There is a good chance that you are already familiar with my guest on this episode. Sam Block, AKA @polyphanes, is the prolific genius behind the Digital Ambler, his blog covering a wide swath of esoteric and occult topics. Earlier this year, he took on the ambitious project of completing his own translation of the third book of the Corpus Hermeticum, the collection of classical philosophical texts that forms the core of Hermeticism.
We begin this episode with a discussion about the nature of the Corpus Hermeticum and the Hermetica in general, and then we get into Sam’s project. We talk about his inspiration, the challenges of the translation, and what he learned through the experience. We discuss stories of creation in the Hermetica, how we use Hermetic concepts in our practices, and how to learn this stuff.
This conversation ranges from the relaxed to the serious, from the frivolous to the deeply thoughtful. I am releasing it the week of Thanksgiving in the United States in the hopes that our conversation will add something special to everybody’s lazy holiday.
Links
- Sam’s translation and commentary on Corpus Hermeticum III
- The Digital Ambler
- @polyphanes on Twitter
- Sam’s Etsy shop
- Sam’s writing on the Heart Sutra
- Copenhaver’s Hermetica
- Salaman’s Way of Hermes
- My blog post about Corpus Hermeticum XIII
- Sam Block on Geomancy and the PGM (back on My Alchemical Bromance)
- Hermetic House of Life Discord
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