‘What is Esoteric Art?

Upon choosing to write on the subject, and indeed attempt to answer the question of

what is esoteric art, I was immediately drawn to the filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky. One

film of his in particular sprung to mind. The artist’s 1973 release of The Holy Mountain

remains relatively unknown, but presents a bizarrely fascinating and frightening experience

upon an encounter with it today. The film is an avalanche of both beautiful and profane

imagery that takes to task the subjects of religion, politics and sexuality, and for particular

relevance to us here, includes within its narrative structure themes of initiation, alchemy,

astrology and the tarot. Such memorable symbols and images made the work an obvious

candidate for discussion, yet it is also of interest that alongside such content, Jodorowsky’s

film pays stylistic homage to perhaps an even greater influence, that of the artistic

philosophy and movement of Surrealism. In The Holy Mountain we see what seems to be

‘esoteric’ themes and concerns combining effortlessly with Surrealist method and style, to

create an almost symbiotic language of enchantment. Surrealism seems to give breathe to

the ‘esoteric’ in Jodorowsky’s film and point to some important avenues of enquiry.

In this essay I will attempt to introduce Surrealism’s relationship with the elements of

Western European traditions of thought that have come to be defined as ‘esoteric’. The

historical and social impact of this union draws into focus the direct concerns of the ‘esoteric’

within art and its perceived ability to impact on society as well as the individual. A short

analysis of Alejandro Jodorowsky’s The Holy Mountain then aims at identifying further key

features of ‘esoteric’ art, as well as add further answers to some important questions. Can

‘esoteric’ art be defined by a simple re-presentation of ‘esoteric’ symbols and images? Are

there any pre-requisites that exist for creators as well as viewers of ‘esoteric’ art? This analysis

aims to answer such questions, but firstly a clarification of the term ‘esoteric’, and its place

within western religious thought, becomes necessary in order for us to refine our definition of

what is esoteric art.

ADAM MALONE MODULE TWO ESSAY COHORT 2

ETERNALLY INNER-TURNING…

In recent years the study and historical appreciation of esoteric subjects has enjoyed a

revival. Much like The Occult Revival at the turn of the 19th Century, itself a major influence

on the first Surrealists of 1920’s Paris, we are witnessing a renewed interest in magic, alchemy

and other hermetic fields of research, as legitimate alternatives to rational western thought.

In order to create the modern world of machinery and Science there appeared to be a

systematic abandonment of anything that did not fit a positivist paradigm. However, there is

now an increasing appreciation that it was in fact “… hermetic themes of human spiritual

sovereignty [that] had powered western man to achieve mastery of knowledge over

nature.” (Goodrich-Clarke, 2008, p.5) The emerging idea that our technological advances

owe a debt of appreciation to such previously marginalised modes of European thought, can

also be viewed as the result of a modern ecological concern - that the machinery of

advancement, and the power it placed in our hands, has in fact served to impoverish not

only our outer lives, but our inner lives as well. As Versluis suggests, the result of our over

reliance on positivism has meant that our “inner lives have become more barren.” (Versluis,

2004, p.3)

The word ‘esoteric’ itself comes from the Greek root esotero meaning ‘within’ or

‘inner’ and refers to a hidden “… spiritual knowledge, held by a limited circle…” (Versluis,

2007, p.1) This spiritual knowledge travelled through Western Europe and into North

America, from the ancient Greek and Roman mystery traditions, whilst retaining on its

journey a tangible and characteristic “… scent of mystery.” (Faivre, 2010, p.2) At the heart of

this mystery is a belief in the story of Adam and Eve’s fall from paradise, which exists as a

metaphor for the external, exoteric search for knowledge that is deemed as ultimately

responsible for humanity’s “fall” and disconnection from its true nature. Esotericism can

therefore be characterised in its search for this forgotten knowledge, as a quest that aims to

reintegrate the forgotten, inner knowing that is essential for the re-establishment of

humanity’s original connection. “The purpose of the esoteric practitioner is to re-unite

humanity with nature, through the divine… Through the divine we can access the universal

inner language of nature.” (Versluis, 2004, p86.) The act of ‘reading’ nature becomes central

here and represents a transcendent path of discovery, one that leads towards an

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engagement with esoteric knowledge, both within oneself and the cosmos. This belief in the

recuperation of lost powers and the journey back towards original perfection in fact “…

reflects an autonomous and essential aspect of the relationship between the mind and the

cosmos.” (Goodrich-Clarke, 2008, p.13) It is here that we may begin to draw a clear

distinction between the esoteric and the rational approach to knowledge and understanding.

