of human history.

A thorough study of the great civilizations of the past allows us to reach the conclusion that all of them shared a common essence, a set of similar characteristics, and because of this they are sometimes known as Solar Civilizations or Serpentine Cultures.

The common denominator in all of them — and one that gave them cohesion — can be summarized in the four 'pillars' or branches of knowledge, which are:

-Science
-Philosophy
-Art and
-Mysticism or Religion

In the solar civilizations of the past, these four branches were integrated in a single and harmonious whole, forming an inseparable unity.