The Meaning of Gnosis, and Picasso's False Enlightenment

Before discussing Picasso, it's important to first explain the meaning of 'gnosis,' as it’s relevant to this post.

Gnosis is the Greek noun for knowledge; attaining gnosis is, essentially, experiencing an epiphany, a revelation about the nature of the micro and macrocosm. Of course, there are different epiphanies one can experience, as a monk may find when talking to a scholar. Above all, one must go beyond his animalistic impulses and material senses and apply his soul - his creativity - to reach the light.

Thinking of gnosis as an event is misguided; gnosis is a destination. The curious man is like an artist, and revelations are his paintings; he first must study and practice technique, and once properly trained, he can put his skills to practice. Over time, he will create many beautiful paintings, though likely many failures as well; and through dilligent and passionate work, he may even create a masterpiece.

One of my favorite paintings by John William Waterhouse, Ophelia. A wondrous painting is an epiphany materialized; it is a manifestation of gnosis.

The most prominent path to gnosis lies in uncovering the truth of our world through logic and reason, applied to accumulated arcane knowledge - knowledge itself born from the gnosis of earlier thinkers and passed down to those who followed. This process is similar to the method of the Greek philosophers of antiquity who went on to inspire Western, and to a lesser extent, Eastern thought to this day. If we apply a linear chain of thought to mankind's collective mind-spirit, from antiquity to the present-day, we will find that Christ was the magnum opus, the distilled truth and goodness, the answer of the paradoxes; and thus, conclude that we nowadays live in a Dark Age.

The journey to reach this state of enlightenment can be compared to the Hero's Journey - a template of myth that was studied and popularized by author Joseph Campbell (whose book The Hero With a Thousand Faces I strongly recommend).

Though his formula isn't perfect nor universal, it's a great baseline for understanding the concept of gnosis. A man must venture into the unknown, face difficult challenges - in this case, most likely, meet difficult questions whose answers are out of reach through the hero's unripened mode of thought -, go through a symbolic death - in practical terms, an ego death, as the hero realizes his own foolishness -, and, finally, shatter the illusions, the lies which he believed in, to reach the truth. Had the hero lacked humility, he would never attain elucidation, for he would never have admitted to have been wrong; thus, why pride is the deadliest sin - it is a darkness most starkly opposite to light.

“When I was a child my mother said to me, 'If you become a soldier, you'll be a general. If you become a monk, you'll be the pope.' Instead I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.”

Picasso is one of the most influential painters who ever lived. His work - and persona - serves as inspiration for a substantial portion of contemporary artists. I will now dissect and explain with precision the underlying logic of his work, as well as his train of thought.

Picasso is a man so perfectly emblematic of false enlightenment one could think he was a meticulously crafted fictional character.

False enlightenment comes in many forms. Among them, to know the truth and still lie; to know good and choose evil; to perceive order and seed chaos; to reach maturity but desperately crawl back to a long-lost infancy.

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.”

This famous quote by Picasso exemplifies a false epiphany. The still-pure Adam and Eve, the metaphorical first children, were in a constant state of joy; they were wholly free in the Garden of Eden, their perfect haven. It was only when they ate the Fruit of Knowledge of Good and Evil that they knew shame, sin and death. Thus, the saying: ignorance is bliss.

However, once a man reaches maturity, it is impossible for him to regress. Once a baby leaves the womb, it is impossible for him to return to it. It's also impossible to remain in the womb forever. Adam and Eve were destined to eat the fruit.

There is but one path to eternal life: to distill Good from Evil, Light from Darkness, and reach Paradise, the land of pure joy. A man must grow up and learn of good and evil; but in order to ascend, he must go against his insticts and choose only goodness; he must do only what is right, building a set of stairs - his own Jacob's Ladder - through his actions. If he falls prey to evil, he must repent. Only an infant can truly claim ignorance; a man may feign it for others, but never for himself.

Picasso lost himself in the first half of the equation, and his conceit prevented him from finishing the riddle.

“It takes a very long time to become young.”