“Aspirants seek direct spiritual insight into the hidden nature of the cosmos and of

themselves – they seek Gnosis.” (Versluis, 2007, p.1)

GNOWING IS GNOWING…

Within esoteric traditions, knowledge is gained via inner knowing or ‘gnosis’, and

defined as an “…experiential insight into the nature of the divine as manifested in the

individual…” (Versluis, 2004, p.1) This is central to esotericism. It is this search for personal,

transcendent re-union that remains key to many of the traditions of European thought

previously considered irrational, and even deviant in the eyes of society. The rationalism that

marginalised ancient philosophies such as astrology, alchemy and kabbalah, in favour of an

attitude of objectification and manipulation of the external world, served to externalise

mankind. The resulting disconnection drove esoteric seekers to piece together fragments of

forgotten knowledge and to seek “… direct perception of hidden, esoteric aspects of the

cosmos.” (Goodrich-Clarke, 2008, p.11) Gnosis then became the subject and the goal of a

type of hidden initiatic teaching that represented a “religious marginality” (Versluis, Concise,

p.3). Esoteric practitioners continue to seek this inner knowledge via an engagement with

“… works that are self understood as bearing hidden, inner-religious, cosmological or meta-

physical truths …” (Versluis, 2004, p.8)

An emphasis on attaining spiritual knowledge or gnosis beyond established doctrine

has placed the definition of the esoteric outside the reach of the academy and mainstream

history for many years. For example, “… the legacy of heretic hunting continues to inform

religion, politics, and even scholarship right up to the present.” (Versluis, 2007, p5.)

Fortunately this has changed in recent years. Antoine Faivre’s clarification of fundamental

characteristics of esoteric spirituality have become definitive and “… offers a means of

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systematically comparing traditions with one another.” (Goodrich-Clarke, 2008, p.10) Such

characteristics are taken from the Renaissance concordance of Neo-Platonism, Hermeticism

and Kabbalah, along with astrology, alchemy and magic. (Goodrich-Clarke, 2008, p.7-8) They

are as follows:

1. Correspondences: Reflected in the axiom “As above, so below”, the expression of

the divine origin of all creation is seen to exist within all living things. The

microcosm therefore reflects the macrocosm and vice versa.

2. Living Nature: A belief that the whole of nature and the cosmos is animated by the

one living soul.

3. Imagination and Mediations: Creative Imagination is recognised as a tool and an

intermediary, a way to the divine. For example, The Mundus Imaginalis of Henry

Corbin.

4. Experience of Transmutation: A belief that the inner experience of understanding

leads to a transmutation of the speculative subject, an alchemical change of state

and shift in perception.

5. The Practice of Concordance: The idea that there exists an expression of

similarities amongst traditions and a common source of knowledge from which

such traditions and religions have spread throughout the world – a perennial

philosophy.

6. Transmission: A transmission of knowledge that characteristically occurs from

Master to disciple in an identifiable process of initiation that is often reflected in a

ritual tradition.

There is however, one key characteristic that remains unqualified in the above

definition, and one that is of particular interest for us here. Although regarded by Faivre as

being demonstrated through the existence and use of ritual, there is another important

factor in the transmission of knowledge that appears to take place within the western

esoteric tradition.

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LET THE INITIATION BEGIN…

Initiation can be regarded as a beginning or an entering into of a tradition or group.

Such a process is accompanied by the acquisition of secret or special knowledge. Within

esoteric spirituality this type of initiation, as well as occurring through ritual, is believed to

also take place through the reading of a text or an encounter with an image. Knowledge has

always been expressed through the use of art, language and image, yet in the case of

esoteric traditions, knowledge also exists as an ‘invisible college’ of initiation that lies within

“the full range of cultural works, like those of literature and art, which may very well convey

secrets hidden from the casual observer.” (Versluis, 2004, p.11) Here we see a concept of

spiritual initiation, taking place through an engagement with an artistic use of symbolism in

the form of images or words, which “… rests on a subtle knowledge of the relationships

uniting God, humankind, and the universe.” (Faivre, 2010, p.32) Esoteric literature and art

can be viewed characteristically as containing an expression of, and indeed pointing towards,

a metaphysical gnosis. “The weight of initiatory transmission is transposed to literary and

artistic works, and thus also to the individual…” (Versluis, 2004, p12) Esoteric art in this sense

becomes a metaphor for transformation, a journey or an account of a journey into the

‘imaginal’ realm. Active imagination is then regarded as a faculty of perception and

transmutation that allows the audience (of esoteric art) the potential to develop cosmological

and metaphysical insights, that aim at achieving the essential “…change of consciousness

…” (Versluis, 2004, p.15) sought by esoteric practitioners.

