Abstract
The aim of the article is to show the mystic and esoteric doctrines that possibly influenced Andrzej Towiański’s thought. After an introductory analysis of the cultural environment of Vilnius, where Towiański was educated, the study moves through a comparative analysis of thinkers, doctrines, and his own religious thought. Fundamental concepts in Towiański’s thought are: transmigration of souls; free-will of man in relation to the destiny of his soul and of his community; inner illumination as the only path to knowledge and truth; and the preparation for the arrival of a new epoch. The specific subjects of the comparison in this article are: the Kabbalistic teachings on metempsychosis; the writings of the Swedish mystic Emanuel Swedenborg; the thought of the French philosopher Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin; the visions of the Westphalian seer Anna Katharina Emmerick; and the Judeo-Christian millenarianism. Although several affinities are demonstrated, the influences which allowed Towiański to elaborate his doctrine cannot be fully confirmed or limited to the authors analyzed. The way Towiański was initiated into these esoteric teachings still awaits scholarly investigation.
