As I began my journey into the world of Gnosticism, it quickly became apparent that there was sooooo much I didn’t know or understand.  I realized that there were some EXTREMELY learned people in Gnostic communities and I, almost immediately, was intimidated and went into ‘lurk mode’.

I decided that until I felt I had learned enough to participate in the community and in conversations I would simply sit back, watch and learn.  As time went on, it became clear that the more I learned, the more I realized I still needed to learn.  I found myself getting lost in the historical aspects of gnostic texts, their relation to ancient society, their influences on the people and on contemporary religion. (I am an anthropology/archaeology student so I suppose you can’t blame me for wanting to learn about these aspects)  With Gnosticism, though, even a lifetime’s worth of study would still leave one with speculation, hypotheses and unanswered questions.
After months of study, I realized the meaning of the texts — their true essence, had eluded me.  Don’t get me wrong.  I got the basics; understanding what gnosis is, the Wisdom that is Sophia, the Pleroma, The Spark of the Divine, the Demiurge, but, I was so busy with the scholarship aspect of it, I completed neglected the spiritual side of it all….the REAL reason I had decided to start on this path in the first place.

Once I realized this, I dissected my situation a little more and came to the conclusion that I had felt that if I didn’t understand Gnosticism the way all those other learned and highly respected Gnostics did, I couldn’t be a ‘Good Gnostic’….I even questioned if I was, indeed, a Gnostic at all.
Needless to say I’ve gotten past the above.  I do feel that I am not alone here, and I post this so that others can learn from my mistakes and save themselves some time and frustration.

Beyond that, I hope to contribute some practical ways of relating to the Gnostic texts here to a:  keep myself in check, and b:  share with others some realistic and practical ways of nurturing and expressing gnosis.

Remember, it’s not how much you ‘know’, it’s what you ‘Gnosis’.