This idea of an essential re-enchantment of the individual consciousness has led both

the Surrealists and esotericism into a shared opposition against the hegemony of rationalism

and conventional approaches to knowledge. This shared rejection “…recalls the view of

Mircea Eliade, that the reduction of culture to something lower… is a neurotic attitude, a

failure to believe in higher meanings…” (Goodrich-Clarke, 2010, p11) Esoteric traditions

consider literary and artistic work as pivotal tools in the re-engagement with such higher

meanings, and in a manner that proved attractive to the socially motivated Surrealist art

movement. As we shall see, the shared goal of re-enchantment and the promise of a change

in consciousness led Surrealist artists to engage with esoteric traditions in an attempt to use

esoteric philosophy as inspiration for personal, artistic and social transformation. Such an

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examination allows for an awareness of the cultural circumstances that favour the emergence

of esotericism, its influence on philosophy, science, religion and art, whilst helping us to

define further the very nature of what is esoteric art.

SURREAL YET SO REAL…

Caught between European communism and Stalinist Soviet Union, Surrealism

emerged in early 1920’s Paris under an influence from the Decadent and Symbolist art

movements and directly out of the anti-war theatre and art of the preceding Dadaists of

Zurich. A revolutionary and modern movement, Surrealism used the manifesto to define itself

in its pursuit of a completely new symbolic language, one that aimed at encompassing the

whole of the human psychological field. “Surrealism aims quite simply at the total recovery of

our psychic force by a means which is nothing other than the dizzying descent into

ourselves.” (Breton, 1924, p.1) An interest in the work of Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) and

the content of dreams, for example, was a reaction to the domination of rationalism that led

Surrealist artists to produce works of disturbing power, engaging audiences still today with a

peculiar aesthetic effect that is both “… strange and frightening yet mysteriously compelling

and vital.” (Rabinovitch, 2003, p.3) The movement has therefore consistently refused to be

defined in terms of any particular aesthetic. Its emergence did not represent a new style or

form of culture but was instead an experimental mode of enquiry and an important “…re-

evaluation of the past, that existed as an attempt to explore obscure and neglected aspects

of human existence.” (Choucha, 2010, p.47)

In an effort to escape the restraints of both universal determinism and the social and

cultural predations of capitalism, the Surrealists often set out to menace and shock society

toward a change of perception. “They attempted to change consciousness, not by

proselytizing but by attacking existing criteria and evoking new dimensions of perception

and new means to express it.” (Choucha, 2010, p.10) The artists of the movement became

interested in subjects considered unacceptable to social norms, in the hope that the

expression of such forbidden modes of thought, dreams or desires would lead to wholeness.

Andre Breton (1896-1966), who had studied medicine and was posted to a psychiatric

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hospital during the war to treat shell-shocked soldiers, wrote in the ‘The First Surrealist

Manifesto” (1924) that surrealism was based on the belief in the superior reality of certain

forms of previously neglected associations, “…the omnipotence of dream, in the

disinterested play of thought, the resolution of dream and reality into a kind of absolute

reality and surreality” (Szulakowska, 2007, p.31). The distrust of the vision of the world

provided by the senses fuelled the Surrealist search for an inner resolution of the conflict of

opposites. As a result their artistic experiments attempted to dissolve the differences

between perception and representation between the signifier and the signified. “…There is,

in the surrealist quest, and has been since the start… a search for the absolute that aims at

restoring the lost unity… (Lepetit, 2014, p.24). It was indeed such concerns that led

Surrealism to engage with important works of esotericism.

ESOTERICALLY SPEAKING…

An influence and appreciation for esotericism is clear in the work of the main players

within the Surrealist movement. Artists such as Andre Breton, Victor Brauner, Max Ernst,

Salvador Dali, Leonora Carrington, and Antonin Artaud, all openly engaged with esoteric,

magical and occult philosophies as sources of inspiration. For example, the séance was seen

as a setting for displays of automatism, for expressions of the unconscious. Techniques of

collage, automatic drawing and the use of chance in composition were inspired by

spiritualism, psychical research and the esoteric currents of mesmerism, and used as a means

for arriving at the purely spontaneous. Such techniques were seen as a means of liberating

the creative unconscious and the creativity of the artist in order to achieve “the illuminated

artistic consciousness.” (Szulakowska, 2007, p.39) Breton himself had always appreciated the

allegorical and poetic potential of esoteric themes, seeing the occult as a genre of

transgression and as a site of radicalism and subversion, but it wasn’t until after World War II

that these ideas became more established within Surrealism.