He did not realize the truth behind the dualistic nature of this world. Instead of pursuing distillation, he basked in confusion.

“The world doesn't make sense, so why should I paint pictures that do?”

His work, then, is a rejection of truth and goodness; it is chaotic, it is foolish, it is prideful, it is evil.

“The chief enemy of creativity is good sense.”

There is another great lie of Picasso.

“It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.”

Picasso's self-portrait at the age of 15.

Picasso never managed to paint like Raphael.

Picasso's early works display a solid understanding of technique, but he did not produce even a single masterpiece. He only painted simple, unremarkable studies, self-portraits and less than a handful of more elaborate compositions that arguably can't be considered great like the works of the masters who not only perfected the art but also infused it with their own distinct identity.

If viewed in isolation, Picasso's early works could've, at best, been attributed to a successful but not particularly impressive artist of his time. They lack maturity, still; Picasso never mastered the art.

Science and Charity is, in my opinion, Picasso's greatest work. It is the only painting of his I consider great. But it stands alone - he would not paint like this again.

Perhaps Picasso was insecure of his capacity to stand out amongst his peers through sheer prowess and decided to go in the opposite direction in a desperate plea for attention; if such a speculative hypothesis is correct, at least one can't deny the success of his endeavour.

The visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon, by Sir Edward Poynter.

In his youth, Picasso was a contemporary of masters like Charles William Mitchell, Edward Robert Hughes, Evelyn de Morgan, George Frederic Watts, John William Waterhouse and Sir Edward Poynter. He lived in the shadows of giants, whose masterpieces move passionate artists to tears.

Picasso may have been talented, and lucky enough to have been blessed with the perfect conditions to blossom into a master, whose work manifests the sublime expression of the human soul; but he abandoned his pursuit of greatness and jumped into the pool of mud. He is like Lucifer, the fallen angel whose pride blinded him to the truth.

Picasso's last self-portrait.

“Everything you can imagine is real.”

This quote is particularly harrowing; Picasso was so close to the truth, and he understood the power of the human imagination, yet he still chose to forsake beauty, opting instead to twist men's bodies into demonic abominations, to subvert order into chaos.

Ironically enough, even his so-called child-like paintings are farsical. They do not look like the work of a child, pure of heart, immaculate of soul, at all. They are like a man who dresses himself as a little boy and sucks on a pacifier; an ugly, immoral pretender. Picasso's reputation is built upon a castle of lies.

Picasso's success can hardly be said to be the result of an organic change in the art world. Though I will not delve into this topic at the moment, there were great changes happening to Europe at the time of his career; and the so-called ''art system'' of today is the final result of the developments of that era. Subversive artists who created works devoid of beauty and culture were in high demand by the decadent elites; Picasso merely surfed on that wave, and was greatly rewarded for it. He became an icon of decadent art; of art that is egocentric, ugly and stupid, but is propped up by a highly corrupt system and thrives in the collective mind through inorganic reputation alone.

Clueless, pretentious midwits and fools worship him as a celebrity or an idol and pretend his work is great as to not be called benighted, or, in the case of those who are part of the art world, ostracized for going against the corrupt norm. It is like the scenario described in Hans Christian Andersen's tale of the Emperor's New Clothes.

To end this analysis, allow me to remind you of this quote:

“When I was a child my mother said to me, 'If you become a soldier, you'll be a general. If you become a monk, you'll be the pope.' Instead I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.”

The most obvious reading of the quote is that Picasso saw himself as the greatest of all artists, as the epitome of his class. Yet it also invites a more ironic interpretation: that he began as a prodigious talent and ended as a kind of artistic jester - a promising youth who, in the end, became a clown; who sold his soul and fell into the darkness.

And this is it for this article. Thank you for your continued support! The Complete Lore Guide to Dark Souls 2 will likely be uploaded early next week (my PC can't handle the project due to its length and complexity, which is why it is taking longer than expected :( ), and in the meantime I'm replaying Dark Souls 3 and making the final notes to begin writing the script for its complete lore guide, which will come at first as a series of videos.