Now it has become fashionable to get involved in esotericism. Suddenly, this topic became close to a wide range of readers, from young students to housewives. However, before getting carried away with esotericism, it would be nice to know what should be understood by this term, and whether the knowledge offered by books and the Internet can be considered esoteric.
The word esoteric is derived from the Greek "esoterikos", which means "internal." The term appeared in the IV-III centuries BC and denoted secret knowledge, occult science, accessible only to initiates.
For many centuries, esotericism was the property of only a few select people. Teachings, books, philosophical treatises, practices of various orders were carefully hidden, it was not customary to talk about them. It was rather difficult to become one of the initiates, and many people were simply afraid of this - after all, the activities of the orders were shrouded in mystery, and often ominous rumors circulated about it, perhaps spread by the orders themselves in order to protect themselves from the curious.
Currently, the very concept of esotericism, and the attitude towards it, has changed. Now information about many esoteric teachings can simply be found on the Internet. However, according to the ancient definition, when the secret ceases to be such, it ceases to be esotericism - knowledge accessible only to a select few. Now, any teaching that has a spiritual aspect, leading to the development of both body and soul, has come to be called esotericism.
People are addicted to esotericism for various reasons. Some come for new sensations. When a person realizes that the everyday world becomes boring and uninteresting for him, that he is ready to step on a new stage of development, spiritual practices can help him. Seriously ill people can also get carried away by esotericism, in whose cases medicine is powerless to help. Thanks to the perfection of mind and body, some have actually managed to be cured. Those who, in this way, want to stand out from the crowd, gain some power over others, and amuse their pride, are also fond of esotericism.
Real esoteric knowledge should always be hidden from the crowd and available only to a select few. Nevertheless, we can cite as an example of esoteric teachings such well-known practices as qigong, yoga, the practice of lucid dreaming, bioenergetics and cosmoenergetics. In essence, they relate specifically to esotericism.