“Surrealism in 1947 was in many ways a product of Breton’s last days of exile during World

War II and his hopes for the movements future, his continuing interests in mythology, the

occult and magic, and his embrace of a new political philosophy.” (Adams, 2007, p167)

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This development occurred some years after Breton himself had already called for “…

a profound, veritable occultation of Surrealism.” (Breton, 1929, p.2), and saw subjects such

as alchemy become important tools for the Surrealists in their revolutionary intention to

transmute the world into spiritual gold. The Occult Revival at the turn of the late 19th century,

that had sparked a renewed interest in esoteric arts, prompting scholarly and popular

publications, began to have a greater influence on the artists and writers of Breton’s

Surrealism. “The main source for Bretons occultist interests was the work of the French

magician Eliphas Levi (1819-1875) who was the major transmitter of alchemical and

kabbalistic ideas to 19th century Europe.” (Szulakowska, 2007, p.34)

Breton viewed the artistic process as comparable to the neurotic process, in which the

artist differed only from the neurotic by transmuting thwarted desires, that appear as

pathologies, into works of art. In this sense the artist became attributed with psychic healing

properties and alchemical abilities in their capacity to effect a transformation. The Surrealists

became magicians who sought to effect revolutionary change in the world through art and

they’re own personal transmutation. “By the early twentieth century this superhuman image

of the renaissance alchemist and magician had been transferred onto the

artist.” (Szulakowska, 2007, p.1) It was during this time that Breton also produced his work

‘Arcanum 17’, inspired by his interest in the tarot and the 17th Major Arcana, where “…the

concept of rebirth as seen in the tarot, the proposed myths, and the general themes of

Arcanum 17, relate[d] directly to the initiatory approach that would be undertaken in

Surrealism…” (Adams, 2007, p.175)

By the late 1940’s Breton had publicly declared his belief that esotericism “partially

unveils to man the mechanism of universal symbolism” at the 1947 Surrealist Exhibition

(Lepetit, 2014, p33) This uncovering of a universal symbolic language, alongside the

increasing appearance of alchemical or kabbalistic symbols in modern art, broke away from

centuries of esoteric tradition and represented the emergence of a new language of personal

spiritual liberation for both the authors and the audience of modern art. “The Surrealists

created a new epistemology that includes the symbolic transformation of experience in art

and religion…” (Rabinovitch, 2003, p.8-9). The works created by alchemists, for example,

and updated by the Surrealists became an integral part of the promotion of a spiritual

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enquiry that could exist outside of institutionalised religion. The Surrealists had now bought

what had previously been occult, secret or unknown to light. Inspired by esotericism, the

modern artists of the time assumed the responsibility for initiating not only themselves but

also their audience, in search of a complete social reformation of society. This possibility of

initiation, transformation and transcendence became offered by the art of the ‘new

magicians’ and was undoubtedly an inspiration for the work of Alejandro Jodorowsky. In his

film The Holy Mountain the director casts himself in the role of ‘The Alchemist’ assuming

responsibility for not only the enlightenment in the narrative of the central character, but also

for the potential enlightenment of his audience as well. Here we see an attempt to bring the

definitive process of initiation within esoteric art to the light of the cinema screen.

JODO-WHO-WSKY?

Born in Chile to Russian immigrants, Alejandro Jodorowsky travelled to Paris in 1953

to study mime with Marcel Marceau, where upon arrival he promptly telephoned Andre

Breton, at 3 o’clock in the morning, to announce himself “A young man of 24, and I’ve come

to revive Surrealism!” (King, 2007, p.67) The existence of such anecdotal evidence for the

seemingly ambiguous relationship between Jodorowsky and Surrealism, has unfortunately

left his film-work largely beyond critical appreciation. “The problematic of Jodorowsky’s work

in relation to Surrealism is something that runs through it from the beginning.” (Richardson,

2006, p.139) Having had only a relatively fleeting relation with some of the main players at

the tail end of the Surrealist movement (such as Dali whom he cast in his attempted

production of Dune (1974), and with Leonora Carrington whom he met and entered into a

brief, yet surreal relationship with, “To enter into the mind of such a women was as if I was

being immersed and baptised” (Jodorowsky, 2005, p.27), we are left with work that has

largely evaded academic analysis and critical definition. However a clear influence of the

esoteric concerns of the Surrealist movement certainly runs throughout his work, as some

writers have noted. “… the explicit surrealist films of Alejandro Jodorowsky, whose cinema

resorts to a combination of violent imagery and mysticism to offer a provocative view of

religion and of society.” (Stone, 2013, p.77) The work of not only Antonin Artaud’s ‘Theatre of

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Cruelty’ but also the Surrealist novelist Rene Daumal’s Mount Analogue (1952) were also of

huge influence to The Holy Mountain.

