Occult East Asia: Euro-American Perspectives - Paperback

by Lukas K. Pokorny (Volume Editor), Franz Winter (Volume Editor)

This book examines key actors and themes in the Euro-American esoteric reception history of East Asia. It traces how Western occultists and esotericists have engaged with East Asia, appropriating textual icons such as the Daodejing and Yijing, or figures such as Fuxi, Laozi, and Confucius into their perennialist cosmos. The resulting amalgam of globally negotiated tropes, or "Occult East Asia," has co-shaped the imagery and appreciation of East Asia in a range of discourses that extend far beyond alternative religious circles.

Author Biography

Lukas K. Pokorny is professor and chair of religious studies at the University of Vienna, Austria. Large parts of his current research focus on East Asian religions, millenarianism, new religious movements, esotericism, and religions in Austria.
Franz Winter is professor and chair of religious studies at the University of Graz, Austria. His research interests cover the history of religious and cultural contacts between Asia and Europe, Asian religious history, as well as religion and the media.