Secrets of the Hagia Sophia with Peter Mark Adams

Welcome to Occult of Personality: esoteric podcast extraordinaire. Now, in episode number 222, we have another very special interview for you! You love his books, and he always educates and entertains us beyond all expectations—the one and only, Peter Mark Adams returns to the podcast to discuss his most recent masterpiece—Hagia Sophia, Sanctum of Kronos: Spiritual Dissent in an Age of Tyranny! You can find Peter online at https://petermarkadams.com/.

"Peter Mark Adams is an author, poet, and essayist who specializes in the ethnography and visuality of ritual, sacred landscape, esotericism, consciousness, and healing. His latest book, Hagia Sophia, Sanctum of Kronos: Spiritual Dissent in an Age of Tyranny (https://scarletimprint.com/publications/p/hagia-sophia-sanctum-of-kronos), is a study of the sacred architecture of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, which dates back to the sixth century. Adams examines the sacred traditions encoded within the structure, from the ancient Rites of Eleusis to the school of Alexandria and offers a fresh and penetrating perspective on how architectural details and history can be read and understood. The book traces a journey across the Hellenistic world as its classical culture teeters on the brink of extinction at the hands of religious zealots."

Once again, from start to finish, this interview is LIT! Peter Mark Adams demonstrates over and over through the conversation how his mastery of his subject is all-encompassing. From Adams’s work, we can now more fully understand the significance of this holy structure and how its history and the context of spirituality which it embodies is sublime and majestic. Through understanding and appreciating human achievement in service of devotion, we participate to some degree in its intention and purpose as well. Peter Mark Adams is one of our favorite guests and this interview demonstrates why. I cannot recommend Hagia Sophia, Sanctum of Kronos highly enough! If you appreciate the most original and important esoteric scholarship available today, then you’re already a fan of his work. If not, you really should be.

I know this intro is long enough already and I don’t mean to delay you from hearing the actual interview, but I need to take one moment here to recognize the great fortune we have to read and learn what it is that Peter Mark Adams has uncovered for us, yet again. In a superlative third book, Adams has shown us a level of research, insight, and ability to understand ancient religion and spirituality that is perhaps unmatched. It is a true blessing to share in the fruits of his labors and we celebrate his work!

Occult of Personality podcast is made possible by you, the listeners, and by the subscribers to chamberofreflection.com, our membership website who aids us in the cause of informed, authentic, and accessible interviews about western esotericism. Thank you again! Because of your support, we’re able to bring you recordings of this caliber and many more to come.

The intro music is “Awakening” by Paul Avgerinos (http://magnatune.com/artists/albums/avgerinos-gnosis?song=3) and the outro music is “Knight of the Brazen Serpent” by Equinox (our own Billy Hepper!) (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuq3yYmrLGdtk-J_2ol23hA).

In the Chamber of Reflection and at our Patreon, Billy and I continue the interview with Peter Mark Adams including the contrast of the aesthetics of the Hagia Sophia with other Christian churches, the spiritual and metaphysical significance of light and sound, the adaptation of pagan deity names and words of power into Byzantine Christian liturgy, and much, much more! Join us for that compelling conversation.

I’d like to remind you that although you’re able to listen to this podcast at no charge, it costs time and money to create. We ask you to support our efforts and the creation of future podcasts by joining the membership section at https://chamberofreflection.com or subscribing via Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/occultofpersonality. As always, if you’re already supporting the show or have done so in the past—my heartfelt thanks and I salute you! Please remember, we are in the midst of our Meditations on the Tarot Study Circle that is open to all Chamber of Reflection paid members. In June, we’re meeting to discuss Temperance and you should join us!

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