The film is essentially a quest, an effort on the part of the main character ‘The Thief’ to

transmit an enlightenment narrative, a journey through difficult rituals and initiations, that

seem intrinsically linked to Jodorowsky’s own personal quest for enlightenment. Characters

such as the ‘Written Woman’ appear with Hebrew and alchemical letters on her body. ‘The

Alchemist’, played by Jodorowsky himself, performs an alchemical ritual with ‘The Thief’ and

‘The Written Women’ in which he says “You are excrement. You can change yourself into

Gold.” (Jodorowsky, 1973) Whilst sitting in a room surrounded by paintings of the Tarot’s

Major Arcana we witness seven plaster cast characters come to life, “Thieves like you” whom

represent the seven classical planets of astrology - an effort to characterise and humanise the

planetary influence, reminding us of Botticelli’s Primavera and his efforts to do the same. “In

almost any scene hidden meanings can be deciphered and new and unexpected

constellations emerge from the mix of alchemical symbolism and pop psychedelia.” (Spann,

2014, p.63) The group of characters then plan to “conquer the wisdom of the immortals”

and assault the holy mountain. At the end of the journey the last immortal left, Jodorowsky’s

character ‘The Alchemist’, tells the camera to zoom back to reveal the film crew and

equipment at the foot of the mountain. “We are images, dreams, photographs. We shall

break the illusion. This is Maya. Goodbye to the holy mountain. Real life awaits

us.” (Jodorowsky, 1973) The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 1973 before

dropping from sight, becoming a cult midnight movie and later only available on bootleg

copies.

CONCLUSION AND ALL…

The narrative structure of The Holy Mountain, the search for the ‘secret of the

immortals’, the process of ceremony and initiation, an ascent, a healing, and the revelation of

lessons learnt on the quest represent an overtly esoteric narrative. The symbolism from

mythological, astrological, religious, historical and cinematic sources all combine in a manner

that, at the very least, evokes the spirit of the Surrealist engagement with the esoteric.

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“Jodorowsky’s work does still retain a Surrealist affinity in its exuberance, and in his trust of

the imagination…” (Richardson, 2006 p.142) Yet does the inclusion of such content define art

as strictly esoteric? As Jodorowsky himself suggests, his aim was to “Enlighten his audience!”

(Cobb, 2006, p.84) Yet is that intention enough? And does he succeed? How much of this

work is about the artist’s own personal process and how much is audience focused? This is an

attempt at a kind of popular spiritual enlightenment, bringing the esoteric out of the realms

of fine art and into folk art and performance.

This issue that the Surrealist/esoteric relationship faces is whether or not such

appropriation of esoteric content truly engages with its original intention or power. Is it

possible to qualify a successful transcendence in an artist or even an audience member?

When the Surrealists took esoteric symbolism from its traditional sources it immediately

became appropriated for an increasingly public consumption. How does this affect the

quality of such effort as Jodorowsky has made, to enlighten the audience? When does such

work cross over into escapism? “Artists who employ alchemical or other magical imagery

have often been castigated for their supposed escapism.” (Szulakowska, 2007, p.5) The

nature of the release into the public domain of The Holy Mountain, with it at first being

limited to only midnight movie status, then eventually being completely withheld by EMI,

certainly meant that this particular piece of work retained an element of secrecy, a clearly

definitive characteristic of traditional esoteric art. If it becomes necessary for the audience to

actively seek out such work, can that work then become considered truly esoteric? And of

course, is it even possible for film as a medium to provide us with such an experience?

