The Northern Magus

Briefly traces the life of the eighteenth century German philosopher, discusses his major ideas, and looks at the relevance of his work today

Theo’s Fight to Be a Kafna Theo has passed the exam to become a kafna and has begun his apprenticeship in the great library of Aftzaak. Kind and talented, Theo is friendly to everyone. Yet, one of his classmates, Aya Guunjoh, regards him as her enemy, for reasons unbeknownst to all but her. Will Theo’s love of books and innate genius be enough for him to overcome this challenge?

Theo has completed the first part of the grueling exam to become a kafna, but he’s not in the clear yet–there are two more trials he must face. Even if he makes it through the second test, an intense face-to-face oral examination, the last challenge is a practical demonstration of his abilities as a librarian. Theo has been studying his whole life for this moment, but there’s one kind of test that no amount of studying could have prepared him for: a group project.

Canada and the Idea of North examines the ways in which Canadians have defined themselves as a northern people in their literature, art, music, drama, history, geography, politics, and popular culture. From the Franklin Mystery to the comic book superheroine Nelvana, Glenn Gould's documentaries, the paintings of Lawren Harris, and Molson beer ads, the idea of the north has been central to the Canadian imagination. Sherrill Grace argues that Canadians have always used ideas of Canada-as-North to promote a distinct national identity and national unity. In a penultimate chapter - "The North Writes Back" - Grace presents newly emerging northern voices and shows how they view the long tradition of representing the North by southern activists, artists, and scholars. With the recent creation of Nunavut, increasing concern about northern ecosystems and social challenges, and renewed attention to Canada's role as a circumpolar nation, Canada and the Idea of North shows that nordicity still plays an urgent and central role in Canada at the start of the twenty-first century.

Beginning in 1924, Proceedings are incorporated into the Apr. no.

The Sides of the North is dedicated to Yona Pinson’s extensive scholarly work on Northern Renaissance art, from Hieronymus Bosch’s and Peter Breughel’s oeuvre, through lessons of morality, the Fool’s imagery, gender problems in the representation of the “femme fatale” bourgeois seductress, to emblem studies, and up to her most recent project on “Mirror, Moralization and Irony” in Bosch’s painting. In tribute to her research, this volume offers new insights into her fields of interest from a number of leading scholars in these disciplines. Larry Silver reconstructs a recently found Adoration of the Magi Triptych by Bosch, while Mara R. Wade, Michael J. Giordano and Kathryn M. Rudy discuss aspects of self-fashioning through portraiture, emblem books, and manuscripts and their spiritual and performative qualities. Nurith Kenaan-Kedar and Liad Rinot delve into problems of marginality in Gothic sculpture, as well as in Robert Campain’s and Jan van Eyck’s paintings. Ingrid Alexander-Skipnes, Ruth Strauss and Juliette Roding explore the topic of artistic identities and intentionalism, and political ideologies in various media, such as in small-scale sculptures and paintings. Just as Yona Pinson’s research diversified from iconographical studies to post-modern reflections on such issues as marginality and folly, this anthology presents a broad spectrum not only of the diverse topics, genres, and media of Northern Renaissance art, but also, and particularly, an overview of the methodological range of art scholarship of recent decades, thus offering readers insights into the intricate sides of contemporary Netherlandish visual culture.

• Examines the significant figures and groups of Finland’s occult world, including their esoteric practices and the secret societies to which they were connected • Investigates the relationship of nationalism and esotericism in Finland as well as the history of Finnish parapsychology and the Finnish UFO craze • Looks at the unique evolution of Freemasonry in Finland, showing how, when Finland was still part of Russia and the Masonic order was banned, adherents created a number of other secret societies Finland has long been viewed as the land of sorcerers and shamans. Exploring the rich history of Finnish occultism, Perttu Häkkinen and Vesa Iitti examine the significant figures and groups of Finland’s occult world from the late 19th century to the present day. They begin with Pekka Ervast, known as the Rudolf Steiner of the North, who was a major figure in Theosophy before starting a Rosicrucian group called Ruusu-Risti, and they look at the Finnish disciples of G. I. Gurdjieff and the grim case of the cult of Tattarisuo. Investigating the relationship of nationalism and esotericism in Finland, the authors tell the stories of Sigurd Wettenhovi-Aspa, who thought that Finns were the root of all Western civilization, and of Yrjö von Grönhagen, who became a close friend of Heinrich Himmler and Karl Maria Wiligut. They also explore the history of Finnish parapsychology, the Finnish UFO craze, and the unique evolution of Freemasonry in Finland, showing how, when the Masonic order was banned, adherents created a number of other secret societies, such as the Carpenter’s Order, the Hypotenuse Order, and the Brotherhood of February 17--which later became hubs for the OTO and AMORC. Unveiling both the light and dark sides of modern esotericism in Finland, the authors show how, because of its unique position as partially European and partially Russian, Finland’s occult influence extends into the very heart of left-hand and right-hand occult groups and secret societies around the world.