Mr. M. Alan Kazlev has given us permission to post some items of discussion regarding theosophies and related movements.

Here is what we are allowed to reprint, to this point:

i distinguish between esoteric/theosophy/gnosis andexoteric, and also between integral/new age/"noospheric" (to use apop-cultural adaptation of the term)/"open source" and "oldparadigm"/exclusivist/literalist/authoritarian.  (in each of the fourthese are clusters of overlapping terms, not necessarily synonymous, but morelike Wittgenstein's family relationship theme http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_resemblance). So these can constitute a grid (putting things simplistically)

(not sure if the formatting will come out; i've attachedan ascii file as well in case it doesn't)

              |    "literalist"      |   "integral"

-----------+--------------------+---------------------

esoteric  |    "old style"     |  Theon, HPB,

              |    esotericism   |  Mirra, Aurobindo, etc 

-----------+--------------------+-----------------------

exoteric  |  Institutional      |  Vernadsky, Teilhard,

              |religion, secular |  Jantsch, Laszlo,

              |philosophy,        |  Fritjof Capra,

              |scientism           |  Wilber, etc

------------------------------------------------------------

 i like Martin's distinction of microcosmic andmacrocosmic theosophy (assuming here theosophy = esoteric(ism)).  I wouldadd to this the distinction between theory and practice (again allowing for thefact that there are no hard and fast distinctions, these are all fuzzycategories) .  So, for example, study of the aura, subtle body, yogapsychology, etc etc are microcosmic theory, whereas the "cosmicengineering" of Lurianic Kabbalah (tikkun olam - repair of the world),Theon (glorified body), Aurobindo & Mirra (supramentalisation) constitute atradition of practical macrocosmic theosophy/esotericism

does anyone here have the references for Ammonius Saccas,Plotinus, Boehme, and any other pre-Blavatsky use of theosophy in a non-sectariancontext?  I'd like to mention this in my esotericism book.  In someways theosophy (small "t") is a superior term to"esotericism", it is just the "brand name" association thatgets in the way.  The same with "New Age" which has become socheapened and commercialised that David Spangler, one of the founders of themovement, wants nothing to do with it.