Wilson (2006) would suggest that it can. “Film, seemingly a revolt against reality, is perhaps

the most spiritual of mediums.” (Wilson, 2006, p.24)

What we see with The Holy Mountain as well as Surrealism’s engagement with esoteric

subjects is a typically Surrealist contradiction that serves to both clarify and further question

the very characteristics of what is esoteric art. An important historical feature of the Surrealist

emergence is the social and cultural circumstances for the increased popularity of the

esoteric. “It is notable that esoteric ideas often attend the breakdown of settled religious

orthodoxies and socioeconomic orders.” (Goodrick-Clarke, 2008, p.13) In the quest for post

war re-enchantment of society, the Surrealists helped to uncover and redefine the nature of

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the sacred in human experience. As defined by Rudolf Otto (1869-1937) in The Idea of The

Holy (1923) the holy may be considered as composed of both “Daunting awfulness and

majesty”(Otto,1923, p89). Surrealist imagery and certainly the content of Jodorowsky’s The

Holy Mountain retain such a characteristic virtue. These images carry an immense amount of

contradiction, and are charged with a psychological tension of opposites that bring together

both the ordinary and the occult. Perhaps the Surrealist period may be viewed as a larger

self-initiation process, an effort by society to seek out the sacred from within.

The critical understanding of such a notion has received similar treatment to the

esoteric subjects it has appropriated. “Unfortunately the history of the avant garde’s

involvement with the esoteric tradition came to be deliberately obscured in the 1950’s and

1960’s by formalist art historians…” (Szulakowska, 2007, p.2) However, what we should take

from this analysis is certainly a rejection of the notion that the esoteric is simply irrational,

escapist and regressive or anti modern. Esoteric art is clearly driven by the concepts of

resistance, shining a light on the power of occult symbolism to disrupt and frighten its

audiences, whilst highlighting the relationship between such symbolism and the very

structures of power and knowledge.

“Esotericism… involves a return to sources, to some archetypal forms of thought and

energy which generate a fresh round of cultural and spiritual development. In this

regard, esotericism is an essential element of renewal in the historical

process.” (Goodrick-Clarke, 2008, p.14)

The heretical nature and impulse of esoteric art clearly reflects the 20th century notion

of disenchantment - a reaction to a civilisation that has lost its way and one that garnered a

new religious impulse in the Surrealists and the work of Alejandro Jodorowsky. If a piece of

art can successfully deliver such cultural and spiritual development, an archetypal return to

source, then it can surely be considered esoteric art.

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REFERENCES

Adams, E. (2007) After the Rain: Surrealism and the Post World War II Avant-Garde, 1940-1950 .

ProQuest: New York University.

Baudin, T. (2010) The Occultation of Surrealism: University of Amsterdam: PHD Dissertation.

Breton, A. (1924) The Surrealist Manifesto, Editions du Sagittaire

Breton, A. (1929) The Second Surrealist Manifesto, Editions du Sagittaire

Choucha, N. (2010) Surrealism and the Occult, Mandrake.

Cobb, B (2006) Anarchy and Alchemy : The Films of Alejandro Jodorowsky, London: Creation Books.

Faivre, A. (2010) Western Esotericism: A Concise History, Suny Press.

Goodrich-Clarke, N. (2008) The Western Esoteric Tradition, Oxford University Press.

Jodorowsky, A. The Holy Mountain, 1973.

Jodorowsky, A. (2005) The Spiritual Journey of Alejandro Jodorowsky, Rochester, VT: Park Press.

King, E. (2007) Dali, Surrealism and Cinema, Kamera Book.

Lepetit, P. (2014) Esoteric Secrets of Surrealism, InnerTraditions: Rochester, VT: Park Press.

Otto, R (1923) The Idea of the Holy, 2nd ed. (1958), Oxford University Press.

Rabinovitch, C. (2003) Surrealism and the Sacred : Power, Eros and the Occult. Boulder: Colorado.

Richardson, M. (2006) Surrealism and Cinema, Bloomsbury.

Spann, M (2014) The Holiest of Mountains, (in) Abraxas Special Issue 2: The Influence of the Esoteric

in Cinema, ed by Jack Sargeant, Winter 2014.

Stone, R. (2013) A Companion to Luis Bunuel, Wiley Blackwell.

Szulakowska, U, (2007). Alchemy in Contemporary Art, Ashgate Press.

Versluis, A. (2004) Restoring Paradise, Western Esotericism, Art and Consciousness, Suny Press.

Versluis, A. (2007) Magic and Mysticism, Rowan and Littlefeld

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Versluis, A. (2009) Esotericism, Art and Imagination: East Lansing: Michigan State Uni Press.

Warlick, M. E (2013) Max Ernst and Alchemy : A Magician in Search of Myth, University of Texas

Press.

Wilson, E. (2006 ) Secret Cinema: Gnostic Vision in Film, CI Publishing.

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